I remember

[modernsportscar]

...when I was young, and felt a swell of excitement every I saw that familiar blue, and saw those jerseys, that long, interesting word KENTUCKY, a ranting coach...when I was young, and naïve, basketball was so much fun, before I heard, or could even relate to phrases like "he is being paid to produce," "I've lost faith in the coach," or "good riddance."

I'm quite sure this post will come across preachy and/or corny, but I am being absolutely serious. I do remember those days, when I didn't know any better, and basketball was fun *every* day, not just days certain things did or didn't happen.

We could all stand to be a little more naïve sometimes.

[matt colvin]

If there is such a thing, this is the post of the night imo.

And also, as Coach mentioned, the unfortunate passing of two UK legends, Mr. Beard and Mr. Kron, really serves to bring us fans back in touch with what's really important.


Thanks :thumbup:

[Josh]

What a great post and I can completely releate. I remember coming home from an ABA game in '96, listening to the FF matchup of UK vs. UMass on the radio and the excitement that I had just for that. It was just fun back then. It wasn't like it is now. I definitely long for the opportunity to get back to that kid-like approach to the game of basketball.

[catmandoo025]

Winning is what made those days so fun. Couple the fact that we aren't winning with the internet and you have this hysteria IMO.

[RaleighCat]

Winning is what made those days so fun. Couple the fact that we aren't winning with the internet and you have this hysteria IMO.

I started really following the Cats in '78 when I was 10. That year rocked! (to a 10 year old, anyway), but I've heard it described as brutal by several fans because there was so much pressure to win it all. UK was the best team that season and anything less than a championship would've been a huge letdown. Many have described winning in '78 as a relief more than anything.

From there Hall suffered some serious setbacks in the NCAA tourney until:
1983 = Dream Game UofL Dunk-a-thon overtime nightmare
1984 = 3 for 33 ('nuf said).

Sutton seemed to be the perfect hire at the time, but we all know how that ended. Things got darn ugly for the program in those days.

Pitino got us rolling again but his tenure still had:
1992 = Laettener's Shot
1993 = Fab Five loss in FF
1995 = Birmingham Meldown against UNC in the Regional Finals (Rodderick Rhodes saga thrown in for good measure)
And constant Pitino-to-NBA rumors up until he walked in '97.

Tubby won it all his first year......
then we hit Saul-gate. Then Ten Loss Tubby. Then Team Turmoil. Then Bogans' Ankle. Then One-Freakin'-Rebound. Then Morris-fax-gate. Then two ugly years. And now we have the longest Final Four drought in program history.

So, my point in all of this is that Kentucky basketball has never really been without some drama and heartache. Even the best of times didn't last forever. My friends and I used to vent about Sam Bowie's leg- or Mel Turpin's weight- or Chapman's recruitment- or not getting enough talent from Louisville- or etc, etc.
What we have today isn't that far from where we've been. At least from where I sit. Kentucky will overcome and Gillispie will get us there. Be patient.

[scfcats]

Winning is what made those days so fun. Couple the fact that we aren't winning with the internet and you have this hysteria IMO.


Agreed, welcome to the age of the internet where every voice can be heard.

Nothing against WCN but sometimes I can live with out it (the comments quoted in the original post).

Good post, it'll be better soon. I'm still having fun watching our CATs, despite the losses and departures they'll still be taking the floor and I'll still be rooting for them because they represent my proud home state of KENTUCKY!

:widcat::widcat::widcat:

[ukwebfan]

Guess I'm a glass half-full guy 'cause I remember way more good than bad since '78. However, only 2 teams end each and every year with a win.

[catmandoo025]

Agreed, welcome to the age of the internet where every voice can be heard.

Nothing against WCN but sometimes I can live with out it (the comments quoted in the original post).

Good post, it'll be better soon. I'm still having fun watching our CATs, despite the losses and departures they'll still be taking the floor and I'll still be rooting for them because they represent my proud home state of KENTUCKY!

:widcat::widcat::widcat:

I'm with you. I am still having fun and know that things are only gonna get better. Beat the Loosiers:widcat:

[sardiscat]

"Agreed, welcome to the age of the internet where every voice can be heard."

The difference between then and now is way more than just the internet and talk radio. The money to be made playing in the NBA now is astronomical, so the players are dead serious about basketball as a vocation from the time they're eight. They treat it as a business rather than as something fun to do. You don't see a lot of kids playing basketball just as something to do, anymore. The goals have been removed from every school and church parking lot that I played on when I was young. (Some of those goals were large pieces of cast iron anchored in several feet of concrete, and the schools must have wanted them gone awful bad to go through the trouble of removing those suckers). If you aren't dead serious about it, then you just don't play it anymore. If you are dead serious about it, you can't afford to let a coach stand in your way of getting to the NBA. Too much $$$ at stake. So, if you aren't a starter from day 1 on your college team, your coach is trying to take your future away from you. If you're not such a great player, you don't find a low competition level game somewhere anymore. Instead, you become an internet twerp demanding excellence from the coach and players.

[RaleighCat]

Guess I'm a glass half-full guy 'cause I remember way more good than bad since '78.

Oh, man, so do I. My point is that you can look back through UK history and find problems that are equal or greater than today's. But in the end it's not going to define our program. The Legions, Allisons, Riddicks, Ellis(s), Mills, Ballengers, etc. aren't the norm. This ain't the first stretch of bumpy road in our history and won't be the last.