The rest of the country is sending a message...

[zipp]

The LPT basketball rivalry isn't that important. This is heresy for a few of you guys who annually measure yourself by that game.

I recall living in Georgia 20-25 years ago and shaking my head watching the Dogs and Jackets play their annual basketball game on a December weeknight. The game wasn't sold out or even televised. Before anyone says "those are football schools", rewind the tape back to those years. Tech had a pretty strong basketball program during the Bobby Cremins years.

Now, they are us. A weeknight December basketball game in our great commonwealth is mostly irrelevant to everyone outside of the Kentucky area codes. The TV networks are telling you that if you can hear what they're saying. And U of L is increasingly a national sports program. That's why Jurich wants all of our games in all sports to have the most exposure possible, to be played on the best platform available (the ACC). We're not in the ACC because of the LPT basketball game.

You're not little brother anymore unless you wanna be. That's a choice, and it centers on how you feel about this basketball game.

SORRY FOR THE SLAPD!CK LINK

 

[nccardfan]

Why do you obsess about trying to make your point? So we know YOU don't think it is important that's fine. But the 20000+ who sell buy tickets and sell out the game each and every year say differently. I would love to watch the game this year in the lower level at yum but since I am not a season ticket holder I might be subject to a ticket price several hundreds more than its original price. How many ticket holders are giving their seats up because they're keeping UK on the schedule?

 

[zipp]

It's not about you, me, or 20 thousand other people who fill an arena once a year. It's about the 300+ million people who have access to your game--or used to--and watch a reality TV show instead.

Speaking of which, we could try a different approach... Stage a reality TV show about U of L and LPT fans sweating the outcome of the game. The actual game could be playing in the background. How crazy would that fan behavior be? Now THAT would interest the networks...

 

[OneEarWonder]

It's not about you, me, or 20 thousand other people who fill an arena once a year. It's about the 300+ million people who have access to your game--or used to--and watch a reality TV show instead.

Speaking of which, we could try a different approach... Stage a reality TV show about U of L and LPT fans sweating the outcome of the game. The actual game could be playing in the background. How crazy would that fan behavior be? Now THAT would interest the networks...

You could make a whole series. Have fan challenges, taunting, even place a couple of trolls or moles in the other fan base. And lots of beer... maybe Falls City and West 6 sponsorships. Should be some good throw downs...

 

[CardsFirst]

Heck the national sports talking heads don't even believe SuCk and us are the best BB rival. To a person they say it's Duke and UNC. Having lived in both states I don't agree, but the media pushes that. So at the end of the day it's important to we the two fan basis. Also, BB just isn't as popular as FB at the moment. So Zipp is on the money. Whether we agree isn't really important fact support that.

 

[JohnKBA]

The nation cares about 2 college sports - football, and basketball for 3 weeks. I think zipp is right on the money.

 

[nccardfan]

Heck the national sports talking heads don't even believe SuCk and us are the best BB rival. To a person they say it's Duke and UNC. Having lived in both states I don't agree, but the media pushes that. So at the end of the day it's important to we the two fan basis. Also, BB just isn't as popular as FB at the moment. So Zipp is on the money. Whether we agree isn't really important fact support that.

Yep, easy enough to discount a rivalry especially if you're not holding up your end of the bargain. Duke and UNC are the best rivalry right now because when they play there is usually the ACC title on the line or who gets to play closer to home. Bragging rights in NC are short lived because who loses one time wins the next time and so on. Our rivalry has been one sided in BB but just the opposite in football

 

[zipp]

Yep, easy enough to discount a rivalry especially if you're not holding up your end of the bargain...

Bogus cause and effect. I'd say the same thing if we won the last five games.

Ask me if I'm OK cancelling the football series. There probably aren't many people watching it either (but maybe more than the basketball game). The two conferences simply want the football game played. Even they don't give a rat's a$$ about the basketball game...

 

[Knucklehank1]

The reality is that in that time of the year a horrible bowl matchup will generate higher TV ratings than the best bball matchup. And yet people wonder why there are so many bowls.

 

[Cue Card]

I really don't care what day the game between UofL and UofK is played as long as they play it. It might not matter to 300+ million people in this country, but it matters to me. I want a win against the evil empire. This year is the year. I hope.

 

[nccardfan]

A little off base but a good example of what this rivalry means. I have been to a few baseball games, they're free. Early in the season, maybe 300 fans. There's only 1 game on the schedule that you have pay for. No it's not UNC, Clemson or any other ACC team. It's UK. Over 4000 in attendance, standing room only, $8 a ticket. Yeah quite a few slapdicks there too but it wasn't like UK was top 5 team, simply wanting to beat the dark side.

 

[zgrasshopper]

I like that the game is prior to Christmas. This gives me many more Christmas vacation options.
Since we would not go to Rupp ever again for THE game. Often in the past, we have had do delay our time in Florida on the years its played in the Yum. There is not much point in making the donations and buying the season tickets if we were going to miss the sUcK vs U of L game.

 

[Ipartiedwithhopgood]

The nation cares about 2 college sports - football, and basketball for 3 weeks. I think zipp is right on the money.

I agree. This board is littered with die hards but the reality is the sport doesn't really move the needle until March.

There are probably too many games. As fans we like it, but really, they could move the start of the season back and eliminate half the games and have a more intriguing sport to monitor. I know, I know, bills to pay.

Why watch basketball in December when there's still like, 25 more games for each team to play?

 

[zipp]

I'm generally not of the mentality to subscribe to what the average American wants. All that does is make you like the average American...

BUT we are often too close to our own situations to see things objectively. In this case, the LPT "rivalry". The TV networks are sending a clear message--this rivalry doesn't matter. And they're always just out to make a buck, so they're saying it has little tangible value nationally.

As most of you know, I'm a proponent of reevaluating these LPT games in all of the sports going forward. Old-timers hang onto the rivalry mindset, and there's little actual gain in most of these games from our perspective. Now, we have someone like ESPN telling us the same thing...

 

[JohnKBA]

I agree. This board is littered with die hards but the reality is the sport doesn't really move the needle until March.

There are probably too many games. As fans we like it, but really, they could move the start of the season back and eliminate half the games and have a more intriguing sport to monitor. I know, I know, bills to pay.

Why watch basketball in December when there's still like, 25 more games for each team to play?

I'm the biggest sports fan I know, I will watch almost any men's sport on TV - I watch sports every single night probably, golf all day on the weekends (sometimes have to DVR,) NASCAR, hockey, the list goes on and on. And I watch a lot of non UK college basketball games too. But even the most die hard UK fan friends of mine hardly ever watch anything but UK basketball and football and NFL football. I think that's the prevailing attitude as you point out above, hopgood - games pull decent ratings in the hotbeds, but nationally it's hardly on the radar. Hell, the MLB all star game got a better rating than this year's final four, and it was the lowest rated all star game in a while. I really think the apex of college basketball's popularity in a given year is the first 4 days of the tourney. After than, it starts to peter out again.

 

[LockdownCard]

If we could somehow win a game against them these type of threads wouldn't even be created. As a lifelong Louisville fan I love this game and I could never downplay it's significance because we've been on the losing end since Cal has been at UK.

Last year was our best chance to squeak out a win against them because it's not happening this year and with the way our recruiting is going with the addition of penalty's we face,I don't see us beating them anytime in the near future.

 

[nccardfan]

Ok zipp. Let's say we drop UK from the schedule. Tell me what team we would schedule in place of them that is going to draw any more TV or interest. We already play Duke and Carolina. Indiana? Already trying to add them. Kansas? There's no history there. Before you suggest anybody else, they're simply not on the same year in year out consistent level that UK is whether you want to admit it or not. So while you think the game is not important, there is no other game that can be as or more important so why replace them? Why not get rid of eastern Michigan or Delaware state?

 

[ThroughBlue]

I really don't care what day the game between UofL and UofK is played as long as they play it. It might not matter to 300+ million people in this country, but it matters to me. I want a win against the evil empire. This year is the year. I hope.

Very well said. The game will always matter to me as well. I don't care how bad you guys beat us in football I get pumped every year. It's a great rivalry.

 

[earsky]

Moe,moe,moe.Your reasoning couldn't be more conspicuous if you tried.

The game is no where as competitive since Cal has arrived at UK,

You mean that Cal has had the upper hand.I'll give you that,but to say the games have not been competitive is well...stupid.

 

[rockfly]

Zipp why do you constantly insist that the game doesn't matter? It matters or you wouldn't be posting about it in May. I'm sure U of L will line up right behind you to replace the biggest marquee opponent on their schedule.

 

[Mike'sMarbles]

It's not UofL/UK that's broken, it's the sport. It's on the decline across the board.

The game with UK serves a purpose for our program. Even if Calipari doesn't have all the NBA D-League guys playing at their best, we're still going up against an NBA team. It's quite a test. It's a great way to find your weaknesses and have the whole rest of the season to work on them.

Also, because of all the talent, we know UK is never going to have a really weak, pushover team. Compare that to the rest of the schools. Except for a handful, everyone else is up or down on a given year - you can't count on them. We could schedule 3 OOC games against teams that are supposed to be good and none of them might pan out. That tends to happen to UK with their OOC, minus us.

Also, we get UK's best game every year, because we're often one of the best programs on their schedule. Another factor that toughens us up for March.

And let's be honest here -- most years, the rest of our OOC schedule is "meh". I understand the reasons for this, but one of my fears about dropping UK is that our admin is likely to convert that slot into another money game rather than schedule a compelling matchup.

I just don't see how we're better off dropping the UK game. It helps prepare us for the NCAA Tournament, which is all that really matters in this sport.

 

[Rollem Cards]

****It's not UofL/UK that's broken, it's the sport. It's on the decline across the board. *****

This^^^^

I know my interest has been on the decline ever since the introduction of one-and-done.

I watched zero BB except for UL this year until the NCAA.

As much as I want to beat uk in BB, I don't expect it, or worry about it. What good does it do? Rick says he isn't worried...and everybody says Rick is the best....so this is how it's going to be.

In reality we should lose to a team of NBA players.

 

[PervisTheGreat]

I realize that we do derive some benefit from playing UK , and many of our fans really enjoy the game, I truly wish we would treat them like the dog isht that they are. Scrape them off the bottom of our shoes and move on. Disassociate ourselves from them and never have to listen to their inane babbling again.

 

[Cue Card]

I realize that we do derive some benefit from playing UK , and many of our fans really enjoy the game, I truly wish we would treat them like the dog isht that they are. Scrape them off the bottom of our shoes and move on. Disassociate ourselves from them and never have to listen to their inane babbling again.

I respectfully disagree. We would still have to listen or put ear plugs in our ears because they would still be talking like elitists.


Before the first and ONLY dream game in 1983, the superiority complex with their noses scraping off the ceiling was nauseating to deal with. Now at least when the Cards do win, it shuts them up even if it's only for a short amount of time. If this series ever goes away, that complex comes back tenfold.

 

[moe#8]

Moe,moe,moe.Your reasoning couldn't be more conspicuous if you tried.

You mean that Cal has had the upper hand.I'll give you that,but to say the games have not been competitive is well...stupid.

key word "as"

 

[Ipartiedwithhopgood]

Zipp no offense but you're on a "rivals" website saying you don't want a "rival" anymore.

That's just funny to me.

Creating a thread saying you don't want them on our schedule anymore because we don't "need" them on the schedule reminds me of some of their goofy fans that try to claim Tenn as their rival in threads about Louisville. No, we don't need them on the schedule. We don't need any program on the schedule.

Their program wins at a high level there's no reason to ever walk away from a game against any program that wins at a high level. If a trend of unsportsmanlike conduct is created then it would be a worthy discussion. But that's not what's happening.

The game ain't going away, so why waste your time hoping it does?

Nobody is watching any college basketball in December/January - the game day shift has nothing to do with the rivalry directly it has everything to do with a watered down product that millions don't give a %#@% about at that time of the year.

 

[LockdownCard]

Maybe if our coach and team would finally get some balls when we play them,us card fans wouldnt have threads like this.

 

[bthaunert]

****It's not UofL/UK that's broken, it's the sport. It's on the decline across the board. *****

This^^^^

I know my interest has been on the decline ever since the introduction of one-and-done.

I watched zero BB except for UL this year until the NCAA.

As a UK fan, I agree with you here (obviously substitute UK for UL in who I watch). I don't think UK-UL moving to a weeknight shows anything. The biggest rivalry in college basketball on a national scale, Duke and UNC, play on weeknight every year.

 

[rockfly]

As a UK fan, I agree with you here (obviously substitute UK for UL in who I watch). I don't think UK-UL moving to a weeknight shows anything. The biggest rivalry in college basketball on a national scale, Duke and UNC, play on weeknight every year.

This is a great point. Furthermore, the new gametime may Insure that our game will be the biggest sporting event of that week. Most cbb teams will have already went home for the holidays and there isn't much else going on that week in sports including bowl games.

 

[ThroughBlue]

Creating a thread saying you don't want them on our schedule anymore because we don't "need" them on the schedule reminds me of some of their goofy fans that try to claim Tenn as their rival in threads about Louisville. No, we don't need them on the schedule. We don't need any program on the schedule. .

To be fair, while I see Louisville as more of a rival than Tennessee, I certainly hold more dislike for the Vols than I even think about having for Louisville. That extends to more than just college basketball. That's all things Tennessee. The Titans, Grizzlies, Vandy, Belmont, rocky top.

I live on the Tennessee line and I have to deal with those people.

The same can probably be said about Indiana and the North Carolina schools too.

 

[nccardfan]

To be fair, while I see Louisville as more of a rival than Tennessee, I certainly hold more dislike for the Vols than I even think about having for Louisville. That extends to more than just college basketball. That's all things Tennessee. The Titans, Grizzlies, Vandy, Belmont, rocky top.

I live on the Tennessee line and I have to deal with those people.

The same can probably be said about Indiana and the North Carolina schools too.

So you are one of those UK fans that hated John calipari, right? While he was at Memfis, Tennessee?

 

[Ipartiedwithhopgood]

I concede some fans close to the border hate on Tenn. But when avg joe poster jumps into UofL threads or logs into the UofL site trying to convince readers they care more about Tenn than UofL I laugh.

 

[Steelers2012]

I concede some fans close to the border hate on Tenn. But when avg joe poster jumps into UofL threads or logs into the UofL site trying to convince readers they care more about Tenn than UofL I laugh.

I'm sure you've seen the dude (BigBlueCatNation, I think) on the FOOTBALL main board who claims UofL is just another directional school in Kentucky and Tennessee is UK's REAL rival. Cracks me up every time he says that on the football board, because a UofL or UT fan always reminds him of UK's record vs Tennessee, and how silly his claim is.

 

[Ipartiedwithhopgood]

I'm sure you've seen the dude (BigBlueCatNation, I think) on the FOOTBALL main board who claims UofL is just another directional school in Kentucky and Tennessee is UK's REAL rival. Cracks me up every time he says that on the football board, because a UofL or UT fan always reminds him of UK's record vs Tennessee, and how silly his claim is.

Obviously he's just simply trying to insult UofL even more by repeating the same garbage over and over and over and over and over and over. It's flattering that a guy would recite the same rhetoric over and over. UofL is truly in his head rent free.

If he truly felt the way he felt, he would not express himself ever about Louisville, much less as regularly as he does. You notice we never post much about WKU and EKU? We feel about those programs the way he claims to feel about UofL.

 

[zipp]

If we could somehow win a game against them these type of threads wouldn't even be created. As a lifelong Louisville fan I love this game and I could never downplay it's significance because we've been on the losing end since Cal has been at UK...

Lock, this mindset is a big piece of the puzzle. The game is worth less while guys like you agonize over a loss. Those are asymmetric outcomes: you lose more than you win.

What will make threads like this disappear is when guys like you quit whining about the game. Then it will be just another win or loss...

 

[zipp]

Ok zipp. Let's say we drop UK from the schedule. Tell me what team we would schedule in place of them that is going to draw any more TV or interest. We already play Duke and Carolina. Indiana? Already trying to add them. Kansas? There's no history there. Before you suggest anybody else, they're simply not on the same year in year out consistent level that UK is whether you want to admit it or not. So while you think the game is not important, there is no other game that can be as or more important so why replace them? Why not get rid of eastern Michigan or Delaware state?

Let the networks decide. If they wanna put you in a primetime slot, play whoever they want you to play. Right now, they're moving this game right off the schedule--it obviously has little or no national appeal.

And if there isn't a replacement, schedule another home game every other year. This arena needs the money, and U of L wont turn it down. That's why directional schools are already on the schedule...

 

[zipp]

Zipp why do you constantly insist that the game doesn't matter? It matters or you wouldn't be posting about it in May. I'm sure U of L will line up right behind you to replace the biggest marquee opponent on their schedule.

I'm posting about it because ESPN has mostly thrown this series in the dumpster, and that decision has just been announced.

It matters greatly to LPT fans and to U of L fans stuck in the past who can't get beyond King Basketball. And there really isn't much to a rivalry with LPT beyond basketball. You guys don't care about other sports.

"Elite program", my a$$...

 

[zipp]

Zipp no offense but you're on a "rivals" website saying you don't want a "rival" anymore.

That's just funny to me.

Creating a thread saying you don't want them on our schedule anymore because we don't "need" them on the schedule reminds me of some of their goofy fans that try to claim Tenn as their rival in threads about Louisville. No, we don't need them on the schedule. We don't need any program on the schedule.

Their program wins at a high level there's no reason to ever walk away from a game against any program that wins at a high level. If a trend of unsportsmanlike conduct is created then it would be a worthy discussion. But that's not what's happening.

The game ain't going away, so why waste your time hoping it does?

Nobody is watching any college basketball in December/January - the game day shift has nothing to do with the rivalry directly it has everything to do with a watered down product that millions don't give a %#@% about at that time of the year.

This is a U of L basketball forum--that's why the thread is here.

You do need about 20 games on the basketball schedule. Those are the ACC games. Every other game should be scrutinized and rationalized. And if it isn't a net gain or at least a breakeven proposition for us, it should be dropped. I'm not talking about wins and losses.

The nation is telling us the game isn't that important. I don't expect LPT fans to ever comprehend that. But our perspective is much greater: national and across multiple sports. One game that means a lot to basketball fans in one little state has probably run its course.

And don't think for a minute that Jurich is afraid to tread on sacred ground. He understands money and the big picture, and every decision he makes is consistent with that...

 

[zipp]

By the way, the prevailing attitude among U of L coaches is that the LPT game in their respective sports is a distraction. To me, that means that the win is not worth what it costs their team.

Petrino is an exception. But he coaches in a sport where every game on the schedule is huge. When there are forty or fifty games to play, you can't get jacked sky high for one game unless your schedule mostly sucks except for that game, e.g., SEC basketball and their U of L Super Bowl.

The fans will be the last to convert...

 

[Senore2006]

I'm posting about it because ESPN has mostly thrown this series in the dumpster, and that decision has just been announced.

It matters greatly to LPT fans and to U of L fans stuck in the past who can't get beyond King Basketball. And there really isn't much to a rivalry with LPT beyond basketball. You guys don't care about other sports.

"Elite program", my a$$...

Could not agree more. Ever since we beheld the tenor and sadass trailer park quality of the venom spewing from that audience at Rupp during the unbelievable results of the crazy exchange between Cousins and Swopshire, I have advocated dropping the entire series except for perhaps once every 3-5 years.

You lie with dogs, you get fleas. I am utterly satisfied with watching UofL baseball beat Wake Forest to cement our second baseball championship in as many years in the best conference in America, featuring a nationally ranked baseball team with at least 2 and maybe 3 first round draft choices, while UK fans gnash their tooth over some high school 17 year old's choice of Christmas presents representingg the only sport they excel at.

I can't imagine a better deal than reading about Louisville probably dominating the NFL football draft board this coming season while UK fans forcefully ignore that and their pathetic homers claim recruiting superiority in a sport they rank 75th or whatever in actual games played while we are easily Top 25, with a Heisman candidate who castrated them last season in a reserve role, lol.

The distance between the schools is widening drastically. It is why Calipari's 2 mandates - beating UofL and getting recruiting titles - matter so much to that pathetically needy program. It is also why the severity of the letdown after all the focus on UofL means losing to teams ranked #220 in the RPI as a result. Any road game after the UofL match for UK is a better's dream.