It's time for coffee and company, fueled by Thornton's on Sports Talk seven nine
day. Now, here's nick coffee. All right, let's get it started
at the five o'clock hour here on a beautiful Thursday afternoon. I hope I'm
not lying to you by saying it's beautiful. It's hot and sticky outside,
but it's been sunny all day. Maybe it's not anymore, but I haven't
seen outside since I walked in here about two and a half hours ago,
but it was beautiful when I did. Actually, I came up from Sports
and Social Club, had lunch with my mother, John, which is always
a great thing, right, and you're a big endorser of that, and
I agree with you. Yeah, good do to get lunch with mom.
We enjoyed ourselves and she works not too far from here, she's a few
blocks away. And yeah, had a nice lunch. But something trippy really
happened that his kind of you know, whenever I'm not in the zone and
locked in and focused on this radio show, you know, during commercial breaks,
it keeps popping up in my mind because it just seems unreal. So
my mom and I were talking about how we used to meet for lunch downtown
at Ford Street many years ago, and there used to be a lot more.
I mean, in fact, I don't know if you've seen this,
John, but the TGF Friday shut down, which was the first original tenant
here at four Street Live. Okay, I don't know if I knew that.
Did you even realize it was still open before? I remember it being
here and I don't remember it shutting down. Yeah, so they closed I
think it was a couple of weeks ago, and they were the first original
tenant here at four Street Live. And they'll put something in there and I'm
hoping that it's awesome, and the restaurants that are here are great. I
mean, I know some people if you for Street Live as a tourist trap.
And I get why people say that, because if you were downtown Louisville
in one of the nice hotels and you're looking for like a an entertainment district,
obviously you have Nulu now, which is great before stoot Live. I
mean, there's there's a lot here and they've had some really good concerts lately
that have brought a lot of people out. So, but they used to
have a food court which was above the TGF Fridays there, and there was
a subway. There was a pizza place, there was a different type of
sandwich spot. There was like an Asian buffet kind of thing. Wasn't really
buffet, but you know, you could get Chinese food and whatnot. And
you know, it's gone. And we were just talking about some of the
other some of the other I guess venues that used to be businesses that used
to be here. In fact, where I sit right now used to be
Tango the Bar, and you know, then it closed and I don't know
what it was between Tango and iHeart. I'm not sure it was anything,
but that's now where we are. So a lot of things have come and
go. There used to be either either there was CBS or a Walgreens was
up here right across from where we are, which is now where PBR is.
So there's been a lot of different things that have come and gone over
the years, and one of them is the Impro Improv comedy club. And
my mom and I were talking about how, you know, because she'd mentioned
some times that she'd gone to see comedy, a stand up comedy, different
places, and she'd gone to the Improv and I mentioned, yeah, we
went to the improv years ago, my buddy and I along with our girlfriends
at the time. Now we're both married. They we went and saw Ralphie
May, who was a really successful comedian who passed away. I feel like
it's been quite a while since he passed away. But he was great,
and you know, my mom was like, yeah, I didn't know you
ever saw him. So, you know, we just moved along in conversation
over the next few minutes, and then I looked down and my phone had
gone off, and I had a text message from my buddy, who happened
to be the same buddy, my best friend Matt, who went with me
to see Ralphie May along with our ladies. Well, on his Facebook memories,
it popped up as it being I think it was eleven years ago that
we did that on the exact same day, and he texted me a screenshot
of the picture that said rip because Ralphie May died. I don't know for
sure, but I'm pretty sure right around the time, like the exact second
that I was talking about. I mean, I didn't remember that we were
talking about it. I was like, oh, yeah, I went and
saw Ralphie May. There the exact second I brought that up to my mom.
I'm pretty sure he texted me to tell me that it was exactly twelve
years ago to the day. That is some trippy stuff. I'd never talked
about going to see Ralphie May since we went and saw Ralphie May. Like,
how's that's unbelievable? Is it? DoD No, I mean, I
believe it, but it is unbelievable that that's crazy. Yes, I feel
like I've had he didn't believe I don't think he believed me, by the
way. My mom will verify because she was. She was. We were
sitting there talking about it, like that's crazy. I feel like I've had
moments like that. I don't recall anything specific, but anytime you have that's
not really deja vu, right, But it is one of those things where
you just kind of feel weird while you're experiencing it. It just doesn't make
any sense how that the timing of that could line up. Yeah, you
know what I mean, And it reminds me a little. I was trying
to think of it, you know, during the break there, I was
trying to think, like, is anything I can't anything like that ever happened
before and the closest thing I can that I can come up with, and
this is wild, but there's an explanation for it. So and I think
I may have told this story on the show before, if not with you,
John, I think I probably did. I think I did the day
after it happened, because it was trippy then and it blew my mind,
but now it makes more sense. I was on a flight from Jacksonville to
Louisville, and I don't know how it worked out this way, but I
had the middle seat, which I did not want, and there was a
mother and a daughter that were that were in the same aisle or same row
with me, and one was on the outside, one was on the inside.
Uh. And you know, she asked as if like I was gonna
you know, it was gonna be a hard bargain for me if I wanted
to not have the middle seat and take either the window seat or the isle.
And I was like, sure, cause you want to sit by her
daughter? Makes total sense. And I was like, yeah, I don't.
I don't mind. So, you know, we didn't really have much
of a conversation on the flight. It was a rather quick flight, but
once we landed, I turned my plane or turned my phone off of airplane
mode, and you know, service was back, and I popped open Facebook
and I'm scrolling down and if you have Facebook, you know that section that
says people you may know. I've never met this woman. I was going
home to Louisville. She was on a connecting flight to Louisville. Never met
her, don't know, didn't know anything about her. But I'm scrolling down
and she happens to look over at my phone and she sees her Facebook profile
on the people you may know. She ended up being from I think Texas.
We'd never met, know nothing about each other. She was freaked out,
almost as if like she kind of like thought I was like messing with
her or something, and I'm you know, and I'm thinking, like,
yeah, I do, I don't know. It turns out it's because our
phones know, I mean, our phones knew that we were close to each
other because of the way that like our phones contract that kind of stuff.
Like that's why when you google something, I mean, your location. That's
why whenever you are in like if you're in a city that you're not from
and you open up apps that have ads in them, you're gonna see ads
that are targeted to where you are, Like your location is known on a
lot of the things that you're on on your phone, and there's probably a
lot more things that are tracked that you don't even know about. So that's
like the closest thing I could think of is like, wow, that's crazy.
That is trippy. But again I can make sense of that because that's
that's technology, that's algorithm. Yeah, yeah, that's that. You know
that. It's still wild that it happened, but that's the only scenario that
would happen. So anyways, like since that happened, I've been thinking like,
man, that like there's something crazy about to happen, because that's just
it's like something you see in a movie. Yeah, like if in a
a very like a flashback type of a thing. It's wild, so little
wild Thursday, it's been. If that's the wildest thing that happens to me
today, that that explains how wild my life really is. But anyways,
enjoyed h I enjoyed lunch with mother, And I encourage people if you work
downtown, you know, come and take in four Street Live. There's there's
some good restaurants here. They're now open during lunch. They weren't for a
while after the pandemic. There's a good pizza spot, there's a new Mexican
place, uh Sports and Social has great food. And I'm not getting paid
to say this by any means. I don't have any any business arrangement,
And in fact, we don't hear at Ihart Louvell. We're just when we're
attended here. So there is a if you go to if you if you
go to lunch like every day, which a lot of people do, honestly,
which I'm sure that's adding up, and that's becoming much more expensive anywhere
you go. Like a lot of the places here, aren't you know,
you're I mean, fast food's no longer cheap in my opinion, but like
a lot of these places all sit down, so obviously you can't do it
every every day. But like if you work downtown and you go out to
eat, I don't know, once a week or something, come to one
of these spots because I think you'll, you know, you'll you'll remind you'll
remember force street life kind of used to be the place to be and it
still is to an extent for a lot of people who are traveling and when
we leave here on Fridays when they have those hot country night concerts like it's
packed. In fact, do you know who's gonna be here tomorrow, John,
Who is it? Tracy Lawrence? Trey? Oh, Tracy Lawrence R
Tomorrow night right here at four Street Live folks. Or maybe it's tonight.
It might be tonight. Let me look here now now I got to look
it up. Well, either way, we'll celebrate by Tracy Lawrence. Oh,
it's tomorrow. I was gonna say, if it's tonight, I may
have to miss Moose's base of football practice because you know I'm already here and
he's about to play. You know that could be something. So yeah,
shout out to Tracy Lawrence. He's still a legend. All right, let's
get let's get back into the hard hitting sports topics that we've been discussing today.
And I hope you can sense the sarcasm there. So I did start
the show by mentioning the nonsense that is the Big twelve expansion going on.
I'm sure they want to expand, and I actually really and I talked about
this many times, including yesterday, I really do like Brett Yormark, the
Big Twelve commissioner saying bold things, trying to be innovative, keeping the Big
Twelve in, you know, in the headlines. I think it's actually been
a pretty good sign for him that right now they don't have a lot of
momentum as far as teams in their league. I mean, they don't have
a top dog. They lost Texas Oklahoma. That's not going to be something
you can just go out and replace probably ever. But they have a cool
factor to them because again they're creative to the first ones of the of the
big conferences to say, look, we're not We're not afraid to throw a
sponsor on the naming rights of our league if it gives more money to this,
to these members of the conference to where they can be more competitive when
it comes to you know, paying paying athletes directly as a school, when
that becomes a thing, then we'll do it. So, you know,
it's been I actually think he's done a really good job. I'm a little
envious of a lot of the creativity and the innovation, and maybe i'm exagg
maybe I'm being a little over the top by by throwing those words out there,
because it's not like they've changed the game over overall. But they're not
afraid to do something that nobody else has done before, just to see if
it might benefit the league as far as revenue, as far as notoriety.
And that to me is a good leader and a good commissioner. I don't
know what's going on with the ACC commissioner, but anyways, yesterday it really
took off on the internet, and I'm blown away by the people who like,
don't think for themselves for five seconds, and oh yeah, this is
probably just somebody trying to get clicks. This is probably somebody just you know,
knowing what conference re alignment can do, right, it blows up on
the internet. I don't know. It's unexplainable as to why conference re alignment
as a There's been a lot of it over the years. But as I
said earlier, I believe in the last fifteen years, eighty percent of the
stuff you've read on the internet about realignment was all nonsense. And I say
that knowing that there was a lot of shakeup. I mean this year specifically,
it's crazy to think about Texas and Oklahoma in the sec USC in UCLA
and Washington and Oregon are in the Big ten. It's nuts, Stanford and
cal and the ACC. So there has been a lot of movement, but
think about all the things that you've seen that were in the works that was
just nonsense, and that's what's happening right here. So there is a Big
Twelve website that I'm not going to claim that they are, you know,
one of the leaders in college football coverage, but Heartland College sports dot com
has covered the Big Twelve for over a decade and they are a reputable outlet.
They were on hand covering the Big Twelve media days and they broke some
stories over the years, and this, to me is just such a stretch.
They are the ones who, at least I've seen really actually trying to
act like this is real, that the Big Twelve is in early conversations to
expand with Florida State and Clemson, and that's just not happening. Like,
by the way, I don't know if they would go if it could make
more money, but like I don't know if they would go to the Big
Twelve. If they could, they'd probably be better off staying in the ACC.
As much as I think the Big Twelve is, you know, an
attractive option to land if you're Louisville and the ACC falls apart. Like Clemson
and Florida State are the premier programs in the conference, and if the Big
Twelve right now is their only option, they probably stay put. They want
the SEC or the Big Ten. But when nobody seems to really think about
and it's I don't want to say, it's just public information that everybody knows,
but it's easy to find out these two schools are assuming the ACC because
they would like to be able to leave the league, but they can't because
right now, if one of those two schools, if any school said,
hey, we're here to announce that we're leaving the conference and we know we
owe an exit fee, here's our check, that check would have to be
made out for five hundred and seventy two million dollars. Five hundred and seventy
two million dollars is what it would cost for somebody to leave the ACC.
I mean, that alone makes it to where that's not happening. So anything
you see about the Big twelve expansion, including these two teams, and somebody
threw in Notre Dame, I think it was I mean, come on,
like that, that's just not realistic. It's not possible to be honest with
you. So, in fact, the latest story this is somebody just sent
this in. This is an ESPN story about the Florida State lawsuit which was
initially filed, and of course now Clemson has filed a lawsuit as well.
But Florida State estimates that it would be five hundred and seventy two million to
leave the AC without a legal victory or a settlement, which is why they're
suing. The ACC will never settle, they'd be stupid to do that.
So this is actually, you know, this whole story that is, you
know, really been a non story. In my opinion. What it does
is it it reminds me that the ACC, as much as there's been complaints
about the revenue gap that is there between the SEC and the Big ten,
and we all know it's going to grow substantially over the years because for the
next ten years, the ACC is locked into the same rearrangement with the SEC.
Now there's other things they've done where you can make more money if you're
more successful, and that's great, but you know, just knowing that you
and the ACC, in five years in your Florida State or Clemson, you
may have a national championship under your belt in that time. But you know
what, Vandy, They're bringing in way more money than you athletically, Like
that doesn't sit well. It's a competitive world out there. And what really
is going to be wild is when teams like Central Florida in the Big Twelve,
when the Big Twelve reups and they do their new Grand of Rights deal
in twenty thirty, I think it is without some without without some unexpected change,
meaning they get out of the Grand of Rights deal or there's a settlement,
Florida State will make less money from their conference than Central Florida will.
Same thing with Miami. Like I don't know what they can do to fix
that, but like that's that's the kind of stuff that'll force somebody's hand to
figure something out because like that's I mean, at the end of the day,
college athletics, it's all about power, money and all that stuff.
And the people who are the big movers and shakers at schools like Florida State
in Miami, especially Florida State and Clemson even like they're not going to be
able to go to sleep at night knowing how much they're falling behind. Not
only known, you know, schools that they don't feel like are up to
the same level as them, their rivals, they're peers. Like South Carolina
already makes more than Clemson, and Clemson has done way more in football than
South Carolina has in the last fifteen years. Right, Imagine how much bigger
that number is gonna be in ten years when when Clemson, if they're still
in the ACC, is still stuck with that same level of money and the
SEC's probably re upped twice since then. So you know, I'm not acting
like things are great because I still am very underwhelmed with the ACC and the
leadership of the league. But I don't there's not somebody tell me something that's
gonna that's gonna change the situation for what it is right now. Somebody tell
me what would happen to where these schools get out and they end up in
a different league, Like there could be expansion everywhere. Let's say the you
know, let's say the the AC or the SEC and the Big Ten.
They go to LinkedIn, they throw up, you know, a job posting
we're looking for new members. Apply. They could be it could be an
open door thing. The ACC schools ain't one with them because they can't,
and I do give the AEC a little bit of credit. I guess they're
lawyers. Whenever they counter sued Clemson in Florida State after both schools sued the
league, the first thing that was mentioned in the legal document in response to
the lawsuit in their countersuit, I suppose, just throwing out legal terms,
not really knowing what it means, hoping I'm making some sense here. But
they started off with quotes from the athletic director or president one of the two
from both schools talking about how happy they were that the ACC network deal got
done and that all these schools are locked in and can and united from twenty
sixteen when it was I think till twenty thirty four. So it's just like
it's you know, you can't claim now that you are bothered by this when
you agreed to it, you signed it. It's a contract, and not
only that, you publicly announced how happy you were because it keeps everybody together.
And now here you are looking at what other looking at what other schools
are going to be getting from their conference, and that's tough, but like
you agreed to it. So I mean, I think conference realignment for the
most part like what could like what's realistic now? Right? Like, I
don't think the Big twelve is going to lose teams to anybody. I don't
think that the I mean what put like what puts like? What what could
be the next big move in realignment, John, because I know you mentioned
the other big schools have already just said they've just settled in, right Yeah,
But I mean if if the Big ten or SEC calls on, like
an Arizona or someone like that, to jump from the Big twelve to THEIRS
for more money, it wouldn't surprise me. But that And you're right because
I still think at the end of the day, every school, and I
mean every school, if they could, they would go to the Big ten
of the SEC because they'd be stupid not to, because they'd make so much
more money. It'd be harder to compete, it would be a lot more
uh you know, travel, depending on where you are, but it would
be worth it if it's that lucrative. I mean, the Big ten and
the SEC are rolling in a different level of money. So you're right they
you know that that that that would be a move that would happen, but
it would it would what I think would make that nearly impossible to happen,
would be that those like the SEC wouldn't have any interest in them, you
know what I mean, Like, what are they bringing unless the SEC really
wanted like West Coast presence, right, And that's the thing I feel like,
not Indesa, Indiana because of the Big Ten, but I could see
the Big Ten they'll they'll go anywhere, and they've already showed that. So
it would surprise me if down the road, Yeah, especially if if they
wanted West Coast team or something a Texas team. Yeah, Like if they
seem unhappy the school the new schools and the Big twelve specifically, it wouldn't
surprise me if the Big Ten tries to poach them down the road. Yeah,
But I don't know, man, Like I look at the SEC and
the Big Ten and if I'm looking to expand, not just to do it,
but I'm wanting to add brand value. I'm wanting to add more eyeballs,
and I'm wanting to just simply be able to look at my league from
top to bottom and say if we add this team and that team, we
got better. The only way to do that would be it would be to
go get schools you can't get because they're in the ACC and they're locked down.
I don't think there's a school in the Big twelve that would give them
any would give them what I just presented, you know what I mean.
I think you're right. But what the Big ten's always looked at as specific
markets and that's why they initially went after Maryland and Rutgers to get the DC
area in the New York. Obviously you get California with the UCLA and USC,
and then you get the Northwest with Washington Oregon. So I've always thought
that down the road, I don't know how far into the future this is,
but the Big Ten in the SEC are on a collision course to being
the only two conferences. Again, maybe that never happens, but that's the
way that it's always looked, but we'll just have to weigh. Yeah,
And man, the alumni base of some Big ten schools is so humongous to
where like maybe they have enough alum in you know, the West Coast,
to where they could see some value because they would actually maybe maybe, you
know, I don't know people on the West Coast. I feel like I
don't care as much about college sports, but again. Yeah. The alumni
base of schools like Indiana's specifically, it's it's huge, and they're all over
the place. I mean, those guys who run the Hoosier Hysterics or whatever.
Aren't they from lay in California? Y? Yes, yeah, And
all right, let's get to a quick break. We're way too late for
our first break here in the five o'clock hours, so bear with me what
I want to get to on the other side. The first thing I said,
once we knew first Pat Kelsey did Mark Pope, these two guys were
going to be the head coaches in this state. The rivalry, it just
you know, it was unexpected, right, But the first thing I thought
of was here we go the rivalries back on, right, because we each
have new life here and obviously little situation is much different. But I've seen
some things along the way, including something that happened in the last forty eight
hours. They really just remind me that, like we're kind of starting not
over, but maybe we actually I think we are starting over here, right,
Like Pat Kelsey at't coached a game yet, Mark Pope hasn't. I
think you can each make fun of each other and feel justified in doing it,
and you know I wouldn't have it any other way. So we'll talk
about something mar Pope did recently that got everybody all worked up. So stick
with us right here. It's Coffee and Company. Phil but Thornton's on Sports
Talk seven to ninety as much as I was just telling people they should come
out to Four Street Live, and you know, give downtown another chance if
you haven't in a while, because you just have this vision of it being
a boarded up war zone. I gotta say, I think I don't know
if I think Tracy Lawrence is too good for four Street like he I mean,
he's a legend. I'm surprised he's not playing a bigger venue. I
mean, this is in the level of hearing that you know, Pitt Bull
was going to do a concert at the Waterfront Park last year that like nobody
talked about and it went on and nobody seemed to even know that it happened,
Like that's that's not this. But you know some of the other artists
that have been a part of this hot country nights here at four Street Live,
like you know, there're no Tracy Lawrence. I mean, come on
now, I mean, we got it we're talking about a guy with I
mean, in the nineties, Can't Break It to My Heart, number one,
my Second Home, number one, If the Good Die Young, number
one, Sticks and Stones number one, the one we just played, Alibi
is number one, Texas Tornado number one, time marches On, I mean
a classic, and of course number one. I mean, this guy is
amazing, stars over Texas, A better man, better off. I mean,
come on now, I mean he's great. By the way, one
of my buddies, his wife, she's she's a friend of mine too.
We're all, you know, we're we're all friends with each other. You
know, we're not into it the way you might think that after I just
said that. But like, you know, my wife, my buddy's wife
is my friend, just like he's my friend. And some of you guys
are thinking, you know, weird stuff. That's not what I mean.
But she was. We were at a we were at a charity event and
Texas Tornado came on, and I don't know if we were just hammered,
but like everybody was slow dancing. I don't really, I mean, that's
a slower song, but I don't think it's like a like a slow I
guess it is kind of a romantic song, but she thought it was Texas
Tuxedo, not Texas Tornado, which should be more fitting for if you're just
trying to guess what kind of vibe the song is going to bring and you
never heard of it, that would be more of a guess of a slow
song, because Texas Tornado, that's not that'd be like a speed one.
Well, well, to be fair, like Texas Tuxedo is all denim or
just like an old Texas tuch, like an old Texas cowboy kind of suit
with jeans and like the string tie, and like I can see Tracy Lawrence
wearing both. So therefore it's like it. You know, she kind of
gets a little bit of a pass because you know, if you looked at
him wearing what he usually wears, you could you might believe he was saying
Texas Tuxedo. But you know, anyway, shout out to Tracy Lawrence.
He's great, all right. So I'm not sure how many people care about
this, but the TBT team in Lexington, lat familiar. They just took
a big hit. They lost three players just less than two weeks away from
the from the event, so I guess they tweeted this out earlier within the
afternoon that Dron Lamb, Reed, Travis, and Marcus Tigue are all out
because of obligations to the professional team. This happened last year with Earl Clark,
which by the way, David Johnson was officially added or Clark. There's
been no word on that and I haven't heard that he's going to be a
part of it, but he did participate in yesterday's workout, which was cool
to see. But yeah, so they now have Aaron, the Harrison Twins,
bled so Willie cauley Stein, James Young, Kellen Grady, Nate Sistina,
Daniel Orton, Brennan Canada, and Krim Canter who's actually Ennis Cant's brother,
who I belief played for Chris mack et Xavier. So you know,
their roster didn't take that big of a hit. I mean, Dron Lamb,
I don't know if he's still playing at a high level, obviously a
shooter, Marcus t you know, I mean, I feel like they're best
players probably going to be Willie colly Stein and Eric Bledsoe unless you know,
Daniel Orton's still playing at a high level and James Young, Kellen Grady.
But yeah, Louisville right now, they're still ahead when it comes to ticket
sales. And that's important because if Louisll wins their region and Kentucky wins their
region, whoever sells the most tickets in the opening rounds here, which both
are hosting, will be hosting the quarter final or the I think it's the
quarterfinals. So you're in a good spot now, Louisville. But let's let's
keep buying tickets. Let's keep keep that lead going, all right, real
quick before we move on from the Big twelve expansion stuff. So I understand
you will find articles on the internet, tweets from people who have a blue
check that'll say there's interest the Big twelve has interest in three, four,
five, six schools in the ACC and that you know, wow, these
schools with the ACC in the future looking uncertain maybe maybe like you know,
but again, they could be madly in love with each other. I mean,
Josh Hurt, he could go get a Big twelve logo tattooed on his
forehead and profess his love to the Big twelve, and he could just make
it clear that he loves Brett your mark and he wants to be in the
Big twelve, who's paying five hundred and seventy two million dollars for that relationship
to actually be a thing. So I got to stop getting triggered by it.
But like, that's not happening, that's not a story, that's not
real, that's not that that is internet nonsense. The Big twelve can want
every member of the ACC, the ACC, every member in the league could
want to go to the Big twelve. There's a contract in place that would
cost these schools five hundred and seventy two million dollars to get out of that
deal. We'll move on, all right. So when it comes to rivalries,
pettiness is rampant, right, I mean it's that's especially around here,
like Indiana Producer rivals John and for those who don't know, John's a big
Hoosier. How different is it? Like, it's definitely not nearly as twenty
four to seven as I feel like the Louisville Kentucky rivalry is. Why do
you think that is? I think there's definitely. I don't know. I
would say, for one thing around here, you have Louisville and Kentucky fans.
They're they're they're living together in the city of Louvos. I'm talking about
where we live specifically, and so there's a lot more that you interact with
when you're around all of it. With Indiana, most of the Indiana the
IU fan base is south of Indianapolis, and most of the Purdue fan base
is north of Indianapolis, and so there's kind of a north south divide.
Yeah, not everybody, but just a general consensus of it. And I
think if you live out in the state of Kentucky, I don't know.
I mean, and trust me, there are Louisville fans that are all over
the place in Kentucky. And I don't mean like there's a billion of them.
I mean that you know, you'll find some everywhere, but there's just
they're out numbered in a major way, which I've actually learned, like actually
really appreciate those people because they you know, they're in there behind enemy lines
like every day, and you know, they know when they're walking around with
their Louisville stuff on in Campbellsville or you know, Paducah or something like that,
or hazard like they're they most people look at them wearing that stuff and
probably this I mean, I'm not saying this jokingly, they look at that
without knowing them, and they don't like them. I mean, I hope
they don't harm them or insult them, but like that's that's the way this
is around here, Like it's we're crazy so but but it's different in Louisville.
I say that all the time. Whenever they did that, whenever they
did that Netflix show Wrestlers, and I was I did like a full day
of filming with them, with me and with Matt and a few other people,
and you know, they kind of talk to me about the Louisville side
of it, because they did obviously a profile on Matt as far as just
you know, his career and him turning CaSR into what it is. But
I really went above and beyond emphasizing that it's different here than anywhere else.
Like I think people who live out in those areas that it's mentioned, they
can't really relate to it like it is here because there's so many of both.
And I know Louisville fans at times get bothered by that, like they
assume that's but it's and I'm not telling you it's fifty to fifty. But
like there's Kentucky fans everywhere in Louisville like they are. And I know there
are people listening right now that work with the other side of the rivalry.
Maybe they married into it, maybe they have close friends that just throughout their
friendship, they just have always been on the other side. Like because we're
all together, it makes a little more intense. It's just different, you
know, And that's where the pettiness really, I think, you know,
comes in and this is petty, but I wouldn't have it any other way.
So if you remember when Pat Kelsey got hired, the Louisville football spring
practice were going on, and he went out and put on pads and was
catching you know, I think he was catching punts like he was, you
know, doing some punt returning, and he caught one pass like behind his
back and you know, just having fun out there. And of course the
internet loved it. There was videos that made their way to social media.
I'm pretty sure some of the football staffers were sharing it, and it was
just, you know, Pat Kelsey having fun supporting the football team, kind
of showing us a little bit of his personality. Well then Mark Stoops,
not Mark Stuis, but Mark Pope did the same thing. I guess yesterday
or something, and you know, Kentucky fans are sharing it and you know,
look at Mark Pope, He's so great, just like Louisville fans did
with Pat Kelsey. But now Louisvill fans are like, oh my gosh,
he wants to be Pat Kelsey so much like Wow, I think I've seen
this somewhere before. Wow. Imitation is flattering, like like that's so petty
and silly, but like that's what this is. And this has helped me
at times not really get into the weeds with the other side. And I
don't mean like because you know, they're awful people, but I'm one.
I'm never gonna change your mind. You're never gonna change my mind. We
can argue and and you know, but like there's no scenario if you're a
dowhard fan of one that a good talk or an argument or a you know,
yelling match with your buddy who's the fan of the other, Like you're
never gonna like, you know what, you were right all these years.
I'm actually I'm gonna start supporting Kentucky because you know you were right. They're
better. Not only would that never happen you you wouldn't want that, right,
Like, if my best friend, who a diwhard Kentucky fan, just
decided to be a Louisville fan, I would say, gross, no,
you're not doing that. Get the hell out of here. That'll actually ruin
our friendship. Say what you want about Louisville, you're not coming over to
this side because that's just weird. So that's just the way it is.
But another thing that has helped me just kind of, you know, keep
my sanity with it and have fun with it is that, if you really
think about it, we make fun of the other for doing anything, and
if we did it, we would love it, you know, Like the
Pat Kelsey in Louisville basketball video of the transfer portal. The reaction that I
saw most on the internet from that was Kentucky fans making fun of it.
But if Mark Pope did it, Louisville fans would be making fun of them,
and Kentucky fans will be talking about how awesome it is, how relatable
he is. Like that's just how this is, and it you know,
when you lay it out like that, it sounds kind of silly, but
again that's what's sports is not really, I mean it is serious, but
like you know what I mean, Like it's just that's the way it works.
Are you envious of this, John, because you can't relate. You
probably are more healthy mentally when it comes to your team than us, because
you know, we were always at each other's next. Yeah. I think
there's a part of me that's envious because during the times whenever the games are
going on, Like I remember being in my family's house for specifically the Louisvill
Kentucky football game last year, and just the tension was something that I hadn't
experienced in a while, being around a different fan base that was my rival,
and even as an outsider, you could sense it. Yeah. But
one thing I wish I could have seen. I was already here getting ready
for the postgame show with you before you know, the end of the game
actually happened. I would have loved to have just seen the deflation from one
fan base and the elation from the other, because it's just one thing you
don't get exactly what it was, the rivalries. Yeah, And I mean
if if Kentucky and Louisville, well, first of all, they could not
play each other in sports, and we would still be rivals. And we
would still talk smack to each other. It wouldn't end the rivalry. I
don't think you can in the rivalry, but not playing your rival would be
it would It would take away so much from what makes all this fun.
And that's why, Like, if there's ever a scenario where Louisville and Kentucky
don't play each other in football because the SEC schedule expanding, like that would
be that would be the war. I mean, that would that would be
a lot of things, but it would be weak and it would be a
slap in the face to Kentucky fans by their administration because they don't mean nobody
wants this game to not happen. Some will tell you, well, you
know, there's just one game who cares. But I don't even know if
I mean, I don't even believe that you believe that because like that,
like Kentucky fans are the liars if they act as if beating Louisville the way
they have in the last six seven years, however long it's been, it
has changed how you view yourself and your coach. So like if you had
if you would have beaten I don't know, let's say it was an annual
game you played against a non rival. Let's say you beat West Virginia every
year or Indiana. It you wouldn't It wouldn't be the same at all,
and you would honestly feel underwhelmed. I would imagine, like not saying Louisville
is your super Bowl, but beating your rival has more value than beating other
teams. Now, maybe not as much if like you're beating but last year
Kentucky beat a Louisville team on the road, which was an upset, and
it was a top ten win for him. By the way, did you
know Indiana and Louisville or Indiana and Kentucky used to play for a trophy in
football? I knew they played. I remember as a kid seeing a lot
of those games, and I remember the joke even as a kid, not
for me, but like you know, adults and parents and stuff like,
was how bad both programs always weren't football? What was the trophy? The
bourbon barrel? And I think the part of why they quit doing it was
because of the trophy was associated with alcohol. Oh that's right, because that
was right around the time there was a there was an alcohol related incident that
that someone lost their life. I think I might have been a Kentucky football
player somebody. Something within the Kentucky football program happened to where alcohol was involved.
And I remember that even as I was young when that happened at our
remember that being a story. They should play each other, why not?
Right? So fun fact they were when Indiana played Tennessee and the Gator Bowl
that was supposed to be an Indiana Kentucky matchup, but Tennessee fans in their
administration vouched for the volunteers to be in that game over Kentucky. And that's
how that happened. I guess they just expected to clearly be a bigger turnout
because it's in Tennessee. All right, we got to run quick break.
We'll come back and wrap it up on the other side. Keep it locked
right here on Sports Talk seven ninety. Some people don't get to tune in
until, you know, the five o'clock hour, even maybe closer to five
thirty. And if that's the case, you know, I appreciate you listening
whenever you can, but always check out the podcast. I mean, that's
something that is there for you. No excuse to not listen to the whole
thing. You may not get it live, but you can always you can
always go back and listen anything you missed. We usually have it up within
the within the fifteen minutes or so after the show ends, so it's on
the iHeartRadio app. Find it on the Apple podcast app as well. All
Right, so real quick, we talked a lot about the the I guess
it was Justin Edwards, who, by the way, I'll give him credit.
We talked about him having a dud at the the in his first Summer
League game after going on drafted. He apparently played pretty well last night,
put up some good numbers and really bounced back. But that led to just
a bigger conversation just about how a lot of times these you know, these
athletes are these these rankings that you see from twenty four seven sports rivals,
like they're just way off. And I think it's safe to say that that
potentially, that potentially happened in this class, because if you go to let's
see in twenty twenty, twenty twenty, here is the top like here is
the top ten players. Kate Cunningham, I think it's safe to say he
worked out. I mean, he just signed a huge deal with Detroit and
they're not winning, but I can't blame it on him. Jalen Green decent
season in Houston. I think it's yet to be determined if he ends up
being worth the samecond pick that he was taken in Evan Mobley decent player,
good in the NBA. Suppose Jonathan Minga still an unknown. Here's where it
gets real, like Brandon Boston number five player in America, Zire Williams number
six, Scottie Barnes number seven, rip Terrence Clark number eight. But then
you get to Moosa. Cisa went to Memphis, no clue. Greg Brown
at Texas mighta sniffed the NBA. Jalen Suggs kind of an average player at
best. Josh Christopher forgot about him. Jalen Johnson duke bust, Haleb Love
still playing, day Ron Sharp kind of a bust. Jaden Springer at Tennessee.
I think he could say the same thing. So, you know,
I'm sure if you go back and look at every class, you'll realize that,
you know, sometimes they get it right, sometimes you know they don't,
and guys just don't have the potential that they were believed to have when
they were coming up out of high school. All right, we're out of
time. Everybody. Enjoy your Thursday evening and come back and join us tomorrow
right here at three o'clock on Sports Talk seven ninety I