Speaker 1: Welcome to the Big Blue Insider. It's a Friday. We
Speaker 1: wrap up the week heading into another Kentucky football Saturday.
Speaker 1: It's the Wildcats and the Ohio Bobcats tomorrow at twelve
Speaker 1: forty five. Kickoff is at ten pregame at ten thirty
Speaker 1: with Christy Thomas, Jeremy Jarmin, Logan Stenberg, than Tom Lee,
Speaker 1: Jeppiicor and me with all the action Kentucky and Ohio's
Speaker 1: the Cats go for their second win of the year,
Speaker 1: kind of a get right game. We'll hear from Tom
Speaker 1: and Jeff a little bit later on an excerpt from
Speaker 1: the Wildcat Whip. It's out there right now on social
Speaker 1: media via my Facebook page and Tom's Facebook page as
Speaker 1: well as I believe it's. Yeah, it's already up on
Speaker 1: Twitter on the UK Sports Network site. So you want
Speaker 1: to get the insights from Tom and Jeff and yours truly,
Speaker 1: and you will hear on the local version on the
Speaker 1: Facebook version, the fact that we're at the south of Wrigley,
Speaker 1: and we'll tell you more about that a little bit
Speaker 1: later on when we play the excerpt from the Wildcat Whip.
Speaker 1: Well else you gonna hear from Marxtoops coming up in
Speaker 1: our next segment as he met with the media yesterday
Speaker 1: and wrapped up the week's practice, his team getting ready
Speaker 1: to take on another form of cat So you'll hear
Speaker 1: it right here and see it on the SEC network.
Speaker 1: Last Night's a big story, and really right now, the
Speaker 1: big story. Even if you're not a baseball fan per se,
Speaker 1: and you know what, you probably were back in the
Speaker 1: day and baseball just kind of got away from everybody.
Speaker 1: But and that's understandable. But what a story right now
Speaker 1: in baseball about Shohio Tani. And it is very cool
Speaker 1: when you see history right before your eyes. He became
Speaker 1: the first player to join the fifty to fifty club
Speaker 1: fifty home runs and fifty stolen bases. Did it last
Speaker 1: night against the Miami Marlins, and he did it in style. Man,
Speaker 1: did he ever do it in style with maybe the
Speaker 1: greatest single performance in a game ever. Three home runs
Speaker 1: plus three more base sits, so a total of six
Speaker 1: couple of doubles in a single miss missed the triple
Speaker 1: for the cycle, you know, yawned, But he also drove
Speaker 1: in ten runs, stole a couple of bases and what
Speaker 1: was it a twenty to three, twenty to four wins
Speaker 1: something like that, and not only do they win the game,
Speaker 1: but they clinch a spot in the playoffs. But it's
Speaker 1: been incredible keeping an eye on this. And of course
Speaker 1: he plays on the West Coast, so it's kind of
Speaker 1: hard to watch him much unless you want to stay
Speaker 1: up late. But an incredible performance. Last night. Joe Davis
Speaker 1: had the TV call for Dodger Television and he did
Speaker 1: it justice on home run number three, home run number
Speaker 1: fifty on a one to two time.
Speaker 2: Who is a Chime her?
Speaker 3: Who a Charing Season show? He ti he starts the
Speaker 3: Fifth Stay, Fifth Stay.
Speaker 4: Tr and again that is Joe Davis on the Dodgers
Speaker 4: TV and he did what good play by play guys do.
Speaker 1: He shut up what we call layout and just let
Speaker 1: the pictures take over. On radio, you gotta paint the
Speaker 1: word picture. But here's a guy who had plenty of
Speaker 1: camera angles and all kinds of great video shots of
Speaker 1: show high hugging his players, hugging his coaches, and the
Speaker 1: fans in Miami. This was in Miami. Now gave him
Speaker 1: quite an ovation. So he comes out, of course and
Speaker 1: acknowledges the fans. But Shohi Otani not only has he
Speaker 1: proven to be one of and some say the greatest
Speaker 1: player in the history of the game. I love the
Speaker 1: debate because you cannot come up with a definitive answer
Speaker 1: when you talk about stuff like this, simply because you
Speaker 1: just can't argue generations. But it's fun to talk about
Speaker 1: and think about the argument who's better Show Hi or
Speaker 1: Babe Ruth because they were both two way players, you know,
Speaker 1: and Show I, of course lately hasn't been pitching, but
Speaker 1: obviously Babe Bruce stopped pitching at a certain point. It
Speaker 1: became the greatest offensive player in the history game up
Speaker 1: until more modern times. But one of the more compelling
Speaker 1: parts of this story to me, and one of the
Speaker 1: funniest parts, is the cold takes from back when show
Speaker 1: I first signed with the Dodgers, because so many people
Speaker 1: wanted to get out ahead of that, People in my
Speaker 1: line of work and you know, sound like experts and
Speaker 1: talk about just how terrible the move. It was all
Speaker 1: the money they pay him to bring him in and
Speaker 1: all that when the Angels signed him, and then when
Speaker 1: the Dodgers signed him away. Mike Francessa, who was such
Speaker 1: a well known radio sports talk show host in New York,
Speaker 1: his take simply was the Yankees are lucky they didn't
Speaker 1: get Otani right. A major league scout when Otani first
Speaker 1: got here said he wouldn't be able to hit big
Speaker 1: league pitching, and his quote was, He's basically like a
Speaker 1: high school hitter. Yeah. Yeah. Keith Olberman, mocking the fact
Speaker 1: that Otani was a two way player, tweeted, because that
Speaker 1: Christian Bethencourt thing worked out so well, Otani will be
Speaker 1: a pinch hitting pitcher by mid season. This is after
Speaker 1: Richard Justice, who was a great baseball beat writer from
Speaker 1: MLB dot com, had written at a lot of mlbgms he said,
Speaker 1: think we could have more two way players, probably in
Speaker 1: super utility role. So, of course, Olberman, being and mister
Speaker 1: baseball expert man, brings up Christian Bethencourt, who was and
Speaker 1: still is a mediocre player. He is a backup catcher
Speaker 1: with the Cubs, and by the way, he should be
Speaker 1: respected because his middle name is Gabriel. But his lifetime
Speaker 1: average is like two thirty. I think this season in
Speaker 1: a backup real he's hitting two four or something like that.
Speaker 1: But yeah, you judge all two way players by Christian Bethencourt.
Speaker 1: Come on, but there were so many bad takes on this.
Speaker 1: One person on a podcast back then simply said, I
Speaker 1: think he is one of the most overrated players in
Speaker 1: the history of professional sports in America. A guy named
Speaker 1: John Schaefer said that, and not only is that a
Speaker 1: horrible take when it comes to baseball, but all of
Speaker 1: professional sports. But remember now, the biggest expert, and I'm
Speaker 1: saying this sarcastically, Bill James, the guy, according to The Simpsons,
Speaker 1: who's made watching baseball as fun as doing your taxes.
Speaker 1: You know, James breaks everything down to stats. And he
Speaker 1: tweeted this. He said, and this is back in twenty nineteen, said,
Speaker 1: remember how a year ago everybody was all excited about
Speaker 1: Shohio Tani being the next Babe Ruth. That was fun.
Speaker 1: Of course I'm adding the tone, but that's how it
Speaker 1: was presented. Cold takes are tremendous. They're so hilarious and
Speaker 1: they'll come back and haunt you. But that's the price
Speaker 1: you pay of having to have or thinking you need,
Speaker 1: an instant take. I've never been one of those people,
Speaker 1: but maybe maybe I'm not smart enough to have instant
Speaker 1: takes like that. I recognize a good take when I
Speaker 1: hear one, though, and this kind of falls in line
Speaker 1: with the way I feel about Bryce Young being benched
Speaker 1: in Carolina, And I don't follow that team enough to
Speaker 1: know about how much is his fault, how much is
Speaker 1: the team's fault. People who followed the team seem to
Speaker 1: lean toward it being a horrible franchise run horribly, and
Speaker 1: Bryce S Young is taking a majority of the blame.
Speaker 1: He of course, was the number one draft pick last
Speaker 1: year out of Alabama. He won everything, won the Heisman,
Speaker 1: won everything, and was a guy who was a question
Speaker 1: mark I thought going into the draft because of his size.
Speaker 1: He's listed at five to ten, so you know he's
Speaker 1: not five to ten, listed at two o five, so
Speaker 1: you know he didn't weigh two o five at least
Speaker 1: when they did all the measuring. But he is surrounded
Speaker 1: by mediocrity top to bottom on that roster, and he's
Speaker 1: won two games in eighteen starts, and he took a
Speaker 1: lot of the blame. And Shannon Sharp on a podcast
Speaker 1: was talking to Chad Ocho Cinco Chad Johnson, the former
Speaker 1: Bengals outstanding and outspoken wide receiver, and Sharp you can
Speaker 1: hear him reading the tail end of Bryce Young's comments
Speaker 1: and he basically said you know I had an opportunity.
Speaker 1: I didn't make the most of it. I'm doing what's
Speaker 1: best for the team. All that stuff, you know, taking
Speaker 1: taking the hit as good leaders do, is do quarterbacks
Speaker 1: good quarterbacks do. And then Chad Johnson jumps in with
Speaker 1: his reaction, showing why he'll never be a network analyst
Speaker 1: because I have bleeped everything I could, but he is.
Speaker 1: I think right on the money here. This is first
Speaker 1: chan and Sharp and then Chad Ocho Cinco Johnson.
Speaker 3: For the most part, every snap it hit my hand.
Speaker 3: I didn't do enough with it at the end of
Speaker 3: the day, and I don't hit that shit.
Speaker 2: Man.
Speaker 5: It's okay.
Speaker 3: I know you're the quarterback.
Speaker 5: You're the most important You're the most important player and
Speaker 5: most important position on the field because you touched the
Speaker 5: ball every play. But come on, man, you listen. You
Speaker 5: have to say the right thing. Bryce Young is saying
Speaker 5: all the right thing because he's in a position where
Speaker 5: he has to. You went to a dumpter fires the
Speaker 5: reason they were the team to pick and had the
Speaker 5: first pick in the draft.
Speaker 3: Anybody can see it.
Speaker 5: Your family gonna tell you the truth, your friends are
Speaker 5: gonna tell the truth.
Speaker 3: I'm tell you the truth.
Speaker 6: It ain't you.
Speaker 3: Ain't nothing wrong with you. Some listen, Ojo, you know, listen, find.
Speaker 5: Me somebody at the Old Testament, find me somebody at
Speaker 5: the New Testament that can come play for the Panthers
Speaker 5: and make a difference. Nobody, boy, Jesus himself will come
Speaker 5: down here. And Sam was even waring, ain't nothing changing.
Speaker 1: Unk is bad.
Speaker 5: When Sam Donna was there, was there, they said it
Speaker 5: was Sam donald fault. When Baker Mayfield was there, they
Speaker 5: said it when Baker Mayfield's fault. Rich Young is there,
Speaker 5: they said, it's Bright Young's fault. Sam Donald and Baker
Speaker 5: Minfield are off to historic starts.
Speaker 1: Again, he's not wrong, although historic is kind of hyperbole,
Speaker 1: but both quarterbacks off the two and oh starts with
Speaker 1: Baker Mayfield down in Tampa and Sam Donald in Minnesota,
Speaker 1: which of course had lost Kirk Cousins. And they bring
Speaker 1: in Sam Donald almost like a placeholder. They thought, I guess,
Speaker 1: you know, yeah, we'll use this guy until we can
Speaker 1: get a better quarterback. At least that's what a lot
Speaker 1: of the fans thought. And now the Vikes are two
Speaker 1: and oh. Nobody expected that. Nobody expected Baker Mayfield to
Speaker 1: do what he did, especially after he washed out with
Speaker 1: the Panthers and bounced around. But he caught new life
Speaker 1: with the Rams. You might recall this, and after signing
Speaker 1: early in the week with the Rams, he started a
Speaker 1: game and played extremely well, and you skip ahead, he
Speaker 1: ends up signing one hundred million dollar contract. This was
Speaker 1: after he did okay with the Browns, but they got
Speaker 1: rid of him, and then, as I said, bounced here
Speaker 1: and there and washed out, and now he's got a
Speaker 1: new life in his contract. It depends on where you
Speaker 1: are and what that team is doing, no question about that.
Speaker 1: While we're on quarterbacks, last night, Aaron Rodgers and the Jets,
Speaker 1: you might have seen this on Amazon Prime beat a
Speaker 1: bad Patriots team and everybody's going nuts over Aaron Rodgers.
Speaker 1: Why not in New York because this was the home
Speaker 1: opener for the Jets, And remember what happened last year
Speaker 1: at the home opener. After all that hype, he blows
Speaker 1: his ankle, blows his achilles after four plays last night,
Speaker 1: twenty seven to thirty five, two touchdowns, and the fans
Speaker 1: were chanting his name in the third quarter. That's all
Speaker 1: well and good, that's fine, that's fun. Remember the Patriots
Speaker 1: are probably the worst team in the legue. How they
Speaker 1: beat the Bengals is beyond me. But what came out
Speaker 1: of that at an interesting sidebar out of that game
Speaker 1: was the video of Robert Sala, the coach, going in
Speaker 1: for a hug as Rogers comes off the field and
Speaker 1: Rogers puts his hands in his chest and shoves him away.
Speaker 1: Both of them laughed it off after the game and
Speaker 1: they both said that was just something we do or
Speaker 1: something like that, but it was really interesting video. Up next,
Speaker 1: Mark Stoops. Well, I'll say here from Dermanti Dawson, who
Speaker 1: will open a broadcast tomorrow. Ryan Black of the Courier
Speaker 1: Journal joins us here in the garage, and our number
Speaker 1: two here on six thirty WLAP Welcome back to the
Speaker 1: Big Moon Sider. Coming up a little bit later on
Speaker 1: here in the first hour, Dermani Dawson will join us.
Speaker 1: The NFL Hall of Famer and former Wildcat offensive lineman
Speaker 1: will tell us what he has seen in Kentucky this season.
Speaker 1: Our number two, Ryan Black at the Courier Journal, will
Speaker 1: join us here in the garage. He is the beat
Speaker 1: writer covers the Wildcats football and basketball. Before we hear
Speaker 1: from Mark Stoops, reminder that last night the soccer team,
Speaker 1: the women's soccer team played to a draw against Florida.
Speaker 1: The Wildcats a rank number twenty going into the game.
Speaker 1: They were eight to zero Florida. I guess I don't
Speaker 1: know enough about soccer to come at except that Florida
Speaker 1: must play a really defensive style because the Gators are
Speaker 1: three to one and five, and people like to say
Speaker 1: they play not to lose. Well, I don't know if
Speaker 1: Florida plays not to lose in women's soccer, but five
Speaker 1: draws in nine games, including last night, was nothing. Nothing.
Speaker 1: Kentucky outshot Florida seven to two with just a single
Speaker 1: shot on goal, and the Gators apparently have really good defense.
Speaker 1: But Kentucky still undefeated this season. Club Blue with an
Speaker 1: announcement Name, Image and Likeness partner of UK Athletics hosting
Speaker 1: the reimagined A Blue White preseason event. They're calling it
Speaker 1: presented by the Harrodsburg Tourism Commission that will be on Friday,
Speaker 1: October eighteenth at Historic Memorial Coliseum. They're not presenting it
Speaker 1: that way, with a capital H, kind of like that.
Speaker 1: Historic Memorial Coliseum. Tickets on sale today exclusively through Ticketmaster
Speaker 1: the event managed by Club Blue. That's why tickets are
Speaker 1: not available through the UK ticket office, so there may
Speaker 1: be still some available, but get online or call ticket
Speaker 1: Master if you want a ticket to the Blue White
Speaker 1: preseason event coming up Friday, October eighteen, Kentucky, O, How
Speaker 1: are you tomorrow? Mark Stoops met with the media one
Speaker 1: last time yesterday to talk about his team, and it
Speaker 1: was an interesting comment he made about the fact that
Speaker 1: obviously they're looking for improvement between weeks one and three
Speaker 1: the USM game, the opener and the Georgia loss, and
Speaker 1: he asked his team about what they saw when it
Speaker 1: came to improvement, and he talked about the improvement he
Speaker 1: has seen in his ball club over the first three weeks.
Speaker 7: I was proud of the growth, you know, because you know,
Speaker 7: when you know, when you play the way we played
Speaker 7: in Certain Williams and again you have to go back
Speaker 7: and credit the team we played, you know, not taking
Speaker 7: anything away from them, it's just you know, we we
Speaker 7: have had pride in this program and and you know,
Speaker 7: I think you know, I just asked them, asked our
Speaker 7: team what the difference was, you know what I mean?
Speaker 7: And you know what what you know who's going to
Speaker 7: show up here this week? And I believe in them,
Speaker 7: and we've had a good week, so we have to
Speaker 7: just go put it on the field and we have
Speaker 7: to go play. I think the most important thing that
Speaker 7: we can't ever lose sight of is just you know,
Speaker 7: getting better.
Speaker 1: As we all know, the Ohio Bobcats are a good team,
Speaker 1: ten wins in back to back seasons, but they're not
Speaker 1: a quote unquote name brand. They're not an SEC team obviously,
Speaker 1: So is this Kentucky team going to be focused enough
Speaker 1: and just hungry enough to get that win when they
Speaker 1: really need a bounce back game?
Speaker 7: You know, hopefully we're staying in the mindset of doing
Speaker 7: the right things to get better, you know, for to
Speaker 7: be a better football player, a better team. And yeah,
Speaker 7: it's important to win. I mean they ply they train
Speaker 7: all year, you know, to to to compete to win,
Speaker 7: so you know, but you know, the results will be
Speaker 7: the results if we do everything we can, you know,
Speaker 7: and work as hard as we can and have a
Speaker 7: good plan and you know, play as hard as we
Speaker 7: can and all those things, you know, So that's what
Speaker 7: we're looking for.
Speaker 1: That's really all they can look for because if they
Speaker 1: do the right thing. That means they will play the
Speaker 1: way they played against the Bulldogs. They'll come out mentally ready.
Speaker 1: Obviously they're physically ready. They have practiced well this week,
Speaker 1: Stoop said. But it's all about focus. They were not
Speaker 1: focused against South Carolina. They were laser focused against Georgia.
Speaker 1: They had a great game plan. Yes it was conservative,
Speaker 1: but that's how you just got to stay close and again,
Speaker 1: playing not to lose. People like to throw that around,
Speaker 1: well against Georgia a team like that, if you're trying
Speaker 1: to pull off an upset, you play not to lose.
Speaker 1: You play to keep it tight and then at the
Speaker 1: end maybe you have a chance to take a shot.
Speaker 1: And it didn't work out for the Wildcats last week,
Speaker 1: but they should handle their business tomorrow. But it's not
Speaker 1: going to be as easy as a lot of people think.
Speaker 1: I believe. We'll be on the air with it at
Speaker 1: ten thirty am. Dermini Dawson will open our broadcast. We'll
Speaker 1: hear from him coming up a little bit later on
Speaker 1: the Big Moon Siders six thirty WLAP Welcome Back coming
Speaker 1: up in just a couple of minutes, we'll hear from
Speaker 1: Dermani Dawson. We'll open our broadcast tomorrow, and I had
Speaker 1: a chance to interview him as well about the Wildcats.
Speaker 1: He of course is the Pro Football Hall of Famer
Speaker 1: Hall Conference performer at Kentucky at guard, he didn't move
Speaker 1: to center until he got to the Pittsburgh Steelers and
Speaker 1: then of course had a legendary literally a legendary career
Speaker 1: in the NFL, but also played in the Kentucky Ohio
Speaker 1: game where the Wildcats beat the Bobcats for the very
Speaker 1: first time. That was back in the mid eighties. So
Speaker 1: we'll hear from DERMANI opening our broadcast tomorrow, but you'll
Speaker 1: also hear from him coming up in our next segment
Speaker 1: as he talks about Cats versus Cats. Shameless plug for
Speaker 1: the Wildcat Whip As I mentioned earlier, it's out on
Speaker 1: my Facebook page, Tom Leech's Facebook page, you can hear
Speaker 1: it through the UK Sports Network Twitter app, and it's
Speaker 1: just Tom and Jeff and me opening the broadcast like
Speaker 1: a day early. We have the whip around on game day,
Speaker 1: which lasts about two and a half minutes, so we
Speaker 1: thought we'd get together during the week and share more
Speaker 1: of an expanded version of the Whip Around. So we
Speaker 1: meet at South of Wrigly on Southland Drive. It's a
Speaker 1: great place to get a Chicago style hot dogs. So
Speaker 1: many different kinds of hot dogs and sausages, and a
Speaker 1: great chicken palm, sandwiches and sides. It is truly a
Speaker 1: slice of Chicago on Southland Drive. And so we get
Speaker 1: together there to talk about Kentucky football, the past game
Speaker 1: and the game coming up. And here's a little taste
Speaker 1: from south of Wrigley on the Wildcat Whip. Guys, this
Speaker 1: is the real thing, isn't it.
Speaker 6: Oh?
Speaker 2: It is.
Speaker 8: It's a fantastic couple of a guy or maybe a
Speaker 8: couple of I'm sure the full story move back here
Speaker 8: from Chicago, but created this kind of Chicago themed place.
Speaker 8: And so you get like, yeah, I've been to Wrigley Field.
Speaker 8: You get like the sausage with the peppers and the onions,
Speaker 8: well you can get that here. Or Chicago hot dogs,
Speaker 8: you know, Chili dogs, Italian beef.
Speaker 1: You made a lot of trips working with the Reds
Speaker 1: wrily how legit is this place? In your opinion?
Speaker 9: This is just like a joint that you'd see in Wrigleyville.
Speaker 9: I mean it's it's just like anything you see on
Speaker 9: a corner. It's small, it's fantastic.
Speaker 2: Just yeah, it reminds you of you.
Speaker 9: I mean, it's it's hot in the air, but it's
Speaker 9: exactly like you would think it would be in Chicago.
Speaker 1: Did you when you were working games, they always feed
Speaker 1: the media. Yeah, various and sundry ways. Is this what
Speaker 1: they fed you at Wrigly? Did you have this option?
Speaker 6: No?
Speaker 9: They actually had more like dinner actually wasn't bad. They
Speaker 9: had a salad bar and they had you know, and
Speaker 9: they feed you real food and stuff.
Speaker 2: Wriggly was one of the better spots.
Speaker 1: We'll have to do the food review. Get into road.
Speaker 9: Get the worst broadcast in all of baseball, no doubt.
Speaker 9: But other than that, it was was great.
Speaker 1: Let us get down to it. It's Kentucky and Ohio.
Speaker 1: You after that Georgia game. The biggest question will be
Speaker 1: and Jeff, I'll start with you, since you claim to
Speaker 1: have played at Kentucky. Although I did see the team
Speaker 1: photo at Bill Ransdell's new spot, two fisted Williams hand
Speaker 1: hand Deidra and that you're eighty fourteen pictures up there.
Speaker 1: Pointed it out to my wife, said, look at number
Speaker 1: thirty six there. It doesn't even look like him. I'll say,
Speaker 1: well that was a while back.
Speaker 9: Actually that's the eighty five team, because the eighty four
Speaker 9: they will not let that picture out.
Speaker 1: It was just like Bob Gibson place scrapped it, yes, yes,
Speaker 1: or or Larry Zaker was Larry Zonker, Jim kick.
Speaker 9: Frank k this was Frank Harry Camp Jacob, my gosh,
Speaker 9: we're number one.
Speaker 1: Yeah. Yeah, So you will not let that out. You
Speaker 1: couldn't air brush it back, so you could do it
Speaker 1: now about there anyway, Jeff, how tough will the beef
Speaker 1: for these guys? And has it been this week for
Speaker 1: these guys? You gotta at least try to match that
Speaker 1: intensity in motion, the focus that they surely had against Georgia.
Speaker 9: I think the biggest thing it does is shows you
Speaker 9: can play with anybody. I think that the South Carolina game,
Speaker 9: they just kind of threw their helmets on the field
Speaker 9: and said we're Kentucky, we're at home, We're gonna kick
Speaker 9: your butt.
Speaker 2: And they didn't.
Speaker 9: You have to bring it every week. It showed them
Speaker 9: they can play with the best. I think this is
Speaker 9: a you can always say, get well game, whatever you
Speaker 9: want to call it.
Speaker 2: It's good.
Speaker 9: It's gonna be a tough game, but if they bring
Speaker 9: the same enthusiasm and respect for the other teams they
Speaker 9: did last week, I think this team should win.
Speaker 1: Jeff Pcorro, Tom Leach and you're truly at South of
Speaker 1: Wrigley and can hear the entire Wildcat whip as I
Speaker 1: said my Facebook page Tom Leach as well and on
Speaker 1: the UK Sports Network Twitter app. Before I bring up
Speaker 1: Dermani Dawson, here's another shameless plug in. This one is
Speaker 1: from Marshall head coach Charles Huff. They're playing Ohio State
Speaker 1: and he, of course this team is completely out maned
Speaker 1: for the most part in this game, so he makes
Speaker 1: a shameless plug trying to pull some all Half State
Speaker 1: people through the portal via an nil deal, trying to
Speaker 1: get him to transfer to Marshall at the last minute.
Speaker 1: This was pretty funny.
Speaker 6: I'd love to have some of those guys from Ohio
Speaker 6: State too, so if they want to transfer on down,
Speaker 6: We've got a Tutor. Yeah, Tutor's biscuit nil all you
Speaker 6: can eat. So if any of those guys that run
Speaker 6: really really fast at Ohio State like Tutor's biscuits, I
Speaker 6: promise you all you can eat all day if you
Speaker 6: transfer here.
Speaker 1: So but yeah, I'd be curious to hear if anybody
Speaker 1: takes him up on that. But hey, good, good for you.
Speaker 1: Kudos to you. Tampering, Sure it is, but in this
Speaker 1: nil age, you gotta do what you can and shoot
Speaker 1: your best shot. Charles Huff of Marshall making a literally
Speaker 1: last minute plea for help from anybody on the Buckeyes
Speaker 1: roster who would like to transfer to the Thundering Herd
Speaker 1: up Now, Hall of Famer DERMANI Dawson, who will open
Speaker 1: our broadcast tomorrow, talks about this year's Kentucky Wildcats. That's
Speaker 1: next year on the Big Mowinsider six point thirty wlap
Speaker 1: against the Bobcats, who came in here in four and
Speaker 1: upset Rich Brooks's second the Kentucky team on homecoming night.
Speaker 1: It was just a bad night all around, except for
Speaker 1: if you're a Kentucky fan, except for the Ohio band,
Speaker 1: which performed at halftime. They had one of those wacky
Speaker 1: kinds of performing bands and they were outstanding. But the
Speaker 1: game was terrible from the Kentucky side. They played in
Speaker 1: throwback uniforms which we have never seen again. I would
Speaker 1: think they burned them after that game. The one thing
Speaker 1: to remember about that night is it underscored the fact
Speaker 1: that Rich Brooks was still having some trouble getting some
Speaker 1: of his veteran players to kind of come over and
Speaker 1: give themselves over and buy in to what he was doing,
Speaker 1: because the players had been shocked when Guy Morris left
Speaker 1: and Brooks came in had a different way to doing things.
Speaker 1: Not the guy was doing anything the wrong way. Of course,
Speaker 1: he was successful seven wins the year that the second
Speaker 1: season that he was the head coach at Kentucky, but
Speaker 1: Brooks just had some bad actors on that team. Most
Speaker 1: coaches have to deal with it one year. Brooks had
Speaker 1: to deal with it for two seasons. But once they
Speaker 1: all moved on, or at least a majority moved on,
Speaker 1: he was able to get things going in the right direction.
Speaker 1: But that night was right up there, I think with
Speaker 1: that LSU loss down in Baton Rouge at forty seven
Speaker 1: or forty nine to nothing, shell acking because this was
Speaker 1: against an inferior team at home, OHIOU. But the LSU
Speaker 1: game happened in six when things should have been going
Speaker 1: a lot better, and ultimately they did, so those were
Speaker 1: really there are two low points in the Rich Brooks era.
Speaker 1: Those were the games, but we all know that it
Speaker 1: ended on an uplift with rich Brooks, and that's why
Speaker 1: he opened our broadcast against Georgia because his teams beat
Speaker 1: Georgia a couple times. So Dermanti Dawson will get things
Speaker 1: rolling tomorrow ten thirty when we sign on and again
Speaker 1: just before Playboy play and I had a chance to
Speaker 1: chat with Dermani when we were done recording the open
Speaker 1: for tomorrow's game and ask him some questions about the Wildcats. Well,
Speaker 1: what do you think about what you've seen so far?
Speaker 3: You know, I mean overall, you know, they they played
Speaker 3: very well against Southern Miss. You know, had a few turnovers,
Speaker 3: you know, and and you know it's I don't know,
Speaker 3: it's just so far. I like what I see. You know,
Speaker 3: if they hadn't been very consistent on offense, you know
Speaker 3: the quarterback, you know, he's been struggling a little bit.
Speaker 3: I know he's a great runner, but you know as
Speaker 3: far as accuracy on passing, uh, it's it's been hit
Speaker 3: or miss.
Speaker 1: Would your agree he needs a little more a little
Speaker 1: more time in the pocket.
Speaker 3: Well yeah, yeah, maybe a little bit more time, you know.
Speaker 3: So he can make his reads. But but you know,
Speaker 3: he seems to have a pretty strong arm. And I
Speaker 3: understand that he came from the University of Georgia as well.
Speaker 3: Huh yeah, yeah, yeah. So I'm hoping that, you know,
Speaker 3: those guys are I hope that he gets settled and
Speaker 3: the offensive coordinator, you know, tries to get him warmed
Speaker 3: up first before you know, he tries to you know,
Speaker 3: make the big passes, but he wants to make the
Speaker 3: you know, he wants to go downfield. Plus he's got leggs,
Speaker 3: he's he's he's got the feet, you know, to to
Speaker 3: make plays. But he's just got to be more consistent.
Speaker 1: They've had so much turnover and and churn on the
Speaker 1: coaching staff, especially at at O coordinator and offensive line coach,
Speaker 1: and you as well as anybody knows. Yeah, you know,
Speaker 1: to build an offensive line where you've got five guys
Speaker 1: plus the backups working as one, you know, you've really
Speaker 1: got to have connuity, don't you.
Speaker 3: Oh yeah, connuity is key, you know to offensive line play.
Speaker 3: You know, that's that's the key to a success. But
Speaker 3: then then and then again also you know, play calling
Speaker 3: is going to be key as well, So you gotta
Speaker 3: you know, play with the talent that you have. Uh,
Speaker 3: you know, if they're better run blockers than past blockers,
Speaker 3: you know, then you got to run the ball. But
Speaker 3: then again you got to step up. You got to
Speaker 3: pass the ball as well, and they have to be
Speaker 3: able to protect the quarterback. You know. So it's twofold,
Speaker 3: you know, but you know, hopefully they do much better
Speaker 3: this game.
Speaker 1: Did you prefer one over the other? Run block or
Speaker 1: past block?
Speaker 3: I enjoyed both. I enjoyed run blocking and pass blocking.
Speaker 3: I didn't mind either. One.
Speaker 1: Jeff fan Node used to tell us he liked run
Speaker 1: blocking because it's harder to block when you're moving backwards. Yeah,
Speaker 1: I can't understand.
Speaker 3: Well, hey, hey, that's that's the true true statement, you know,
Speaker 3: but that Jeff stated. But I mean I really enjoyed
Speaker 3: pass blocking and run blocking. I didn't. I didn't prefer
Speaker 3: either over the other, you know, but I enjoyed run
Speaker 3: blocking and pass blocking.
Speaker 1: This team blocked so well against Georgia, which is a
Speaker 1: pretty fair team minus the sack yard? Is they they
Speaker 1: rushed for more than two hundred yards and against struggle
Speaker 1: to pass block? Is that something I don't know? You're
Speaker 1: not there every day and you you know, you haven't
Speaker 1: studied these guys. But if they can pass our run block,
Speaker 1: is there hope for past blocking, do you think?
Speaker 3: Yeah, I think there's hope for pass blocking. Yeah. You know,
Speaker 3: they did an excellent job, you'd a run blocking against Georgia,
Speaker 3: but they did struggle a little bit and got pressure,
Speaker 3: you know, from the outside more than the inside. But
Speaker 3: they they got some some pretty good players on Georgia's team,
Speaker 3: you know, some top prospects and you know, very good players.
Speaker 3: But you know it's they did a great job against
Speaker 3: running the ball, but you know, past past, past offense.
Speaker 3: They struggled a little bit on the protection side. So yeah,
Speaker 3: you just you just never know. Oh you hear my dogs?
Speaker 1: I do? Yeah, okay, that's fine. Yeah, we enjoyed dogs.
Speaker 1: How how has the SEC changed your Mindy? Clearly there
Speaker 1: are more teams now. But since you played, uh.
Speaker 3: You know, with the rule changes, you know, everything has
Speaker 3: changed in the NFL, you know, collegiate football. All the
Speaker 3: rule changes have made it kind of difficult for players
Speaker 3: that really be physical. And I know it's for the
Speaker 3: safety of the player because you really have to think
Speaker 3: when you're on the field about you know, your next step.
Speaker 3: Am I going to hit them this way? I'm going
Speaker 3: to hit them that way? And I think it takes
Speaker 3: away some of the physicality of the the game. But yeah,
Speaker 3: I'm really not for sure how it's changed, you know,
Speaker 3: since I played. I just know that the rule changes
Speaker 3: had really kind of you know, made a big difference
Speaker 3: in in the calls with the refs and everything else.
Speaker 3: So it's kind of changed the game that way well.
Speaker 1: And the rules have been changed to encourage more passing,
Speaker 1: both in a pro game and.
Speaker 3: Game because you know, it's an entertainment sport. So they
Speaker 3: wont high scoring games because that's what brings in the crowds.
Speaker 3: You know, they wanted, they wanted, they want high scoring games.
Speaker 1: Yeah. I mean back when I was in school, and
Speaker 1: then when you came along, I mean a game that
Speaker 1: was seventeen fourteen or something like that, no one would
Speaker 1: have said anything. No, they would have called that boring.
Speaker 3: No, I know. You know, even when I was with
Speaker 3: the Steelers in eighty eight, same thing. You know, we
Speaker 3: ran the ball all the time. Yeah, I mean, you
Speaker 3: mix it up, you know, pass and run, but you
Speaker 3: know it was basically a run offense. That's how you
Speaker 3: control the offense in the clock.
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, well Kentucky, of course, now the expectations are
Speaker 1: so much bigger. I know you don't live in Lexing,
Speaker 1: but I know you get back and keep in touch.
Speaker 1: But Kentucky came up back to back seven wins seasons
Speaker 1: bowl games, and I know there are more balls now
Speaker 1: than when you played. But people are getting restless here,
Speaker 1: you know. And and when you were growing up and
Speaker 1: back in the day, you know, six or seven wins
Speaker 1: was something to celebrate. But that's all change now, hasn't it.
Speaker 3: It has. Yeah, everybody wants to go to the bowl
Speaker 3: game each and every year.
Speaker 1: Yeah, the big one.
Speaker 3: But that's the name of the game now, Yeah, go
Speaker 3: to bowl games.
Speaker 1: Yeah. Do you like where college football is now? With
Speaker 1: the playoff and the coaches that are making insane money
Speaker 1: and the portal and the nil and all that stuff.
Speaker 3: It's well, you know, I mean the nil and all
Speaker 3: that stuff. I mean, I really don't understand it to date,
Speaker 3: the truth and the transport portal and you know, it's
Speaker 3: just so many different things, you know, And it's tough
Speaker 3: because if a player wants to go to another university,
Speaker 3: you know, they're not penalized for it. You know, it
Speaker 3: just can change the whole complexity of football itself and
Speaker 3: at collegiate athletics. So yeah, I don't know if it's
Speaker 3: good or bad. It's going to take some time to
Speaker 3: determine that.
Speaker 1: Well, there's freedom for the players, which they haven't had.
Speaker 1: But coaches also talk about how kids who run into
Speaker 1: a little bit of adversity they leave, you know, whereas
Speaker 1: the college athletics is right for stories about kids who
Speaker 1: were successful because they stuck it out. So you know
Speaker 1: that's a tough call.
Speaker 3: Well, hey, Dick, you know from my situation when I
Speaker 3: was a UK you know, I didn't start until I
Speaker 3: was a junior. I know, and if they had to
Speaker 3: transfer transfer a portal, you know, I don't think I
Speaker 3: would have went anywhere. I would have stayed right in
Speaker 3: the UK because I was happy in UK. Yeah, but
Speaker 3: you know, everybody wants instant gratification, you know, athletes, I
Speaker 3: don't care what sport. Yeah, and uh, you know, if
Speaker 3: they're disgruntled or they don't like a coach, they go
Speaker 3: somewhere else. But you know the thing is that doesn't
Speaker 3: teach you real life lessons.
Speaker 1: No, it doesn't. Know, Although people always like to point out, well,
Speaker 1: coaches can leave whenever, and I'm like, yeah, they're they're
Speaker 1: they're paid professionals. But on the other hand, we always
Speaker 1: hated Dermani these coaches who would recruit a whole class
Speaker 1: of kids and then leave, you know, assuring mom and dad,
Speaker 1: I'm going to be there for your son. Next thing,
Speaker 1: you know, they're packing their bags.
Speaker 2: I know.
Speaker 3: Yeah, it's not good. Yeah, yeah, no.
Speaker 1: That's so there's there's obviously still going to happen, but
Speaker 1: now kids can move as well. A couple more minutes
Speaker 1: with Dermani. Dawson, Uh, the former Kentucky Wackett. Although once
Speaker 1: a while cat always a wildcat. What do you think
Speaker 1: of what you've seen though? In the program? Mark Stoops
Speaker 1: is built.
Speaker 3: Oh hey, coach Steps has done a great job. Phenomenal job,
Speaker 3: you know, because those guys have been winning and and
Speaker 3: you know, just the program has really stepped up, you know, facilities, Uh,
Speaker 3: you know, the recruits we're receiving, we're getting that, the recruiting.
Speaker 3: You know, it's really it's really made our program. You
Speaker 3: know that people talk about it now, you know, because
Speaker 3: at one point, you know, we weren't considered a football school.
Speaker 3: It was all basketball. Uh, you know, but now we're
Speaker 3: considered a football school. So coach stupid Stups has done
Speaker 3: a great job. You know, as far as bringing attention
Speaker 3: to the University of Kentucky football program.
Speaker 1: It's it's absolutely relevant now and the sec really is. Yeah,
Speaker 1: it's not the automatic win that people circle on the
Speaker 1: schedule like it was now and then not every year now. Yeah. Uh.
Speaker 1: Can I assume you you keep up with your beloved Steelers?
Speaker 3: Uh I do? Yeah, yeah, I do.
Speaker 1: And uh, I got to think you're a Mike Common fan.
Speaker 1: He seems like you're kind of guy.
Speaker 3: Yeah. Coach is a good guy. He is a great guy.
Speaker 3: And I love him as a coach because he seems
Speaker 3: to be a players coach. Yeah, you know, he doesn't.
Speaker 3: He doesn't coach one style or he doesn't have one
Speaker 3: personality when it comes to dealing with the players, you know,
Speaker 3: because you got to have a multi personality person to
Speaker 3: coach players. Now, you know, he's got to be able
Speaker 3: to relate to everybody. And I just I just love
Speaker 3: the way he coaches.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and a little bit of a quarterback controversy there.
Speaker 1: I mean that's not always a good thing, but at
Speaker 1: least you've got some guys to choose from, right.
Speaker 3: Well, that's true. Yeah, I think Fields. You know, he
Speaker 3: can he can beat you with his feet. I love
Speaker 3: him because he can run. He reminds me of Cordial Stewart.
Speaker 3: Oh yeah, yeah, yeah, I played with Slash and he
Speaker 3: reminds me of Cordial Stewart. A bunch.
Speaker 1: Well, Russell Wilson used to be able to beat you
Speaker 1: with his feet. But yeah, yeah, and getting up there
Speaker 1: in age though.
Speaker 3: But you know, do you know if he's going to
Speaker 3: be a controverte Have you heard anything about a controversy
Speaker 3: when Wilson comes back?
Speaker 1: Well, the last thing I saw was that Tomlins said
Speaker 1: Justin Fields deserves to keep the job, okay, And then
Speaker 1: there have been some lobbying from players and things like that.
Speaker 1: So I guess, you know, so far, so good. I
Speaker 1: guess they don't want to screw that up, right.
Speaker 3: No, if you have the continuity and you have the chemistry,
Speaker 3: you know that is most important. So I would suggest
Speaker 3: they just keep Fields in there for right now.
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, we are you gonna Are you gonna get
Speaker 1: back for any games this year? Do you know?
Speaker 3: You know I've had some surgery, so I've been in
Speaker 3: recovery mode, and so I just got cleared to put
Speaker 3: a shoe on. I had pins in my toes. I
Speaker 3: had my toes too, my toes fused. So now and
Speaker 3: I'm back, you know, with a shoe. I'm going to
Speaker 3: be traveling in November, but I'm not for sure if
Speaker 3: I'm going to be coming home this year.
Speaker 1: You still have family in the election, and do you
Speaker 1: know I do you have?
Speaker 3: My mom? And dad is great? Yeah, I hope there.
Speaker 1: Okay, uh, I assume they're still Wildcat fans.
Speaker 3: They are always they.
Speaker 1: Always in forever. Yes, your money, I sure appreciate it,
Speaker 1: and we're looking forward to hearing you open our broadcast
Speaker 1: on Saturday. Thank you so much.
Speaker 3: Hey, hey, dig thanks for having me on the show.
Speaker 1: That's DERMANI Dawson and coming up next. Ryan Black, the
Speaker 1: Courier Journal beat writer who covers the Wildcats, joins us
Speaker 1: right here in the garage on the Big Blue Sider
Speaker 1: six point thirty w l a P. Welcome back to
Speaker 1: the Big Blue Sider. I remember two of our program
Speaker 1: as we wrap up the week the other day, Ryan Black,
Speaker 1: who's the beat writer for the Courier Journal covering the Wildcats,
Speaker 1: said to me, and more than one person said this,
Speaker 1: when do I get to come to the garage? I said, hey,
Speaker 1: you're welcome anytime. So he popped in yesterday. Here's our
Speaker 1: conversation with Ryan, who came to Kentucky from East Lansting, Michigan,
Speaker 1: but he has worked and lived all over the place.
Speaker 1: Ryan Black, Welcome to the garage. It's a real place.
Speaker 1: Some people always think tell me that I didn't think
Speaker 1: it was really your garage, like they thought it was
Speaker 1: my man cave or whatever. I mean, you see the car,
Speaker 1: you see the washer dryer. It's a garage.
Speaker 2: It is, you know, And I'll be honest, Dick. The
Speaker 2: only reason I didn't maybe think it was a mirage
Speaker 2: or whatever it was, it because i'd seen photos, and
Speaker 2: I guess anyone could taken doctor photos these days. But
Speaker 2: I had thought it existed. But now that I can
Speaker 2: see it with my own eyes, I've touched things I can.
Speaker 2: I mean, I know that it is real.
Speaker 1: My wife is the official photographer of the Big Blue Insider,
Speaker 1: and so when she does take the pictures, you can
Speaker 1: see behind me, we've got a little set of shelves
Speaker 1: and I can hang up jerseys and all but yeah,
Speaker 1: we dress it up a little bit, but it is
Speaker 1: truly the garage and we appreciate you keep been on
Speaker 1: a show many times. But before we dive into this
Speaker 1: Kentucky football team and talk a little basketballer as well,
Speaker 1: tell everybody where you grew up, where you're originally from,
Speaker 1: and why you jumped into this crazy business.
Speaker 2: Well, you know, Dick, I grew up in a military family,
Speaker 2: so I've moved around a lot. I mean I would
Speaker 2: tell people that I'm from Georgia. That's where I graduated
Speaker 2: high school, and I graduated from University of Georgia. But
Speaker 2: I've lived in South Carolina, Pennsylvania, Japan, Virginia, Alabama, Kansas,
Speaker 2: now Kentucky, and also Michigan.
Speaker 1: What branch Navy Navy. No, yes, I have been to
Speaker 1: all those places, including Japan. Awesome, which is fascinating, isn't it.
Speaker 1: What stage your life for you? In Japan?
Speaker 2: Well, I mean I'm on enough to remember it. We
Speaker 2: moved there when I was in the middle of first
Speaker 2: grade and moved away when there was one month left
Speaker 2: in third grade, so I came back to Georgia. In
Speaker 2: the States, people are like, whoa, who is this moving
Speaker 2: here with month left? In school and then so we
Speaker 2: were there and that's where my that's where I graduate
Speaker 2: high school, and that's where my family's originally from. So
Speaker 2: that's why we moved back to that.
Speaker 1: So do you have any yearning to go back to
Speaker 1: Have you been back? I have not.
Speaker 2: Unfortunately, No, I have so much yearning to go back, Dick,
Speaker 2: mainly because okay, yes, you know, we went to the
Speaker 2: Tokyo Tower, went to Tokyo Disneyland, did a few things,
Speaker 2: but I was a kid, you know, I was out,
Speaker 2: you know, jumping on the bullet trains and going here,
Speaker 2: there and yonder. So yeah, it is one of my
Speaker 2: definite bucket list things. I'd love to go to Osaka.
Speaker 2: I'd love to go to Hakkaido. I mean they're just naming,
Speaker 2: you know, named all the places you can think of.
Speaker 2: I would love to go back.
Speaker 1: I've been twice Tokyo. The only other side trip I
Speaker 1: made was Nico, which is where I don't know if
Speaker 1: you remember this, the huge forest of cedars. Oh yeah,
Speaker 1: and it's it's a national treasure because it's one of
Speaker 1: the few things in Japan of its kind that wasn't
Speaker 1: destroyed by the war or by the Great Fire of
Speaker 1: nineteen twenty three, which I know you know of U, Yes,
Speaker 1: if you've lived there, Yep, there was an earthquake in
Speaker 1: nineteen twenty three for those of you, And because most
Speaker 1: of those homes are made of wood and paper, and
Speaker 1: the earthquake happened at lunch time when everybody was home
Speaker 1: making lunch over open fires, and the whole city went
Speaker 1: up in flames. And so anybody who spent any time
Speaker 1: lived or visited Tokyo they've heard about.
Speaker 2: Of course, so well, and Dick, I'm scared. So were
Speaker 2: you there for for work?
Speaker 1: The first time I went, I was there to work
Speaker 1: a football game, believe it or not. Back in the day,
Speaker 1: there used to be American football games there once a
Speaker 1: year was which used to be the Mirage Bowl. Barage
Speaker 1: was a brand of car, and you're a car guy,
Speaker 1: I love this. When they released the new car lines
Speaker 1: in the early eighties, late seventies, there were parties, parades,
Speaker 1: marching bands, things like that, and the Japanese people love
Speaker 1: American marching bands. And there was a gentleman who was
Speaker 1: here in the States and saw I think it was
Speaker 1: either the Grambling or the Southern U Marching band. You know,
Speaker 1: very entertaining, and the guy said, you must come and
Speaker 1: be in our parades plural on New car Week. Basically
Speaker 1: when is it, Well it's in September October. Well we
Speaker 1: have a football game that day. Well bring your team
Speaker 1: and they said, well, of course we're playing against another team.
Speaker 1: There's another school involved. Bring them to So they paid
Speaker 1: to fly both teams, marching bands, cheerleaders, dance teams which
Speaker 1: they adored, and they all performed multiple times that week.
Speaker 1: And so I think the year I went was the
Speaker 1: third or fourth year. I was working for the old
Speaker 1: Southwest Conference network and Houston played SMU at the old Stadium,
Speaker 1: the Olympic Stadium in Tokyo where they had the sixty
Speaker 1: four Olympics, and I was the producer engineer for the
Speaker 1: game because they were too cheap to send two people,
Speaker 1: so they send me because they knew I could do both. Yeah,
Speaker 1: but it was a great experience. And then I went
Speaker 1: back some years later back in ninety four with our
Speaker 1: karate club went to China and about a half a
Speaker 1: dozen of us in away home stopped in Japan for
Speaker 1: three or four days. So yeah, we just it's it's fascinating.
Speaker 2: Oh yeah, and uh Marley telling me about those games was,
Speaker 2: you know when I covered Kansas State, they had played
Speaker 2: a game there against Nebraska. I'm trying remember what year
Speaker 2: the other one that.
Speaker 1: You didn't get to go? No, oh no, well prior
Speaker 1: to you.
Speaker 2: Oh yeah, this was way, this was way. This was early.
Speaker 2: I think early Snyder got Bill Snyder there, I think
Speaker 2: maybe ninety one one. And then I know because I
Speaker 2: saw this great series that the Wisconsin State Journal did
Speaker 2: last year. On the very first Rose Bowl that they
Speaker 2: went to under Barry Alvarez, they played a game there.
Speaker 2: I think that was maybe the very last co Colt Classic. Yeah,
Speaker 2: it was called.
Speaker 1: What's so great is the Japanese people They probably know
Speaker 1: more about it now, but back then they just they
Speaker 1: just were still learning the game. And so when you
Speaker 1: got to the game, you were given you know, your
Speaker 1: ticket was a different one of two colors, red or blue.
Speaker 1: If you're red, you're rooting for Houston. If you're blue,
Speaker 1: you're rooting for SMU. Over there, you said, over here,
Speaker 1: here's your pomp pom, And there were red pomp poms,
Speaker 1: and then there were gold and I said gold, where's
Speaker 1: the blue? And they said these are left over from
Speaker 1: wake forest and the scoreboard would tell people when to cheer,
Speaker 1: and one of the game organizers told me that they
Speaker 1: love long passes, complete or incomplete. I'm like what they said,
Speaker 1: because Japanese folks a little bit smaller than we are,
Speaker 1: can't throw a football very well. So when you see
Speaker 1: a big American throw a ball like that sixty yards
Speaker 1: in the air, they were amazed.
Speaker 2: So anytime, I know, we got to move on. But
Speaker 2: who were on the teams like at that time in
Speaker 2: terms who were the star play? I mean, I didn't
Speaker 2: know if this was like when.
Speaker 1: Lance mclanny was the quarterback for SMU. That was not
Speaker 1: right after the pony I was gonna Yeah, for the
Speaker 1: life of me, Houston wasn't very good. I can't remember.
Speaker 2: And this was in nineteen eighty three.
Speaker 1: Oh okay, yeah, yeah, before the death penalty for SMU.
Speaker 1: So anyway, uh so you've lived, yes, sir, And Georgia
Speaker 1: is a great journalism school, yes, sir. Is that why
Speaker 1: you went there or is that where you caught the bug? Well?
Speaker 2: To me, the biggest reason I went was in state tuition.
Speaker 2: But also, as you said, that mean it was like,
Speaker 2: why would I go out of state when I knew
Speaker 2: the history of the Georgia journalism program, you.
Speaker 1: Know, so you already had that plan.
Speaker 2: Oh I I've known that I wanted to go into
Speaker 2: doing what I'm doing, Dick, since I was like eleven,
Speaker 2: twelve years Wow here and all I've ever this is
Speaker 2: all I've ever done, you know, So it was pretty
Speaker 2: and like so yeah, it just in Athens is only
Speaker 2: about forty miles from where my parents live and where
Speaker 2: I graduate high school. So it was just it was
Speaker 2: a very not to say there are not other phenomenal
Speaker 2: journalism school across the country, because there definitely were, But
Speaker 2: it was an easy choice for me, just like you said,
Speaker 2: knowing the history and then in state tuition made it
Speaker 2: made it pretty well.
Speaker 1: A long time colleague, Sam Dick, who retired a few
Speaker 1: years ago as the lead anchor for wk YT Georgia
Speaker 1: grat you know, and uh, same as you just you know,
Speaker 1: love being there. Well.
Speaker 2: And that's the funny thing is that, you know, Georgia
Speaker 2: definitely has quite a distinguished writers, including myself joking there,
Speaker 2: but really they're more known for television because there's a
Speaker 2: reason they you know, the peabodies are handed out by
Speaker 2: University of Georgia.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and the stadium is right next to ye that
Speaker 1: building where Big Anta and all that. In the early
Speaker 1: days of our wireless technology and the radio, we used
Speaker 1: to have interference from that building every once in a
Speaker 1: while on game day. Having lived in all those places,
Speaker 1: and I'm sure you grew up an avid reader of sports
Speaker 1: and all this other stuff. Yes, sir, now you're covering
Speaker 1: UK obviously football now, but basketball. I mean I've I've
Speaker 1: talked to a lot of guys who have moved here
Speaker 1: and covered Kentucky basketball and learned so much about it,
Speaker 1: and they get swept into it. What's it been like
Speaker 1: for you?
Speaker 2: What you know, Dick? That was probably the biggest reason
Speaker 2: that I took this job because I was previously covering
Speaker 2: I was kind of like a sports enterprise feature reporter
Speaker 2: for the Lansing State Journal up in Lansing, Michigan. And
Speaker 2: when the Curve Journal approached me about covering Kentucky, I mean,
Speaker 2: it's like, how can you Again, that's like someone approach
Speaker 2: you to cover or the Yankees, or the Cowboys or
Speaker 2: or Notre Dame whoever you want. Means like Kentucky. And again,
Speaker 2: not that the football program has not become a very
Speaker 2: consistent winner under March suits. But definitely basketball is what
Speaker 2: you know, this program is known for. And so when
Speaker 2: you you know, when you know that you're gonna have
Speaker 2: a chance to cover that and and to see kind of,
Speaker 2: you know, can this program get to back to where
Speaker 2: they want it to be after you know, some some
Speaker 2: some rough kind of exits and instead of a tournament
Speaker 2: in recent years, it was just too good an opportunity
Speaker 2: to turn down. It's been it's been great. And you know,
Speaker 2: and Dick, I think towas before, but when I got
Speaker 2: to watch That's that great series that the SEC did
Speaker 2: on the history of basketball and the conference and seeing
Speaker 2: you on there, I mean that was that was great.
Speaker 2: That was great and I and I loved I mean,
Speaker 2: I thought you gave such great insight, and especially about
Speaker 2: the rough stuff, you know when they talk about adel
Speaker 2: Frupp and and just like oh, you know, was he
Speaker 2: was he a racist? Or what he could he have
Speaker 2: done more? And this that and the other. And I
Speaker 2: mean it's like I think any of those discussions, Dick,
Speaker 2: is it's so easy to talk now, you know, years
Speaker 2: and years at but it's like that's it's it's It's
Speaker 2: always easy to nitpick decades after the fact, but you know,
Speaker 2: you weren't living in that time and things, you know,
Speaker 2: things were different, oh exactly.
Speaker 1: And you know I was born towards the tail end
Speaker 1: of that time. But I do recall, you know, as
Speaker 1: I said, growing up, the big kids in the schoolyard
Speaker 1: were the ones who educated me on what I thought
Speaker 1: was what here in UK turned out for the most
Speaker 1: part wasn't true. But that's a topic for another night.
Speaker 1: We're talking to Ryan Black at a Courier Journal. We'll
Speaker 1: come back and talk Kentucky football with Ryan. He covers
Speaker 1: the beat for the CJ here on the Big Moe
Speaker 1: Sider six thirtys Welcome back. We're talking here in the
Speaker 1: garage liven in person on tape with Ryan Black at
Speaker 1: a Courier Journal, who, of course covers the football and
Speaker 1: basketball Wildcats. Ohio, you comes up Saturday afternoon. Be honest, now,
Speaker 1: I got to think you were like the rest of
Speaker 1: us going into that Georgia game. You wondered, was the
Speaker 1: twenty points spread too small based on what we saw
Speaker 1: from South Carolina? Or what did your folks in Georgia
Speaker 1: told you? What did you expect?
Speaker 2: Well, you know, Dick, I believe my prediction for the
Speaker 2: game score wise actually was thirty seven to seventeen. And
Speaker 2: I know at least a few people are like, well, Ryan,
Speaker 2: we think that. Then they talk about people I know
Speaker 2: from the Georgia beat they definitely thought Kentucky would cover,
Speaker 2: mainly because of just like, go look at these scores
Speaker 2: here in Lexington over the years. Is yes, Georgia's won
Speaker 2: so many games in a row, but Kentucky more often
Speaker 2: than not plays them very very very very close here
Speaker 2: in Lexington. The other thing is too, I just kind
Speaker 2: of thought, you know, hey, the Kentucky had such a
Speaker 2: bad game the week before against South Carolina. They're gonna
Speaker 2: get up for this. They're gonna make it as competitive
Speaker 2: as you would think. Now. Granted, I don't think anyone
Speaker 2: maybe could have foreseen what we saw with being so
Speaker 2: close to upsetting Georgia, but I think my predictive of
Speaker 2: the game was thirty seven to seventeen. And I just
Speaker 2: know people are like, well, Ryan, we can see them covering,
Speaker 2: but man, scoring seventeen points on this Georgia defense, unless
Speaker 2: you get a pick six or a you know, a
Speaker 2: game changing kind of a special team's play which can
Speaker 2: touch exactly. It just seems unlikely given how well, because
Speaker 2: again Georgia still has not given up a touchdown this year.
Speaker 1: It's amazing.
Speaker 2: You know, they're one of two teams in the country.
Speaker 2: It has nothing to you know that one. Who is
Speaker 2: it Ole Miss? Now granted Old Miss is not played,
Speaker 2: you know, and it's not played a conference game yet,
Speaker 2: it has not played what George has played yet. But
Speaker 2: they're the only other team yet to give up a
Speaker 2: touchdown in the FBI.
Speaker 1: So is that game unfolded? What was going through your mind?
Speaker 1: Because the way it unfolded, I know you didn't write
Speaker 1: your lead at halftime. No, No, that was incredible.
Speaker 2: Well I think you know, Dick, if put this way,
Speaker 2: the longer that Kentucky led and at least stuck around,
Speaker 2: the more you kind of made yourself think, hey, they've
Speaker 2: they've got a chance. Because again I think with anything else,
Speaker 2: the longer you let an underdog linger, especially at home,
Speaker 2: that that's when things get really tense because all the
Speaker 2: pressure's on you is the favorite Kentucky's expected to lose.
Speaker 2: Dof they lose, they lose, but all the pressures on
Speaker 2: you as Georgia the number one team in the country.
Speaker 2: You've won fourteen games in a rogue's Kentucky forty one straight,
Speaker 2: you know, regular season games on and on on. All
Speaker 2: the pressure was on Georgia, and so like I certainly
Speaker 2: was thinking, you know, heck, George is gonna have to
Speaker 2: get something going to even win this game. And you
Speaker 2: know that they found right after halftime. But man, what
Speaker 2: a what a value and effort by Kentucky.
Speaker 1: Well to me, at halftime, it seemed clear that the
Speaker 1: Georgia coaching staff said we got to put the ball
Speaker 1: in Carson Beck's hands. And I thought he showed. And
Speaker 1: you know people try to damn him with the words
Speaker 1: game manager, go right ahead. That was a perfect example,
Speaker 1: wasn't it.
Speaker 2: Yeah? No, And I think you know, I've cited this
Speaker 2: stat quite a few times Dick since since that game.
Speaker 2: But in terms of he started seventeen games now, you know,
Speaker 2: dating back to when he won the job last season
Speaker 2: at Jordan, that's his worst completion percentage in any kid
Speaker 2: sixty two point five percent. So that's the worst performance
Speaker 2: he's had is Georgia starting quarterback. And I know, I say,
Speaker 2: whatever you want, Dick. Moral victories and that and the
Speaker 2: other that there's something that Kentucky can take from that,
Speaker 2: you know. Now, of course, they just have to make
Speaker 2: sure they don't maybe start looking ahead to Ole Miss
Speaker 2: and take this Ohio club.
Speaker 1: Seriously, I don't think you take any joy or happiness
Speaker 1: away from it, but as a team, perhaps as a
Speaker 1: coaching staff, a fan base, uh maybe even media people
Speaker 1: because I was wondering what's it going to be like
Speaker 1: covering this team this year? I think you take relief
Speaker 1: away because after the South Carolina game, again, man, you know,
Speaker 1: is this gonna be one of those years? And I've
Speaker 1: covered a few of them where every game is like
Speaker 1: trudging uphill in army boots. I mean, and now there's
Speaker 1: reason to believe they can put some more wins together.
Speaker 2: Oh, I mean, Dick, I think it was the talk
Speaker 2: of the beat after the South Carolina game is like, okay,
Speaker 2: how does this team get to six wins?
Speaker 1: Yes?
Speaker 2: And now it's like okay, well now, because it's just
Speaker 2: like the pendulum swinging back and forth, right, is that
Speaker 2: now it's like, okay, well that they should beat Ohio.
Speaker 2: They definitely will beat Murray State, all respect to Mercy,
Speaker 2: but now it's like, okay, I do see definitely Bandy,
Speaker 2: likely Florida as well. And then I'm still on the record,
Speaker 2: I think they'll beat Auburn personally.
Speaker 1: Auburn struts so but then again, Vandy jumped up and
Speaker 1: then won a game and its opener that nobody expected.
Speaker 1: But your colleague Mark's story when the Herald Leader the
Speaker 1: other night, he was saying he was wondering, can they
Speaker 1: keep that bull streak alive? That's a big deal, that
Speaker 1: bull streak, especially for those of us who've been here
Speaker 1: for a while who never thought we'd see something like that.
Speaker 1: So now it's much more plausible, isn't it.
Speaker 2: It isn't I think I'm glad that you brought it up, Dick,
Speaker 2: because I know people can say what they want to
Speaker 2: about bull streaks these days. I know when every team
Speaker 2: with a pulse mix a bowl. But you know what
Speaker 2: the only teams with the only teams with longer streaks
Speaker 2: in the SEC right now, active streaks or George and Alabama.
Speaker 2: I mean, that's some pretty elite company to find yourself
Speaker 2: in Kentucky football.
Speaker 1: You can schedule yourself a ball game, But then why
Speaker 1: hasn't everybody done it?
Speaker 2: Yeah?
Speaker 1: You know you still got to go and win. Yeah,
Speaker 1: So now, uh, you don't want to look past Ohio.
Speaker 1: You've been just basically looking at the rest of the schedule.
Speaker 1: People have talked about we talked about it on the network,
Speaker 1: about the team's identity, and I think clearly it's going
Speaker 1: to be it is defense and a strong running game
Speaker 1: at least right now.
Speaker 2: Right Yeah, well, I think it has to be. I mean,
Speaker 2: we just to this point have not yet really Again, granted,
Speaker 2: it would have been interesting if if the Southern Miss game
Speaker 2: had not been called, and maybe they get a few
Speaker 2: more drives for Vandergriff out there. You know, maybe he
Speaker 2: would have tossed two or three more touchdowns, you know,
Speaker 2: And so maybe we're sitting there looking at that he
Speaker 2: threw for three hundred yards and five touchdowns in his
Speaker 2: opener and you're like, whoa, but so but but now
Speaker 2: that they've played South Carolina played Georgia, Uh, at this point,
Speaker 2: we haven't seen enough from the passing game to to
Speaker 2: think that, okay, they can lean on that yet. Now
Speaker 2: I gotta say, you know, Dick, I think it's been
Speaker 2: the biggest revelation to me so far this season. I
Speaker 2: don't think I'm alone in this opinion. Uh, you know,
Speaker 2: Demi Sumacarnbay kind of came here known as this kind
Speaker 2: of shifty guy and can definitely get out in space
Speaker 2: and make people miss. And of course we saw last
Speaker 2: year they split him out wide so much. But now
Speaker 2: look at how often he's run between the tackles and
Speaker 2: got some really, really really tough yards. So moved it.
Speaker 2: And so I did not foresee that. If you'd ask
Speaker 2: me what he's even the running game, I wouldn't have said, well,
Speaker 2: the run between the tackles guy will be Demi Simacarnbay,
Speaker 2: because again we were expecting Chip train him to have
Speaker 2: already played by now. But I just think that that
Speaker 2: Dimmy Simcarbey is doing such a great job for himself
Speaker 2: because he's showing future teams and the pros like, hey,
Speaker 2: I'm not just a shifty guy like I can. I
Speaker 2: can toe the rock, so to speak, and do what
Speaker 2: I need to do if you need me to.
Speaker 1: I was given permission to go to the second scrimmage.
Speaker 1: I didn't ask about the first one, but I went
Speaker 1: to the second one. And obviously I can't. I couldn't
Speaker 1: talk about it on the air, sworn to secrecy all
Speaker 1: that stuff, but I can tell you now that Demi
Speaker 1: looked great getting off the edge, you know, but between
Speaker 1: the tackles, he didn't do a whole lot, which tells
Speaker 1: me now that that speaks highly of the Kentucky internal
Speaker 1: line interior defense compared to what he has done against
Speaker 1: both South Carolina and Georgia. I have to admit I'm
Speaker 1: totally stunned by that, because, as I said, he was
Speaker 1: dragging people. I went back and watched the Georgia game
Speaker 1: again on Wednesday, and he was dragging people along, wasn't he.
Speaker 2: Oh it's I mean, like I said it, it by far.
Speaker 2: Like I said, if you have my what's my biggest
Speaker 2: takeaway so far from the season. That was a surprise
Speaker 2: that that's been it for sure.
Speaker 1: What did you think of the early game plan? And
Speaker 1: do you think we'll see more of Vandergriff running the football?
Speaker 1: I mean the quarterback runs that they used early. Georgia
Speaker 1: eventually adjusted took it away, but Vandergriff I thought running
Speaker 1: getting to the edge was huge early.
Speaker 2: Well, well, Dick, I'm actually going to answer that question
Speaker 2: by asking you a question because I kind of got here.
Speaker 2: When I got here my first game that I covered
Speaker 2: Kentucky football was the Mississippi State game in twenty twenty two.
Speaker 2: Ok So this was the week after they'd lost to
Speaker 2: South Carolina. This is Will Levis coming back from that
Speaker 2: foot injury, right, But so the only you know, season
Speaker 2: I get to cover Levis he was hampered the rest
Speaker 2: of that season with his foot. Does Vandergriff look like
Speaker 2: what Levis did when Levis had no restriction? Yes, there
Speaker 2: you go.
Speaker 1: Yeah, he really did.
Speaker 2: Same kind of size too, right, Yeah, very.
Speaker 1: Similar, very similar. So there maybe not quite the downfield
Speaker 1: arm strength. All Oh, we haven't. He hadn't had a
Speaker 1: chance to show it yet, But yeah, I mean you
Speaker 1: think back, you know, the first game you have to
Speaker 1: think about with Levis, and of course you weren't here
Speaker 1: was the Louisville game his first season when he scored
Speaker 1: four touchdowns and bulge somebody over leaped the linebacker. Truly superman,
Speaker 1: and you know, and they took that away from him.
Speaker 1: They ain't gonna take that away from Vandergriff, are they? No?
Speaker 2: And I think that's so that's why I brought that
Speaker 2: up there, because I just think, given what he's already
Speaker 2: shown with it, you've got to incorporate that into the offense.
Speaker 2: I just know, like with any team, you've just got
Speaker 2: to really be you've got to balance it right, Like,
Speaker 2: we don't want our art in quarterback continually taking these
Speaker 2: big hits and and and and you know, putting himself
Speaker 2: in too much danger. But at the same time you
Speaker 2: can't say, well, we can't use this at all because
Speaker 2: we've got to let him stay in the pocket. So
Speaker 2: it just has a delicate balance.
Speaker 1: That just hampered Levis under Scangarillo. And I got it,
Speaker 1: he said, you know, he kept talking about it. How
Speaker 1: many times were we there when he said NFL.
Speaker 2: Every press conference he ever he ever had, he said,
Speaker 2: invoked it at some point. Yeah.
Speaker 1: Well, and I get it. You don't want your putting,
Speaker 1: as you said, your quarterback in danger, but to take
Speaker 1: the ability when the pocket breaks down, especially that pocket
Speaker 1: that Levis had his second year.
Speaker 2: And which I mean gave up more sacks than any
Speaker 2: Power five team. And well, of course it was Power
Speaker 2: five back then, big power conference team in the country.
Speaker 1: But it's why I think Levis got hurt so much.
Speaker 1: He couldn't run away from danger to year. To use
Speaker 1: your word, But and you know, I go back several years.
Speaker 1: Patrick Toles when Shannon Dawson got here, who knows the
Speaker 1: passing game inside and out. But the one year he
Speaker 1: was the OC, he barked the tolls I'm told in
Speaker 1: practice for trying to run. If you want to be
Speaker 1: a running back, you go over there with the running backs.
Speaker 1: Took that away from him, and that that made Patrick
Speaker 1: Toles a one dimensional quarterback and it just did not work.
Speaker 1: So anyhow, getting back to your original question, Yeah, reminded
Speaker 1: me of Will Levis. That's why when he does get
Speaker 1: time to throw, I want to see the deep pass
Speaker 1: from vander Griff. Haven't seen that yet.
Speaker 2: No, And you know, I think the other thing is
Speaker 2: too And you know it's like every every week Mark
Speaker 2: stoops and now bush Ham and get asked about that.
Speaker 2: There's also got to be ways to get get especially
Speaker 2: barry On Brown, get him the ball in space or Macklin,
Speaker 2: you know, get them the ball in space and let
Speaker 2: them make play.
Speaker 1: He had a good pocket for that. Yeah, give him time.
Speaker 1: Of course, Varian's double team now where he goes, but
Speaker 1: he can run away from a lot of people.
Speaker 2: Well, look at how many NFL teams you've heard about
Speaker 2: this stick are now using receivers in the backfield to
Speaker 2: just give them the ball to do.
Speaker 1: That some Yeah, well, which they tried against him South Carolina.
Speaker 1: They blew up that jet sweep right now. But yeah,
Speaker 1: get him out there in space, use your tight end
Speaker 1: more against the Ohio you because maybe you don't have
Speaker 1: to keep him in the block. Yep, that kind of thing.
Speaker 2: Well, Dick, I want to plug a store. I did
Speaker 2: today because it was about kind of like the problems
Speaker 2: that the offense has had through these first few games,
Speaker 2: and this stat I'm sure if you haven't had chance,
Speaker 2: this might blow your mind. All right, did you know
Speaker 2: Kentucky is the only SEC team that does not have
Speaker 2: a rush of at least thirty yards this season?
Speaker 1: Wow?
Speaker 2: Only team in the SEC? Wow?
Speaker 1: Is the longest the seventeen yard or by Vandergriff against Georgia.
Speaker 2: I believe the longest with whims it had like the
Speaker 2: twenty four yard run that's right there against Carolina. Yeah,
Speaker 2: uh so? And then but and do you know off
Speaker 2: top of your being the longest play that they've had
Speaker 2: all season in any.
Speaker 1: The Dan there's a past to Dane Key Macklin.
Speaker 2: Had the forty six yards Southern miss and that's right.
Speaker 2: So it's just basically this The story kind of dove
Speaker 2: into all the different issues the offense has had, but
Speaker 2: one of the big sections I focused on was just
Speaker 2: the lack of explosive plays.
Speaker 1: Well, and you also wrote about the fact that it
Speaker 1: amazingly Kentucky has has scored a touchdown in eight quarters
Speaker 1: eight quarters. That's that's stunning to me.
Speaker 2: It's well, I say this, but man, just think where
Speaker 2: they would be without Alex Rayner. I mean, jeez, he man,
Speaker 2: I mean, he's just been so so consistent. It's it's
Speaker 2: I don't know, if I if I've ever seen a
Speaker 2: kicker be more consistent now over two season stretch than
Speaker 2: what he's been now. It's really remarkable.
Speaker 1: No, so you write about, and you don't have to
Speaker 1: give away the store, but how do the Wildcats get
Speaker 1: back to the end zone?
Speaker 2: Well, I think, you know, I think the biggest thing,
Speaker 2: Dick is, It's what we've just kind of hit on
Speaker 2: a couple of times, is that, you know, with the
Speaker 2: way the running game is going right now, you've just
Speaker 2: got to a way to get the passing game going,
Speaker 2: because hey, if the passing game continues to have the
Speaker 2: issues it's having, these really good defense. And that's why
Speaker 2: I want to bring up because you mentioned Georgia justin
Speaker 2: took Away. You know, Vandergriffs were running some not not many,
Speaker 2: if any, teams are Georgia's defense, So it's like, you're right,
Speaker 2: So it is something I think can continue to be
Speaker 2: successful against teams that are not to the caliber of
Speaker 2: Georgia's defense. And so I just think if they can
Speaker 2: just get the passing game going. And you know, Dick,
Speaker 2: the one thing I've always been a little bit shocked
Speaker 2: about since I've been here, and I guess I've been
Speaker 2: at other schools where this has kind of been a
Speaker 2: similar story. And I'm curious for your take on this.
Speaker 2: It seems like every year we talk about how unbelievably
Speaker 2: deep that the tight end room is and how they
Speaker 2: can catch passes, and it just it doesn't seem like
Speaker 2: they really ever get opportunities in the passing game. And
Speaker 2: it's bizarre to me. It's just bizarre to me.
Speaker 1: It is no, You're right, it's it's almost now. Something
Speaker 1: you say with the rye grin on media day is
Speaker 1: this today?
Speaker 2: Is this the year the titles get more of corporated.
Speaker 1: I also believe from that we were spoiled as media, people,
Speaker 1: as fans, probably as coaches by the original Big Blue Wall,
Speaker 1: which just fell into place thanks to recruiting, thanks to
Speaker 1: one transfer at least, uh, you know, Drake Jackson when
Speaker 1: they decided to start Drake at center before you guid
Speaker 1: are now coach moved Bunchie Stallings to guard. He became
Speaker 1: an All American, Drake became an All Conference performer, and
Speaker 1: the Big Blue Line was born, you know, and it's
Speaker 1: it's since.
Speaker 2: I love that old school n named Bunchie and that's
Speaker 2: like one of the ones you read about, like the
Speaker 2: nineteen thirties. Yeah, they moved Bunches Stalin.
Speaker 1: He was a cool guy too. He's a good guy
Speaker 1: to talk to you, A great one. Yeah, but you
Speaker 1: know that's starting to at its best. The Big Blue
Speaker 1: Wall featured five guys who wound up in NFL camps
Speaker 1: and three made the teams. Haven't even been close to
Speaker 1: that since. And it all starts there, doesn't it.
Speaker 2: Oh? You know that's you constantly hear this, you know, Dick,
Speaker 2: When people are like, why is the SEC just year
Speaker 2: after you're usually the best conference in college football, it's
Speaker 2: because on those lines, offensive, defensive, wants that they're just
Speaker 2: they're better. And like you said, if you're not if
Speaker 2: in this league, if you don't have NFL caliber lineman,
Speaker 2: you are going to have a tough time. It's exactly
Speaker 2: what you're just saying, no question.
Speaker 1: Because if you don't have any other guys do on
Speaker 1: both sides. We're talking to Ryan Black. He is a
Speaker 1: UK beat writer for the Career Journal. When we come back,
Speaker 1: we'll talk about Wildcat basketball. It's coming right at us
Speaker 1: here on a Big Blue Sider six thirty WLAP. Welcome
Speaker 1: back to the Big Bollon Sider here in the Garage,
Speaker 1: live on tape with Ryan Black at the Career Journal.
Speaker 1: He dropped by. We've had several people dropped by the
Speaker 1: garage and Ryan was gracious enough to come by. Although
Speaker 1: you you your journalists curiosity got you here, didn't it.
Speaker 2: Just like you know, I've seen other guests, you know,
Speaker 2: as you said, with your wife taking the photos. I'm like, well,
Speaker 2: when did when did Ryan Black get that? In fight?
Speaker 2: I feel like I'd paid my dues and you said,
Speaker 2: you said come by, and I.
Speaker 1: Said, you think it's something to what you must aspire,
Speaker 1: But like we welcome all.
Speaker 2: Well, thanks I'm very big on that paying your dues
Speaker 2: kind of thing. I like, you know, Aaron and other
Speaker 2: Aaron gershon a good time just they they'd paid their
Speaker 2: dues and they'd earned that right now. I felt like, Hey,
Speaker 2: I've been here two years now, I've been on the
Speaker 2: show maybe ten to twelve times. I felt like, you
Speaker 2: know what, heck, let me let me see you kind
Speaker 2: of finally earned that right.
Speaker 1: Well, you know, my white will is Mark Pope really
Speaker 1: trying to get Yeah, who is to.
Speaker 2: Get him here? He'd come to the through.
Speaker 1: His spokesperson has said they're willing, They just got to
Speaker 1: working into the schedule. Yeah. Plus there have to be
Speaker 1: cookies waiting for him. Oh, he's such a cookie guy.
Speaker 1: Do you know that membery of cookies?
Speaker 2: At a press conference he did well, And I know
Speaker 2: he mentioned that's something I believe that he started to
Speaker 2: b Yu. I don't think he said he started that.
Speaker 2: Part of that.
Speaker 1: Well, his wife bakes cookies for the other team, for
Speaker 1: the opposing team. How great is that?
Speaker 2: Well that's great too, because like sometimes maybe you're killing
Speaker 2: them with kindness. Maybe maybe you're already lulling them into
Speaker 2: a false sense security before you go and beat them.
Speaker 1: We talked with with you earlier about why journalism and
Speaker 1: why you took this job and covering Kentucky basketball, and
Speaker 1: you were on hand for one of the great stories,
Speaker 1: one of the great new chapters to be written in
Speaker 1: Kentucky basketball, with you know, the legendary job Calip Perry
Speaker 1: suddenly moving on. I mean, this whole thing was sudden
Speaker 1: and then hiring kind of an outside the box candidate
Speaker 1: and Mark Pope, what what was that like for you
Speaker 1: to cover that story?
Speaker 2: You know what's so funny, Dick was I remember, you know,
Speaker 2: after you know, Caliperry left, I had to constantly do
Speaker 2: these updated like hot boards, like potential candidates, and everyone
Speaker 2: kind of knew that you know, you have you know
Speaker 2: Hurley and you have Scott Drew and da da da
Speaker 2: da da, and like I would break it down by sections,
Speaker 2: you know, in terms of like we'll hear raining coaches
Speaker 2: and here maybe some other people to watch. And I
Speaker 2: thought about adding a section where it's like, you know,
Speaker 2: former Kentucky coaches or alums that are who were coaching,
Speaker 2: who might even be just just just throw it out there.
Speaker 2: But I thought, you know, it's all gone and putting
Speaker 2: Pope on there just seems like such a long shot
Speaker 2: people and be like, oh, you've thought about it. Oh,
Speaker 2: I thought about it for sure, for sure, just because
Speaker 2: he mean the other thing is too well, well, the
Speaker 2: other thing is too though, Dick. It's not like if
Speaker 2: you look at his record, it's not as if Byu
Speaker 2: was coming off in a Louisville like season where they
Speaker 2: were like four and twenty eight. I mean he led
Speaker 2: them they were picked to finish next to last in
Speaker 2: the top basketball conference in America and led them to
Speaker 2: the tournament. And so if nothing else, people are like, hey,
Speaker 2: this guy can coach, you know, But I just thought, well,
Speaker 2: han't he has any I know the big knock and
Speaker 2: you will hear it a hundred million times before the opener.
Speaker 2: He has not wonted into the tournament game yet, fine.
Speaker 1: Budd, he wasn't even supposed to be there, that's my So.
Speaker 2: So it's it's like, as you said, it's like what
Speaker 2: you're betting on right now is what can he do
Speaker 2: when you give him the keys, the ferrari and all
Speaker 2: the resources that you have here that Kentucky puts in
Speaker 2: the basket.
Speaker 1: So I'll put that to you, Well, do you think
Speaker 1: he could do with this group, because you talk about
Speaker 1: doing something that virtually no coaches ever had to do,
Speaker 1: and that start from scratch at least Cali Perry has
Speaker 1: guys you transferred in that he recruited who used to
Speaker 1: play for him.
Speaker 2: Well, and even of course he brought so many of
Speaker 2: the guys who originally were going to Memphis with him
Speaker 2: who ended up coming here, you know, from.
Speaker 1: As recruity as recruits.
Speaker 2: Yeah, you know what's so funny, Dick, As you asked
Speaker 2: me this, I was. I was literally writing this story
Speaker 2: last night and this morning about like the kind of
Speaker 2: five key games, and in my intro I kind of
Speaker 2: mentioned that the Pie in the Sky kind of dreamed
Speaker 2: for Kentucky would be as a he's as if Pope
Speaker 2: was able to do what Tubby Smith did and when
Speaker 2: when national title in his first season, the difference of
Speaker 2: course being that he did have players who inherited and
Speaker 2: were coming back from those two previous teams, you know,
Speaker 2: there were national champions and then but like you said,
Speaker 2: outside of of you know, one player, he doesn't have
Speaker 2: a single person who's ever played under him, and so, uh,
Speaker 2: you know, Dick, I think I mean, for certain I
Speaker 2: would be shocked if they're not an INSTIB tournament team.
Speaker 2: I just do think it's it's hard to say, well, okay,
Speaker 2: if they don't at least make it to this level,
Speaker 2: it's it's a failure of a season because I think
Speaker 2: you just have to keep, you know, bear in mind
Speaker 2: just what this is. Like you kind of said, when
Speaker 2: you're literally putting together a new team from scratch, there's
Speaker 2: got there's gonna be some growing pains along the way.
Speaker 2: And so I think, and I know this baby is
Speaker 2: not what Kentucky fans want here, but I think, man,
Speaker 2: if you if you make it to the Sweet sixteen
Speaker 2: this year after, if that has not happened since twenty nineteen,
Speaker 2: you can you can say, well, hey, he's already head
Speaker 2: of Cayle's final five years here. Yeah, but I know
Speaker 2: that's I know Sweet sixteens are not what Kentucky is about,
Speaker 2: and it's not, But I'm just saying that it would
Speaker 2: at least show progress off the end of the previous.
Speaker 1: And I think I fully agree with you. Yeah, And
Speaker 1: I think along the way, if they get that, for
Speaker 1: they will generate so much happiness, Yeah, from a fan
Speaker 1: base that hasn't felt happy in a long time.
Speaker 2: Well, and Dick, I've told so many people this when
Speaker 2: people are like, what was it? Like cover and cal
Speaker 2: and you maybe knew this. I had a really kind
Speaker 2: of fun relationship with them. We had had a few
Speaker 2: fun kind of back and forth and press conferences. But
Speaker 2: the thing that I never understood about him, and if
Speaker 2: something that Pope made sure to mention and that that
Speaker 2: big intro pressor celebration at Reparena, uh, was his just
Speaker 2: complete disdain for the conference tournament. And you know, Kentucky
Speaker 2: fans view that as their birthright, considering how many times
Speaker 2: they've won it. And to basically repeatedly tell the media,
Speaker 2: I don't care about this event, like lie to say
Speaker 2: publicly that, oh, we want to go and win it.
Speaker 2: But if you want to say to your players, well, hey,
Speaker 2: I would rather lose the first round to gear up
Speaker 2: for the real tournament. But don't say but the fact
Speaker 2: that he went out of his way time and again
Speaker 2: say you guys know that I don't you know, I
Speaker 2: care about the real tournament like it was just because
Speaker 2: I've just never heard of coach say we don't even
Speaker 2: care about that, Like to me, anytime you take the floor,
Speaker 2: take the take the field like you're trying to win
Speaker 2: and you know what, also, huh, I just never understood that.
Speaker 1: I mean one of the biggest reasons was he was
Speaker 1: standing right there watching the teams that did win back
Speaker 1: when he was having his most fun watching them celebrate
Speaker 1: the SEC tournament win. Those guys were overjoyed to win it.
Speaker 1: I mean, they had trophies, there was confestive, they they
Speaker 1: love those. If you're a good player, obviously you're competitive
Speaker 1: and you want to win, and watching your guys win
Speaker 1: those games, that's got to be a message to you.
Speaker 1: But to me, it was like, who you trying to kid?
Speaker 1: Are you're trying to be cool here? I mean?
Speaker 2: And also to me, just since the wrong message to
Speaker 2: the fan base. It's like, watcht have your money to
Speaker 2: an event that that I've already told my players and
Speaker 2: I'm speaking to you publicly that we don't care about
Speaker 2: like and to me, it's like the opposite of what
Speaker 2: you would tell someone in pr And then.
Speaker 1: When you get knocked out of is what turn out
Speaker 1: to be his last at Kentucky, I felt bad for
Speaker 1: the fans. Well, you know, you had also told the
Speaker 1: fans exactly what you had just really reminded them of
Speaker 1: I really don't care about this. A couple of minutes
Speaker 1: left with Ryan Black. The time has gone so fast,
Speaker 1: it has. But I do think twenty plus wins I
Speaker 1: think is entirely possible given the schedule. But it is
Speaker 1: a tough schedule. And if they could win one of
Speaker 1: those marquee matchups one or two, uh yeah, I think
Speaker 1: the UK fan base now the expectations will explode. But
Speaker 1: that's Kentucky basketball.
Speaker 2: Right Yeah. Well, and Dick, I'm glad that you you
Speaker 2: brought up what you brought up. I think something that
Speaker 2: that I know it's not what Kentucky fans want to hear,
Speaker 2: but I hope that the ones who were reasonable, which
Speaker 2: maybe is like a contradiction, right, reasonable fan, I mean
Speaker 2: it's military intelligent and stace is short for fanatic, But
Speaker 2: that the SEC that Mark Pope is walking into is
Speaker 2: a heck of a lot tougher than the SEC when
Speaker 2: John Caliperry walked in the door. True, I mean, it's
Speaker 2: just not it's night and day different.
Speaker 1: Oh question, that's a great point. I even thought about
Speaker 1: beyond the two new teams.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, oh yeah, no, I'm not even I'm
Speaker 2: talking about where there's Tennessee Alabama, go down.
Speaker 1: The Loney salaries for coaches, salaries for assistance, upgraded recruiting.
Speaker 1: You're right, I mean, because we're talking about a span
Speaker 1: of fifteen years and a league that sat down and said,
Speaker 1: all right, how do we get more teams in the
Speaker 1: NAC Tournament? What do we have to do? And they've
Speaker 1: gone out and done and haven't they No.
Speaker 2: I remember as you mentioned that that was a big
Speaker 2: push from the league office. It's like, it's embarrassing that
Speaker 2: as much money that we make in dominic football, that
Speaker 2: basketball struggles so much. And so as you said, uh,
Speaker 2: they sat down and got that figured out.
Speaker 1: Hired is Mike Tree, Yeah, the.
Speaker 2: Former BIGGAST commissioners.
Speaker 1: Yeah, you know, he said what do we do? And
Speaker 1: he said, here's what you do and talked about scheduling.
Speaker 1: So now there's more of the high profile games, right,
Speaker 1: and you see more coaches making pretty good money, which
Speaker 1: means you're gonna tract better candidates.
Speaker 2: Well, I mean it didn't mean, I'll be honest, I'm
Speaker 2: just I was talking about this, I think with Aaron
Speaker 2: maybe someone else, But it's like you just look at
Speaker 2: the SEC now, I don't think there's a single game
Speaker 2: you just chalk up and say, well that's I mean,
Speaker 2: outside of maybe Van Dy right now. But I think
Speaker 2: the coach they hired from, James Madison, is an amazing coach,
Speaker 2: and I think he's gonna do very well with time.
Speaker 2: But like I mean, I mean, look at look at
Speaker 2: South Carolina. I mean, look how good LaMonte Parrisol. I mean,
Speaker 2: just just go down the line of you and heck,
Speaker 2: I mean look look how for so long Auburn was
Speaker 2: nothing and now they're a consistent winner in the Bruce Pearl.
Speaker 2: You know, Florida has got a good young coach, Tad Golden.
Speaker 2: You just go down the line.
Speaker 1: Alabama's a poster child now.
Speaker 2: Yeah. I mean it's just as you said, we'll see
Speaker 2: kind of what Texas and Oklahoma bringing the fold basketball wise.
Speaker 2: I mean, certainly there's tremendous in state talent in Texas
Speaker 2: and you know, Porter Moser, that was an odd move
Speaker 2: to me when he took the Oklahoma job. But and
Speaker 2: he has not really excelled. I mean I kind of
Speaker 2: wonder if he has that buyer's regret or remorse, I
Speaker 2: guess of leaving little Chicago, and maybe he should have
Speaker 2: maybe gone to a school that was more basketball traditional.
Speaker 2: I mean, cause I'll make this, I'll make this comparison.
Speaker 2: I thought it was so bizarre that he had his
Speaker 2: pick of jobs for so long, But Shakasmart left VCU
Speaker 2: for Texas because he could have gone to u C.
Speaker 2: L A or name any other more historic basketball passionate place,
Speaker 2: and he decided to go to Texas because of the
Speaker 2: resources of the lush apartment. But to me, I just
Speaker 2: kind of think maybe Moja would have been better going
Speaker 2: to a school where and hey, look at look at
Speaker 2: how now shawkas Mar's gone to a school at Marquette
Speaker 2: that is about and look at look at he's kind
Speaker 2: of back to winning like he did at VCU.
Speaker 1: They don't even have football.
Speaker 2: Yeah, there you go. So I just think maybe if
Speaker 2: if Moser ends up leaving his own volition, or if
Speaker 2: Oklahoma jettison sim at the end of the season, then
Speaker 2: if he goes back to a basketball first school, he'll
Speaker 2: he'll he'll do fine.
Speaker 1: Ryan Black follow him on Twitter or ex if you will.
Speaker 1: Ryan A. Black in the pages of The Courier Journal
Speaker 1: Online a Courreer Journal dot com. Thanks for visiting the
Speaker 1: garage don't be a stranger.
Speaker 2: Thank you, Dick. I appreciate our.
Speaker 1: Thanks to Ryan for dropping by when we come back Heroes,
Speaker 1: Fools and Flakes. As we wrap up the week here
Speaker 1: on the Big Boone Sider six thirty, we'll come back
Speaker 1: to the Big Boone Sider final segment time only for Heroes,
Speaker 1: Fools and Flakes. And our hero tonight is Caitlin Clark.
Speaker 1: And yeah, that could be seen as low hanging fruit
Speaker 1: just about any time, but I got to give her credit.
Speaker 1: Along with the management of the WNBA, the Washington Mystics
Speaker 1: who hosted the Indiana Fever, they moved their game from
Speaker 1: the place where they usually play at the Entertainment and
Speaker 1: Sports Arena in Washington, which only holds about forty two
Speaker 1: hundred people. The Mystics moved their final game in the
Speaker 1: regular season to the Capitol One Arena, much much bigger.
Speaker 1: That's why they set a WNBA attendance record last night
Speaker 1: with twenty thousand, seven hundred and eleven, largest in WNBA history.
Speaker 1: The Fever beat the Mystics ninety two to ninety one,
Speaker 1: and the Mystics still missed out on the playoffs. That
Speaker 1: put the Fever in the playoffs but the Mystics missed
Speaker 1: out because of Atlanta. Ryan Howard won last night, so
Speaker 1: they're in the playoffs. The Mystics are not. But Caitlin
Speaker 1: Clark and all the players in this game threw a
Speaker 1: huge crowd of record crowd last night in DC and
Speaker 1: they planned for it, and that was smart, my full tonight,
Speaker 1: And it's kind of in a backhanded way. Is not
Speaker 1: just to a tungue of below, but anybody who thinks
Speaker 1: he ought to keep playing football. Look, this guy's brain
Speaker 1: is bruised. And it's easy for me to say because
Speaker 1: he's got a family to take care of the butt.
Speaker 1: He's also worth about thirty million dollars. That's his estimated
Speaker 1: net work. He should be able to live a nice
Speaker 1: life on that money and whatever else comes his way.
Speaker 1: But after all these concussions, please take it easy on
Speaker 1: yourself and do the smart thing, my flake tonight. This
Speaker 1: was really weird. Nicky Glazer joined the team on Amazon
Speaker 1: Prime with what they call late hits. She did like
Speaker 1: a three minute comedy bit on the anchor desk, and
Speaker 1: I like Nicki Glazer, but it just seemed out of
Speaker 1: place because there was no live audience there to hear
Speaker 1: and react just to her.
Speaker 10: I mean, thank god Belichick wasn't there to see this.
Speaker 3: He was too busy.
Speaker 10: Watching Blippy with his girlfriend.
Speaker 3: She's twenty four.
Speaker 10: You know, the Jets may have scored more points, but
Speaker 10: in the end it was the Patriots who really won
Speaker 10: because they got to leave New Jersey.
Speaker 1: Thank you again. I like Nicki Glazer, but it just
Speaker 1: seemed weird and out of place. I thought her stuff
Speaker 1: was funny, but again, so much of what's fun about
Speaker 1: a good comedian is the way the audience, the intimate audience,
Speaker 1: plays off. So ah, you know, good nice try by
Speaker 1: Amazon Prime. Thanks to Ryan Black for dropping him by.
Speaker 1: That's a good night from the garage and Lexington.
Speaker 10: Well, but Jets are a lot like Bruce Springsteen. They're
Speaker 10: based in New Jersey, and they've spent the last four
Speaker 10: decades making grown men cry.
Speaker 8: The build.
Speaker 2: Mass a bigger spans