WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.560 --> 00:00:02.520 Welcome to the Big Blue and Sider Dick Gabrielle with 2 00:00:02.560 --> 00:00:05.759 you on a Thursday edition of our program Baseball, Football, 3 00:00:05.799 --> 00:00:09.160 Basketball to talk about Tonight, we're gonna chat with Kenny Brooks, 4 00:00:09.199 --> 00:00:13.439 UK women's basketball coach. Of course, the conference schedule announced 5 00:00:13.480 --> 00:00:17.280 earlier this week for SEC women and Kenny Brooks made 6 00:00:17.280 --> 00:00:20.640 a big splash that first year, but a key player, 7 00:00:20.679 --> 00:00:23.000 Georgia Amore, is gone, so it's gonna be a different 8 00:00:23.079 --> 00:00:26.160 kind of season this upcoming. But we'll learn more about 9 00:00:26.160 --> 00:00:29.000 that from the UK coach. Also, Aaron Gershaan of the 10 00:00:29.000 --> 00:00:31.760 Cat's Pause back from vacation, and we're also going to 11 00:00:31.800 --> 00:00:34.840 talk with DJ Moberly. He is the head girls basketball 12 00:00:34.880 --> 00:00:38.200 coach at Frederick Douglas. They made the final four last 13 00:00:38.280 --> 00:00:41.079 year in the sweet sixteen. But more than anything, I 14 00:00:41.119 --> 00:00:43.679 want to talk to him, not just about his girls team, 15 00:00:43.679 --> 00:00:45.799 but the fact that he was a middle school coach 16 00:00:46.359 --> 00:00:48.880 a few years ago at Southern and he coached a 17 00:00:48.920 --> 00:00:52.600 youngster named Jasper Johnson, a sixth grader who's now a 18 00:00:52.719 --> 00:00:55.960 Kentucky Wildcat and a rising star. From what we all hear, 19 00:00:56.240 --> 00:00:58.759 I've not seen a young man play, but was one 20 00:00:58.799 --> 00:01:02.240 of the top sign in the country. Now he's a 21 00:01:02.280 --> 00:01:05.000 wildcin under Mark Pope. And when I first met DJ 22 00:01:05.120 --> 00:01:08.400 Mobley working the Sweet sixteen, we were just chit chatting, 23 00:01:08.439 --> 00:01:11.519 getting to know each other, and he told me that 24 00:01:11.560 --> 00:01:14.879 he had coached Jasper Johnson and he had predicted greatness 25 00:01:14.879 --> 00:01:17.840 for the kids. So we'll talk about Jasper Johnson with 26 00:01:17.879 --> 00:01:20.439 his former middle school coach and we will learn more 27 00:01:20.480 --> 00:01:24.040 about that. I mentioned the women and their conference slate. 28 00:01:24.359 --> 00:01:27.640 Well we know now the men will play three home 29 00:01:27.680 --> 00:01:32.879 and home opponents this coming season in the SEC, Florida, Vanderbilt, 30 00:01:33.280 --> 00:01:37.799 and Tennessee. As God intended away games at Alabama got 31 00:01:37.799 --> 00:01:40.599 to go to Arkansas, got to go to Auburn. That's 32 00:01:40.640 --> 00:01:44.599 always tough. Of course, LSU, South Carolina, A and M 33 00:01:44.879 --> 00:01:47.719 never easy. Long trip. Then the three home and homes. 34 00:01:48.319 --> 00:01:51.480 So yeah, at home, you get those three plus Georgia, 35 00:01:51.519 --> 00:01:54.640 Ole miss comes to town. Travis Perry and the Fighting 36 00:01:54.680 --> 00:01:57.879 Rebels come to town. Mississippi State comes to town. It'll 37 00:01:57.920 --> 00:02:00.920 be good to see Neil Price, the radio broadcaster. Missouri 38 00:02:00.959 --> 00:02:05.120 comes in, Oklahoma returns the game from last year. Texas 39 00:02:05.159 --> 00:02:08.360 comes here again, returning from last year. So look, none 40 00:02:08.400 --> 00:02:11.560 of it's easy. I don't know you know what anybody 41 00:02:11.599 --> 00:02:13.439 has got in terms of the portal. I've got a 42 00:02:13.439 --> 00:02:16.319 pretty good idea. But you know how the SEC is. 43 00:02:16.439 --> 00:02:20.560 Every year, it's brutal. But at least Kentucky's back to 44 00:02:20.639 --> 00:02:24.879 home and home with Tennessee the school, the program, it 45 00:02:24.919 --> 00:02:28.879 has played more often than any other. And of course 46 00:02:28.960 --> 00:02:33.120 Kentucky swept Tennessee regular season last year. Tennessee got the 47 00:02:33.199 --> 00:02:37.080 revenge with its first win over Kentucky in the NCAA tournament. 48 00:02:37.120 --> 00:02:41.479 They never played in the NCAA Tournament on March twenty eighth, 49 00:02:41.919 --> 00:02:44.080 but the Wildcats have beaten the Balls one hundred and 50 00:02:44.120 --> 00:02:48.319 sixty three times. Conversely, Tennessee has beaten Kentucky more than 51 00:02:48.319 --> 00:02:53.039 any other seventy nine times. So home and home with 52 00:02:53.159 --> 00:02:57.919 those volunteers. But the non conference schedule is wicked tough 53 00:02:57.919 --> 00:03:01.120 as well. It's gonna be fun away Mark Pope wants it. 54 00:03:01.159 --> 00:03:04.759 And remember, you all want those big games, you all 55 00:03:04.800 --> 00:03:08.319 want the marquee matchups, but you have to be able 56 00:03:08.400 --> 00:03:12.520 to accept once in a while a loss by your team. 57 00:03:12.560 --> 00:03:15.840 And yeah, you can learn things, you can benefit, but 58 00:03:16.639 --> 00:03:19.919 when you play a schedule like that, you're going to 59 00:03:20.000 --> 00:03:23.120 drop some of those games. It's not gonna hurt as 60 00:03:23.199 --> 00:03:27.879 much as it might losing to East Nowhere State just 61 00:03:27.879 --> 00:03:31.840 just be ready for a disappointment here and there. But 62 00:03:31.879 --> 00:03:34.719 I think for the most part, given the roster that 63 00:03:34.800 --> 00:03:36.560 Pope has put together, I think we're all going to 64 00:03:36.639 --> 00:03:40.039 have a lot of fun. Provided they stay healthy. That's 65 00:03:40.120 --> 00:03:44.840 always always the big if, right. I've got to get 66 00:03:44.840 --> 00:03:47.479 into baseball and what happened last night with Arkansas, and 67 00:03:47.520 --> 00:03:50.719 it's been turned around and flipped around for most of 68 00:03:50.759 --> 00:03:53.280 the last twenty four hours, less than twenty four hours. 69 00:03:53.919 --> 00:03:56.199 If you're paying attention to the College World Series, you 70 00:03:56.240 --> 00:03:59.199 know what I'm talking about. But even if you're not, 71 00:03:59.479 --> 00:04:03.400 and you have interest at hall in baseball, in sports, 72 00:04:03.840 --> 00:04:07.479 in humanity, you're feeling for the Razorbacks who blew it 73 00:04:08.080 --> 00:04:11.080 last night. They had a five to three league going 74 00:04:11.120 --> 00:04:13.879 into the bottom of the ninth against LSU, which had 75 00:04:13.879 --> 00:04:18.160 already beaten Arkansas once w Limb in the College World Series, 76 00:04:18.199 --> 00:04:21.279 which means Arkansas would have had to beat LSU again. 77 00:04:22.439 --> 00:04:27.160 But Arkansas was in great shape with its pitching because 78 00:04:28.120 --> 00:04:30.279 gage Wood threw that no hitter a couple of days ago, 79 00:04:30.279 --> 00:04:35.600 which saved its bullpen entirely. And it was a back 80 00:04:35.639 --> 00:04:38.040 and forth game. I would were playing cards Wednesday Night's 81 00:04:38.040 --> 00:04:39.879 poker night, but I was keeping an eye on the 82 00:04:39.879 --> 00:04:43.560 game back and forth, and Arkansas was ahead behind and 83 00:04:43.680 --> 00:04:47.439 took the lead going into the ninth inning, and again 84 00:04:47.480 --> 00:04:51.639 it was setting up another game at LSU, but Arkansas 85 00:04:51.800 --> 00:04:57.800 staying alive right well. LSU put two men on and 86 00:04:57.920 --> 00:05:01.879 with one out, the ball to the shortstop. And I 87 00:05:01.920 --> 00:05:05.680 saw this happen, and the shortstop took the lead runner 88 00:05:06.600 --> 00:05:10.399 threw the man out of third. Okay, fine, but when 89 00:05:10.399 --> 00:05:12.839 you look at it, it was a routine ground ball. 90 00:05:13.399 --> 00:05:17.199 He would have easily, I think triggered a double play. 91 00:05:17.839 --> 00:05:20.959 It was a sharply hit ball. Routine would have been 92 00:05:21.000 --> 00:05:22.639 a routine six four to three, and it would have 93 00:05:22.759 --> 00:05:27.879 ended the game. But it didn't. So now the next 94 00:05:27.879 --> 00:05:31.240 thing you know, there are two men on and an 95 00:05:31.360 --> 00:05:37.360 LSU hitter slams this wicked line drive into the left field, 96 00:05:37.879 --> 00:05:41.000 right out the fielder who got a little a bit 97 00:05:41.079 --> 00:05:44.439 of a weird jump on the ball, and then he slipped, 98 00:05:44.519 --> 00:05:48.600 ever so slightly lost his balance and could not close 99 00:05:48.720 --> 00:05:51.680 the angle on the line drive. He kind of threw 100 00:05:51.720 --> 00:05:54.000 himself at the ball, got a piece of it, but 101 00:05:54.079 --> 00:05:57.000 it rolls into the corner. Two men score, and now 102 00:05:57.040 --> 00:06:00.600 it's tied five to five and a winning run on base. 103 00:06:01.240 --> 00:06:06.439 Here's Carl Ravage on ESPN. Now he called it. This 104 00:06:06.600 --> 00:06:09.839 body is hope to the field and a bad. 105 00:06:09.600 --> 00:06:11.800 It goes off the little fielders. 106 00:06:11.879 --> 00:06:15.800 Hey damn, those ones are gonna come in and we 107 00:06:16.000 --> 00:06:17.199 are tied again. 108 00:06:18.680 --> 00:06:21.800 Oh my goodness, he slipped it in. The fucking went 109 00:06:22.000 --> 00:06:26.680 right off of his body, and we are tied at five. 110 00:06:28.680 --> 00:06:32.240 If you ever in your life under the wood, so 111 00:06:32.399 --> 00:06:35.879 Arkansas shifts. The batter hits a line drive right up 112 00:06:35.920 --> 00:06:39.199 the middle, right at the defender. The defender in the 113 00:06:39.240 --> 00:06:41.319 middle of the field gets his glove on the ball 114 00:06:41.680 --> 00:06:44.360 deflex it into the outfield, which of course kills the 115 00:06:44.399 --> 00:06:49.079 momentum the ball. Centerfielder comes racing in, you know, base 116 00:06:49.160 --> 00:06:52.279 runners scoring. He's got no shot at the plate. If 117 00:06:52.279 --> 00:06:54.759 the line drive had remained alive, would have been a 118 00:06:54.759 --> 00:06:57.720 one hopper maybe to the center fielder, and the guy 119 00:06:57.800 --> 00:06:59.279 might not have tried to score, or he would have 120 00:06:59.279 --> 00:07:01.720 had a really good opportunity to throw them out at 121 00:07:01.759 --> 00:07:05.839 the plate. But instead, because of the deflection, runner scores easily. 122 00:07:06.120 --> 00:07:08.720 Game over. Lsu wins with three in the bottom of 123 00:07:08.720 --> 00:07:15.000 the ninth Arkansas kids. Of course, the fans devastated, players 124 00:07:15.040 --> 00:07:20.199 are crying. I mean, it was such a heartbreaking scene. 125 00:07:20.279 --> 00:07:25.199 But on the other hand, they self destructed. Arkansas put 126 00:07:25.240 --> 00:07:28.759 men on base the bottom of the ninth inning and 127 00:07:28.800 --> 00:07:33.240 then misplay after misplay. Oh man, it was tough, you know. 128 00:07:33.360 --> 00:07:36.439 And I'm rooting for Coastal Carolina like most of the country. 129 00:07:37.720 --> 00:07:40.759 But I'm okay with Arkansas because I kind of want 130 00:07:40.759 --> 00:07:44.240 to see their coach win a World Series. He's won everything. 131 00:07:44.279 --> 00:07:48.519 But and a few years ago Arkansas had it and 132 00:07:48.600 --> 00:07:51.959 a kid dropped the pop fly and ended up costing 133 00:07:52.040 --> 00:07:56.439 Arkansas the World Series. But last night it was just torture. 134 00:07:56.480 --> 00:08:00.240 It was slow death and you just knew something weird, 135 00:08:00.800 --> 00:08:04.959 what's gonna happen. So now it's LSU and Coastal Carolina, 136 00:08:05.519 --> 00:08:09.439 all right, that's a rematch from twenty sixteen when Coastal 137 00:08:09.480 --> 00:08:14.399 Carolina jumped up and beat Arizona for the national title. 138 00:08:14.920 --> 00:08:19.920 Arizona then was coached by Jay Johnson. LSU now coached 139 00:08:19.959 --> 00:08:23.839 by Jay Johnson. Should be interesting. Gonna be a best 140 00:08:23.839 --> 00:08:29.560 of three this weekend, and I'll be watching interesting. Note 141 00:08:29.680 --> 00:08:33.519 about the college football Playoff, the word comes out that 142 00:08:34.200 --> 00:08:38.960 the College Football Playoff will begin requiring teams to provide 143 00:08:39.080 --> 00:08:44.960 player availability reports starting this season, just like the SEC. 144 00:08:45.200 --> 00:08:48.679 No details yet, but you gotta think they're gonna follow 145 00:08:48.720 --> 00:08:52.159 that model, and I gotta think Greg Sank is pushing 146 00:08:52.159 --> 00:08:55.240 this train down the tracks and the SEC. As you know, 147 00:08:55.320 --> 00:08:59.679 teams are required to release initial availability reports on Wednesday 148 00:09:00.480 --> 00:09:05.679 before Saturday games, followed by daily reports Thursday and Friday, 149 00:09:05.720 --> 00:09:09.480 with a final report at least ninety minutes before game time. 150 00:09:10.519 --> 00:09:13.799 For any non Saturday game, it's got to be submitted 151 00:09:13.840 --> 00:09:20.879 three days before kickoff. Players have to be designated available, probable, questionable, doubtful, 152 00:09:21.080 --> 00:09:23.840 or out. Yeah, this is about gambling, but even if 153 00:09:23.840 --> 00:09:26.039 you're not a gambler and you're a fan, you're buying 154 00:09:26.080 --> 00:09:29.240 a ticket, you're watching TV and probably paying for that. 155 00:09:29.279 --> 00:09:31.639 You deserve to know. So now it's going to happen 156 00:09:31.759 --> 00:09:35.360 for the college football playoffs, and it should. While we're 157 00:09:35.399 --> 00:09:37.879 talking about something that should happen, this is kind of 158 00:09:37.879 --> 00:09:42.440 tilting in a windmill. But pro athletes, college athletes, high whatever. 159 00:09:42.519 --> 00:09:45.279 I don't know what it is about athletes, and I 160 00:09:45.320 --> 00:09:47.279 know this happens all over the place, but of course 161 00:09:47.279 --> 00:09:50.639 it's celebrities athletes who make the headlines. But could we 162 00:09:50.679 --> 00:09:54.720 slow it down out there? Shador Sanders, Brown's rookie quarterback, 163 00:09:55.519 --> 00:09:59.240 cited for going one on one in a sixty on 164 00:09:59.360 --> 00:10:03.200 I seventy one, one hundred and one miles an hour. 165 00:10:04.279 --> 00:10:07.519 And yeah, I know he's young, he's got great will reflexes. 166 00:10:07.559 --> 00:10:11.399 Blah blah blah, you're gonna hurt somebody else. And this 167 00:10:11.559 --> 00:10:15.480 comes up just as a story breaks about Henry Ruggs 168 00:10:15.519 --> 00:10:18.600 the Third, the former Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver who's 169 00:10:18.639 --> 00:10:24.159 doing time after killing somebody thanks to a felony DUI 170 00:10:24.799 --> 00:10:28.759 a drunk driving crash from twenty twenty one. He was 171 00:10:28.799 --> 00:10:33.279 given a special release to speak at an organization and 172 00:10:33.360 --> 00:10:36.960 took that opportunity to apologize again to the family of 173 00:10:37.039 --> 00:10:40.440 the victim. But yeah, he was sentenced to three to 174 00:10:40.480 --> 00:10:43.279 ten years. He pleaded guilty in twenty three to a 175 00:10:43.320 --> 00:10:46.799 felony count of dui which resulted in the death of 176 00:10:47.799 --> 00:10:51.039 somebody else. Why isn't that enough of it? Well, it's 177 00:10:51.120 --> 00:10:54.519 always going to be that way, you know, you and 178 00:10:54.519 --> 00:10:56.080 I are going to get older. They're always going to 179 00:10:56.159 --> 00:11:00.360 remain seventeen eighteen, twenty one years old. And may I 180 00:11:00.440 --> 00:11:04.360 remind you, and the former UK player died in an 181 00:11:04.399 --> 00:11:10.559 accident similar situation, going too damn fast in La ran Alike, 182 00:11:10.639 --> 00:11:14.399 collided with another vehicle and Terrence Clark never got a 183 00:11:14.480 --> 00:11:17.679 chance to play in the NBA going too fast, no 184 00:11:17.799 --> 00:11:22.960 seat belt street racing getting ready for the twenty twenty 185 00:11:23.000 --> 00:11:25.919 one draft after he was a freshman with the Wildcats. 186 00:11:27.039 --> 00:11:31.120 But the sad news is that I guarantee you every 187 00:11:31.159 --> 00:11:33.639 one of the people who might have been affected by 188 00:11:33.679 --> 00:11:35.840 this at some point said, well, that's not going to 189 00:11:35.919 --> 00:11:40.159 happen to me, but it'd slow it down. Please back 190 00:11:40.159 --> 00:11:42.720 in a minute, we'll talk about a situation that was 191 00:11:42.960 --> 00:11:48.120 really shocking involving high profile college basketball that reminded me 192 00:11:49.000 --> 00:11:52.559 of a chapter of Kentucky Basketball that's coming up at 193 00:11:52.559 --> 00:11:55.200 the bottom of the Ara. Kenny Brooks, UK women's coach 194 00:11:55.480 --> 00:11:59.039 around six point thirty WLAP Welcome back to the Big 195 00:11:59.080 --> 00:12:02.240 Moonsider coming up in just a few minutes. UK women's 196 00:12:02.279 --> 00:12:04.840 basketball coach Kenny Brooks. A little bit later on Aaron 197 00:12:04.840 --> 00:12:09.080 Gershano the Cats Paws and coach Jamie Bomberley, who is 198 00:12:09.200 --> 00:12:13.519 the head coach of the Frederick Douglas women's team girls team, 199 00:12:13.679 --> 00:12:17.039 but he coached Jasper Johnson in middle schools, so we'll 200 00:12:17.080 --> 00:12:21.679 learn more about his thoughts on one of the newest Wildcats. 201 00:12:21.919 --> 00:12:25.559 I wanted to commend you to an article on ESPN 202 00:12:25.679 --> 00:12:28.480 dot com and it's not a lot of fun, but 203 00:12:28.519 --> 00:12:33.320 it's fascinating in that there's a Kentucky twist to it. 204 00:12:33.399 --> 00:12:37.440 Slight Kentucky twist to it. But this was a huge 205 00:12:37.480 --> 00:12:42.559 headline story back in the early aughts. This is when 206 00:12:43.320 --> 00:12:48.639 a Baylor University basketball player murdered a teammate and the 207 00:12:48.679 --> 00:12:52.759 head coach tried to cover it up by spinning lives 208 00:12:53.000 --> 00:12:55.960 about the victim. We're going all the way back to 209 00:12:56.039 --> 00:13:02.840 twenty three Baylor basketball player where Patrick Denihey went missing 210 00:13:04.159 --> 00:13:06.600 and it turned into a murder Who done it? When 211 00:13:06.639 --> 00:13:09.600 his body was found with two gunshot wounds to the 212 00:13:09.679 --> 00:13:13.879 head and a gravel pit outside of Waco. His car 213 00:13:14.519 --> 00:13:19.360 was found in Virginia Beach, Virginia with the plates removed. Eventually, 214 00:13:19.799 --> 00:13:23.840 his teammate Carlton Dotson confessed to the crime. And then 215 00:13:23.840 --> 00:13:28.519 it got even worse because secret tapes emerged of the 216 00:13:28.519 --> 00:13:33.600 then Baylor coach Dave Bliss trying to frame Dennihe trying 217 00:13:33.600 --> 00:13:35.919 to paint the picture that he was a drug dealer 218 00:13:36.799 --> 00:13:39.200 and that this was about a drug deal going bad, 219 00:13:39.320 --> 00:13:41.879 and there was all kinds of money involved, and all 220 00:13:41.919 --> 00:13:46.159 of this was happening while the NCA was investigating illegal 221 00:13:46.200 --> 00:13:50.960 payments to players at Baylor. I bring this up for 222 00:13:51.039 --> 00:13:53.559 a couple of reason. Number One, I had worked in 223 00:13:53.639 --> 00:13:57.159 Dallas in the early eighties. Dave Bliss was the head 224 00:13:57.159 --> 00:14:01.279 coach at SMU when I was down there, and just 225 00:14:01.320 --> 00:14:05.200 as I was moving back to Election and SMU played Kentucky. 226 00:14:05.799 --> 00:14:07.919 That was an SMU team that was a top twenty 227 00:14:07.960 --> 00:14:11.039 five team and had a big man named John Contact. 228 00:14:11.080 --> 00:14:13.399 He wasn't the best player on the team I ended 229 00:14:13.480 --> 00:14:17.879 up with. He became known as John Contract because he 230 00:14:17.919 --> 00:14:20.080 got a fat contract in the NBA, and he really 231 00:14:20.120 --> 00:14:22.679 wasn't that good, but he was big, you know. But anyhow, 232 00:14:22.919 --> 00:14:27.120 SMU actually came up here and kicked Kentucky's butt in 233 00:14:27.480 --> 00:14:31.200 nineteen eighty five, and that was while Dave Bliss was 234 00:14:31.240 --> 00:14:34.159 the head coach. He left Baylor. I'm sorry he left 235 00:14:34.279 --> 00:14:37.440 SMU for New Mexico, and I thought he would do 236 00:14:37.600 --> 00:14:41.440 big things there. He was a hot property. And then 237 00:14:41.480 --> 00:14:45.000 he left New Mexico and came to Baylor, which is 238 00:14:45.039 --> 00:14:48.480 a big name now because of Scott Drew, but not 239 00:14:48.919 --> 00:14:51.519 back then, so I'm not sure why he left New Mexico. 240 00:14:51.559 --> 00:14:56.200 He was having some success, but when Joe b retired, 241 00:14:57.399 --> 00:14:59.600 one of the guys at cliff Hagen he later told 242 00:14:59.639 --> 00:15:02.200 me this that he looked at because we got to 243 00:15:02.240 --> 00:15:04.519 talking when I came back and I was talking to 244 00:15:04.600 --> 00:15:08.679 him about being down in the Southwest conference was Dave Bliss. 245 00:15:09.240 --> 00:15:13.519 He really believed Dave Bliss would have been perfect for Kentucky. 246 00:15:13.559 --> 00:15:15.559 He was a young, good looking guy, he was good 247 00:15:15.559 --> 00:15:17.799 with the media. He was kind of fun, a New 248 00:15:17.879 --> 00:15:21.759 York Yankees fan from New York. He had blue seats 249 00:15:21.799 --> 00:15:26.240 installed at SMU, which his colors were blue and red. 250 00:15:26.279 --> 00:15:29.440 But when I was interviewing him once in that arena, 251 00:15:29.519 --> 00:15:31.480 he said he was pointing at the seats, so that's 252 00:15:31.600 --> 00:15:36.960 Yankees blue. But Cliff Hagen really thought he might have 253 00:15:37.080 --> 00:15:43.399 been a great choice at Kentucky. So fast forward to 254 00:15:43.559 --> 00:15:47.559 an NCA tournament I worked in the early nineties and 255 00:15:47.679 --> 00:15:51.679 Dave Bliss was there was coaching. I was working at 256 00:15:51.679 --> 00:15:55.039 Friends a Radio, and so I always carried my recorder 257 00:15:55.080 --> 00:15:58.320 with me and I interviewed him briefly about the fact 258 00:15:58.320 --> 00:16:01.639 that you know, his name came up when Kentucky was 259 00:16:02.039 --> 00:16:07.120 looking for a coach and I asked him a question. 260 00:16:07.279 --> 00:16:09.799 He gave me some general answer, and I try to 261 00:16:09.879 --> 00:16:13.639 follow up. Dave Bliss reached his hand out, put it 262 00:16:13.679 --> 00:16:17.480 over my microphone and kind of muttered. I knew what 263 00:16:17.600 --> 00:16:21.600 was about to happen there, and he was referring to 264 00:16:21.639 --> 00:16:26.440 the local newspaper's investigation of UK basketball and leading to 265 00:16:26.600 --> 00:16:31.600 NCAA probation, and so Bliss, if he had ever had 266 00:16:31.639 --> 00:16:36.159 any interest in Kentucky turned away because of that. That's 267 00:16:36.200 --> 00:16:38.919 not unusual either. Mitch Barnard had a heck of a 268 00:16:38.960 --> 00:16:43.000 time hiring a football coach right after NSA drilled Kentucky 269 00:16:43.000 --> 00:16:48.399 in early oughts. Rich Brooks was choice number six. So anyhow, 270 00:16:48.440 --> 00:16:54.320 the story on ESPN dot com refers to the fact that, yeah, 271 00:16:54.360 --> 00:16:59.360 Bliss resigned in disgrace. One player was dead, one player 272 00:16:59.399 --> 00:17:03.600 went to prison, thirty five years sentence. But now he's 273 00:17:03.639 --> 00:17:08.640 been released. He's out of jail, and the family's not 274 00:17:08.720 --> 00:17:11.160 real happy about it. Obviously, they have fought his parole 275 00:17:11.240 --> 00:17:15.039 for years and now they they've decided we're not going 276 00:17:15.079 --> 00:17:17.759 to fight it as vociferously. So he's part of this 277 00:17:17.880 --> 00:17:24.240 super strict program quote unquote in Texas. But the crux 278 00:17:24.279 --> 00:17:26.079 of the story, as it turns out, and I had 279 00:17:26.119 --> 00:17:29.920 forgotten about this, I mentioned the tapes. An assistant coach 280 00:17:30.000 --> 00:17:35.680 named abar Rousse who had just started at Baylor when 281 00:17:35.720 --> 00:17:39.920 the murder occurred. He recorded the comments from Dave Bliss 282 00:17:40.160 --> 00:17:44.200 with the tape recorder that he bought at you know, 283 00:17:44.240 --> 00:17:47.559 a store like a Walmart or a you know, Target 284 00:17:47.640 --> 00:17:51.240 or something like that. He bought a small recorder, taped 285 00:17:51.240 --> 00:17:56.440 it to his body, and captured the comments of a 286 00:17:56.559 --> 00:18:02.440 Bliss explaining to the st members, the assistant coaches, coaching 287 00:18:02.480 --> 00:18:07.200 them up on what to say about the victim, and 288 00:18:07.240 --> 00:18:09.680 how this guy had been a drug dealer and the 289 00:18:09.799 --> 00:18:12.880 murderer was involved in a deal with him and it 290 00:18:12.920 --> 00:18:18.440 all went bad and a bar rouse turned into tapes 291 00:18:19.640 --> 00:18:23.400 and everything exploded. So Dave Bliss, the last thing I 292 00:18:23.440 --> 00:18:27.720 heard he was doing was coaching basketball on a reservation 293 00:18:27.839 --> 00:18:30.400 Native American to Native Americans on a reservation I think 294 00:18:30.440 --> 00:18:32.799 in South Dakota. I don't know. He never obviously got 295 00:18:32.799 --> 00:18:36.960 into mainstream basketball. But the saddest thing of all, next 296 00:18:36.960 --> 00:18:40.400 to the murder, was the fact that a bar Rouse 297 00:18:40.599 --> 00:18:45.000 lost his career. He went and was an assistant coach 298 00:18:45.079 --> 00:18:49.119 or a part time assistant at Midwestern State down in 299 00:18:49.160 --> 00:18:52.200 Texas for a short amount of times, a D two 300 00:18:52.319 --> 00:18:55.920 school or actually former UK walk on Bowl Lander played 301 00:18:55.920 --> 00:18:58.920 a season, played really well, but then transferred to Kentucky. 302 00:18:58.960 --> 00:19:02.519 That's the only time I can remember hearing about Midwestern State. 303 00:19:04.200 --> 00:19:07.079 But this guy could not even get interviewed because he 304 00:19:07.119 --> 00:19:11.200 had taped the comments of a head coach who was 305 00:19:11.200 --> 00:19:14.119 committing a felony. And of course he did it to 306 00:19:14.119 --> 00:19:19.200 protect himself. He turned to a career, believe it or not, 307 00:19:19.319 --> 00:19:24.960 and this is very coincidental in corrections. He joined the 308 00:19:24.960 --> 00:19:30.880 Federal Bureau of Prisons. He's forty nine, now works in Victorville, California. 309 00:19:31.160 --> 00:19:33.920 He's worked at several facilities, and he said he's happy. 310 00:19:33.920 --> 00:19:35.079 He said, I don't know if I would have been 311 00:19:35.079 --> 00:19:39.039 this happy if I had stayed in coaching. So he's 312 00:19:39.039 --> 00:19:42.720 happy now, you know, with a wife and children and grandchildren. 313 00:19:43.799 --> 00:19:50.799 Dave Bliss eighty one is retired and at first he recanted, 314 00:19:50.799 --> 00:19:54.119 he apologized, but apparently I got to go find this. 315 00:19:55.200 --> 00:20:00.359 There was a documentary that appeared on Showtime back in 316 00:20:00.440 --> 00:20:06.720 twenty seventeen, and the man who initially apologized Bliss, apparently 317 00:20:06.799 --> 00:20:10.960 in that documentary repeated many of the same lives he 318 00:20:11.000 --> 00:20:15.160 had told about the victim about Dennahe and that's brutal. 319 00:20:16.400 --> 00:20:21.240 But anytime I heard or read about this situation in 320 00:20:21.279 --> 00:20:23.960 the early aughts, the mid auts three, five o seven 321 00:20:24.000 --> 00:20:28.279 around in there, I thought about it never came close 322 00:20:28.359 --> 00:20:31.880 to happening. But that was a big What if Dave 323 00:20:31.960 --> 00:20:37.119 Bliss had been hired at the University of Kentucky, all 324 00:20:37.119 --> 00:20:39.160 of this might have been avoided. Those two players never 325 00:20:39.200 --> 00:20:42.920 would have been teammates, at least at Baylor. So again, 326 00:20:43.160 --> 00:20:46.079 ESPN dot com has it, and if you just want 327 00:20:46.119 --> 00:20:51.519 to find it, just google Dave Bliss and it'll probably 328 00:20:51.720 --> 00:20:55.359 come up all right. Up next Kenny Brooks of the 329 00:20:55.440 --> 00:21:00.559 UK women's basketball program next on six thirty WLAP Welcome 330 00:21:00.559 --> 00:21:02.440 back to the Big Blue Insider, joining us now as 331 00:21:02.440 --> 00:21:04.640 a young man who has been on the show before, 332 00:21:04.680 --> 00:21:07.240 but he had just been hired as the head coach 333 00:21:07.240 --> 00:21:09.839 of the University of Kentucky women's basketball team. He is 334 00:21:09.880 --> 00:21:12.559 back with us. Kenny Bruce, coach. Thanks for joining us. 335 00:21:13.279 --> 00:21:15.440 My pleasure, Dick. I'm not sure I'm that young. Man 336 00:21:15.480 --> 00:21:18.240 anymore going through a full year in the sec ages 337 00:21:18.400 --> 00:21:21.720 about ten years. But I'm glad to be glad to 338 00:21:21.720 --> 00:21:23.519 be going, happy to be on you got that. 339 00:21:23.640 --> 00:21:25.400 I got a few years on you, so you'll always 340 00:21:25.440 --> 00:21:28.200 be young to me. But yeah, that that season can 341 00:21:28.440 --> 00:21:30.519 I'm sure brought a few gray hairs, but a lot 342 00:21:30.519 --> 00:21:32.920 of smiles. Coach, What was it like for you the 343 00:21:32.960 --> 00:21:34.839 first year? Now that you look back on it, it 344 00:21:34.920 --> 00:21:38.240 was so successful, a lot of excitement ended, I know, 345 00:21:38.319 --> 00:21:40.480 not the way you wanted, But how do you assess 346 00:21:40.519 --> 00:21:41.200 that first year? 347 00:21:42.200 --> 00:21:46.000 Yeah, more more smiles than gray hairs, Dick. You know, obviously, 348 00:21:46.119 --> 00:21:50.079 you know you transitioning to a whole new environment, whole 349 00:21:50.079 --> 00:21:54.119 new conference, whole new team. You can only hope for 350 00:21:54.160 --> 00:21:56.640 the best. And you know, the kids came through and 351 00:21:57.319 --> 00:21:59.680 it was more than I could have hoped for, just 352 00:21:59.680 --> 00:22:02.440 the way that they gelled, the chemistry that they created 353 00:22:02.440 --> 00:22:05.920 in such a short time. Uh, and even overcoming some adversity. 354 00:22:05.960 --> 00:22:08.519 We had some injuries last summer that you know, a 355 00:22:08.519 --> 00:22:10.480 lot of people you know could have said it could 356 00:22:10.480 --> 00:22:11.680 have derailed our hopes. 357 00:22:12.200 --> 00:22:12.319 Uh. 358 00:22:12.400 --> 00:22:14.559 And I was a little bit gloom and doomed because 359 00:22:14.599 --> 00:22:17.720 we know Jordan, Obie and and Don Paranova that they 360 00:22:17.720 --> 00:22:19.200 were going to be a big part of what we 361 00:22:19.200 --> 00:22:21.519 were going to do and u with their injuries, it 362 00:22:21.599 --> 00:22:25.440 just really depleted our bench, but it didn't deplete our hopes. 363 00:22:25.759 --> 00:22:28.880 H what the kids did. Everyone stepped up, you know, 364 00:22:29.000 --> 00:22:31.440 did a little bit more than maybe what was asked 365 00:22:31.440 --> 00:22:33.279 of them. And the way they came together and they 366 00:22:33.319 --> 00:22:36.880 fought it was tremendous, you know, and it's probably I 367 00:22:36.880 --> 00:22:38.359 could probably go on record to say it was my 368 00:22:38.400 --> 00:22:41.839 most enjoyable season just because just because of the way 369 00:22:41.839 --> 00:22:45.359 that they came together did We had no issues. Kids 370 00:22:45.400 --> 00:22:48.799 really got along, worked hard, they were they were so 371 00:22:48.880 --> 00:22:51.240 much so, not even late for a meeting, you know. 372 00:22:51.279 --> 00:22:53.480 That's how you know, respectful. They were of the program 373 00:22:53.480 --> 00:22:56.559 and where it was going. So for me foundationally, it 374 00:22:56.599 --> 00:22:59.160 was a it was a tremendous year, a lot of fun. 375 00:22:59.240 --> 00:23:01.680 I think we brought a lot of excitement to Kentucky 376 00:23:01.680 --> 00:23:04.960 women's basketball and we're we're looking to build on that. 377 00:23:05.440 --> 00:23:09.759 How much Kenny of that success was because Georgia and 378 00:23:10.160 --> 00:23:13.480 Clara came with you, and we know they're great players, 379 00:23:13.720 --> 00:23:17.119 stats aside and all that they knew you, they knew 380 00:23:17.559 --> 00:23:20.240 how to play for you, and other players could take 381 00:23:20.279 --> 00:23:22.960 their cues from them cheat coat. 382 00:23:23.759 --> 00:23:24.400 It really was. 383 00:23:25.519 --> 00:23:29.000 And you know, I've started two other programs and it 384 00:23:29.079 --> 00:23:31.759 took a little bit longer to develop that that chemistry, 385 00:23:31.799 --> 00:23:36.039 that that philosophy. Uh and you know, they came in 386 00:23:36.680 --> 00:23:39.200 and Georgia, you know, I effectually call her my minime. 387 00:23:39.920 --> 00:23:43.039 She could finish, finish my sentences. She knows what I'm thinking. Uh. 388 00:23:43.279 --> 00:23:45.640 We played a lot of you know, games together, and 389 00:23:45.680 --> 00:23:49.000 so she knew exactly what I wanted, what was expected 390 00:23:49.000 --> 00:23:51.200 out of the group. So you know, I could go 391 00:23:51.240 --> 00:23:54.799 out there and I could say you know whatever on 392 00:23:54.839 --> 00:23:57.279 the floor, and then when they went in the locker room, 393 00:23:57.519 --> 00:24:00.599 Georgia was still speaking the same rhetoric. You know, she 394 00:24:00.640 --> 00:24:03.200 would be my translator. She would say, well, hey, look guys, 395 00:24:03.519 --> 00:24:06.119 he really means this. There were certain times during the 396 00:24:06.200 --> 00:24:10.079 year where she could sense my frustration, maybe in a practice, 397 00:24:10.119 --> 00:24:11.920 and she would huddle the team up together and then 398 00:24:11.960 --> 00:24:14.160 they come out with a new energy and just understanding 399 00:24:14.200 --> 00:24:16.759 what I meant. And uh so she really was like 400 00:24:16.759 --> 00:24:19.240 a little a little coach on the floor. And so 401 00:24:19.319 --> 00:24:24.680