Something Dick Gabriel Said Once

[Will Lavender]

I heard Dick Gabriel tell a story once about UK baseball. He said that back in the mid-'90s LSU came to Lexington. This was when the Tigers were ranked #1 in the country and were swept by UK. It was a big deal at the time - a pretty bad team had swept the #1 team in the country.

But that wasn't the premise of Gabriel's story.

The premise was this:

When the LSU players got off the bus, it was snowing. They all got off the bus and immediately crowded back onto the bus. Gabriel said he heard comments about how "miserable" it was in Lexington, how "awful" the weather was.

Gabriel's point was that Kentucky would always find it hard to compete in the SEC because of their proximity. The possibility that the northernmost school in the conference could ably recruit out of the warm weather climates, Gabriel intimated, was almost laughable.

He didn't say it, but you know he was thinking it: Because of the proximity, the weather, the stigma of being "Northern" in a Southern conference, UK baseball would never compete in this conference.

And now look at them. :)

[Will Lavender]

There's a lesson in there for UK football, too.

I've heard Oscar Combs say the same thing about UK football: Kentucky will never compete in the SEC unless they cheat.

[Athens2005]

Will Lavender wrote: I heard Dick Gabriel tell a story once about UK baseball. He said that back in the mid-'90s LSU came to Lexington. This was when the Tigers were ranked #1 in the country and were swept by UK. It was a big deal at the time - a pretty bad team had swept the #1 team in the country.

But that wasn't the premise of Gabriel's story.

The premise was this:

When the LSU players got off the bus, it was snowing. They all got off the bus and immediately crowded back onto the bus. Gabriel said he heard comments about how "miserable" it was in Lexington, how "awful" the weather was.

Gabriel's point was that Kentucky would always find it hard to compete in the SEC because of their proximity. The possibility that the northernmost school in the conference could ably recruit out of the warm weather climates, Gabriel intimated, was almost laughable.

He didn't say it, but you know he was thinking it: Because of the proximity, the weather, the stigma of being "Northern" in a Southern conference, UK baseball would never compete in this conference.

And now look at them. :)




Will, this sentiment has been touched on here on the new Baseball board a time or two already.

Sadly, I think that Keith Madison was a big promoter of this mentality during his LOOOOOONG tenure here, and that helped to permeate the entire culture.

I remember just 1 year ago, when I lived in Texas, telling a co-worker this same thing. "It's the northernmost school in the SEC", blah blah.

The guy said to me, "Why don't they get someone in there to change that mind-set? Wouldn't that guy be a hero?"

Well, as it turns out, yes, I think coach Cohen is now a hero in Lexington (and maybe Mitch Barnhart too).

Over the last few weeks, since this board was created, I've been firm in my position to not take shots at other programs in light of the success of our baseball team this year.

But, I will say this: When this team was getting it's butt kicked the last 2 years, was Coach Cohen saying things like: "Well, haven't we always lost to LSU?"

If he did, someone please tell me.

A culture can be changed at a school. Granted, this could be an anomaly.
But, after watching the last 2 games in person, you can see that this is a team that believes in itself.
UK could've folded the tents after blowing an 8-2 lead on Thursday night, and then trailing 3-1 last night.
But, they didn't.

They stormed back and teed off on one of the best pitchers in the SEC, on the road, on senior night, chasing him from the game, and forcing Georgia to go to the bullpen much earlier than they wanted (1 night after using their best relievers to pull out a much needed victory).

Meanwhile, the CATS remained gritty on offense & defense (Snipp was awesome!), and pulled out a huge victory.

No one would have been overly critical of this team had they been swept by Georgia.
In fact, one could argue that Georgia is the best team in the SEC. They, too, were also red-hot going into this week-end, had taken game 1, and had their ace on the mound for Game 2.

But last night, the CATS showed who the best team in the SEC is this year.

After clinching this one, one the road, against the team vying for their own share of the crown, no one can doubt that the Kentucky Wildcats are the best team in the SEC in 2006.

They have proved themselves worthy of every challenge.

[Will Lavender]

Good post, Athens.

I like that: maybe Coach Cohen is the new hero in town.

In regards to sports-related heroism, I nominate him, Mickie DeMoss, and of course Mitch Barnhart. :D:thumbup

[Lost Highway]

Very good comments. I believe it also comes down to commitment. Taking things serious and having pride in who you are and what you ard doing. Kentucky can have great teams in ALL sports without cheating. Why? Well, the weather does leave a lot to be desired but you canovercome that with fan support and support from the administration. Players will go to a school that shows interest in who they are and what they are doing. We all like to be appreciated and athletes are no different.

Kentucky baseballproved you can change things. I think the AD will lock in the coach to a nice contract and the fans of Kentucky will show him they appreciate what he and the team have accomplished in just a few short years. This year's effort by the Bat Cats is no small effort. It took a lot of hard work and dedication to move to the top of the SEC.

Congrats to a team that worked it's butt off and should make anyone who claims to be a UK fan, very proud.

[Trueblujr]

If the weather is such an issue, recruit up north. Recruit kids from colder climates who are used to playing in these conditions. Lets face it, the cream of the crop in college Baseball is the SEC and the ACC, I'm sure there is lots of talent in the Northern half of the country that would love to play in the best league in College Baseball.

[Athens2005]

Trueblujr wrote: If the weather is such an issue, recruit up north. Recruit kids from colder climates who are used to playing in these conditions. Lets face it, the cream of the crop in college Baseball is the SEC and the ACC, I'm sure there is lots of talent in the Northern half of the country that would love to play in the best league in College Baseball.


I was thinking the same thing while I was watching the game today.

In football, Bear Bryant used to recruit in Ohio & Pennsylvania to come to UK.

I once had a guy in Connecticut ask me if we had changing seasons in Kentucky.

Imagine how nice Kentuckcy winters probably seem to New Englanders.

Anyway, with the right mindset, cold weather can be used to your advantage.
Convince kids that they have the best home field advantage in the SEC, because they know how to play in the cold weather, while the southern boys do not.

It worked/works for the Green Bay Packers.

[CatFanInTheBathtub]

These seem like good ideas but don't they assume, recruiting-wise, that we will stay on the bottom rung of the SEC, and will have to recruit guys that couldn't play for the top southern schools ? What I mean is, I am ready to assume that we are elite within the conference, and will have to battle the likes of UF, LSU, USC, etc. for recruits. Now, assuming that, wouldn't these guys still rather go to an evenwarmer weather climate than Lex ?

[TheMadCatter]

I'd say they just continue doing what they're doing. It seemed to work pretty well this year. The thing is at UK we've seen many if not all the other SEC schools compete for league championships in basketball, only to disappear from the radar screen after a couple of years. It's not been that way as much in football, however, where year after year the same teams compete for league honors (and recruits). I contend the reason for this is the sheer number of highly talented players required to field a championship-caliber football team whereas it only takes two or three very good basketball players to make a team a winner. My gut feeling is that baseball is somewhere in between, where a few good hitters combined with a few good pitchers can make a team dangerous. More than a few of either makes a team very good and more than a few of both makes a team a title contender. Of course this all assumes quality coaching as well. As for how all this plays out beyond 2006, I intend to enjoy this team this year and hope for the best for the future. I feel like they've earned my patience.