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Welcome to the Big Moone sider Dick
Gabriel with you on a Tuesday. We

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are in the talking season SEC Media
Days underway in Dallas. I'll be heading

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there tomorrow, so tomorrow we're going
to present the best of as I will

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be traveling for much of the day
on Thursday, that's the day Kentucky talks

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and a Wildcats talk late in the
afternoon, and of course we have to

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prepare the show ahead of time.
But what I'm going to do is present

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and it's essentially an encore presentation.
We usually do this right after the season's

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over, but I thought, what
a great way to get us ready for

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this year. One more look back
at last year. Seven wins and some

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big plays, some entertaining games.
So we will break down the highlights from

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last year the way Tom Leach and
Jeff Picoro called it. I slipped in

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once or twice in the special presentation. But that'll be Thursday. Then on

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Friday from Dallas, we will do
everything that we could pull together from the

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Wildcats appearance down there at SEC Media
Days. I watched a little bit of

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the coverage last night and on the
set, of course, Nick Saban,

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who knows football inside and out and
knows that league inside it out. He

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did a really nice job. I
thought kind of ironic, given the fact

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that he loves and love throughout his
career to kind of lecture journalists on questions

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they ask, how they ask it, the subject matter, that kind of

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thing. I once or twice had
that happen to me with Saban wasn't a

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jackass about it like Bobby Knight was, but it was funny. He was

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talking to Mike Greenberg of ESPN about
what it was like to be on the

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other side of the media credential or
just the fact that he had to have

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one. That's a little different.
I've never worn a credential in my life,

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and as always for seventeen years able
to get in the SEC media day

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without a credential. I had to
go back to the room today and get

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my credential to get in. So
that's one of the biggest changes I see.

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It's not like it used to be. The subject came up because when

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Saban got off the elevator to go
to work, I guess it was yesterday

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morning, he into security of guard
kind of locked eyes and Sabin immediately realized

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he didn't have his credential, so
he turned and had to go back upstairs.

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He left it in his room.
Now, one of the stories was,

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and this is not presented properly,
this is incorrect, that the security

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guard turned him away like the guy
didn't know who he was, and that's

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not true. At first he denied
Saban access, but Saban basically said that

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he as soon as he saw the
guard realized he needed his credential. And

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what's even funnier about this was that
the security guard is a former four star

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player college football player, Keyante Griffin, a wide receiver, played at Baylor,

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transferred to sam Houston State, and
when his career was over, he

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went into the security business. Basically, he is ordinarily a security person at

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the Cowboys stadium, but of course
it hired out to work this event.

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So it's not like he put his
hands up and said, hey guy,

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you can't go in here. He
knew who Saban was, so he saw

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Sabin, Saban saw him see Sabin, etc. And Nick went up to

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get his credential. So kind of
funny. We've all done that, We've

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all forgotten our creds. I went
to the SEC Football Championship Game one December

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Saturday, and I've covered fifteen of
those through fifteen years. One year,

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I left my credential in the room. I had to rush back and get

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it. But it's kind of a
sick feeling. You know, you're helpless

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without it, But hey, that's
the way it works, and I'll be

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picking up mine tomorrow at some point. Reed Shepherd shining again for the Houston

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Rockets in an exhibition game against the
Detroit Pistons. I guess it should come

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as no surprise. And really,
when you think about it, this was

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the first American player, first backcourt
player, first player taken by the Rockets,

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number three overall. You would think
he would be excelling, especially in

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a summer league where guys are more
concerned about getting their shots and showing what

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they can do to their respective teams
than actually playing defense. And I'm not

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falling into this no defense in the
NBA stuff. There is defense, but

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it's a more of an individual game. You know that about the NBA.

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And Reed Shepherd has got a great
hand and knows how to find his spots

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on the floor. And we know
this. He's a great shooter, so

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maybe we shouldn't be surprised by the
points, but the overall game, we

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know he's a good passer, so
I think this will keep up. This

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will maintain for Reed Shepherd once he
gets into regular season games, maybe not

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so much. You know, he
may fall back a little bit, but

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he'll pick up as he gets smarter
in the NBA. Meanwhile, Bronnie James

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is struggling, and the headline in
the LA Times Bronnie James struggles overshadow Dalton

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connects nineteen points and Lakers loss.
They played against the Celtics last night.

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But I told you when the summer
league games began, brace yourself if you're

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paying attention to this kind of thing, for an overdose of Bronnie James headlines

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and Bronnie James themed stories, because
that's a huge story out there on the

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West Coast. And for anybody who
follows the NBA. Should the Lakers have

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drafted him, it made good business
sense. Is this kid an NBA player?

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Is he just a G League player? Well, right now it's more

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of the latter because he's not scoring. He supposedly, like Reed Shepherd,

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set apart by his excellent shooting,
and he has not shown that in the

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NBA. In fact, last night
he had one bucket that came in the

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fourth quarter. Earlier in the game
two air balls from three point land.

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If you're a Lakers fan, in
my opinion, just treat this as a

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sidebar, but pay more attention that
a Dalton Connect can get you. And

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I guess I was wrong. I
went on a Houston radio show prior to

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the draft and they asked me,
when it just comes down to scoring,

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who would you take Read or Connect? That I said, honestly, I

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would take Connect because he's bigger,
stronger, and older. But Reed Shepherd

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has shown he can get a shot
and he's a better shooter than Dalton Connect.

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So I'll happily say I was wrong
there. It's still early and I

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think Dalton Dalton Connect will be a
factor for JJ Reddick and the Lakers.

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But Ronnie James, it's an experiment
and I don't think it's going to work

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out. Ronnie James has not come
close to Dalton Connect, like I said,

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nineteen against the Celtics, Connect at
twenty five against Reed Shepherd and the

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Rockets. So we'll keep an eye
on that for you. Coming up a

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little bit later on, we're going
to talk to Derek Terry of Batcat Central

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about the Wildcats who have gone in
the Major League Draft, and in our

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next segment, Tennessee's head coach Tony
working for MLB Network MLB dot Com,

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he broke down Walt Schmidt and Petrie
and was very complimentary. So we'll hear

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that coming up. But of course
tonight it's the All Star Game. It's

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the only All Star game worth watching
in my opinion, and the reason for

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that is defense. When you see
highlights, you'll see home runs. But

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if you see extended highlights of an
All Star game Baseball, it's guys making

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defensive plays. Those are the athletic, if not acrobatic, plays that draw

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the eyeballs. They don't play well. Of course, the NFL game has

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gone now the NBA game no defense. That is truly NBA basketball without defense,

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the hockey game nine to eight,
ten to seven, no defense and

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who cares, right, But that's
why I really like and it's the only

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All Star game I watch. Is
Baseball's All Star Game. Plus tonight Paul

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Skeins will start for the National League, the former LSU Tiger. I'll be

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watching. I hope you are too. Want to come here on six thirty

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Wlap Welcome back. Coming up a
little bit later on John Hale at the

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bottom of the hour from the Herald
Leader. He'll be talking about the talking

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season in Kentucky football. Down at
SEC media day's second hour of Seawan Woods,

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who is, of course the unforgettable
Guard. We talked to Sean every

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week. I'll be traveling tomorrow,
so we're going to talk to him today

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about LAFA Media. Sean is basically
taking a year off from coaching, except

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he's helping Tyler Eulis coach this group
of former Wildcats, and so we had

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a chance to see him in action
yesterday at practice on media day basically for

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LAFA Media. So we'll talk to
Sean about this group they've got and what

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it's like to coach a team full
of older guys after he has spent his

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coaching career on the college level.
So that comes up, and now our

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number two, we'll also talk Derek
Harry Batcat Central about the Major League Draft

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and Derek the former sportswriter primarily with
the Cats pause but now is in the

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private sector but jipping his toe back
in the water with batcatcentral dot com.

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So if you want to follow Kentucky
Baseball. I commend you to that website.

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He does a real nice job talking
about the current Wildcats and future Wildcats

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as well as he keeps an eye
on recruiting and the portal. Well.

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Speaking of the draft Wildcats, of
course, see Ryan Waltschmid go number thirty

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one as kind of a compensatory pick
to the Arizona Diamondbacks, and Amelian Petrie

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goes not long after him to the
Tampa Bay Rays. I think Waldy goes

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thirty first and Petrie goes fifty eighth. One of the guys working in the

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event on a TV for MLB MLB
Network in MLB dot Com Tony Vottello,

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the head coach of the Tennessee Volunteers
who won, of course, the College

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World Series and shared the SEC title
with the Wildcats after taking two out of

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three here and election did on an
incredible weekend when the crowd showed up like

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two hours ahead of time, if
not more, not longer, and just

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packed the place and it was a
great weekend at baseball. I got to

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tell you Vittello, Yeah, he
wears orange, but he did a great

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job I thought on the MLB coverage, not just because he said nice things

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about the Wildcats, but he just
was very relaxed and a natural I think,

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and you know, Doug Flinn and
I interviewed him during the games and

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he did a great job, just
as Nick Minjiom did so. And you've

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seen Nick interviewed on the set of
the SEC Today Show and things like that.

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So both of these guys are really
outstanding when it comes to live television.

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And here's what Bottello had to say
immediately after the Diamondbacks drafted Ryan Waldschmid

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Warrior. Walschmidt was the best player
on one of the best teams in the

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country, first Kentucky team to go
to Omahall, and he was the guy

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you did not want to mess with
at the end of the year. I

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believe last five games he did get
on base by walking, didn't accumulate a

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lot of hits. But I think
what everyone started to figure out towards the

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end of the season was this is
the guy in the lineup that you don't

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want to beat you. And it's
because he's a talented, strong hitter,

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and again he's a warrior. He
plays the game, you know, a

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little bit of old school, if
you will, and a great athlete in

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the field as well as you know, running the basis one of the best

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combinations in this draft of swing decisions, contact and hard contact. He's an

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impact player. I think he's an
underrated athlete. Had knee injury in the

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Cape Cod League, go off to
slow start this year. He was hurt

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in high school too, so he's
a little underrecruited. I think he began

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his career at College Charleston yep.
But I mean, you're talking about a

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guy who's got a chance to maybe
be a twenty twenty guy. The interesting

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thing is where does he want to
up in the outfit. You think he

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could maybe take a shot at center
with his speed, or is he more

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of a left fielder. As always, it kind of depends on who the

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other outfielders are, but you know, probably more of a left field But

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I think he makes it worth your
while with the bat. He can get

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a fastball. There ain't no doubt
about this. I like that first word

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out of his mouth was warrior,
and he is not wrong about Ryan Waldschmidt

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and as the leader, as the
leadoff man, and the guy really didn't

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carry the Wildcats but lit the fire. He was a spark for Kentucky this

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year, and yeah, he slowed
down and had a poor College World Series

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and didn't get a hit in the
Oregon State Series either the Super Regional.

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But Walshmid, what are you?
They don't make it to Omaha Withoul Walshmid.

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You can say the same for a
lot of the Wildcats, including a

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Millian Petrie. And you know the
story by now. He was a little

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heralded player up in Canada except by
Kentucky. He committed to Kentucky I think

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his third year of prep school when
he weighed one hundred and thirty pounds,

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didn't speak much English. And now
of course he plays, he says at

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WINT eighty five and one of the
top draft picks in America and maybe the

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best second baseman defensively in this out
the Eastern Conference, and impressed Tony Vitello.

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We talked about their team earlier and
of course Walschmidt, you know,

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felt like he was the alpha.
But Petrie clearly competitive, interesting, a

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lot of toughness. Not a hockey
player even though he's from Canada, but

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his French speaking and have coached some
of those guys. It's amazing what these

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guys do when they come from another
country, speak a different language or at

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least first language, and end up
contributing and blending in the way that they

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do. And really he didn't blend
in. He was a team leader again

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for one of the better teams in
the country, tremendous hand eye hitting some

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of the most important situations the last
two years that we played against those guys,

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I think, quite frankly, was
a pain in the butt. How

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much power do you think he's going
to have, because even though he's not

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a big guy, he hits the
ball hard. Look and we all know,

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if you're fortunate enough to make it
to omahall the park plays big.

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But he drove some balls over outfielders'
heads, and then also throughout the year

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he drove some balls over the left
fielder's head going the opposite way. So

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I think there's some hidden strength there
even though he's not one of the bigger

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guys. Our coach, Anderson,
our pitching coach, compared him to Marcus

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Giles, even though there's you know, right handed left handed difference there,

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but a smaller guy that does have
strength and clearly the ability to hit a

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bit of a surprise because I look
at your dot com rankings. He was

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outside the top one hundred. Yeah, but there's always you take from Take

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him by the team that likes you
the most. We had him at one

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seventy three. I know there were
teams that were talking about him in the

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top two rounds. I don't think
it was all thirty, but that's saying

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only takes one team. You get
drafted by the team the lake and I

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think defense and character are a little
bit of an X factor in here that

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contributed. Interesting side note at the
end of his comments Vitello talking about the

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character in Emilian Petrie. So again, tip of the cap to Vittello,

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the Tennessee coach, for the job
he did on MLB Network. In MLB

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dot Com, the MLB dot com
website, as It's Breakdown, Sam Diikstra

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wrote about the most intriguing picks from
rounds three to ten of the Major League

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Baseball Draft, and if you're a
Red, you got to like the fact

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that he wrote a lot about some
of the guys chosen by the Reds,

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including Mike Sarota from Northeastern University that's
up in Boston, picked thirteen, the

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eighty seventh overall and outfielder and uh
he was a little inconsistent this year,

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they said, but good arm,
good defense, good bat. So somebody

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for you Reds fans to keep an
eye on. Also, we saw this

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guy play. Peyton stoveall second baseman
for Arkansas, was picked in the fourteenth

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round one hundred and seventeen overall,
battling a lot of injuries throughout his career,

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but batted three point forty this year
and apparently improved quite a bit on

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defense this season. Still in the
fourteenth round, or actually the fifth round,

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Tristan Smith, a left hander for
Clemson. Clemson had a good team

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this year, and the Reds pick
up a left hander. In the eighth

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round. They got a right hander, Jaden Volker from Northern Essex Community College.

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You might say, well, he
was a JUCO Pitcher of the Year.

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So when you pick up a guy
like that coming off for red shirt

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years, so maybe a little bit
unherlded. Red's was another good opportunity.

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In the ninth round, they got
a guy named Ryan McCrystal. He's a

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catcher from East Carolina, which has
a really strong baseball program, and he

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excelled in the Appalachian League, the
Summer League, which is a wood Bat

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collegiate league bat at three ninety seven. So you got it like that if

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you're a Reds fan and one of
the guys to keep an eye on.

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According to Sam Dykstra, and again
this is of the MLB dot Com writer,

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he pointed to round number ten and
Ryan Nicholson, a Wildcat first baseman,

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started his career at Cincinnati, was
a bear Cat for four years,

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then came to UK and for eighth
in the SEC with twenty three home runs.

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Twenty one of those came in conference
player. I think he was second

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in the SEC and just SEC games
in home runs, but he led UK

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hitters even better than Waltschmidt in ops
on base plus slugging. He led the

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Wildcats in that category. So a
left handed power hitter for the Angels.

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MLB dot Com says, keep an
eye on that former Wildcat coming up next.

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John Hale of The Hero Leader,
we'll welcome back to the Big Winsider

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joining us on our selection. A
longtime friend of the show and a guy

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who's covered the Wildcats for a long
time. John Hale of The Hero Leader.

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You see his work at Kentucky dot
Com. John, You're heading for

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Dallas tomorrow. As I am,
what do you expect will be the storyline

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about the Wildcasts? Because last year
everybody jumped on Kentucky's second team predicted in

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the East. We know that didn't
work out. Where do they fit in

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this year? Do you think in
the eyes of the SEC media, what

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do you think is going to be
the storyline when it comes to the Wildcats

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down in Dallas. It's interesting because
the timing of when they talk this week

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I don't think does them any favors. They're the very last session on Thursday,

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the last day, and so frankly, a lot of people, a

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lot of regional and national media may
be gone by that point. They're they're

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not going to get the same amount
of eyeballs as they would have if they

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had going against Alabama or Georgia on
day two, which has been the case

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in the past at times, And
so that I think affects it a little

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bit. And the other thing that
didn't really do Kentucky any favors in this

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scheduling is the other team in their
session is Texas A and M. So

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this top story on Thursday is going
to be about Mark Stuce and whether and

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how close he came to going to
Texas A and M, and Texas A

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and M has this new coach.
We know there will be Texas media there

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because it's in Dallas, and so
he's going to get a ton of questions

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about that throughout the day, about
how that process played out, what his

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feelings are. And then that ties
into the Kentucky narrative too, because the

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question we have locally he's addressed since
then, but it's going to continue to

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be a topic throughout the season.
Is was he considering leaving because he thinks

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Kentucky is going to ceiling in this
new look SEC. Is he confident Kentucky

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can still compete in a team with
Oklahoma earnily with Oklahoma and Texas and no

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SEC East and who knows if the
schedule is going to go to nine games

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in the future in NIL and revenue
sharing and all those things are coming.

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Is he confident Kentucky can remain relevant
in that or did he think he needed

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to leave and go to one of
these traditional powers. That's going to be

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the conversation on third. Oh yeah, and you know I got to hand

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it to Stoops when he got here. John. I don't know about you,

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but I thought he was well prepared
when it came to dealing with the

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media. I mean there, you
know, like he had some rough spots,

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like most rookie head coaches do.
But I thought he's done a pretty

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good job and he's grown into that
role through the years. But this we

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know he is not yet as a
Kentucky coach really been in much of an

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uncomfortable position because his teams generally have
gotten better, they've been successful, they've

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gone to bowl games. There have
been some disappointments like every coach has to

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deal with, but for the most
part, he's been able to deal with

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that. And we also know John
he doesn't like dealing with the same topic

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more than once having to repeat himself
and brother, he's going to run into

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that down in Texas, isn't he. Yeah? Absolutely. I mean he

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has to your point, gotten more
comfortable at this event basically every year.

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I mean a couple of those early
ones were a little awkward, yeah,

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frankly because he came and he got
all the questions about his brothers and the

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basketball school and all that kind of
stuff, and you know, and he

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was learning to be a head coach
and be the Facebook program. And he's

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gotten so much better at that over
the years. But one thing he is

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not comfortable doing, or at least
doesn't like doing, and he'll tell you

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that when you ask him, is
he hates answering big picture questions. He

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wants to focus on his team and
his players and the x's and o's and

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how to get better and put in
the work every day of the off season,

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like he talks about. But SEC
Media Days is an event that is

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built for big picture questions, and
especially with everything that's going on in college

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sports right now, going to get
asked about revenue sharing, It's going to

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get asked about the nine game schedule. He's going to get asked about conference

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expansion and no divisions, and what
the tiebreaker policy should be, and whether

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they should have to release injury reports
for the gamblers and all of those kinds

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of things, and he's going to
get those repeatedly throughout the day because the

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way this works, it's like a
he goes from one room to the other,

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back and back to back, and
you know, fans and see the

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main media room that they air on
SEC network, but he does another fifteen

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interviews from various shows and various constituencies
in the media and so he's going to

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get those questions in almost every single
room, and how he handles the repeated

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you know, you're to your point
having to address them multiple times, and

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the big picture stuff. I think
it's going to be fascinating to watch because

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there I think there are fans who, understandably after the him stuff, are

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also wondering where his mindset is at
going into the season. He's got a

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new offensive coordinator and all those things
again, and this is really the first

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test we're going to see of how
he handles all that publicly. So I

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think it's a much more I think
most years, as the media days,

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is kind of workless, but I
think for Kentucky this year, it's actually

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pretty interesting. What do you think
is the over and under on one of

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his favorites? It is what it
is? Oh well, I mean he's

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going to say it five times in
every interview, probably because he's going to

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say, that's above my pay grade. It is what it is. I'm

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just going to deal with what we
can control. I can't control any of

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that. That's that's going to be
his go too much, Yeah, which

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is understandable, and he ain't going
to be the only coach who goes there.

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John Hale is my guest. He
writes for The Herald Leader in Kentucky

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dot Com covers Kentucky football. What
do you think of the lineup of players

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they're taken down there? I think
potentially it's pretty good. Yeah, I

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think so. I mean, Derek
Jackson's a guy who's like not super comfortable

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interviews, So I thought that that
was an interesting choice. And they've done

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00:24:07.079 --> 00:24:08.759
that a few times in the past, where you have this senior who's clearly

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a team captain, a leadership guy. They've talked so much the last few

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years about and getting Derek to come
out of his shell in the locker room

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and on the field and the talk
more. And one of the narratives for

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him this season is going to be, Okay, your best friend's gone.

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You don't have Trevin Wallace playing next
to you as that kind of security blanket.

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How do you take on that more
of that yourself? And so putting

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him in this event I think is
an interesting and early test to them.

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I'm eager to see how he handles
it. The other two guys are great

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00:24:34.000 --> 00:24:40.319
interviews, Deon Walker and Marcus Cox. They will you fill up your notebook

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and in an event that they're not
going to bring your quarterback, which has

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become the trend at SEC media days. You have a transfer quarterback, you

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don't bring those guys. They didn't
do it with Devin Leary last year.

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They're not doing it with brock Van
and Griff this year. You only bring

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your quarterback if he's a returning kind
of starter. So for us, we

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always want the quarterback to be there, but if you don't have him,

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as well, bring your best player. And that's who Dian Walker is.

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And so he's going to get attention
from regional national people because he's already popping

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up on these early bock drafts and
you know, he had this crazy film.

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He's a guy who came out immediately
after the Gator Bowl lost to Clemson,

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and so like, I have to
be a better leader. I have

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to take more guys under my wing. He was out for part of spring

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practice, so we haven't talked to
him since the Gay Bowl. It's going

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to be an interesting test for him
to see how he's approaching that leadership role.

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And then also just you know the
Josh Allen narrative of like, okay,

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this is your draft year, what
you are you motivated to take it

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00:25:33.200 --> 00:25:34.480
to that next level. What's he
done with his body, what's he done

353
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with conditioning? All those I think
are going to be really important. Not

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to mention that Anteoni has this injury
issue on their defensive line, you know

355
00:25:41.240 --> 00:25:44.839
Clean Green from spring practice. Is
he going to have to play nose guard

356
00:25:44.920 --> 00:25:47.000
now? Is he going to have
to move around a little bit more?

357
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That's going to be interesting to talk
too too. I've used the word charming

358
00:25:51.880 --> 00:25:55.240
when it comes to Dion Walker,
and for a guy that big, you

359
00:25:55.279 --> 00:25:57.039
know, I guess some of those
big guys are kind of lovable like that,

360
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but he, I mean day one
John, he kind of captivated people,

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didn't he. Yeah, He's very
endearing and it was interesting in talking

362
00:26:06.400 --> 00:26:10.200
to Animar Stewart's uring practice. I
asked him something about Beon's personality and the

363
00:26:10.279 --> 00:26:11.599
leadership stuff, and he said,
and he brought up the fact that I

364
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was a really fun point that Beyon
is different than a lot of players in

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00:26:15.799 --> 00:26:21.200
terms of he will talk to anybody
in that building. He will hang out

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00:26:21.240 --> 00:26:23.559
in the equipment room with the equipment
managers. He will hang out, you

367
00:26:23.559 --> 00:26:26.920
know, in the coach's offices.
He will hang out in the locker rooms,

368
00:26:26.920 --> 00:26:29.400
the players. He's a guy who
wants to talk to everybody, and

369
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that personality really shines through. And
then you add in like just his physical

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stature and how you know, eye
popping that is when you see him for

371
00:26:37.480 --> 00:26:40.160
the first time, it's a fun
blend. I mean, it's the same

372
00:26:40.440 --> 00:26:41.720
in many ways. It's like,
you know, this giant guy wearing numbers

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zero out there these de juctur position
of two kind of opposite ideas. That's

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kind of who beyond it, this
huge guy who's kind of this gentle giant.

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When he talked to him to do
you think that endearing quality maybe one

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of the reasons he stayed put because, let's face it, as I understand

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it, he's got the best an
IL deal, and I bet he couldn't

378
00:27:02.440 --> 00:27:06.920
could have gotten even more elsewhere.
I'm sure he turned down offers obviously,

379
00:27:07.680 --> 00:27:11.400
but he has kind of grown into
that building, hasn't he. Yeah,

380
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I mean, it's it says something
about his personality, it says something about

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00:27:14.799 --> 00:27:18.200
his family. It also says a
lot about Kentucky's in IL operation, you

382
00:27:18.200 --> 00:27:22.000
know, I mean, they're still
not out there signing a bunch of five

383
00:27:22.000 --> 00:27:23.839
school high school, high school kids
in the al, but they have been

384
00:27:23.960 --> 00:27:30.079
very successful in keeping their best players, certainly with Dion this year. I

385
00:27:30.240 --> 00:27:33.839
barry On Brown and Dan Key after
their freshman year. I'm not sure those

386
00:27:33.880 --> 00:27:37.759
guys had the same market on the
Nile Transfer portal marketplace after their sophomore years

387
00:27:37.759 --> 00:27:41.559
as they did after their freshman year, but I'm sure they had other opportunities

388
00:27:41.599 --> 00:27:44.759
as well. And Kentucky has been
able to keep all of those guys,

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which is step number one. And
if you're a program who can identify players

390
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in high school that you can get
on campus who might be under the radar,

391
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and when they turn into stars,
keep them around. That's huge for

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Kentucky because my prediction, and it
hasn't happened yet maybe it won't happen,

393
00:27:57.079 --> 00:28:00.359
is there was going to be a
time win a Benny Snail or a Lynn

394
00:28:00.359 --> 00:28:04.759
Bowden or a Mike Edwards, those
guys who didn't have Ohio State offers out

395
00:28:04.759 --> 00:28:07.319
of high school and turned to the
stars. At Kentucky, we're going to

396
00:28:07.440 --> 00:28:11.640
leave for the bigger, the traditional
powerhouse because of the transfer portal, and

397
00:28:11.680 --> 00:28:15.039
they have managed to avoid that completely, which is a huge testament to the

398
00:28:15.039 --> 00:28:19.720
culture, the coaching staff, the
resources and all those things. But Beyon,

399
00:28:21.599 --> 00:28:22.920
as coaches, we talk about this
many times. When you have that

400
00:28:23.000 --> 00:28:27.880
personality and you work hard and you're
the best player on the team that demands

401
00:28:27.920 --> 00:28:30.559
so much respect in the locker room
from day one, and there's a reason

402
00:28:30.599 --> 00:28:33.119
he was elected to team captain as
a sophomore last year. I don't think

403
00:28:33.119 --> 00:28:37.559
they had had that since Wesley Wood. It's just not something that happened.

404
00:28:37.599 --> 00:28:40.480
So we know how Wesley was in
the locker room, so I think Dion's

405
00:28:40.559 --> 00:28:44.039
kind of that perfect combination. John
Hale is my guest beat writer for The

406
00:28:44.039 --> 00:28:48.160
Hair Leader covers the football Wildcats.
He'll be heading to Dallas tomorrow and we're

407
00:28:48.200 --> 00:28:49.640
back in just a minute. We
back. We're talking with John Hale,

408
00:28:49.799 --> 00:28:55.440
the Harold Leader. He covers a
football Wildcat and is heading down to SEC

409
00:28:55.680 --> 00:29:00.240
media days. You mentioned Dane Key
and Barrian Brown, and I'm looking for

410
00:29:00.359 --> 00:29:04.720
breakout years, John, from both
of those guys. And when I say

411
00:29:04.759 --> 00:29:10.599
that, I'm essentially thinking not as
many drops because they've both done great things.

412
00:29:10.640 --> 00:29:14.480
I think Barrian Brown took a large
step forward last year according to our

413
00:29:14.519 --> 00:29:18.839
man Jeff Pecorrel and how he runs
his routes, but Jeff also said he's

414
00:29:18.880 --> 00:29:22.200
got to take another step in running
better routes, and so is his position

415
00:29:22.400 --> 00:29:26.119
coach. But if both can do
that, man, that's a huge plus

416
00:29:26.119 --> 00:29:30.759
for Kentucky. Yeah, it's what
I wrote about this morning. That's on

417
00:29:30.119 --> 00:29:36.039
our website and we have the paper
tomorrow on Wednesday. It's like a huge

418
00:29:36.119 --> 00:29:37.640
question for this team going into year
one. This time of year ago,

419
00:29:38.119 --> 00:29:41.680
we were all just assuming that those
two guys were going to take this big

420
00:29:41.799 --> 00:29:45.920
leap as sophomores because they had shown
so much freshman as promise. As freshmen,

421
00:29:47.079 --> 00:29:48.400
they were so exciting. We just
thought, Okay, this is the

422
00:29:48.480 --> 00:29:52.799
year they're going to be like all
sec Calver and frankly, it just didn't

423
00:29:52.799 --> 00:29:56.400
happen. I mean, they had
their moments, but inconsistency was still a

424
00:29:56.480 --> 00:30:00.200
huge issue, and I think Dankey
had five more catches last year they is

425
00:30:00.240 --> 00:30:03.160
a freshman, and barry On actually
had fewer catches as a sophomore than he

426
00:30:03.240 --> 00:30:06.200
did as a freshman. Some of
that was the rest of the offense and

427
00:30:06.240 --> 00:30:07.400
some other things going on, but
a lot of it was on them and

428
00:30:07.440 --> 00:30:12.000
figuring out the finer art of playing
a wide receiver. There's a reason that

429
00:30:12.039 --> 00:30:15.240
after the year. The first coaching
move Marks two's thing was to fire the

430
00:30:15.240 --> 00:30:19.200
wide receivers coach, and they brought
in Dochielle Schwartz from Houston. There was

431
00:30:19.240 --> 00:30:22.640
a younger guy who played the position
at a very high level not too long

432
00:30:22.680 --> 00:30:26.240
ago. It appears to have had
that bond already from like day one,

433
00:30:26.279 --> 00:30:29.880
even in the Bowl game before he
was coaching the position. We heard from

434
00:30:29.920 --> 00:30:33.880
barryon Brown about how much he was
kind of bonding with the coach Shorts already.

435
00:30:33.920 --> 00:30:36.799
I think that's a big deal.
But it's year three. Now it's

436
00:30:36.880 --> 00:30:38.720
time to put up or shut up. Basically, I mean these this is

437
00:30:38.720 --> 00:30:42.960
the year they need those guys to
come out and be huge contributors. And

438
00:30:44.000 --> 00:30:48.079
I think one thing that helps a
lot is it's not just them anymore either.

439
00:30:48.839 --> 00:30:52.000
We know Tavian Robinson when he arrived
here two years ago, was supposed

440
00:30:52.000 --> 00:30:56.240
to be the next one dal and
that turned out to be not to work.

441
00:30:56.519 --> 00:30:59.920
It didn't work out with him,
so it was basically just Dane and

442
00:31:00.720 --> 00:31:03.160
Bury on the last two years.
All of the guys behind them transferred out

443
00:31:03.200 --> 00:31:07.319
after the freshman year because they knew
that the writing was on the wall.

444
00:31:07.359 --> 00:31:10.920
Well, now you have Jamory Macklin
coming in from North Texas, who's one

445
00:31:10.920 --> 00:31:14.000
of twenty five players in the country
at one thousand receiving yards last year.

446
00:31:14.359 --> 00:31:17.720
You have Anthony Brown Stevens, who
showed some promises a freshman as a year

447
00:31:17.720 --> 00:31:21.799
of experience lenders belt. You have
Hardley Gilmore, who was basically the breakout

448
00:31:21.839 --> 00:31:25.000
star of spring practice that all the
coaches raved about as an early in role

449
00:31:25.079 --> 00:31:27.039
league. And then you have all
those tight ends who are going to be

450
00:31:27.079 --> 00:31:30.319
factors in the passing game too.
You don't have to force feed the ball

451
00:31:30.680 --> 00:31:33.000
Tod Dane and Barry On. You
want to get them the ball now because

452
00:31:33.039 --> 00:31:37.279
they're two of your best playmakers,
but it's not a situation where you have

453
00:31:37.319 --> 00:31:38.400
to force feed it to them.
You can spread it around and that's going

454
00:31:38.440 --> 00:31:42.640
to help everybody out. Those guys
have to approach that in a mature way,

455
00:31:44.359 --> 00:31:45.640
but we'll see. I think that's
going to help. And then the

456
00:31:45.680 --> 00:31:49.000
tempo of the offense, running more
plays, which is the goal and going

457
00:31:49.000 --> 00:31:52.640
to huggle, is going to give
everybody more opportunities to And of course a

458
00:31:52.720 --> 00:31:56.279
key is who's going to throw on
the football. And I was talking to

459
00:31:56.359 --> 00:32:00.039
Jeremy Jarman about this, and he's
been to several practice and he told me

460
00:32:00.200 --> 00:32:07.799
he would be surprised if there weren't
a real, genuine, spirited competition for

461
00:32:07.920 --> 00:32:12.759
quarterback. That they don't just pencil
in the transfer guy automatically. You know

462
00:32:12.799 --> 00:32:16.359
what I mean, I would well, I mean, everybody's new, so

463
00:32:17.240 --> 00:32:21.400
it's going to be a new guy
regardless because they have to replace the entire

464
00:32:21.519 --> 00:32:28.440
room. It's interesting because Brock Vandergriff
the quarterback is always the most important player

465
00:32:28.440 --> 00:32:31.200
on the roster, but that's especially
true for Kentucky this year in terms for

466
00:32:31.319 --> 00:32:35.640
them to have a special season.
I just don't see how they do that

467
00:32:35.720 --> 00:32:39.519
without Brock Vandergrift being being a guy
people think they are. I'm not sure

468
00:32:39.559 --> 00:32:44.680
he is. I mean, he's
basically unprecedented in this era of college football

469
00:32:45.160 --> 00:32:49.359
to be a five star high school
recruit who three years into his career now

470
00:32:49.440 --> 00:32:52.720
has barely played. Almost all of
those guys either play right away at their

471
00:32:52.759 --> 00:32:57.559
schools or transfer out. Some of
them didn't pan out, but we know

472
00:32:57.759 --> 00:33:00.799
that because they played and struggled.
We just haven't seen him play. And

473
00:33:00.880 --> 00:33:04.839
you know why. I mean at
Georgia he was behind Stetson, been at

474
00:33:04.839 --> 00:33:07.480
two time National Championship to quarterback for
two years, then he lost the job

475
00:33:07.480 --> 00:33:09.759
to Carson Beck last year. He's
going to be a first round pick because

476
00:33:09.759 --> 00:33:14.279
a year older than him. The
narrative is easy to write there, but

477
00:33:14.359 --> 00:33:15.960
we don't know if he's as good
as he was in high school yet.

478
00:33:16.680 --> 00:33:20.000
If he is, Kentucky's going to
be great this year, they're going to

479
00:33:20.000 --> 00:33:22.519
be in that nine to ten win
conversation. If he's not, then you

480
00:33:22.599 --> 00:33:25.759
have some issues because I don't know
that you want to fit forced cutter bowlie

481
00:33:25.759 --> 00:33:30.799
out there as a true freshman.
It appears that bo Allen, for all

482
00:33:30.119 --> 00:33:36.519
the experience he gained at Charlton and
then being on the sideline at Georgia Southern

483
00:33:36.599 --> 00:33:39.319
last year, is probably not in
a position to be a backup. Because

484
00:33:39.319 --> 00:33:45.079
they went out and added Gavin Wimsat
from Rutgers this summer or in the late

485
00:33:45.119 --> 00:33:49.400
spring. It's a transferraptor spring practice. Nothing that Gavin Wimsatt did at Rutgers

486
00:33:49.400 --> 00:33:52.119
for two years suggests that he's an
SEC starting quarterback. But he can at

487
00:33:52.200 --> 00:33:57.079
least make plays with his legs and
be using packages and if something happens with

488
00:33:57.200 --> 00:34:00.599
Rock Vand and Griff to where he
struggles or it's hurt. You can put

489
00:34:00.599 --> 00:34:04.839
whim set out there and be the
the Linn Voten offense with more of a

490
00:34:04.880 --> 00:34:07.440
passing threat, and you can get
the six wins in the bowl game.

491
00:34:07.480 --> 00:34:12.000
I think that's that's still a viable
path. But if we're talking true special

492
00:34:12.079 --> 00:34:15.800
season, it's got to be Brock
Vandergriff being the guy that people thought he

493
00:34:15.920 --> 00:34:19.239
was as a high score crew.
A few minutes love with John Hale of

494
00:34:19.280 --> 00:34:23.119
The Hero Leader. We talked earlier
about how the white Out specifically Key and

495
00:34:23.199 --> 00:34:28.639
Brown need to take a step forward
and in an impressive one this year.

496
00:34:28.960 --> 00:34:30.639
Same can be said for the old
line, right. I mean, it

497
00:34:30.679 --> 00:34:34.960
was a little bit better last year. I don't know that they'll ever get

498
00:34:35.000 --> 00:34:38.199
back to the true big blue wall
status of that year where they had what

499
00:34:38.360 --> 00:34:43.679
five kids go to NFL camps and
three stick in the league. That's a

500
00:34:43.719 --> 00:34:47.559
lot to ask for, but they
can definitely improve over last year. Yeah,

501
00:34:47.639 --> 00:34:52.159
I mean, it's it's why he
made the change at the position coach.

502
00:34:52.199 --> 00:34:53.239
I mean, it's easy to forget
now he was going to bring back

503
00:34:53.320 --> 00:34:57.800
Zach Ginterd. They signed him to
a contract in December. He was bringing

504
00:34:57.840 --> 00:35:00.280
him back, and then everything happened
to Alabam where Nick Saban retires, the

505
00:35:00.320 --> 00:35:04.960
staff turns over, and suddenly Eric
Wilford, who was the position coach in

506
00:35:05.039 --> 00:35:07.199
twenty twenty one when they won ten
games and had all those NFL linemen,

507
00:35:07.639 --> 00:35:12.960
is available again, and Mark Stoops
puts his pride aside and the park feelings

508
00:35:12.960 --> 00:35:15.599
over how that fell apart, and
brings Wilford back and fires the guy he

509
00:35:15.760 --> 00:35:19.760
just signed to an extension because he
thought that was a clear upgrade in the

510
00:35:19.760 --> 00:35:22.480
position where they need improvement, and
we know that that's true of Kentucky.

511
00:35:22.880 --> 00:35:25.239
I'm with you. I don't think
they're ever going to get back to that

512
00:35:25.440 --> 00:35:30.199
like John Schlaraman Big Blue Wall era, because the offense is so much different.

513
00:35:30.239 --> 00:35:31.679
I mean, they work ground and
pound, and they schemed in such

514
00:35:31.679 --> 00:35:36.920
a way to be that kind of
blocking offensive line, and they don't want

515
00:35:36.960 --> 00:35:39.519
to be that anymore. They know
they need to have a more credible passing

516
00:35:39.559 --> 00:35:43.840
attack and be more balanced, which
means your offensive line is not going to

517
00:35:43.840 --> 00:35:47.000
look the same way at that time. The floor I think for the offensive

518
00:35:47.039 --> 00:35:52.679
line is pretty high in terms of
having Marcus coxback, having Eli Cox back,

519
00:35:52.599 --> 00:35:57.239
having Jagger Burden in year three now, you would hope that he is

520
00:35:58.159 --> 00:36:00.639
ready to take a step forward.
You added two more transfers in Jalen Farmer

521
00:36:00.679 --> 00:36:05.000
and jeral Benc from Florida and Tennessee, who are both one or four star

522
00:36:05.079 --> 00:36:07.159
recruits who are running first team at
the end of spring practice. You've got

523
00:36:07.159 --> 00:36:12.280
guys like Courtland Ford and Dylan Ray
who have played a lot already. I

524
00:36:12.280 --> 00:36:15.519
think the floor is higher than it's
been in a few years. I still

525
00:36:15.559 --> 00:36:19.199
wonder how high the ceiling is though. Do they have THOSEFL talent on the

526
00:36:19.239 --> 00:36:22.480
line, And I'm not sure.
I think Marcus Cox is your best offensive

527
00:36:22.480 --> 00:36:24.039
lineman. But if he was a
definitely NFL guy, he be in the

528
00:36:24.079 --> 00:36:27.519
draft to be in a camp right
now, he wouldn't have come back for

529
00:36:27.519 --> 00:36:31.639
another year. Yeah, so that
part is interesting for me, and it

530
00:36:31.639 --> 00:36:36.199
will be fun to hear from Marcus
Cox in Dallas on Thursday to see what

531
00:36:36.239 --> 00:36:39.440
the progress is there and just what
kind of tangible difference Hiring Eric Wolford has

532
00:36:39.480 --> 00:36:43.800
made a couple of minutes left and
we have just enough time to talk about

533
00:36:43.800 --> 00:36:47.000
the running backs room, which is
intriguing. You've got kids who have come

534
00:36:47.079 --> 00:36:51.960
up to the program, You've got
transfers. I don't think you have a

535
00:36:52.000 --> 00:36:54.800
Benny Snell or a Chris Rodriguez,
so we may be seeing I think we

536
00:36:54.880 --> 00:36:59.679
will see that. I know the
kid from Ohouse Data is a power back,

537
00:37:00.320 --> 00:37:02.639
but I think we're going to see
some different styles out of that room.

538
00:37:04.079 --> 00:37:07.400
Yeah, that's my biggest question on
the roster, you know, other

539
00:37:07.480 --> 00:37:09.440
than quarterback, is what they're going
to do at running back. Every year

540
00:37:09.440 --> 00:37:13.599
the Bushampton has been a play caller
at the FBS level, whether it was

541
00:37:13.679 --> 00:37:17.519
at Washington or Boise State, he
has had a thousand yard rusher. I

542
00:37:17.559 --> 00:37:21.679
don't know that Kentucky has a thousand
yard rusher on the roster right now.

543
00:37:21.760 --> 00:37:25.320
So can he adapt to be a
committee approach where it's training on from Myles

544
00:37:25.320 --> 00:37:30.440
State, Gemmi Sumar Conway, who
was to transfer Mansa State last year.

545
00:37:30.480 --> 00:37:34.480
They put mostly receiver last year,
and then maybe the freshman Jason Patterson.

546
00:37:34.519 --> 00:37:37.119
Between those three guys, can you
get to that twenty nineteen level when you

547
00:37:37.239 --> 00:37:42.000
had a j Rose, Chris Rodriguez
and Cabasi Smoke kind of splitting carries.

548
00:37:42.039 --> 00:37:45.639
That's what I think it's going to
be. It's a little worrisome that clearly

549
00:37:45.760 --> 00:37:49.159
after spring practice. They they tried
to go out and find the starter at

550
00:37:49.239 --> 00:37:52.960
running back. Didn't work out.
They were pretty far in the process with

551
00:37:52.760 --> 00:37:57.079
Penny Boone, who was the MAC
Offensive Player of the Year at Toledo last

552
00:37:57.159 --> 00:38:00.239
year, spent the spring at Louisville, then transferred again, and then I

553
00:38:00.280 --> 00:38:02.599
think it was an academic issue that
kept him from from getting in Kentucky.

554
00:38:02.679 --> 00:38:07.000
They were going to get a visit
from Aidan Martinez from Oregon State. It's

555
00:38:07.000 --> 00:38:08.719
the top running back in the portal, and then he ended up committing before

556
00:38:08.760 --> 00:38:13.280
he made that visit. So they
were clearly looking at their options, which

557
00:38:13.360 --> 00:38:16.559
makes me very interested to see how
they approached that position. The one thing

558
00:38:16.639 --> 00:38:20.960
I am confident about is for as
good as Ray Davis was last year,

559
00:38:21.119 --> 00:38:23.400
they were not good in third and
short, fourth and short. You know,

560
00:38:23.719 --> 00:38:27.760
we're situations where everybody knew you had
to get two yards on the ground.

561
00:38:27.800 --> 00:38:30.000
They were not good situations. I
do think Chip Trainam can do that,

562
00:38:30.599 --> 00:38:35.280
and that's a big deal in this
hockey. John Hall follow him in

563
00:38:35.360 --> 00:38:37.679
the pages of the Herald Leader and
at Kentucky dot com. John, we

564
00:38:37.719 --> 00:38:40.840
will see you in Dallas. Thank
you so much. Thanks for having me

565
00:38:42.679 --> 00:38:46.079
and our number two was unforgettable guard
Sean Woods, who's helping to coach a

566
00:38:46.199 --> 00:38:50.599
lot on me. You next stat
at the news break here on six point

567
00:38:50.599 --> 00:39:25.960
thirty WLAP welcome back to the Big
Blue and Cider and joining us now usually

568
00:39:27.079 --> 00:39:30.400
joined us on Wednesday, but I'll
be traveling tomorrow. So the unforgettable guard

569
00:39:30.480 --> 00:39:35.599
Sean Woods joined us today and he
is back, at least temporarily in the

570
00:39:35.679 --> 00:39:39.519
coaching business. He is helping Tyler
Eulis with the Live Familiar team playing in

571
00:39:39.639 --> 00:39:45.519
TBT. And Sean, we saw
you in action yesterday over at on media

572
00:39:45.599 --> 00:39:50.880
Day. We stuck around for the
first twenty minutes of practice. It's like

573
00:39:51.000 --> 00:39:53.199
riding a bike, isn't it.
Yeah? It is, man, that's

574
00:39:53.239 --> 00:39:59.599
so so refreshing, just to be
out there in my own really just getting

575
00:39:59.639 --> 00:40:05.000
after you know, some young men
and how fortunate I I am and and

576
00:40:05.159 --> 00:40:07.920
talnent to be you know coaching form
the UK players who you know, who

577
00:40:07.960 --> 00:40:14.159
are professionals. So yesterday was real
fun for me. It kind of kickstart,

578
00:40:14.679 --> 00:40:16.639
got my juices flowing again and shooting. Like you said, I was

579
00:40:16.679 --> 00:40:20.199
in hell and it was. It
was. It was pretty good, sought

580
00:40:20.239 --> 00:40:23.360
pretty good. Have you ever coached
coaching some good guys. Yeah, but

581
00:40:23.519 --> 00:40:28.920
have you ever coached a roster like
that with older guys? They're they're still

582
00:40:29.000 --> 00:40:32.480
playing all but one of them professionally, and uh, you know those guys

583
00:40:32.480 --> 00:40:37.159
who played a lot of basketball.
No, I hadn't coach pro so this

584
00:40:37.320 --> 00:40:39.480
is my first time, and uh, you know, it's it's it's all

585
00:40:39.559 --> 00:40:42.880
the same. You know, if
you coach with some good basketball players,

586
00:40:42.920 --> 00:40:45.639
they all want to learn, and
all want to get better, and all

587
00:40:45.679 --> 00:40:47.960
want to be put in positions to
be successful. And you know that's all

588
00:40:49.000 --> 00:40:51.480
I'm doing. You know, I'm
not reinventing the wheel. I'm just having

589
00:40:51.519 --> 00:40:54.800
fun being with these guys and coaching
them and competing for something you know,

590
00:40:55.599 --> 00:41:00.960
well not uk name on our chest, but nobody knows who we are.

591
00:41:01.039 --> 00:41:05.199
It means a lot. And I
saw what you were doing. It just

592
00:41:05.280 --> 00:41:07.599
looked like you were explaining the set
you guys wanted to run and you had

593
00:41:07.639 --> 00:41:10.440
an active hand in that. You
know, I guess that's that's one of

594
00:41:10.480 --> 00:41:15.000
the bright spots is you don't have
to teach fundamentals and you know how to

595
00:41:15.079 --> 00:41:19.280
play the game. They all know
how to play the game. It's specific

596
00:41:19.360 --> 00:41:24.559
to what you guys want to run
right exactly exactly, so when you come

597
00:41:24.599 --> 00:41:28.239
ahead, No, I was going
to say, so when you step on

598
00:41:28.360 --> 00:41:30.599
that court, you still have their
attention, don't you. Oh, no

599
00:41:30.719 --> 00:41:34.920
doubt about it. You know it's
just you know, doing this for twenty

600
00:41:34.960 --> 00:41:37.360
five years, no matter if it's
you know, high school, college pro.

601
00:41:38.239 --> 00:41:42.760
You know, I've been a vet
just for a while. But you

602
00:41:42.840 --> 00:41:45.599
know, it's talking about the young
man that you're coaching, and you know

603
00:41:45.760 --> 00:41:50.159
you don't you only want to coach
guys that you can't coach. And we're

604
00:41:50.239 --> 00:41:53.559
fortunate and Twny Betha was fortunate and
did a good job of putting this roster

605
00:41:53.679 --> 00:41:59.559
together with guys that really are coming
back with some pride to to play.

606
00:42:00.039 --> 00:42:02.079
And you know, everybody gets what
they want when you are when you have

607
00:42:02.119 --> 00:42:07.840
a success, specially on the basketball. For you mentioned the fact that it's

608
00:42:07.920 --> 00:42:13.199
not going to be Kentucky on that
jersey, but everybody knows what it is.

609
00:42:15.000 --> 00:42:17.280
And like you said, they're gonna
come at you, aren't they In

610
00:42:17.360 --> 00:42:22.679
this tournament just as they did in
college. People want to measure themselves against

611
00:42:22.719 --> 00:42:25.639
the brand, don't they. Nothing's
changed, nothing's going to change, and

612
00:42:25.719 --> 00:42:30.039
they're coming in the rupt. So
we're planning against some guys that have never

613
00:42:30.119 --> 00:42:32.320
been in REUP before. Yeah,
it's always dreamed about it, and you

614
00:42:32.400 --> 00:42:36.360
know what, they know who they're
playing, so it's gonna be a little

615
00:42:36.400 --> 00:42:38.400
extra. Things have not changed,
you know. Once the UK player always

616
00:42:38.440 --> 00:42:43.679
the UK player, and you're always
going to be compared to and people have

617
00:42:43.800 --> 00:42:47.960
always either be their best around you
or try to be their best going going

618
00:42:49.039 --> 00:42:52.559
against you. So, uh,
we're looking forward to that and that's why

619
00:42:52.599 --> 00:42:57.079
we're working. You know, yesterday
was a really good person day, and

620
00:42:57.400 --> 00:43:00.440
uh, they all got the same
mindset of trying to in a championship and

621
00:43:00.559 --> 00:43:07.840
also get an opportunity to play against
Louisville in the later rounds and just sort

622
00:43:07.880 --> 00:43:12.199
of stands out there listening. We
need ticket sales because louis was beating us

623
00:43:12.239 --> 00:43:15.480
in ticket sales right now. And
from what I understand, if we do

624
00:43:15.679 --> 00:43:19.239
get a chance to play Louisville,
whoever sold the most tickets is going to

625
00:43:19.280 --> 00:43:21.920
be the one who holds that game, and we want to be the one

626
00:43:21.920 --> 00:43:25.760
who hosts that game. Absolutely.
John Hood is the other assistant coach.

627
00:43:27.159 --> 00:43:30.480
I don't know if there's more than
two of you guys, but of course,

628
00:43:30.599 --> 00:43:32.360
John a shooter, never met a
shot. He didn't like. You're

629
00:43:32.440 --> 00:43:37.480
a point guard, just like Tyler
Eulis. I got to think that that's

630
00:43:37.519 --> 00:43:40.440
a bit of an advantage Sean,
when you guys put your heads together because

631
00:43:40.480 --> 00:43:45.119
you see the game in similar ways. Am I right about that? Oh?

632
00:43:45.199 --> 00:43:47.760
I no doubt about it. And
you know, Tyler's never coached before,

633
00:43:47.840 --> 00:43:52.360
but it doesn't matter if you play
this game. You got a great

634
00:43:52.400 --> 00:43:58.199
feal for the game because you're natural
and Tyler's a natural. He's got great

635
00:43:58.400 --> 00:44:00.840
or about it. And also you
know, he's a natural point guard.

636
00:44:00.960 --> 00:44:06.440
So now the thing is is relaying
that to the guys or what you're trying

637
00:44:06.480 --> 00:44:09.480
to do. And I was highly
impressed yesterday for his first time, you

638
00:44:09.559 --> 00:44:13.880
know what I mean. And my
job is to just help him get things

639
00:44:13.920 --> 00:44:16.039
across. But as far as you're
in the basketball game and having a still,

640
00:44:16.119 --> 00:44:21.880
especially on the offensive end, he's
a natural. Well, you've been

641
00:44:21.960 --> 00:44:24.679
a head coach, you've been an
assistant coach, so you know both of

642
00:44:24.719 --> 00:44:28.000
those rules. And I got to
think that's a big help for you.

643
00:44:28.199 --> 00:44:30.400
But man, for Tyler to be
able to lean on you, that's huge.

644
00:44:31.559 --> 00:44:35.360
Yeah, it is, And that
was one of the reasons why I

645
00:44:35.400 --> 00:44:37.480
did this, you know what I
mean. And he's a great guy to

646
00:44:37.519 --> 00:44:43.400
work with. He listens, he
wants to be a coach, and I

647
00:44:43.480 --> 00:44:45.519
think he will be, you know, once he gets his degree. I

648
00:44:45.599 --> 00:44:47.719
think he'll be a six year of
college basketball because you know, he knows

649
00:44:47.760 --> 00:44:52.199
that he has a greatful or people
knowing and liking and you know, if

650
00:44:52.239 --> 00:44:54.400
he sticks with it, you know, you never know what could happen.

651
00:44:54.639 --> 00:44:59.719
Yeah. Well, and in case
people are wondering, he said he's not

652
00:45:00.159 --> 00:45:04.719
one hundred percent recovered from the injuries
in the accident, but he's off crutches,

653
00:45:04.960 --> 00:45:07.320
which is great. But I'm really
curious, Sean, to see you

654
00:45:07.480 --> 00:45:14.360
guys work together on that sideline when
you're coaching this group of veterans and a

655
00:45:14.480 --> 00:45:17.480
lot of UK memories and one thing
I talked to I think eight of the

656
00:45:17.559 --> 00:45:22.159
guys before time ran out. And
the one thing Sean, they all have

657
00:45:22.280 --> 00:45:25.000
in common, whether they were here
for four years or one, and most

658
00:45:25.079 --> 00:45:30.280
of them were only here for one
or two, is how much it meant

659
00:45:30.320 --> 00:45:34.400
to them to be back. And
you grew up watching this program, you

660
00:45:34.559 --> 00:45:37.519
played in this program for four years, or you were a part of it

661
00:45:37.559 --> 00:45:39.920
at any rate for four years.
What do you think, What does that

662
00:45:40.000 --> 00:45:45.000
mean to you to hear these guys
talk about what it means to them to

663
00:45:45.079 --> 00:45:50.960
come back to Lexion. Well,
it's gratifying because no matter how long you

664
00:45:51.039 --> 00:45:53.400
stay in Kentucky, you're going to
see the effect. All you got to

665
00:45:53.400 --> 00:45:57.960
do is play a reperarrina one time
and hear all these people hearing and screaming

666
00:45:57.960 --> 00:46:01.239
and yellow for you. Unlike any
other place in America, that hasn't everlasting

667
00:46:01.280 --> 00:46:06.400
effect. And a lot of these
guys haven't been back in over eight years.

668
00:46:06.599 --> 00:46:08.480
You know, I asked the Harrison
Twins this the last time they've been

669
00:46:08.519 --> 00:46:13.079
back in Lexic and they said they
came back a year after they played and

670
00:46:13.199 --> 00:46:16.559
haven't been back since. Yeah,
and you know, there there and and

671
00:46:16.840 --> 00:46:21.800
twenty. Bess has done a great
job of putting this thing together in its

672
00:46:21.840 --> 00:46:24.760
first class. And these guys,
even though they're pros, they're still getting

673
00:46:24.800 --> 00:46:29.719
treated like they're in college. You
know, still got the you know,

674
00:46:29.800 --> 00:46:31.760
the breakfast and the you know,
the dinners, you know, the team

675
00:46:31.840 --> 00:46:37.360
meals and and things like that,
so you know, they're still they're getting

676
00:46:37.400 --> 00:46:44.360
treated like Kentucky basketball players. Again, twenty said that when he approached players

677
00:46:44.639 --> 00:46:47.400
and they agreed. He told them, this is not a celebrity game,

678
00:46:47.840 --> 00:46:52.519
this is not an exhibition situation.
You got to be in shape. And

679
00:46:53.320 --> 00:46:57.000
most of those guys look like they're
in pretty good shape, you know.

680
00:46:57.119 --> 00:47:00.599
Nate Sistina said he's still working back
because he'd been offered a couple of weeks.

681
00:47:00.880 --> 00:47:04.039
And as you know, it doesn't
take long to get out of shape.

682
00:47:04.719 --> 00:47:07.400
Daniel Lordon said, I asked him, he goes, I'm working on

683
00:47:07.559 --> 00:47:13.079
it, you know, but they
can't cruise through this thing, no,

684
00:47:13.559 --> 00:47:15.679
no, no, And yesterday was
a dicator. You know, even though

685
00:47:15.719 --> 00:47:19.400
these guys, you know, just
getting off the plane and things like that,

686
00:47:20.199 --> 00:47:22.280
you know, they still had to
get their legs upon them. And

687
00:47:22.920 --> 00:47:27.159
yesterday was a great start, and
hopefully today will be better. And you

688
00:47:27.239 --> 00:47:30.159
know, these are pros, and
you know, hopefully by Friday we'd be

689
00:47:30.239 --> 00:47:34.000
to hear our stradgle of it,
especially from a conditioning standpoint, and with

690
00:47:34.159 --> 00:47:37.800
our roster, if our conditioning could
sustain, you know, I like our

691
00:47:37.880 --> 00:47:44.719
chances of having some major success in
the tournament. Why simply because of our

692
00:47:44.800 --> 00:47:46.519
roster. I mean, we got
all legit pros, all these a lot

693
00:47:46.559 --> 00:47:52.079
of these teams don't have legit pros. They have guys that player in winter

694
00:47:52.199 --> 00:47:55.159
leagues and things like that. And
you know, some guys come off the

695
00:47:55.199 --> 00:47:59.039
street and never you know, probably
play one or two years of college basketball.

696
00:47:59.159 --> 00:48:01.920
Yeah, so what we have is
we have basketball players that know how

697
00:48:01.960 --> 00:48:06.719
to play basketball, played at the
highest level, being coached by the best

698
00:48:07.000 --> 00:48:12.119
coaches in America. And another thing
is they have pride and they know what's

699
00:48:12.159 --> 00:48:15.800
at stake right now. And you
know, they came in with a great

700
00:48:15.800 --> 00:48:19.800
attitude. I was worried about that
at first, but man, once we

701
00:48:19.920 --> 00:48:22.400
got after it started getting into it, they were all in tune and it

702
00:48:22.519 --> 00:48:27.039
was like coaching, you know,
college basketball players again. Seand was my

703
00:48:27.159 --> 00:48:30.239
guest, the unforgettable guard. He
is helping Tyler Elis with LA for me,

704
00:48:30.599 --> 00:48:37.880
the former Kentucky players coming together for
the basketball tournament. Winner takes all

705
00:48:37.039 --> 00:48:39.440
a lot of money at stake.
We'll talk more about that on the other

706
00:48:39.519 --> 00:48:43.199
side of the break here on six
point thirty w I I'll come back.

707
00:48:43.199 --> 00:48:46.320
We're talking with unforgettable guard Sean Woods. He is on the coaching staff for

708
00:48:46.480 --> 00:48:52.079
La Fa Mea, which is playing
in the basketball tournament coming up fast Friday

709
00:48:52.400 --> 00:48:54.679
is when you guys play your first
game. One of the first people sew

710
00:48:54.719 --> 00:48:59.679
and I talked to is Willie call
Ea Stein, who is really an intriguing

711
00:48:59.760 --> 00:49:02.639
guy to me, still is,
but when he was here at Kentucky.

712
00:49:02.679 --> 00:49:07.440
And by the way, he looks
like he's much skinnier than he was when

713
00:49:07.480 --> 00:49:12.159
he played here at Kentucky. Maybe
that's just because of the way he played

714
00:49:12.159 --> 00:49:15.719
in the NBA. But he was
a guy who stuck around for I think

715
00:49:15.840 --> 00:49:21.199
three years, and I revisited that
with him because he said back then he

716
00:49:21.440 --> 00:49:24.159
wasn't done being a kid. He
was in no hurry to get to the

717
00:49:24.320 --> 00:49:30.320
NBA, which I really respected.
Everybody has their own way, but I

718
00:49:30.400 --> 00:49:34.480
always respected that about Willie call Eastein. You know what I mean. Yeah,

719
00:49:35.079 --> 00:49:37.199
well, you know he's a guy
that beats to his own drum,

720
00:49:37.360 --> 00:49:39.840
you know what I mean. Oh
yeah, he's very very unique individual.

721
00:49:39.880 --> 00:49:43.880
But I'll tell you what, if
you're around him, you like him.

722
00:49:43.920 --> 00:49:46.920
He's like a magnet. You know. He's just a normal kid that you

723
00:49:47.000 --> 00:49:51.440
know, doesn't do what everybody else
does, you know. And but he

724
00:49:51.559 --> 00:49:53.440
loves golf. Now he's picked up
golf, is what he told me,

725
00:49:54.119 --> 00:49:59.880
And he's got kids now that you
know, he ready to do that now,

726
00:50:00.079 --> 00:50:02.360
be a dad and and and play
golf. And he likes taking his

727
00:50:02.480 --> 00:50:07.119
kids out on the golf course with
them and and things like that. So

728
00:50:07.159 --> 00:50:10.800
you can tell that he's matured a
lot. He knows what he wants.

729
00:50:12.519 --> 00:50:15.760
And uh, I'm just happy that
I can coach him, just touch him,

730
00:50:15.800 --> 00:50:17.440
just for a little bit, because
all these guys I was gone,

731
00:50:17.519 --> 00:50:22.480
These guys came in and looking at
him from afar. You know, you

732
00:50:22.519 --> 00:50:25.760
don't know them. Now I get
to actually be involved with these guys and

733
00:50:25.840 --> 00:50:29.840
get to know them as a former
player too, even though I'm much older

734
00:50:30.280 --> 00:50:32.320
and I should. These last couple
of days have been great for me,

735
00:50:32.559 --> 00:50:37.320
just mingling with these guys, telling
their listening to their stories and their experiences

736
00:50:37.960 --> 00:50:40.280
of being a Kentucky basketball player and
me telling mine as a college I mean

737
00:50:40.320 --> 00:50:45.719
as a Kentucky basketball player. So
the conversations have been great. I think

738
00:50:45.760 --> 00:50:50.239
they all see that Lexington has grown
since the last time they've been here.

739
00:50:51.239 --> 00:50:52.679
And uh, you know a lot
of guys are talking about you. When

740
00:50:52.679 --> 00:50:55.880
they finished, they may want to
live here. So you know, that's

741
00:50:57.079 --> 00:51:00.760
the effect in a short time that
this place has had on them. Then

742
00:51:00.840 --> 00:51:06.400
two, they really never got a
chance to really embrace the state of Kentucky

743
00:51:06.480 --> 00:51:09.360
because of the short stay. And
now that they've become adults and they see

744
00:51:09.400 --> 00:51:14.480
it from afar, now you appreciate
it even more than man. You know,

745
00:51:14.719 --> 00:51:16.800
if we just stayed stayed around here
a little longer, you know,

746
00:51:17.320 --> 00:51:21.800
this could be, this could be. But you know, for any reason,

747
00:51:21.920 --> 00:51:24.880
you can't turn down being as the
dollars to reach a dream of playing

748
00:51:24.920 --> 00:51:30.400
in the NBA. So you know, times are different, but this is

749
00:51:30.440 --> 00:51:34.679
still Kentucky, and Kentucky still has
that type of effect on guys, whether

750
00:51:34.679 --> 00:51:37.760
they we're here one year, two
years, or four years. Well,

751
00:51:37.840 --> 00:51:40.519
Mark Pope's a great example of that. He's he's over fifty and he only

752
00:51:40.920 --> 00:51:45.679
spent what three years of his life
here and couldn't wait to get back.

753
00:51:45.760 --> 00:51:49.440
So you're right, there is that
effect on the guys who come back and

754
00:51:49.519 --> 00:51:53.239
the guys you're coaching now, including
Eric Bledshell. You talked about legit pros.

755
00:51:53.599 --> 00:51:57.559
It doesn't get more legit than him. I mean, he played a

756
00:51:57.639 --> 00:52:00.559
lot of basketball in the NBA.
Hey, what a weapon for you guys,

757
00:52:00.679 --> 00:52:06.079
right, Oh my gosh. You
know, it's like having that new

758
00:52:06.199 --> 00:52:09.639
toy, and that toy sticks out
more than all the other toys that you

759
00:52:09.719 --> 00:52:13.880
get on MS. Yeah, he's
that toy, you know what I mean.

760
00:52:14.239 --> 00:52:17.199
And for me to coach a legit
pro well, all these WILLI collas

761
00:52:17.239 --> 00:52:21.559
stand. All these guys had a
stint. You know, James Young has

762
00:52:21.599 --> 00:52:24.880
stints. You know, they had
stints in the NBA. So you know,

763
00:52:25.400 --> 00:52:28.880
as a coach, you just all
you doing is putting them in situations

764
00:52:28.920 --> 00:52:31.760
and creating organization, and you let
these guys do what they do, you

765
00:52:31.840 --> 00:52:37.159
know. And I don't think a
lot of teams in this TVT has that

766
00:52:37.320 --> 00:52:39.360
type of roster that we have.
We just got to get these guys together.

767
00:52:39.960 --> 00:52:43.519
And the more post time we have
in a short amount in a short

768
00:52:43.559 --> 00:52:46.360
period, the better we are.
So looking forward to today's practice for sure.

769
00:52:47.280 --> 00:52:52.039
I talked to Aaron Harrison about the
big shots that he hit or Kentucky.

770
00:52:52.159 --> 00:52:57.119
People remember the two that he had
in the NCA Tournament fifteen, but

771
00:52:58.000 --> 00:53:01.599
as a freshman he threw one in
a beat Wisconsin with seven centers left,

772
00:53:01.639 --> 00:53:06.400
and he said, I see him
on the on the internet all the time,

773
00:53:07.280 --> 00:53:09.719
h and if not, people walk
up and talk to him. And

774
00:53:09.840 --> 00:53:15.639
I know you can relate to that
about big shots. So that's all part

775
00:53:15.679 --> 00:53:20.079
of it, isn't It's all no
doubt about it, man. And now

776
00:53:20.119 --> 00:53:23.800
they get to come back and for
the first time and embrace the fans and

777
00:53:23.920 --> 00:53:29.599
really take this all all in as
they become adults. I think it's huge

778
00:53:29.599 --> 00:53:34.400
and I think timing is perfect,
you know, because what Mark Pope,

779
00:53:34.599 --> 00:53:38.440
you know, what is his theme
is about bringing Kentucky back and you know,

780
00:53:39.159 --> 00:53:44.119
three months later you got some you
know, the cream of the crop

781
00:53:44.199 --> 00:53:46.280
except for the guys that are still
playing in the NBA to come back and

782
00:53:46.880 --> 00:53:51.119
want to play in front of their
fans for for common goal, that's big

783
00:53:51.239 --> 00:53:57.880
time. I know he wants he
wants his players exposed to your players that

784
00:53:58.119 --> 00:54:00.599
that could really be helpful, right, Oh, no doubt about it.

785
00:54:00.679 --> 00:54:05.199
And you know on Wednesday there's going
to be some more formal players coming in.

786
00:54:07.000 --> 00:54:09.079
That's a little deal. And that's
that's that's gonna be even more,

787
00:54:09.239 --> 00:54:14.480
you know. And and for me
to be the connector between you know,

788
00:54:15.159 --> 00:54:21.039
the past and the short past,
which is still pretty much you know what

789
00:54:21.079 --> 00:54:23.639
I mean, Yeah, the press
still pretty much the present is big,

790
00:54:23.840 --> 00:54:28.719
you know, And I just think
it's all working out for the one common

791
00:54:28.800 --> 00:54:31.840
goal is to make sure that everyone
knows that they're part of Kentucky basketball.

792
00:54:32.119 --> 00:54:36.599
If they were wont that that blue
and white jersey. You talked about swapping

793
00:54:36.760 --> 00:54:39.159
stories, and it just occurs to
me. These guys all played for Caliperi,

794
00:54:40.039 --> 00:54:45.440
you played for Patino. Has anybody
asked you about that? No,

795
00:54:45.920 --> 00:54:50.719
because there's still cow driven. They
don't know anything, you know, that's

796
00:54:50.800 --> 00:54:54.599
that's the one thing that you know
they're listening to that they didn't know about.

797
00:54:54.679 --> 00:54:59.599
When we're talking, especially me telling
my stories, they only see it

798
00:54:59.639 --> 00:55:04.039
through eyes And the only reason why
is because they didn't have enough time to

799
00:55:04.159 --> 00:55:08.760
embrace. But former players could embrace, did embrace. You know, they

800
00:55:08.800 --> 00:55:12.840
couldn't come out in the community as
much as we did. You know,

801
00:55:12.920 --> 00:55:16.440
they couldn't be touched by the people
that we were touched because times had changed

802
00:55:16.480 --> 00:55:19.920
by the time Kyle got here.
You know, you got social media,

803
00:55:20.280 --> 00:55:23.159
you got things like that, and
there's so much in the public eye.

804
00:55:23.800 --> 00:55:30.199
You're trying to protect them for their
own good and the university's on good,

805
00:55:30.320 --> 00:55:32.119
so you know what I mean.
You know, people can take take something

806
00:55:32.320 --> 00:55:35.880
and twist it around. Well,
Kyle did a good job of protecting his

807
00:55:36.000 --> 00:55:39.039
guys and he never had that problem. But on the other hand, they

808
00:55:39.079 --> 00:55:44.840
didn't get a chance to go out
and really connect with the commonwealth of Kentucky

809
00:55:45.000 --> 00:55:49.360
like we did. So this is
their opportunity now, you know, to

810
00:55:49.519 --> 00:55:52.840
just splurge around. They're walking around
town. You know, they're doing things

811
00:55:52.880 --> 00:55:57.599
while they're here, and they're letting
people touch them and they're seeing you know,

812
00:55:57.679 --> 00:55:59.719
man, these people really like us. They didn't forget us, you

813
00:55:59.760 --> 00:56:01.800
know, we were just not here
to play basketball. Then go on with

814
00:56:01.880 --> 00:56:06.880
our deal. You know, this
is a magical place, and what better

815
00:56:06.920 --> 00:56:10.559
way to do it in a team
setting? And then also the fans can

816
00:56:10.639 --> 00:56:15.440
actually come watch them play again interrupt. I always tease Cameron Mills, and

817
00:56:15.440 --> 00:56:21.119
actually I bust him a little bit
on the fact that he's not really up

818
00:56:21.239 --> 00:56:24.960
to speed on the history of Kentucky
basketball, even though he's part of it,

819
00:56:25.440 --> 00:56:29.800
even though his dad played here.
I always felt like, you know,

820
00:56:29.880 --> 00:56:32.239
if you played here, you need
to know more about the history of

821
00:56:32.280 --> 00:56:36.639
the game. And you've picked up
and by that I mean Kentucky basketball.

822
00:56:36.639 --> 00:56:40.360
You've picked up on a lot of
that since you graduated. And I guess

823
00:56:40.519 --> 00:56:44.920
that's probably too much to ask these
young folks, isn't it. But man,

824
00:56:45.320 --> 00:56:50.320
there's so much tradition. Yeah,
and that's the only down part about

825
00:56:50.360 --> 00:56:52.719
it is they don't know who they
were playing for, right. They don't

826
00:56:52.760 --> 00:56:58.159
know the significance of that they have
on the people in the state of Kentucky.

827
00:56:58.239 --> 00:57:02.559
They really don't. And you know, hopefully, you know, with

828
00:57:02.679 --> 00:57:07.320
the experience that they've had throughout this
ordeal, that you know, they can

829
00:57:07.400 --> 00:57:13.079
start to realize it and then be
more intrigued about Kentucky basketball, you know

830
00:57:13.079 --> 00:57:15.280
what I'm saying. You know,
back then, you know, those guys

831
00:57:15.320 --> 00:57:19.599
were here for one reason, one
reason only is to play here, try

832
00:57:19.639 --> 00:57:22.719
to win a championship and get to
the NBA. You know, it wasn't

833
00:57:22.800 --> 00:57:25.199
to embrace the tradition and things like
that. And you know, they didn't

834
00:57:25.199 --> 00:57:30.400
get to be around people to hear
other people's stories of how significant of a

835
00:57:30.519 --> 00:57:32.920
role that they play in the state
because you know, they were here for

836
00:57:34.039 --> 00:57:40.039
such a short time and they were
pretty much sheltered for you know, many

837
00:57:40.199 --> 00:57:45.119
reasons. I just think that it
would be great if these guys and I

838
00:57:45.199 --> 00:57:47.360
know, again you're asking a lot
in this generation, but they should know

839
00:57:47.480 --> 00:57:52.280
that pat Riley played here. They
should know the name Cotton Ash, they

840
00:57:52.280 --> 00:57:55.760
should know Sam Bowie. I remember
asking a players a few years ago and

841
00:57:55.840 --> 00:58:00.039
Bowie was in in the practice center. I pointed at him as a you

842
00:58:00.119 --> 00:58:02.159
know that guy is and the player
said, yeah, I think he played

843
00:58:02.159 --> 00:58:05.639
here, didn't he. I'm thinking, man, you know you need to

844
00:58:05.719 --> 00:58:08.320
learn these great names because now you're
part of it. But that that's a

845
00:58:08.400 --> 00:58:13.960
process, isn't it It is?
You know, and and where things are

846
00:58:14.039 --> 00:58:15.239
going right now, it's only going
to get worse, it's not going to

847
00:58:15.280 --> 00:58:19.360
get better. Yeah, you know, because it's all about it's not about

848
00:58:19.440 --> 00:58:23.199
tradition anymore. You're not going to
Kentucky because Kentucky is Kentucky. That you're

849
00:58:23.239 --> 00:58:28.280
going to Kentucky because they probably,
just like anything, you know, their

850
00:58:28.320 --> 00:58:31.239
situation is better from you from a
financial standpoint. And then also trying to

851
00:58:31.280 --> 00:58:34.440
get you to where you're going to
in the future, which is playing in

852
00:58:34.480 --> 00:58:37.320
the NBA. That's it, you
know what I'm saying that the thought process

853
00:58:37.599 --> 00:58:40.880
is totally different. Yeah, And
how do we get that back? I

854
00:58:40.920 --> 00:58:45.519
don't know, because it's all about
money now. I think Mark Pope is

855
00:58:45.599 --> 00:58:50.639
going to try to change that because
of the players I've already spoken to on

856
00:58:50.800 --> 00:58:55.760
his roster. They said that they
wanted to be here because they know what

857
00:58:55.960 --> 00:59:00.599
the Kentucky brand means. And yeah, it'll it'll help and perhaps reach their

858
00:59:00.679 --> 00:59:05.639
goal. But they wanted to be
a part, they said, of Kentucky

859
00:59:05.760 --> 00:59:07.400
basketball. So I think that's a
step in the right direction. You know,

860
00:59:08.360 --> 00:59:10.679
Oh, no doubt about it.
You want to be because you know,

861
00:59:10.800 --> 00:59:15.280
Kentucky is still a household name,
you know, uh, and they

862
00:59:15.360 --> 00:59:19.800
want to understand it. And he's
got a different type of kid too,

863
00:59:20.000 --> 00:59:22.840
right now. You know, he
doesn't have any lottery picks on his on

864
00:59:23.000 --> 00:59:30.599
his team, so he's got some
excuse me, some legit college basketball players

865
00:59:30.840 --> 00:59:35.559
for your guys, and so he's
got to you know, hopefully he can

866
00:59:35.679 --> 00:59:39.920
get that ring that into them in
a short period of time. But that's

867
00:59:39.960 --> 00:59:43.400
what it is now. You know, if you're going to get transfers their

868
00:59:43.440 --> 00:59:47.239
transport for one reason, one reason
only, and uh, you know it's

869
00:59:47.280 --> 00:59:52.000
it's a task, you know.
But I know that he's preaching it every

870
00:59:52.079 --> 00:59:55.639
day and I know they hear it
every day. The difference is can they

871
00:59:55.840 --> 01:00:00.639
experience it every day? You know? After practice, I can go out

872
01:00:00.679 --> 01:00:02.760
and Lexington, you know after a
game, I can, you know,

873
01:00:05.039 --> 01:00:07.559
not just me because I have family
here, but all of us. That's

874
01:00:07.639 --> 01:00:10.559
not the case anymore. And I'm
sure Mark's trying to come up with some

875
01:00:10.679 --> 01:00:16.079
situations to where they're more community accessible, but even then you have to be

876
01:00:16.199 --> 01:00:21.599
careful. Sean Woods, the unforgettable
guard now and the coaching staff are Lafami

877
01:00:21.880 --> 01:00:23.400
coach. Thank you so much,
Best of luck. We'll talk again soon,

878
01:00:23.840 --> 01:00:29.119
Okay, be careful on that roil, buddy. Derek and three two

879
01:00:29.199 --> 01:00:32.480
one welcome back to the Big Blue
Cider. Joining us now is a publisher

880
01:00:32.519 --> 01:00:37.840
of bat Cat Central. Derek Terry
formerly with a Cats pause and now has

881
01:00:37.880 --> 01:00:42.480
a job in the private sector,
but keeps an eye on college baseball.

882
01:00:43.199 --> 01:00:47.599
And I know you were paying close
attention as we were to the early rounds

883
01:00:47.719 --> 01:00:52.360
of the Major League Draft. Were
you surprised that it took Ryan Walshman a

884
01:00:52.440 --> 01:00:58.440
while to come off the board.
Yeah, I mean he was one of

885
01:00:58.480 --> 01:01:01.119
those guys that depended on which mock
you were looking at. He was kind

886
01:01:01.159 --> 01:01:06.039
of all over the place. Some
people talked about him maybe getting as high

887
01:01:06.039 --> 01:01:08.239
as kind of the back half of
the top ten. That always seemed kind

888
01:01:08.280 --> 01:01:12.000
of ambitious, but then other people
kind of said his range might have been

889
01:01:12.039 --> 01:01:15.400
in the twenties. So he ended
up at thirty one, which depended on

890
01:01:15.440 --> 01:01:19.840
the semantics of it. Is that
the first round, is it not because

891
01:01:19.880 --> 01:01:22.960
you have these prospects and centerpicks.
Now he in he got some compensation picks

892
01:01:23.039 --> 01:01:28.320
before you get to the second round, so not within the top thirty.

893
01:01:28.400 --> 01:01:31.280
But I think the Diamondbacks were probably
quite happy to see him there at thirty

894
01:01:31.360 --> 01:01:37.840
one. I think they're getting a
really good player, someone that his reigne

895
01:01:37.960 --> 01:01:43.400
was kind of you know, if
some teams viewed him possibly as a high

896
01:01:43.400 --> 01:01:45.000
as the top fifteen, then I
think he'd be pretty happy to get him

897
01:01:45.000 --> 01:01:49.880
at thirty one. How much do
you think his struggles in the College World

898
01:01:50.039 --> 01:01:53.760
Series may have affected the draft.
I'm sure you would have liked to have

899
01:01:54.039 --> 01:01:57.360
shown a little bit more at the
bat. He was able to get on

900
01:01:57.400 --> 01:02:00.840
base a few times via the walk, you know, but yeah, he

901
01:02:00.599 --> 01:02:04.559
you know, was I guess it
just wasn't Omaha. It was also against

902
01:02:04.559 --> 01:02:07.400
Oregon State in those two games,
he also didn't have a hit. So

903
01:02:07.159 --> 01:02:10.920
I had a really good regional and
after that, you know, didn't didn't

904
01:02:10.920 --> 01:02:15.280
Induscreer, I'm sure how he would
have hoped overall, but it probably could

905
01:02:15.280 --> 01:02:19.119
have helped him a little bit had
he been one of those guys that went

906
01:02:19.159 --> 01:02:22.840
to Omaha and faced the best of
the best in college baseball and stuff pitching

907
01:02:22.920 --> 01:02:28.519
and delivered more hits. But also
to some extent, you probably have to

908
01:02:28.599 --> 01:02:31.679
assume that a lot of the scouting
work has been done by then, you

909
01:02:31.760 --> 01:02:36.480
know, teams scouts in this area. I've had a full season and last

910
01:02:36.559 --> 01:02:37.320
year too. You know, if
you keep him on last year, I

911
01:02:37.360 --> 01:02:42.880
mean, he kind of made himself
a draft prospect last year, and teams

912
01:02:42.880 --> 01:02:45.239
also saw him with the Cape last
summer, so he'd been on the radar

913
01:02:45.320 --> 01:02:47.280
for a while. So I don't
know that it necessarily hurt him. I

914
01:02:47.360 --> 01:02:50.840
think it probably could have only helped
him had he performed maybe a little bit

915
01:02:50.920 --> 01:02:53.119
better in Omaha. But but overall, I think he's probably still going to

916
01:02:53.159 --> 01:02:55.480
get a nice signing bonus, the
one thing I was looking to see,

917
01:02:55.679 --> 01:03:00.679
and it'll probably be close now.
He might not quite get past Evan White,

918
01:03:00.760 --> 01:03:04.239
who signed for three point one back
in twenty seventeen. I thought Waldy

919
01:03:04.320 --> 01:03:07.079
had a chance set a new UK
record for a signing bonus, But we'll

920
01:03:07.119 --> 01:03:12.119
have to see it might be close. Yeah, Evan White had just a

921
01:03:12.199 --> 01:03:14.800
lot going for him, didn't he
though, with a glove and the bat.

922
01:03:14.920 --> 01:03:17.079
But yeah, you're right, Walshman, when you think about it this

923
01:03:17.239 --> 01:03:21.480
time three years ago, he's a
Charleston Southern, for crying out loud,

924
01:03:21.920 --> 01:03:24.039
not a knock on that school.
But you know, not too many first

925
01:03:24.119 --> 01:03:29.039
round picks coming out of that place. No, And he's another one of

926
01:03:29.079 --> 01:03:31.440
those guys too that really wasn't even
a draft prospect out of high school.

927
01:03:31.480 --> 01:03:37.920
You have guys like you know,
Kaglione at Florida, Condon, Chase Burns,

928
01:03:37.159 --> 01:03:40.159
you know, guys like that content. Yeah, Condon was a little

929
01:03:40.199 --> 01:03:44.000
bit more probably you know, he
had the red shirt, but you know,

930
01:03:44.119 --> 01:03:45.599
Burns, kaglio On, these are
guys were well known in high school

931
01:03:45.599 --> 01:03:50.199
who continued through college that that we're
always going to do on scout the radars

932
01:03:50.320 --> 01:03:52.960
going into it. Whereas a guy
like Walschmidt had some injuries in high school,

933
01:03:53.079 --> 01:03:58.480
really full under the radar, probably
showed right away at Charleston Southern that

934
01:03:58.559 --> 01:04:00.679
he was he was probably capable at
a higher level. I read a story

935
01:04:00.719 --> 01:04:04.639
in the Athletic. It was a
really good story Woldie. It seemed like

936
01:04:04.679 --> 01:04:09.599
the coach of Charleston Southern wasn't too
happy said he left it for a freshman

937
01:04:09.679 --> 01:04:12.199
year. He kind of thought he
might say one more, but even they

938
01:04:12.320 --> 01:04:15.199
recognized that he was a power fop
talent. And I think you got to

939
01:04:15.199 --> 01:04:19.199
give a lot of credit to Kentucky's
coaches because what we see now is a

940
01:04:19.280 --> 01:04:23.760
top thirty five talent who got selected, but it was still really just Kentucky

941
01:04:23.840 --> 01:04:26.960
and Dallas Baptists, which is a
very good program, but no other SEC

942
01:04:27.079 --> 01:04:29.400
schools. You know, as a
kid who was playing in Charleston, South

943
01:04:29.440 --> 01:04:32.599
Carolina in the Big South, and
no one else really wanted them in Kentucky,

944
01:04:32.960 --> 01:04:34.800
I think you got to give a
lot of credits there for a good

945
01:04:34.840 --> 01:04:39.440
evaluation. Oh yeah, and to
be sure, Dallas Baptist has a strong

946
01:04:39.559 --> 01:04:43.639
program, but you know, to
your point, the only SEC school interested

947
01:04:44.360 --> 01:04:47.440
was Kentucky. And you got to
give wal Schmid credit because he told me

948
01:04:47.559 --> 01:04:50.000
this. You may have heard him
say it or read it somewhere as well.

949
01:04:50.760 --> 01:04:56.599
Last year as the leadoff man,
once he broke into the lineup and

950
01:04:56.719 --> 01:05:00.840
became a regular because it wasn't automatic
at the beginning of the year, if

951
01:05:00.840 --> 01:05:03.400
you go back and look at box
scores, they they tinkered with the line

952
01:05:03.480 --> 01:05:09.119
of quite a bit. But once
he did, he concentrated Derek on getting

953
01:05:09.159 --> 01:05:11.559
on base, drew a lot of
walks, was hit by a bunch of

954
01:05:11.639 --> 01:05:15.599
pitches. This year, he said
he was determined to work on his swing

955
01:05:15.800 --> 01:05:19.000
more, swing earlier in the count
and get on base that way. And

956
01:05:19.079 --> 01:05:24.119
he succeeded in that, didn't he
he did. You know, that's a

957
01:05:24.159 --> 01:05:26.880
good point you bring up last year. I can't remember watching games and it

958
01:05:26.960 --> 01:05:30.679
was kind of his I think with
him and Petrie both last year. Guy

959
01:05:30.719 --> 01:05:33.519
and Petrie continued it throughout his whole
career. But guys that really good on

960
01:05:33.599 --> 01:05:38.960
base percentage type guys that especially Petrie's
case, the power wasn't there at all.

961
01:05:39.159 --> 01:05:40.920
You know, he only hit one
home run last year. I can't

962
01:05:40.920 --> 01:05:45.199
remember how many Walshman hit. It
was espefinitely more than Petrie. But he

963
01:05:45.360 --> 01:05:48.840
was another guy from sophomore to junior
year whose power took a leap and he'd

964
01:05:48.920 --> 01:05:53.000
have to sacrifice munch. This was
not a guy who had you know,

965
01:05:53.039 --> 01:05:55.880
he didn't start striking out a ton
all of a sudden when he started hitting

966
01:05:55.880 --> 01:05:59.199
for more power, I mean,
he was an all around really good offensive

967
01:05:59.239 --> 01:06:05.960
player this season and you know someone
that I think it super leap that probably

968
01:06:06.000 --> 01:06:10.960
could have been expected in some ways
because he's coming from Charleston Southern, where

969
01:06:11.000 --> 01:06:15.039
he did walk more than he struck
out his freshman year, came to Kentucky,

970
01:06:15.639 --> 01:06:17.320
you know, saw SEC pitching for
the first year, performed pretty well.

971
01:06:17.599 --> 01:06:20.719
I mean, this is the guy
that I think people were excited about

972
01:06:20.760 --> 01:06:24.320
coming into this year. I'm not
so sure that he was, you know,

973
01:06:24.440 --> 01:06:28.880
first round talent, especially after his
injury last summer, but you know,

974
01:06:28.960 --> 01:06:31.000
by the middle SEC player, this
is a guy who was clearly moving

975
01:06:31.079 --> 01:06:36.559
up the draft boards. I want
to say it was maybe early May when

976
01:06:36.599 --> 01:06:40.760
I saw him mocked potentially in the
first round. Yeah, for the first

977
01:06:40.800 --> 01:06:44.760
time from Keith Law. So yeah, I mean, it really an incredible

978
01:06:44.760 --> 01:06:47.559
arise on the Kentucky and you got
you gotta think that will be a story

979
01:06:47.599 --> 01:06:50.840
that has used quite a bit in
the years to come and recruiting to show

980
01:06:50.920 --> 01:06:57.199
what can happen on the development path
here. Yeah, Watchman last year actually

981
01:06:57.360 --> 01:07:00.159
walked a few were times than he
did this year, thirty five to forty

982
01:07:00.239 --> 01:07:02.920
one. But when I spoke to
him, it was mid midway through the

983
01:07:03.039 --> 01:07:08.360
season and he had not drawn a
lot of walks because people were pitching to

984
01:07:08.480 --> 01:07:11.599
him, and then towards towards the
end of the year they quit given him

985
01:07:11.599 --> 01:07:15.360
pitches to it. And he still
ended up in fourteen home runs as opposed

986
01:07:15.400 --> 01:07:19.760
to five last year. But you
know, up the steels total just had

987
01:07:19.760 --> 01:07:23.519
a better year all around, and
then then paid off for him. You

988
01:07:23.639 --> 01:07:28.480
mentioned Petrie, and he was expected
Derek I think to go in the second

989
01:07:28.559 --> 01:07:30.800
round, but maybe not that high. In the second round. He was

990
01:07:30.840 --> 01:07:35.639
what the fifty eighth player taking.
Yeah, he went fifty eight. Overall,

991
01:07:36.800 --> 01:07:41.159
his range kind of varied. ESPN
had him as highest seventy six,

992
01:07:41.280 --> 01:07:46.320
whereas MLB had him like one to
seventy something. It was pretty clear it

993
01:07:46.440 --> 01:07:49.440
was the savings pick for the race. To what extent, I'm not sure.

994
01:07:49.599 --> 01:07:53.920
We won't know that probably for a
few more days. Ended up being

995
01:07:54.000 --> 01:07:57.320
bad luck a little bit for Kentucky
because the money that they saved on Petrie,

996
01:07:57.400 --> 01:08:01.360
the Rays ended up picking Tyler Bell
signing from News from Illinois, but

997
01:08:01.400 --> 01:08:05.159
he was signed of Kentucky. They
took him like eight picks later, and

998
01:08:05.320 --> 01:08:11.719
almost surely the money that they used
u the money that they saved on Petrie,

999
01:08:12.280 --> 01:08:14.239
they rolled right into that pick,
if I had to guess, And

1000
01:08:14.320 --> 01:08:16.600
neither one of those guys was officially
signed yet, but anyone taken in the

1001
01:08:16.640 --> 01:08:19.640
top ten rounds almost. I mean
it's like I want us over nine to

1002
01:08:19.680 --> 01:08:24.399
eight percent. Last year. There's
gonna be one guy last year who didn't

1003
01:08:24.399 --> 01:08:26.399
sign, and I think I read
that might have been in the tenth round.

1004
01:08:27.159 --> 01:08:30.359
So really good for Petrie that he
ended up doing fifty eighth. I

1005
01:08:30.399 --> 01:08:32.000
mean, I saw it was the
first time in the modern draft of Kentucky

1006
01:08:32.039 --> 01:08:35.560
had two players selected in the top
sixty. So on one hand, it

1007
01:08:35.640 --> 01:08:40.880
really is a pretty special achievement for
the program, and it's awesome for Petrie

1008
01:08:41.520 --> 01:08:44.039
that, you know, a guy
who, depended on where you look,

1009
01:08:44.119 --> 01:08:46.880
might have been a third or fifth
round projection ends up going second overall.

1010
01:08:46.920 --> 01:08:49.640
But it kind of came out of
costs as well, for losing Tyler Bell

1011
01:08:49.760 --> 01:08:54.800
right there. Oh the way,
he shouldn't be a surprise that Tyler Bell

1012
01:08:55.520 --> 01:09:00.560
was picked. Wasn't he ab the
top player in the state. Yeah,

1013
01:09:00.720 --> 01:09:02.800
Illinois I think had one Ryan Sloan. I want to say that one other

1014
01:09:02.840 --> 01:09:06.560
guy who was ranked ahead of him. He was thirteenth nationally though in PBR,

1015
01:09:06.640 --> 01:09:10.680
out of the high school ranks,
and then it was another guy that

1016
01:09:10.800 --> 01:09:14.159
his range buried a little bit,
but not as extremist Sea tries. I

1017
01:09:14.199 --> 01:09:17.560
think the lowest that Bell might have
been was like one fourteen at ESPN,

1018
01:09:17.600 --> 01:09:21.439
which is still certainly with a sign
ability range. The thing for him where

1019
01:09:21.439 --> 01:09:25.640
there was some late hope was just
that he was going to ask for probably

1020
01:09:25.640 --> 01:09:29.680
close to two million, and who
you know what teams are doing to give

1021
01:09:29.720 --> 01:09:32.399
that to him. You always kind
of assume that teams are going to find

1022
01:09:32.439 --> 01:09:36.560
the money for a highly thought of
high school shortstop. Those are the guys

1023
01:09:36.640 --> 01:09:41.279
that are pretty covid. He saw
a run on it right around the time

1024
01:09:41.319 --> 01:09:45.039
Bell was drafted, probably in probably
the twenty picks ahead of him is when

1025
01:09:45.079 --> 01:09:47.359
it started. I know, Cincinnati
end up taking a high school shortstop in

1026
01:09:47.439 --> 01:09:51.880
there, and a few other team
Carter Johnson went off the board, Tyson

1027
01:09:51.960 --> 01:09:55.520
Moiss for the Reds, and then
I want to say there was one other

1028
01:09:55.560 --> 01:09:59.680
guy who went to the Pirates forget
his name, but Bell kind of fell

1029
01:09:59.720 --> 01:10:02.319
in there range a little bit,
and those are he was always gonna be

1030
01:10:02.359 --> 01:10:05.560
tough to get here but there was
some hope that because he was nineteen,

1031
01:10:06.279 --> 01:10:11.000
because he would be draft eligible again
in two years, you know, maybe

1032
01:10:11.039 --> 01:10:14.560
you'd be able to slot him in
here and get a little bit lucky.

1033
01:10:14.680 --> 01:10:17.239
But you know, unfortunately Freakentucky that
wasn't the case. But to your point,

1034
01:10:18.079 --> 01:10:23.199
in terms of the coaching staff,
how many serious projections for next year

1035
01:10:23.239 --> 01:10:27.520
actually included him, I'm gonna say
very few. Talking to Derek Terry,

1036
01:10:27.560 --> 01:10:31.239
he's a publisher of Batcat Central,
of course covers Kentucky baseball in depth,

1037
01:10:31.279 --> 01:10:36.680
and we were talking about Walt Schmidt
back what three seasons back. Petrie came

1038
01:10:36.800 --> 01:10:42.119
here and backed up Ryan Ritter,
the Gold Glove winning shortstop with an eye

1039
01:10:42.159 --> 01:10:45.319
on the starting job, and we've
talked about it all year. He sees

1040
01:10:45.439 --> 01:10:47.239
Grant Smith and figures, man,
I better learn to play second base,

1041
01:10:47.640 --> 01:10:54.079
which he did with shortstop skills.
But as you mentioned, picked up the

1042
01:10:54.199 --> 01:10:59.199
power jumps from one home run Derek
to ten. Is batting average not quite

1043
01:10:59.239 --> 01:11:02.000
what it was last year three eighteen, this year this year three oh one,

1044
01:11:02.079 --> 01:11:06.880
but he slugged much better, more
extra base hits, more stolen bases,

1045
01:11:08.159 --> 01:11:11.920
and he told us about midway through
the year that he never really felt

1046
01:11:12.039 --> 01:11:15.359
like at that point that he really
had his stroke down, even though he

1047
01:11:15.479 --> 01:11:17.720
was bunching hits, you know,
and he had like four or five straight

1048
01:11:17.840 --> 01:11:24.520
games with multiple base hits, including
the Georgia Series. So even if this

1049
01:11:24.800 --> 01:11:29.439
was a down year for him,
it was pretty special. Yeah, it

1050
01:11:29.640 --> 01:11:32.880
was. I mean here, I
mean the average came down, that's a

1051
01:11:32.960 --> 01:11:36.720
slight bit three eighteen to three on
one. You know, still drew a

1052
01:11:36.760 --> 01:11:40.680
few more walks than last year,
struck out just a few more times.

1053
01:11:40.680 --> 01:11:44.199
I was really impressed. Impressed at
his overall career numbers seen in the walking

1054
01:11:44.279 --> 01:11:48.600
ninety one times compared to just seventy
three strikeouts for a guy who came from

1055
01:11:48.680 --> 01:11:54.039
Canada and like you mentioned, didn't
really play his first year, and then

1056
01:11:54.560 --> 01:11:56.920
to be a mainstay in the line
up the last two years. I thought

1057
01:11:56.960 --> 01:11:59.760
he really had a I don't want
to say underrated career. I mean,

1058
01:11:59.760 --> 01:12:02.359
I think people recognize how good he
was, but he is, you know,

1059
01:12:02.520 --> 01:12:06.520
I think in terms of Minji owned
guys that they have recruited out of

1060
01:12:06.600 --> 01:12:11.000
high school who have come through here, you know, his his career was

1061
01:12:11.039 --> 01:12:12.720
one of the best. I mean, seriously, it was one of the

1062
01:12:12.760 --> 01:12:16.960
best ones of anyone. I'll be
curious to follow his pro career. I

1063
01:12:17.079 --> 01:12:19.000
think he's got a bit of a
chance. I think he's in a good

1064
01:12:19.079 --> 01:12:24.199
organization with the Rays team that will
value his his kind of skill set.

1065
01:12:25.479 --> 01:12:27.800
Can you move around a little bit
more? You know, he played the

1066
01:12:27.800 --> 01:12:30.880
second here at Kentucky. You mentioned
he came in as a shortstop in pro

1067
01:12:30.039 --> 01:12:32.920
ball. Will he get a chance
to show that, because I think a

1068
01:12:33.000 --> 01:12:35.680
guy like that there's a decent chance
will be a little bit of a utility

1069
01:12:35.720 --> 01:12:41.319
player potentially if he advance hire enough
through the through the rings. You know,

1070
01:12:41.439 --> 01:12:44.560
he obviously he'd love to be an
everyday player, but some guys like

1071
01:12:44.640 --> 01:12:47.840
that you're able to get to the
big leagues and your versatility helps you.

1072
01:12:48.520 --> 01:12:51.520
So if he can do that,
I mean, I think he'll be one

1073
01:12:51.560 --> 01:12:57.640
to watch pretty close. Out of
this group. I mean DM pick fifty

1074
01:12:57.680 --> 01:13:02.199
eighth. You know, some sometimes
he's picks involved saving money. But even

1075
01:13:02.199 --> 01:13:04.760
though he's had to come out of
discount for the raise, I really don't

1076
01:13:04.800 --> 01:13:06.680
think it was that much of a
reach. Like this is a guy I

1077
01:13:06.680 --> 01:13:10.000
would not be sprouted at all if
you looked at for three years and some

1078
01:13:10.520 --> 01:13:14.359
team. Yeah, and I'm curious
does he play shortstop or second base,

1079
01:13:14.399 --> 01:13:18.520
because he's proven he can play either. And speaking of shortstop, it's a

1080
01:13:18.640 --> 01:13:23.760
tough year for Grant Smith. I
mean, he excelled once again defensively,

1081
01:13:23.880 --> 01:13:28.680
but dealt with injuries even more than
he did last year. He suffered torn

1082
01:13:28.760 --> 01:13:31.039
labrahm in his hip and he played
with it all year, had the off

1083
01:13:31.119 --> 01:13:34.680
season surgery, but you know,
had a broken bone in his foot.

1084
01:13:34.680 --> 01:13:39.239
Towards the end of the year.
His batting average plummeted. He ended up

1085
01:13:39.319 --> 01:13:43.600
hitting only two thirty three. His
bat really went to sleep late in the

1086
01:13:43.680 --> 01:13:47.079
year, but he never stopped excelling
at shortstop. And I know there's a

1087
01:13:47.159 --> 01:13:50.920
lot of great athletes out there at
shortstop, but I want to see does

1088
01:13:50.960 --> 01:13:54.479
he even get drafted or does he
have to go to free agent route?

1089
01:13:54.520 --> 01:13:59.640
You know? Yeah, I mean
of those injuries, that was tough.

1090
01:14:00.159 --> 01:14:02.319
Was a you know, he really
was really a war. I mean,

1091
01:14:02.359 --> 01:14:04.439
he was hurt before he ever came
here, you know, and then he

1092
01:14:04.520 --> 01:14:10.680
played through like you mentioned last year, so he played through it and offensively,

1093
01:14:10.840 --> 01:14:13.760
I think he'd have to say he
was a surprise his first year at

1094
01:14:13.880 --> 01:14:16.319
UK. I think a guy who's
at the bottom of the order end up

1095
01:14:16.319 --> 01:14:19.880
in like seven home runs. I
think wasn't bad at all, average wise,

1096
01:14:20.159 --> 01:14:23.279
not as good to play, but
but as you said, I mean

1097
01:14:23.319 --> 01:14:26.439
he was You're I think they were
just happy to get as much as they

1098
01:14:26.479 --> 01:14:30.079
did out of him this season.
He's a guy that certainly has the defensibility

1099
01:14:30.199 --> 01:14:32.960
I think to play at the pro
level. How will the that do?

1100
01:14:33.039 --> 01:14:35.880
I'm not sure you give his age
job. I think he's almost certainly going

1101
01:14:36.000 --> 01:14:41.760
to go the undrafted free agent route. But maybe somebody who you can get

1102
01:14:41.800 --> 01:14:45.479
in there and stick a little bit. I like Grant. I think I

1103
01:14:45.600 --> 01:14:49.159
think he was the kind of guy
to follow Ritter. You know, I

1104
01:14:49.199 --> 01:14:53.319
think almost everybody thought they would probably
take a little bit of a step back

1105
01:14:53.399 --> 01:14:58.079
defensively just because of how good Ridder
it was. But I'm not surely did

1106
01:14:58.279 --> 01:15:01.039
like ridor pro hade more Range maybe
a little flash year with it overall,

1107
01:15:02.079 --> 01:15:06.600
but Grant was just so steady.
And whoever comes in there next year,

1108
01:15:06.600 --> 01:15:11.560
whether it's Kayas Gargett or Luke Lawrence
from Illinois State, I don't know which

1109
01:15:11.600 --> 01:15:15.319
one will be, they get some
pretty big shoes to fill. Because short

1110
01:15:15.359 --> 01:15:17.880
stop the last I don't know,
four seasons or so I mean it's a

1111
01:15:17.920 --> 01:15:20.680
ball is hitting generally area. He
felt pretty good about it being an out.

1112
01:15:21.039 --> 01:15:25.039
So we'll see who it is next
year. But you know, Grant

1113
01:15:25.159 --> 01:15:29.880
was a goodemester for the program,
I thought, and a guy who very

1114
01:15:29.960 --> 01:15:34.279
reliable and sometimes you can take that
for granted. But I wish him Luckerman,

1115
01:15:34.279 --> 01:15:36.479
I wish all these guys luck.
I was happy to see Ryan Nicholson

1116
01:15:36.520 --> 01:15:41.960
get taken Trey Booster, two guys
who really fit. The bill has money

1117
01:15:42.079 --> 01:15:45.199
savers for teams. You know,
these are senior signs who have no leverage,

1118
01:15:45.279 --> 01:15:49.560
so whatever is offer, they're going
to take. But two guys who

1119
01:15:50.479 --> 01:15:55.960
you're talking about, two of the
better players on the number two overall seed.

1120
01:15:56.039 --> 01:15:59.119
These are guys that you know,
I don't know how how high.

1121
01:15:59.119 --> 01:16:01.760
I hope the organiz they half for
them, but they're good players that I

1122
01:16:01.840 --> 01:16:06.159
think we'll get a fair shot at
the next level. Derek Terry batcat Central

1123
01:16:06.520 --> 01:16:11.760
and it's Batcatcentral dot com. Right, yep, that's right, that's how

1124
01:16:11.800 --> 01:16:13.960
you can subscribe. Thank you,
Sarah, We'll talk to you soon,

1125
01:16:15.119 --> 01:16:17.399
all right, thank you. Back
to wrap things up in just a minute

1126
01:16:17.439 --> 01:16:20.760
here on The Big Blue Insider six
thirty w you'lc come back quick segment as

1127
01:16:20.800 --> 01:16:26.199
we wrap this up. Thanks to
Derek Terry, thanks to Sean Woods,

1128
01:16:26.279 --> 01:16:29.479
and thanks to John Hale for joining
us today. I don't know if you

1129
01:16:29.520 --> 01:16:33.880
saw this or not, but Joel
Embiid has been struggling with the Olympic basketball

1130
01:16:33.960 --> 01:16:40.840
team, and now Steve Kerr has
been asked about possibly benching Embiid when it

1131
01:16:40.920 --> 01:16:45.680
comes to the starting lineup and giving
more minutes and maybe the starting berth to

1132
01:16:45.800 --> 01:16:50.039
Anthony Davis, the former Wildcat,
and also more minutes to bam Adebiyo,

1133
01:16:50.159 --> 01:16:55.079
who have both played better than Embiid. Now. He's more physical and has

1134
01:16:55.119 --> 01:16:59.880
a bigger low post presence believe it
or not than Anthony Davison obviously bam Adebio,

1135
01:17:00.479 --> 01:17:04.319
but they have outplayed him. That
would be something if Steve Kerr made

1136
01:17:04.359 --> 01:17:13.439
that decision and decided to play a
former Wildcat or two above Joel mb they

1137
01:17:13.520 --> 01:17:19.520
turned that's a good night from the
garage and Election sixty nine offense. He

1138
01:17:19.640 --> 01:17:20.640
was giving him the business