Uh.
Oh, guess what day it is? Guess what day it is? Huh anybody, It's hump Day.
Yes, it is hump Day. Welcome to the Big Blue Cider. A frigid Wednesday. It's a very cold hump Day, but it's heating up in the Big Blue Nation, isn't it. After last night's win Ulver, Texas A and M Dick Gabriel with you, we will talk about that tonight. Of course, we'll also talk Entucky football and just sports in general, because coming up at the bottom of the hour, Sean Woods, the Unforgettable Guard, will break down last night's game with us and obviously he liked what he saw. And in
our number two, Anthony White will join us. Anthony the former football Wildcat who is a co host of Sunday Morning Sports Talk and The Locker four one one podcast with Van Hiles, one of our favorite guests as well. So we'll hear what Anthony has to say about what's going on right now with the program with all this portal traffic, and he has been going back and forth on Twitter a little bit with some fans who are critical of some of the moves that Mark Stups is making.
A lot of the turnover with this team, and as he points that, look he had a team that was four and eight and he didn't like the way things were going. Why play and I'm paraphrasing, why play a Pat Hans. We'll talk about Anthony with Anthony about all the player movement as well, and our West n bea chief. Gary Moore will be with us in our number two because that's what we do on Wednesdays, and we were back,
at least for now to a regular Wednesday schedule. Because the basketball games are Tuesday Saturday this week and Alabama is ahead. That's gonna be huge. But we need to talk about this A and M win in several different ways because it was a game not like any other game. I don't think you've seen some ugly stretches from this Kentucky team, and I mean that in a good way, having to kind of grind things out. But I don't think we have seen a team play start to finish
so far the season the way Texas A and M did. Yeah, Clemson was physical. There have been Like I said, Ohio State, make Kentucky play a little ugly and really beat the Wildcats in practically every way you could up there in New York. But I think the biggest lesson, at least that I took away from this game was this, we
cannot be too quick to judge. Really, you never showed period, But we shouldn't have been so quick to judge this Kentucky team because of the newness, if that's the proper word, with this roster, with the way these guys are playing,
with what Mark Pope is asking them to do. He's basically in some ways, not every way, but in some ways asking them to leave behind what they've done in the past, and I mean probably in subtle ways and in some big ways to play his style of basketball, you know, the way he wants them to run offense
and communicate and all that. And he talked about it in some of the losses that the players sort of defaulted to what they knew and abandoned what they should have been doing on offense, particularly, and we saw what happened. It didn't work, did it all? Right? So now you've got A and M coming in minus it's best player. We know this, But as I always say, it's not like they were playing four on five. They had other kids coming in. But Waye Taylor is their best player.
We know this, but maybe that made it a little more difficult for Kentucky to figure out how to stop A and M. And by the way, this is not an A and M team that is a great shooting three point ball club. But it sure looked that way, didn't it in the first half. That's why A and M took the leade on the Wildcats until late in the half, because the Aggies were knocking down threes. Now they go for twelve in the second half, and you
saw what happened. Kentucky built a double digit lead on more than one occasion, and yet on more than one occasion, A and M came back and whittled it down. Because it's a good team. They were ranked eleventh in the country, and I know a lot of these SEC teams right now are probably over ranked or were over ranked, because now you see what's happening. They're beating each other up. And you knew this would happen. But who raised your hand if you thought Arkansas would be owing four at
this point? I know some of you hoped that because you still have a problem with Caliperry, but did you did the basketball person in you really think with that kind of talent, Arkansas would be owing four and quite frankly, just not playing very well. I watched the second half of that game. They blew a huge first half lead. But unless you going in was owing three, nobody expected that. Nobody thought all this you would be very good this year. But like I said, these teams are just beating each
other up right now. It's gonna happen for the rest of the year. But Kentucky right now rising above most with five quad one wins and more opportunities on the way, including Alabama coming up. But back to what we were talking about, the way the Wildcats had to win. They beat a really good defensive an M team, and I saw some complaints as usual about Jimmy Dikes. And again I'm partial to Jimmy. I've known him for all It's not like we're boys, but I think he does a
very good job. And for those of you who are critical of him, I've said it before and I'll keep
saying it, Jimmy Dikes has more. If I'm gonna use the cliche skin in the game when it comes to analyzing Kentucky, because for the dozens and dozens of college basketball analysts out there, he is the only one on the national level who knows what it's like to work here, to live here, and to coach here, and as such is more intimately aware of the Big Blue Nation and Kentucky fans, but more importantly the standards for Kentucky basketball. That's why he was so hard on UK when Billy
Gillespie was the coach here. And I remember one night before the game, I just went by to say hello to Jimmy and we were just kind of commiserating about how bad Kentucky looked, and he was trying to figure out what Gillispie was trying to do with his recruiting, with his personnel, with his lineups, And at one point Jimmy said, what is he doing? I don't know, so anyhow, That's why Jimmy, I think, bears a little bit of
a different look. When you're talking about analysts and some of you, if you're not fully rooting for the Wildcats, you're against the Wildcats, and that's why you don't like him. You don't like Jay Billis, you don't like whoever's doing a game if they're not constantly praising the Cats, well, look, it doesn't work that way. And you know that. So anyhow, last night's game was a defensive struggle, and as Pope pointed out, it took a while to figure things out,
but they did. And Buzz Williams after the game, and may have already heard some of his comments. The head coach Ray and m as a basketball professional, really impressed with what he has seen in this Kentucky team. And he's beaten Kentucky in the past, not very often, but he has. But he's really impressed with what he has seen. Mark Pope and his staff put together in a short amount of time.
Really good players, a lot of variety to the skill, as you know. But I think the utilization of the talent and the skill, considering the newness of the coach and his staff and the players, that's really difficult to do.
And so.
I have not seen any of their practices or their film sessions, but the teaching that's going on and the itinerary of the practices for them to have the execution that they have remarkable. The third best offense in the country that puts stress on you in transition. It puts stress on you immediately following transition, and then as soon as it goes to twenty two or ten, and they begin to run coaches offense. That's a different type of stress.
So there's three versions of stress, and they're potent in each category.
I must admit I hadn't really thought about it that way when it comes to the Wildcats, but I will from now on as we analyze each game. Jeff Drummond of kat Illustrated, longtime buddy, longtime Friends of the show, asked Buzz Williams to comment basically on Amary Williams and the job that Amari did on the glass. And like probably every coach in America, these guys from looking at hours and hours of video, as they like to say, studying the film, they know these players first and sometimes
only by their number and not their name. But I'll tell you what. When Buzz Williams figured out who Amar Williams was, that he was number twenty two, he lit up.
Can you comment on Amari Williams and the job he did on the glass for them tonight?
Give me just a second. I don't know their names, I just know their numbers. Oh, I love him twenty two. Well, I don't know him, but twenty nine percent usage rate as a left haender at that size. You can google it.
Probably not one not that's playing in college. And his assist rate is higher than anybody on the team other than one, but one is getting his assist primarily, in my opinion, in the first twelve seconds of the clock, but as soon as one's giving it up to twenty two, especially when they're initiating offense and he's going left, he's the point. He's the tallest point guard I've seen in a long time.
And Williams went on to say that once Amari gives up the basketball or moves as he put it, within the charge circle, you know, the small circle under the bucket, now he becomes physical and that's just a different element to his game. And that's something Mark Pope talked about last night when he was asked about Amari about the fact that he now has it's almost like he has and I'm paraphrasing, permission to be physical compared to the way he played in Philly.
Up at Drexel, looks a man child on the glass, didn't he? My goodness, he was a man on the glass.
I was really proud of him tonight.
He's you know, it's justtioning. So Amari's played at a much different level basketball for the last three years. And I think what's fun right now is is he's been given permission by the whistle to actually use his physicality which he couldn't use at direct So like he was a much different deal right It was kind of like I'm playing against smaller guys. If I touch somebody, they're gonna fall over. I'm gonna get a whistle. So this adjustment for him now where he's like, wait, you know
I can run dudes over it. It's okay, Like it gets fun. I think he's having a great time, man, and he's fighting for his team. And we talked about this after the last game, but he man, he loves his He got at it's just a ginormous I know that's not a word, but I'm gona use it anyway, A ginormous heart.
Yeah. Remember a week or two ago he talked about amar and about how much he cares about this team, And there was a common from Amari after the game about the s word soft and these guys have heard it, maybe not directly, but they heard it. And I wondered, was this Kentucky team too soft or just trying to learn how to not be soft, and Williams talked about that directly when somebody asked him about the effort he put in.
But even on mental toughness, people saying he could have went on the road, like just because of the past previous games before that. But yeah, like you said, we didn't really like the software an thrown around, and I think we came in with the points of CRUs to night again and reproved that with the rebounds.
So a soft team isn't going to win that game last night because of the way Texas A and M played and again minus it's best player, but guys played hard to try to make up for his loss. And if Kentucky doesn't answer force with force, it loses that game last night. And it wouldn't have shocked me if Kentucky had lost simply because that's how good A and M is. And maybe A and M wins if it's the best player plays. But I think the way the Wildcats played last night, I think they were going to
win because they figured it out. As Folk talked about in the post game. You know, nothing was going right at first, and that was a credit day and M plus Kentucky just wasn't hitting missed I think ten of his first eleven three pointers, but eventually figured out a way to play against this defense. As Pope said, it wasn't easy to solve, but they did it. Travis Perry is a big part of that. We're going to talk more about him tomorrow night, and we'll talk about him
with Shawn Woods coming up. Sewan of course, being the former point guard, how vital were the minutes they got from Travis Perry, not just the three pointers, but handling the basketball and learning better how to play defense. They're trying to victimize him, but he's getting better at using his teammates their help and things like that. So we'll talk more about that tomorrow night. We'll talk about it with Shawn Wood's coming up. Out of the hour, and
and now we're number two. Anthony White and our Western Bureau chief Gary Moore say with us here in the Big mullon Sider six. Welcome back to the Big Bullonsider. Coming up just a couple of minutes, Sean Woods, the unforgettable guard, will join us to talk about Kentucky's win last night over A and M. And at the top of the hour, Anthony White, former football Wildcat, will break down what's going on with Mark Stoop's team and the portal right now and Western Bureau chief Gary Moore coming up.
So we went along in the first segment just a couple of minutes here, and I've got to bring this up. Brian Kelly, by the way, I'll be rooting, I guess for Notre Dame. Nothing against Ohio State rooting for the underdog in the championship game. But something that of course came up was the fact that Brian Kelly, the former Notre Dame coach, left because he said, and I'm quoting, by the way, I want to be in an environment where I have the resources to win a national championship.
Now he's saying I wasn't leaving Notre Dame because I couldn't win a championship. I'm quoting. They are selling it the way they want to sell it. And of course he's pointing a finger at the media and whoever his critics are. Look, he said it, you said it, and it was amazing when he said it that he was leaving a place like Notre Dame because he believed the resources weren't there to win a national title.
Win.
In fact, Notre Dame had won national titles plural, but it was a long time ago compared to be speaking. And yeah, college football since then has changed drastically with the portal and nil. And at the time I thought Kelly would have a better shot at winning at LSU. I didn't see Notre Dame playing for a title this year. But don't try to go back and change history and say I never said that, because you did own it. End up and own it and we'll all be better off.
Shawn Wood's next six thirty w LAP Welcome back to the Big Blue Insider at his Wednesday, which means that's the day, if we are on a regular schedule that we talk with the unforgettable Guard, Shawn Woods. His jersey hangs in the rafters of Rupp and he was watching last night as the Wildcats knocked off Texas A and M and coach as you know this as a as a guy who's been a head coach, no such thing as an ugly win. But it was kind of an ugly game, wasn't it? And yet Kentucky adapted.
I am so ecstatic and proud of Perry. I thought that he was the key because you know, the last couple of games. He's been kind of you know the weeklyin you know they you know, most teams when he comes in, when Butler goes out, you know, they kind of go at him a little bit. But I'll tell you what couple of games, he's making shots, he's handling the ball, he's becoming a solid defender. We're not losing
any points, of losing any trailway. When he comes in the game and Butler goes out, I thought that he really gave Kentucky a boost of confidence when he made shots to make good plays in the midst of A and M's run. And there was an actual brutal game. And I'll tell you what, I didn't think Butler was gonna make it. I mean for a five minutes saying, man, he had an opportunity to blow out a shoe and tear up an ankle. Another deal, he heard his shoulder,
Another deal, he got hit in the face. And I was like, man, why don't you just take him out Mark just for a little bit more and let him, you know, regroup a little bit. Because he came back in it was like a pinball again. But you know, Kentucky's just showing some characters from resilience. And I tell people all the time that I don't care who's the We don't lose at home. We just don't, you know, I don't care who it is. We don't lose against
Mississippi State at home, we just don't. And I just thought that they did what they were supposed to do to to to serve home, you know, to take care home. And I'm just so proud of the fight. Fortunate for us, you know, I mean, am I'm sorry Texas and M fortunate for us Texas and M best player at point guard didn't play. But we are showing to resilience in this brutal SEC schedule and it's only gonna get better. I just think our confidence is growing. Jackson's playing much better.
O way was was a major piece, you know, especially in the second half, and we didn't you know, are we gonna get dominated at times with offensive rebounds, Yeah, but we don't get dominated enough to where it really especially the games that we won, we've rebounded enough. And as long as we can rebound enough, the way we shoot the ball and the way we can pose our will and you offensively, I think every night we're gonna have a chance.
I was just flabbergasted at how well. And it's not a knock, but it's just it's a nod to how good A and M is. As Pope pointed out after the game, they going into this game forty four percent of the time when a shot goes up, they get the offensive rebound and Kentucky, which is incredible, especially that's not a huge team, and yet Kentucky I rebounded them overall and on the offensive glass. And it didn't occur
to me. I kind of kept peeking at the stats and I would tweet that, yeah, Kentucky's winning the boards battle. But just the way they did that was huge last night, wasn't it.
Well, it was huge because you know, the fight, that's what I like. You know, as a coach, you want your guys to at the highest level against you know, the toughest teams in America, and I think Texas A and M is like Joe Frasier. You know, you in a fight when you play a team like that, no matter how big they are, that's just a Buzz Williams team. And for us to answer the bell, you know, was was tremendous for me in my eyes, because everybody was
in the fight. Everybody who played, you know, made some tough plays and that's what it's all about, you know, collectively, you know, you got to make more tough plays than the other team. And I thought Kentucky did that last night.
Well let's back up and talk a little bit about Lamont Butler, and yeah, he was just beating in Bruce last night. But he's just a remarkable defender. They took him to the rim a few times, but I think he's He's a guy who really such a great tone defensively for his teammates.
And my seeing that right, you're sending exactly right. You know, I've been saying it all years, as you and I have talked about, we can't be as good as we want to be or go as far as we want to go without Lamont Butler. He's the key siece to this team. No matter what, you know, we can lose a person here there through from you know, through injuries and things like that. But I think Lamont Butler is one of the most underrated point guards and not only in the SEC but in America for what he does
for his team. And you know, he's one of the best on ball defenders. Uh he's got great hands, he's he plays with great composure. He's an awesome leader with his voice and by example, and he's always pressing the needle when things break down, he makes a play, either offensively or defensively. And he's the guy that if I'm the opposing coach, he's the one person that I'm more worried about than anybody on the team because he does
all the intangible. He's a winner. You know, he's the personality on this team, and you know, there's no doubt in my mind that he's the MVP of this team. But not only that, you know, if push comes to shove and we're one of the top two or three teams in this league, not only do I think he's the first team All SEC guy at that position, you know, I just think he's the first team All SEC guy period, because of the importance that he brings to his basketball.
Teck, did you know much about him Sean when Mark Pope signed him? I mean everybody saw him shoot San Diego State into the Final four, But prior to that, were you aware of him much playing on the West Coast?
No, not at all. Well, you know, I watched San Diego State but I didn't watch them in depth to where you know how much of an impact he made on their team. But I you know, but right now, there's not one impactful person on a team him right now, you know what I mean. Like there's a bunch of teams that can lose a player here there, but we can't lose him.
You know.
He's just that important to our to the success of our team. And uh, you know, I love it. You know, he's one of my favorite players in the country, may be my best, my favorite player in the country, just because of what he brings to the table.
And when you go back and look at the game, Kentucky won without him up a good Zaga. That makes it even more impressive, doesn't it?
Without him? Yeah, we got lucky. You know, we can't win so many games in this league without the my Butler. You know what I mean. We got lucky on that one. I thought, I thought, to be honest with you, I thought because Zaga out played it. I just thought they had a meltdown the last five minutes of the game, which is uncharacteristic you know of a mark Few team. But I'm telling you right now, I am a My
Butler fan. Through and through. And uh, he's one of the reasons why I love watching this team because I love watching him. You know, Hawk that ball, push it when he has it. He's always under control for the most part, and he's always seems to make the right play at the right time when we actually need it on both ends of the floor.
Well, you said you're a coach who appreciates a guy like him, and Buzz Williams was asked about Mary Williams and and like all you guys, I don't know if you were this way, but you know, he didn't know names, he knew numbers. He's like which one twenty two? Oh, I love him. And he started talking about he called him a point big man, you know, and what and what kind of damage of Mary Williams can do as a passer? Uh, And that's become evident. I think the Kentucky fans I got to think you like that.
Too, no doubt about it. Not only is he a passer, you know, he's a warrior. Yeah, you know, he's the physical presence of our team. You know, I thought he got a couple of cheap fouls last night. A man, you know, he's going to make you feel him, you know, and he's got to continue to do that and stay out of foul trouble. But you know, he's the physical presidence of our basketball team, you know, and every team needs Amari Williams and thank god he's on our team.
And another thing is he makes free throws.
Yes, yes, he makes.
Free He's got to finish a little bit better around the rim, you know. You know, I think he you know, for us to really get to where we need to go, we need him to be able. We need to be able to throw the ball down to him and get a bucket when he's got one on one situations. But man, he's just a major physical presence. And sometimes you got to have that type of guy that that that that's going to fight a little bit, that got a little stuff to him, and he definitely has that.
We're talking with Sean Woods, the unforgettable Guard, about the Wildcats went over Texas A and M last night. We'll talk more on the other side of the break here on the Big Blue Sider six thirty. Welcome back with you talking with the Unforgettable Guard, Sean Woods. He joined us each and every Wednesday to talk about his beloved Wildcast before the break, Seawan, we were talking about both Lamont Butler and Mary Williams, two guys who last night
took and delivered some punishment. But I thought it was interesting that Mark Pope, Jackson Robinson, Marie Wins they all used the S word when they were talking about how Kentucky's been playing of late, and that is soft. You know, people were saying it whispering. This team's kind of so I had to admit I wondered, is that a problem
for this team? But these guys are are fully aware of what was being said, and this day and age is not a surprise, social media being what it is, and I'm not they're not combing through Twitter to find out what people are saying, but they're hearing it, probably secondhand. And I think it's interesting Sean, that they have set out. It's almost like they're trying to make a point. Hey, we're not soft be in.
This league, right, There's no way you can be soft. Now the other team, you know, the losses that we've had, we were worse off, you know, because the other team was just better than us. They took it to us, They were better than us that night. But in order for us to win every game. We have to be tenacious like we have been in most of our wins. When we do lose, it's because of a physical situation. Yeah, you know, people take us off out of our deal
and sometimes the other team just scouts us. You know what I'm saying. Better, you know, they're better at running us off. You know, I thought that, you know, I thought shoot Texas A and M did a great job really on our shooters.
You know.
It was a grinding game, yes, you know. And now Kentucky's got to do something else, and they're showing the world in these wins that they can make adjustments that they can win another way. You're not going to win in the SEC by just shooting jumps, shooting threes. You gotta do something else, you got to You got to control the backboard, you know. You gotta limit you know,
the other team to one shot. You got to control their their guys because they feel that they can take every one of our guys one on one, you know, and that's a disrespect, you know. And kudos to Texas A and M. They're small for man of they to nations. You know, their guards played like Charles Barkley. You know, they back the in and they keep going spinning and turning and pivoting and pivoting until they can get a bucket. But how many times can you do that throughout the
process of a game. You know, those are low per center situations. So kudos to Kentucky's defense. Are you gonna get scored on some Yeah? Our team's gonna get get the league at the beginning, yeah too. They find their rhythm, yeah, But the main thing is they have to sustain from a physicality standpoint, and and and and and Tyler Perry is going to have to continue to be solid like he will last night to give Lamont Butler a break.
You know, if I don't see you know, Lamark Butler, we don't want to rain down, don't We don't want him playing thirty five minutes a game. If he can play twenty eight minutes a game, that's perfect. But playing thirty five thirty six and he has to play that way, that's not good because now he's more susceptible to files. Nine times out of ten. Most times when he files,
he is because of fatigue, you know. But when he's fresh and he can, you know, Mark and give him a blow here and there, and he comes back because most teams aren't as deep, you know, especially at the point guard position, so it gives him an opportunity to get a blow and then come back more fresh and pose his will on them from an offense and the defensive standpoint. And you know, I'm proud of Perry. I'm so proud of you because he's staying the course. He's
not losing his confidence. You know, as a freshman, you weren't playing the first six, seven, eight games. You know, you're buying your time, and people are knocking you because they feel like you know you, you know you're not your feet are as quick, you're not as good a defender. But as any basketball player, if you're making shot, you get more comfortable and more put to the nations, uh
and more fisful on the defensive end. And uh, I thought, that's what happened to him last night and which was a major part in our success and winning that game.
Well, I think the thing to remember too is Travis Perry not only is a true freshman, but it's coming from a high school situation where they didn't want him to play try to play lockdown, smothering defense because his high school team couldn't afford to get him into foul trouble. And that's the same for so many high school offensive stars who you know on defense. They want him to stay out of trouble and not make trouble. So, you know, I think he's probably got farther to go than most guys.
Is that is that fair?
Well, it's called genetics, dick, And you know some people are quicker laterly than others, you know what I'm saying. And you know it's just you know, if I see somebody like like him, I'm going at him too, sure, So you know what I'm saying.
So you know.
It is what it is. But I just think that in most high school kids don't know how to play defense period, you know, unless you from the East Coast or you just naturally got it, you know what I'm saying. That competitive edge in you where you want to compose your will on somebody from a defensive end to not just from an offensive end. You know, that's the mentality that he has to get, you know, and that takes time.
You know, it's not something that he's ever done. I don't think me watching him like you know, last year, watching him in high school, you know, they were just up and down. And I don't see too many high school kids periods that are really really good on ball defensive.
How many kids scientifically.
They could potentially be, but that's just not who they are, you know what I'm saying, And they forget. And as a coach, I always used to get on my guys and talk about their high school coach because you know, when you get you know, you have all these accolades from an offensive standpoint, but you don't know how to make an entry pass into the post, or you don't know how to slide your feet, you don't know how to jump to the ball. You know that goes along.
That's a lot in high school basketball, and that's what frustrates college coaches. So then when you come to that deal and then your high school coach wants to call the college coach and say, hey, why isn't my kid playing. That's one of the main reasons why freshmen don't play
as much. It is because of the defensive end. And he's getting it and he's doing just enough, and he's gonna continue to get better because I'm seeing his confidence rising and rising every every every game, especially making shots and just playing great posiosition defense. He's never going to be a guy like the LaMonte Butler who can pressure the ball full court. That's never gonna beat him. That's
not who he is. Just play solid, keep the ball in front, and you know what I'm saying, don't turn the ball over and make shots when you have that opportunity. I thought he did that to perfection last night.
Yeah. I was going to say, how many high school kids do you know or signed because of their defensive ability? Not that many?
Guess what? Not too many high school players are even recruited because of their defensive foul.
Yeah, maybe Patrick Ewing and a few others. But we got a few minutes left with Sean Woods as we talk about the Wildcats, so much craziness in the SEC. Missouri doesn't win a conference game last year, coach, and they go and win at Florida, which as we know, is a really good team. Cali Perry winless in the league, LSU beating Arkansas it's first conference. When now you've got Alabama coming in, what do you expect?
I expect the same thing from last night. You know, if we can keep Alabama out of the paint, which allows them to you know, they want to create situations where you're sunk in and then they can shoot it. Because they are a pretty decent shooting basketball team. We got to keep them off the glass, and we have to sustain you know what I mean, because they've been there before. They got a lot of guys, you know, and they're one of the most talented teams in the SEC.
And they have a winning culture now and you know, Mono and Mono, are we as good? I don't know, but team wise, I think we're getting to the point where we're on the top two or three teams in this league. And coming in to Kentucky, coming into our place, I feel more comfortable and I predicted it. You know, we'll get this win.
Also, Buzz Williams and I used the comment earlier in the show, right off the top. His postgame comments was so complimentary of Pope, and he has said, he said much what's like what you've been saying all along. The fact that they are playing as a team this well, and these guys, you know, eight months ago, didn't know each other, and the fact that they've been they've pulled together so quickly. I'm not sure if you can capture lightning in a bottle? How do you do this kind
of thing? But a lot of it's got to do is, you know, with Pope's personality style of play. And as you and I have spoke spoken through the weeks, you know, they've had to give themselves over to this, this style of play. But they're becoming more and more comfortable with it now, aren't they.
They are because you know the difference between Mark Pope and everybody else, especially with you know, this era of transport portal Marcus is really he's still sticking to his guns about his system. Yes, it's not about personnel. See, a lot of these coaches are trying to mix in personnel. You know, how does this guy play with this guy? You know, how do I you know, run this because of this guy's strength. So Mark is recruiting to his
system and that's the reason why he looks. They look more fluent from an offensive standpoint than anybody else because he doesn't have a break you down guy, you know, so he doesn't even have to worry about, you know, giving that guy the freedom always running ball screens and letting him just go one on one from the top. It's constant ball movement and it's constant player movement. And when you have that and and and it's and it's
and everyone is cohesive. Especially from an offensive standpoint. Sooner or later, he's gonna wear you down from his offense. Normally teams wear you down from their defense. Mark wears you down from his offense and then he stops on defense. It makes them even better because that offense and the way they play is even better in transition. So he's getting you in two ways. But he's becoming more underrated from a defensive standpoint because if you look at the numbers,
they're one of the top teams defensively in America. Yeah, so his style of play is so smooth because of his systems, and there's you know, no, it's not a grind where everybody else is in a grind. Kentucky's never been in a grind this year. It's just we didn't make enough shots, or you beat us this time because you know what I'm saying, our system didn't work to a t, you know, so on and so forth. But I'd rather be on that side than still trying to figure it out. They don't have to figure it out.
They're not figuring it out. They know who they are right now. They really do interesting and it's so refreshing to see because their system and the way they do things is a lot more smoother than everybody that they're playing. And I told Mark this, I said, by the time this was before the SEC, I said, by the time you get to the SEC, you already have won a lot of games, just because you've won the locker room. They're worried about you how to defend you, more so
than you worried about how to defend them. And when you get that coach talking about it's different. You gotta match this. You gotta match this when you play them, you already got them. That's seventy percent of the battle.
As always, Sean Wood's interesting insights on the basketball Wildcats, and we'll talk next week about Kentucky, Alabama and more. Thank you, coach, good talking to you.
Stay warm you two buddy.
Coming up next in hour number two, it's our West End Bureau chief Gary Moore. But before that, Anthony White Poster Sunday Morning Sports Talk, the former football Wildcat weighs in on what's happening in Mark Stifts program. That's all ahead here on the Big One Sider six thirty WLAP name welcome back to the Big Blue and Cider and joining us now a longtime friend that HA showed and guy I covered his career at Kentucky and now he
can be heard on this very radio station. Anthony White, who was a co host of Sunday Morning Sports Talk as well as other Internet ventures, and b how are you doing.
I'm doing pretty good, trying to stay warm. Finally got out of house this week.
Good for you. Uh, first time we chatted here in the new year. So but one of the reasons I called we got to get caught up was we haven't talked in a while. But I couldn't help but notice a little back and forth on X on Twitter, you were getting into it a little bit, and I know you talked about it on Sunday Morning as well, about what's happening with the Kentucky football program. And you're in that record book in front and center, so you have a lot of time and sweat equity in that program.
But there's a lot of player movement right now in college football in general, college sports in general. But I get the impression you believe there needed to be a lot of player movement in this Kentucky program right now? Is that correct?
Absolutely?
If you follow the program with Mark Stukes first came here two and ten seasons coming off of you know what he was left with and you know him and Vince Meryll and the guys had here. Guys coming to UK was more or less no blue. A lot of guys who you gotta have your lunch pail with you, uh and go to work with you know when you got here. And uh, no matter what games we played, win, lose or draw. The other teams that you know, guys
are hitting hard. They played hard, and I think we kind of losing that blue, that blue collar edge.
I think it's due to.
Nil transport portal and some things like that and so. And to me, me and my my co host on the locker Man House thought that we may have been going backwards for a years. This year was absolutely a step backward. I thought last year we just took some plays off, or we missed a couple of plays here and there the past couple of years. But this year seemed like we never got clicking. We never had got rolling.
But gay we have to. We probably had the most depth, probably the most talented team depth wise, and somewhat talent wise that Stupis has probably had. So you kind of asked, you scratch ahead and say why did they you know, why are they regressing? You know, same coach, same culture. Uh, you know, the guys got all the accolades pre he but like I said, I thought, transfer a portal and nil calls. Some guys in miss practices, some guys in
this meeting. Some guys not be available throughout the weekend, only on Saturday. So you know, everybody's well dange keys transferred. Now lately the latest is is hard to give more transferferring and people all this is the programs in shambles, and that really that really rubbed me the wrong way because I felt like that does a disjustice to SUPs.
Now you wanted them to bring back the same guys who had us going four and eight, because there are some top tier players, some of our starters, and I'm not saying the guys that I named are those guys, but there are some guys who's not showing up the practice. There's some guys who want to do their own thing on certain plays, which causes gaps and causes big play. And the coaches are the ones who have to answer for those things. So I just wanted to tell the
crowd kind of to pump your breaks. These guys leave, and they're leaving for a reason, Mark Stutson, that's them the lead. He gave them ultimatum. I'm taking it back over this ship, and I think some of those guys that want the ship to be taken over, we're taking some of this money back. We're putting it in an alepool. We're gonna bring guys in here who's gonna carry out the assignment. We're gonna bring guys in here who's gonna
be a practice. We're gonna bring guys in here who's gonna give it, you know, give it to you for sixty minutes. So uh, I just kind of want, you know, the crowd to chill, like you can't be mad that we were foreign eight last year and you want him to regroup a reset, then be scared when he starts to regroup and reset.
Yeah, well, there's a lot to unpack there, So let's start with the blue collar element. And you're absolutely correct, and everybody knows this and Stoops, it's quite frank about that. How that chip on the shoulder Youngstown kind of again, like you said the culture, uh and you mentioned the
nil on the portal. My question, Anthony is can you in this day and age, can anybody build or rebuild that kind of culture With the players holding so much of the power now and getting the big bucks and feeling more entitled than they ever have in the history of college athletics, It's gonna be.
Tough to do.
And I honestly think that's why Nick Saban and some of these guys are getting out of the day. It is gonna be tough to do. And I will tell you this though, Gabe and you could attested. If anybody can do it, it's gonna be Mark Stewet's for to quite a few reasons. He's a players coach, which I think that's why things got lacks around here. He gave the players a minute of this doubt the players take
advantage of it. He's also been the guy that you know, coach guys in their transport port How many guys have you seen in the transport portal will come back? He's also that guy, well you know what, Look, I'm I'm not gonna tie you down. If you think you find something else, he'll let you go. Back and welcome you back with open arms. Everything a players looking for in a university is right here. You get to play in the SEC. You got great coaches, Your coach cares about you.
I said the only one thing that you said that I think, and I think coach might have admitted. He may not admitted out loud, but I know the people that he may have admitted it to. We may not have just spend in our money correctly. So the environment, the culture, the coaching was all here. The one thing we were missing with the Green guys, you know, the bottom line, and though you're right, those guys want and that's one aspect I don't think it's going to change.
I think those guys are don't want to go as the money as that, but if they're comfortable enough with their coaches, the head coach position, coach, I think if they're comfortable enough with those guys, they may stick around. Maybe not for the bottom dollar, not for a lower dollar, but for you know, the going ways. You don't have to be astronomical, but.
You'll appreciate this. Being a guy who played on the offensive side of the ball. Jeff Percorrel talked to Bush Hamden about play calling with regard to trying to spread the ball around. And now he's got to be much more cognizant of making sure they share the football because now everybody wants their numb you know, everybody who is either trying to get a better deal or justify what
he's got or whatever, hadn't touched the ball in a while. Well, we got to make sure he gets a carrier, he gets a ball thrown his way, that kind of thing. And it's on the one end, it's kind of subtle, but on the other hand, it's not. And I got to think that's a real challenge, don't you.
Oh absolutely, I said that throughout the year. I thought that hand customer, I thought it made tougher him to call play.
I mean, I'm going to.
Try to be a little bit covert. But if we got guys who can only run certain routes, maybe it's a jets, maybe it's a screen. You got another guy who can only run a vertical, there's not too many people on that receiving room that you can run any route with. So as a defense, well, this guy's in the game. All we got to do is just stand in the flats because he's only running a screen or jets.
We just stayed at home on the sweat. Now might be one of the most dynamic players in the country, but he's not a threat because he's not going vertical. Now he's going vertical, there's a whole different story. Now you got some guys who actually stuck around, who's been thinking, coach, I just need an opportunity to get the ball in my hands. And a few times this year when they did,
they showed they can do something. But I could tell just from his play calling and you know the timing of some of the calls he made that he was trying to piece the players, and that goes all that ties back into the transport portal and it also tries it goes back to the nil. So when people hear some of our starters, all that sc players leaving, do you want those guys back that was on the four and eight team, or if you want to bring guys in who gosna run different routes, Guys who's going to
be teammates to other teammates. I've told you many times in that air raid offense, we were going to throw the ball forty or fifty times. You just got to get open, and so we were just waiting for our turn. You'd be a good teammate, you're gonna get your turn. But I'm so a custle to spread the ball around. But this whole thing where everybody gets a pitch count or you on opportunity, that that that had to be tough for Bush Hampson.
That had to be tough.
I've got to say, and I've talked about this before and I know you guys have as well, that I don't blame Dane Key and Barrion Brown for wanting to spend that last year someplace where there's going to be more I don't want to say a sure thing, but but they're going to be assured of a little more stability on offense, you know, because this is the jumping off point for these guys. This is it. They got to show themselves to NFL scouts beyond what they've already done.
And uh, of course they'll both end up in NFL camps. But you know, just how seriously will teams treat them? You know? Is you know, the higher you're drafted, the more investment of team has. So to that end, I don't really blame that Gilmour as I understand it. Uh was a separation that had to happen for both parties. But that wide receiver room is gonna be is gonna have a new look, isn't it.
Oh, it's definitely gonna be a new looking. As you said, I do think the other two guys had have to leave, and I think it's fair to themselves. It's probably and I don't think Mark Stuke's probably mad about it. They get an opportunity to go see what their stock is gonna look.
Like at the next level. Are you only a two route person?
Can you do more? You know, if your pastime, can you do for if you got more officer plays on the field and those type of things.
It may or may not happen.
I got my beliefs on some of the guys who left, but I'm eager to see. I mean, I know Jamari McLean can play out. I've seen him play. Fred Ferryer's coming back. There's some guys coming back, but there's also you know, getting guys out of Clemson, La Tech, some places that have been successful. I think just that winning attitude, that locker room attitude is something that's gonna carry over. I don't think well, like I say, it's a new
day and age you covered me. It ain't like when we played that everybody, you know, kind of had a lookout for each other. You weren't gonna be a cancer in the locker room because somebody else is gonna nip it at the bull. It would probably never get back to the coaches and they got really bad. But now I love the fact right now we're feeling up the we're filling up the receiver room with new talent. I think our fan base kind of fell in love with the guys, and that's a great part about being a
part of the exclusination. The fan base fell in love with the guys that we've had here for three years. But like I said, that bottom line was a lot of people like to say we redressed for two years maybe or started at the end of three and now so you know, we wound.
Up four and eight last year, So how much.
Do you want throwose guys back?
You know?
So, But I do think But the one thing I do love is that the places we lost people, we are addressing it through the transfer portal and through the signing day. So I'm not really the same. I'm kind of eager and I think the one thing you can hang your hat on if you if you're an avid fan, is that we're now We're back where we were five, six, seven years ago. Nobody knew who Josh Allen was when
he first took his first couple of snaps. Benny Snell kind of knew because he was from Ohio, but he wasn't It wasn't even really a huge named Chris Rohreenez. Some of these guys who went down those legends, they didn't come in here with the names of Tim Couch, Derrick Johnson and you know, some of the big and Micah Johnson. So you know, I think I'm more eager and interested this year knowing that we're getting guys in
here that we know we can play. It reminds me of twenty seventeen against twenty sixteen seventeen be where we get to see the thing bill back up.
That's a great point because, as well know, Josh Allen was an All state player in Alabama and when he moved to New Jersey, slipped through the cracks, had only Montclair State offering in before Kentucky jumped on him. Benny Snell was rated the number twenty six player not in the country in the state of Ohio, your home state when he signed with Kentucky. But he came here confident of what he could do, so did Josh. So maybe we'll see more of that. We're talking with Anthony White.
He is, of course in the Kentucky record book, is one of the best ball catching running backs that Kentucky has ever had. A favorite target of him Couch. You hear him co hosting Sunday Morning Sports Talk on this very radio station, and as he mentioned, the Locker four to one one podcast on Wednesday nights with our man Van Hiles. We'll come back and talk more football and a little basketball with Anthony White after the break here
on six point thirty, we'll come back. We're talking with Anthony White, the co host of Sunday Morning Sports Talk, former football wildcat. I'm not pointing the finger at any one or two guys, but I firmly believe that the problems this program had on the field now stemmed from the offensive line. It has not yet gotten back, and I don't know if it ever will to the classic,
you know, big blue wall status. But I just think there have been such struggles both with continuity and the coaching staff, and with the players coming and going and some guys injured and trying to plug the right guys in and people changing positions. I mean, you know, it all starts.
With the old line, right, yeah, And that is my biggest concern and a whole stoops of a dress. And it the one thing I have seen throughout my playing career with some coaches is guys have better relationships that you know they're always gonna be friends the rest of their life, but not right now. You know, you got a job to do. Everybody has a job to do, and it doesn't seem like the offensive line is really jailing with the new office line. Coach, I don't think
they jailed the first time he was here. I mean, I mean, just to be quite frank, and I said, he must be really good. He keeps getting jobs. He's been in the NFL, he's been a lot of different places. For whatever it is. There's some kind of block between the office line taking the assignments and carry them out, and you know, you get talking about injuries and things. And this offensive line was built under John Slarman with playing seven or eight guys, so one you take a
fatigue factor away. Guys don't get his injured if they're not on the fielders, but they're.
Fresh a little bit more.
And this is grueling league in the trenches. So that was the first thing I noticed the first go around was that he wasn't into the rotating of players. So every year you're kind of starting over fresh. But I will tell you this we talked about on Wednesday. I'll
stay this about the offense line. And this is more of a bigger problem I think than the teaching in the room or just reception of the teaching in the room, is we've been turning over offensive line in the portal two and three offense line in a year, believe it or coming. The problem I have with that and it's unsustainable. We got the last three office line and I think we're at least two schools. This was the third school
for at least three of them. One year, you at a school, you go to another school, you're at that school, you go to another school. You do realize in order for you to get the continuity down, or understand the playbooker, or to get even in your coach's vision on what they have for you next year, you have to stay
somewhere in two years. And I think that is really hurting us because all these guys we're bringing in has already been somewhere else, not just one place and playing to stay here two years, work through the grind, learn to playbook, pick up coaching style of coaching. No, we bring in guys in who's been to two or three different places. They stay here, don't get don't really pick it up. They get an opportunity because all the new guys get an opportunity to start, and they lose their
starting position, then they go somewhere else. And I think that is the biggest problem with our office line. We don't have any continuity, as you stated, at the coaching position or as the players. But the worst part is even if we bring in a junior or a senior that has maybe an.
Extra year left that let's let's keep them for two years.
So we know coming back what we can expect for you. So flipping this thing every year, And I think that's the biggest.
Problem up front.
Well, that's assuming they could play. I mean, if a guy is not good enough to compete in the sec hey, we got our guys back. Yeah, so we got a few minutes left with Anthony Wody. I want to shift over to basketball because you talk about everything on Sunday Morning Sports Talk. Just real quickly, your take on what we saw from Mark Pope's team down in start fille Man, because that was a kind of not just the result, but the effort they needed and I think that the big New nation needed to see.
Yeah, we like to see. I mean, the thing about it reminds me. I keep going back to you wanting to stay when he played, and that ninety six team is just more talented. They were gonna beat anybody. And I keep relating to that ninety eight team, which he was not on. But that's exactly what reminds me of you know who, Jackson Robinson's the catching flat the past couple of weeks. You know he takes he may take seven eight minutes off Da da da dah. He's not
what he was built up to be. The guy could score, the guy could just flat out play balls. Why Pope brought him, brought him in with us, But you know he was catching, he was catching. Heck, Jack Pilbrim told me he stayed after after the game before I believe it was Georgia, he stayed after and uh, oh no, no, the last home game they had before they before they went to Georgia, right and uh Jackson Robson. I was happy to see him have a really big game.
Yeah.
Lord, they needed him, they needed and he came through. And that's the thing I love about this team. He has a nice rotation. Uh, you never know who the player of the game is gonna be each week. The guys are getting unselfish and it's scary thing though. Gave us that they're just now really starting to believe in Pope. They're not playing that one on one ball. They're not playing ice oball. When things get tough, everybody wants to go a coach I'm gonna favor and he just telling
them they live in this moment. Just do what I say and live in this moment. And you can tell that they're starting to when things get rough, they're starting to lean on him more than they're on their own one on one field. And that's what's making it really interesting for me. You know, we ain't we ain't been very successful in March, but if we keep trending in this direction, I think it's gonna be exciting.
You also had some conversations on at ex or Twitter or whatever you want to call it. How about John Caliperi And it's amazing to me how quickly Arkansas fans, I mean, Kentucky fans may snipe a little bit, but buddy, if you seen these Arkansas fans already all over Cali Perry. And he's another guy to rebuild from the ground up.
Yeah, when cal first came here, though it was at twenty ten. When he first came here, he pretty much, you know, came in instantly successful. You know, that's quality brought in with cousins Wall and Bled so on those guys. And I think that's what they were expecting there. But I think I think the world has caught up with Calv. I think they know his game. I think they know his antiquas. I think they know, you know, what he's about.
And I think our fan base may have been right that that Calv may have you know, as time may have worn out here just because you know, we want to go into Mark. We don't want to have exciting basketball. And that is where my argument started on Twitter, was that the fan base was loved it when cal was exciting, but we weren't winning tournament games. And you know, we finally got a new coach, but cal was not willing
to change his philosophy. Right, stoops, you love the excitement we had with Benny Snell, Chris Rodriguez and all those guys, Lin Bolden, And now it's kind of stealing out because in il and guy's not working his hard and he's cleaning ship doing what you all wanted. Wanted to change philosophies,
which you all wanted Calipari to do. So it's working out that we changed the CALIBERI So I'm kind of scared for I'm kind of scared for suits that if this thing gets any better for Pope, they might start saying.
Look how I worked for some basketball. Let's just start over news. So a little care for that.
Well, and in this day and age, man was roster turnover. You know you're and and yeah, that's the other thing too, is Pope's gonna have to rebuild somewhat next year too, depending on who's got eligibility coming back.
Yeah.
The thing about Pope, though, he's plugging play man. Like I said, none of these guys have played together these some of these guys are six man's on their team and their starters here in the SEC, which is a tough conference. This year we had getting we played with five. This will be our five or fifth Top fifteen game, and probably not even the first third of the season. So I'm not worried about him getting the guys in the running system because I think his system runs itself.
It's for a lost. He talks to basketball, he.
Gets you to understand basketball, he breaks it down into chewable chunks. So I think he's gonna get the best talent because we're Kentucky. You couple that with his philosophies and his coaching style. I'm not concerned about any turnover that we may have next year.
You can hear Anthony White on this very radio station every Sunday morning on Sunday Morning Sports Talk with Larry Vaud and the Gang, and of course on Wednesday nights on the Locker for One one with Van Hiles. The podcast very entertaining and be always a pleasure. Thank you, Sarah.
We'll talk to you soon, all right, man, I think you appreciate it.
Western Bureau Chief Gary Moore next on six point thirty WLAP Welcome back to the Big Moonsighter. As promised, our Western Bureau chief. We are back on a Wednesday. Gary Moore joined us from the other end of I sixty four. And it might be freezing cold, but you've got some hot takes.
I know I do with two guys in six pack. Hey, what's the windshill like over there in the garage?
Is in the garage? It's not great, but I've got the space heater going.
Are those are those fur ear muffs on unit? Or is that a headphone? That's the sort of thermal that you got on there.
You know what, when I'm doing sidelines radio football, those headphones go a long way keep my ears warm.
That's right, they sure do. Well, let's get into this first sip on the six pack. Dick is former Kentucky Wildcat and Basketball Hall of Famer. Pat Riley said many times as coach of the Lakers, and often to me when I was covering the team out there no rebounds, no rings, which is true. You can also add no rebounding after a loss, no rings, And right now Mark Pope's Cats eighth RNGTH fourteen and three overall are rebounding
in both ways. For example, Cats lose at Clemson, win the next game on the road, versus number seven Gonzaga, Cats lose. Ohio State win the next two, including at home. I guess number six Florida, we could go. They lose at Georgia. Four days later, what happens? They win at number fourteen Mississippi State, continuing to win last night over a tough number eleven Texas Agricultural and Mechanical School eight won to sixty nine five wins over an AP top
fifteen team. If you talked about best record in America with that, and on Saturday, number four Bama Rup High Noon tied number one offense in the SEC ninety one points a game, Cats right behind the second place with eighty nine points a game. Are we in for another one hundred and six hundred ball burner like the Florida game?
Dick?
Do you think on Saturday?
Oh?
I would think so yeah. And kudos for the for the name draw pat Riley and you've you've mentioned that before covering the Lakers, you had a chance more than once to chat with him. I mentioned the fact that he didn't say it to me directly, but John Wooden used to say that, I mean, earlier in his career that rebounds he thought were the most important stat in the game. No, he changed it later on, kind of moved that to number two in his list behind shooting percentages.
But it told you just how how vital he believed rebounding was. So that's something we got to keep an eye on for the rest of the year.
As well as assists. That assist ratio last night was something else else. Nineteen to four.
Yeah over the Cats. Yeah, it's sister turnover plus assists on made baskets. I think that's what impresses opposing coaches the most.
Second Swig in the six packs, speaking Mark Pope, you've covered Mark from all of his days playing for the Cats as well as a coach. Can you imagine Mark saying after say, I don't know, losing to Georgia or somebody sec saying this in public, Well, we're soft, so don't tell me you want to win. It's really hard to coach people who are delusional. We got guys that think they're better than they are. Nice kids, completely delusional
about who they are. Unquote. That, of course, was what former Murray State and Cincinnati head coaching current UCLA coach Mick Cronin said about his Bruins after they were blown out at home by Michigan last week, and how did the team respond after that, getting blown out at Maryland by eighteen, complete with Cronin's ejection, then losing Monday at crummy eight and eight Rutgers by seven. You can see what he's trying to do, at least I can or
who he's trying to emulate. His mentor and apparent idol of player abuse, Ricky Patino. Hey, we know Patino. Patino has rings. Mick Cronin. You're no Patino and you may not be a UCLA head coach much longer if that keeps up.
Yeah, And in fact, somebody told me I wondered was Mick Cronin in the mix when louisvill was looking for a coach And somebody who covers the program said it says understanding he was not. And this was well before these comments made their way to the public, but it was because of that sort of coaching style. And yeah, Patino, listen, I've heard the stories from Cameron Mills for years. I've
heard him from Sean Woods. I've heard him just about with the way Patino could just level a kid, but rarely, if ever, did it in public. Right, you know, he might have said things in general as a team, we got to do this or that. But you've got to wonder would that not have just played better privately in the locker room as opposed and clearly as you pointed out, they didn't respond the way he had hoped. So now you got to wonder as well, Gary, has he lost that team?
Well, if they're soft and delusional, who recruited them and who coaches them?
Yeah?
Third swig and six pack. One last Kentucky basketball note. I've been paying much attention to the NBA. College hoops always get more of my attention priority wise this time of year for me, But I got to wondering how Reed Shepherd and Oscar Shebwey are doing lately in the pros read of course, third overall pick in last year's draft by Houston wasn't getting much of any playing time for the Rockets, so they sent him to their G League team, Rio Grand Valley Vipers, three hundred and thirty
seven miles south of Houston near the Mexican border. All Reid did was playing all of three games, average thirty point seven points eight assists, was the G League Player of the week, so they called him back up, and of course he doesn't play against Memphis on Monday, but maybe tonight in Denver. That's on tap as for Oscar reserve on a crummy ten and twenty eight Utah Jazz team. But at least he's there in the Association, averaging three point seven boards off the bench, get three and five
on Sunday in the win against equally lousy Brooklyn. He may get to see more action to night they're playing a home against the eight and twenty eight Hornets. By the way, Oscar averaged fourteen point six points, seventeen and a half boards in sixteen g League games this year, so he did about all he could do as well down there. Oscar second year in the Association obviously reads a rookie, but each one of them brings something valuable that can complete an NBA team.
Yeah, the problem is getting that team, or those respective teams to the point where she Way can take them to another level, read can take them to I'm not saying a lofty level. I'm just saying, as you point out, getting them past where they need to be. You like Reid's chances better just because of what the league has
turned into in terms of three point shooting. But the fact that Oscar had trouble hanging on in the league despite at one point averaging twenty rebounds a game in the G League tells you where they where the NBA is now and how they don't put as much of a premium on low post play. Apparently he is. I haven't seen him play but expanding his offensive game, which I think held him back at Kentucky because he camped
out under the rim. Yeah, but he's got to be able to play a little bit facing the basket, which he could a little bit of Kentucky. But you got a root for a guy like that.
Oscar can find a three point shot somewhere in there.
Hey, de Marcus Cousins, did.
Yeah see forth swig in the six pack one month ago? Last night, Dick, you were there December fourteenth, Louisville lost to then number five Kentucky ninety three to eighty five. And guess what the Cards have not lost since that night. Last night, UFL won their second road game in four days, eighty five sixty one at Syracuse, the greatest win ever, by the way what used to be the Carrier Dome. That's seven wins in a row. For Louisville, and of course the ACC this year is about as unimpressive as
the SEC is impressive. But with Duke and Carolina and Clemson all out of the way and in the rear view, the Cards have no ranked teams so far. Anyway ahead on their schedule, they're going to go for eight in a row Saturday against VIRGINNY high noon over here at the on ESPN two. That's same obviously tip off time for the Cats and Bama on original strength ESPN Cards
are now thirteen and five favorites again on Saturday. Is it safe to say, Dick Gabriel that U of L's basketball program is back well.
For right now? Relatively speaking, yes, compared to where it was last year. That's not really a fair comparison. I don't think it's fair to see it's all the way back yet, because that's a championship level program. But to your point, schedule favors them. We've already beaten Virginia in Virginia, so they know they can beat that team. But against Virginia's got something to proved. But the important thing is, yeah, look, my brother watched the game and text me said, Syracuse
is awful, But Yeah, they won at the Dome. That's a long road trip, brother, and that's a tough place to play. They recorded or reported seventeen four hundred whatever, That wasn't the case up there, but it's still a really difficult place to play and win. And I just think I don't care how many people were there. The fact that they won on the road. That's a huge step for U of L, no question.
It's like when they went to Virginia.
Both.
Yes, they've always been traditionally a tough place to play for the Cardinals, Syracuse in Virginia, and that's not.
A huge arena, but it's an intimate place. It ain't exactly Duke, but it is a tough place to play. And the fans show.
Up fifth Swig and the six pack onto the NFL and the college Championship and our picks for those games. But quick question for you, what do the Ravens, Eagles, Commanders, Bucks, Packers, and Lions all have in common this season? Besides making the postseason? I'll tell you what. They're the top six rushing teams in the NFL, including mobile quarterbacks. Conversely, what do the Raiders, Jets, Bengals, Brown, Seahawks and Cowboys all
have in common. Besides not making the postseason. There are the six worst rushing teams this year, all with fairly stationary quarterbacks. Look, you run the ball well, you're dominating the line, and when you dominate the line, you almost always win. It's a simple formula. So take that. Geniuses on Draft Day on all the cable channels who say, well, running backs are overvalued.
Wrong.
Now on Saturday, four point thirty ABC, Texans eight and a half point underdogs at Kansas City, I'll take the Chiefs. And then the nightcap eight pm on Fox. Oh no, we gotta get Brady again. Commanders at the Lions. In fact, we get them through the Super Bowl, then he'll be gone, hopefully. Commanders at the Lions Detroit nine half point favorites, give me the Kings of the Beasts. And that one Sunday,
three o'clock NBC Rams six point underdogs at Philly. I got the Eggs on this one, but I will not be surprised that the resilient Rams do something for their wounded city again. And six point thirty on the CBS. The Ravens are a point underdog at Buffalo, but I'm gonna take La Marvelous and Balmer on that one, and then on Monday night, I'm gonna be rooting for the Irish. But if I'm betting money, if I had dough, I would say I'm gonna take the eight point favorites of Ohio State.
Yeah. I agree on the college game, I'm gonna take Buffalo. I'll go against you on the Ravens just because I just think they've been sitting on this game. I agree on the Lions, and I agree on Philly. But I say Kansas City wins, but doesn't cover why, because it's been happening all year. Yeah, Ana City has been winning, but winning somehow the close games. I don't know if it can hang on to that case going into the Super Bowl, but it's amazing the way to keep finding ways to win.
Sixth and final swig. You know we open the night talking about UK rebounding after losses. If any county in state can rebound after horrendous weather losses, I say it's La County and California in general. I know because, as you know, I've lived half my life out there over three decades as your West Coast Bureau chief. In fact, for seven years I lived just a few blocks away from Pacific Palisades, and for two years just down Lake Avenue from Altadena, not too far from the Rose Bowl
as well. I lived through the ninety four Northridge earthquake you may remember, thirty one years ago this Friday, by the way, plus more Malibu and Metro LA fires, and I can remember, not to mention all those in northern California and south of LA. Point is like right here in Louisville in nineteen seventy four, and like the folks in Mayfield and Bowling Green and elsewhere. After all those tornadoes, people in California are good at picking themselves up, dusting off,
and rebuilding. Only this time I think the lifting up may be the heaviest yet. But think about it, with events like World Cup Soccer and Super Bowl and the twenty twenty eight Olympics all in the rise in sports wise, don't bet against LA and the Golden State.
No, I agree. I think the biggest thing holding them back are the politicians, of course in DC, who are trying to make this a political I don't know what the word is, but a political issue, and they shouldn't. This is when everybody's got to pulled together, and we learned this again from places like Kentucky. They had to deal with flooding, as you said, and tornadoes, and yeah, I go back to that seventy four I was a freshman at UK. But the famous picture on the cover
of the Courier Journal of Bardstown Road. Somebody snapped the picture looking straight down with all that wreckage.
And their telephone polls all over exactly right.
Exactly right, and you could see a shop called Royal Typewriter. That's why I worked a summer job. Wow. So that brought it home for me, and I drove that area many, many times. So yeah, just could we quit politicizing this thing and just pull together for a change. I think that would be fun.
I agree the same deal with what happened in Florida. You didn't see this kind of political backlash against Florida. Biden was there saying, Okay, we're gonna get some funds down there right away. And now you're hearing all this stuff, but well, California's gonna have to do this, and they're no, they're not gonna have to do that. Give them the dough.
We'll take a right come back with hot raids for our West n Bureau Chief Gary Moore here on the Big Bloon Sider six thirty WLAP. Welcome back to the Big Loon Sider. We're talking with our Western Bureau Chief, Gary Moore. You've heard two guys in a six pack time now for a couple of hot raids, and this has been a story that has made the rounds fairly quickly.
I don't know if you saw the video, but an Eagles fan spent much of the Eagles win over the Packers much of that game belittling and yelling at and saying crude things to a Packers fan, a female and her her husband was next to him, saying, don't talk to my wife that way, and it didn't slow him down at all. It went viral. This guy has been banned for life from the Eagles games and fired from
his job. Good because social media is social media, and he was almost immediately identified, and people even said, here's his here's where he works, here's who he is, let's make him famous. And I read one place where the Eagles had a security who was this legendary huge guy on the sideline, So bostly he had something to do with identifying this dude. But you know Eagle fans. A friend of mine is an Eagle fan, and he bristles at the notion that Eagle fans are worse than others.
But this doesn't help, does it.
No, it doesn't at all. And I stopped bringing dates back in the eighties to NFL games when the Raiders were out there and well the Rams. The Rams were down in Orange County at the time too. But the crowd is definitely way more aggressive or verbally violent than at a college game. Totally different vibe. You see, you and UCLA game games were completely different. But it seems like it hasn't changed. In fact, it may have even
gotten worse. If this is obviously just a and this this is one that was caught on video, however, gets yeah everything. Our second hid read for Gary Brittany Mahomes, wife of Patrick, congratulations on their third child.
She has explained the names. The latest child is named Golden, ray r A y E. The other children are named Patrick, Bronze, Levaughn, and Sterling Sky. So you got Gold, Sterling, essentially silver and Bronze. Honestly, I think it's kind of cool. But on the other hand, if you're bronze now and the reason is is, she pointed out, he's Patrick the third, which makes sense. But imagine being the third kid, or being of the three kids. You ain't gold brother, and you ain't silver.
Back in college, metal stand exactly there you go back in college, I wanted to have my firstborn son's first name Lead, and of course the middle name would be Zeppelin. So that's why I never I don't have any sons that I know of. Second of all, that sounds like something that somebody in Metallica would name their kids, you know, like, yeah, we got all the medals, we're doing, We're going for all the heavy metals. Man, that's crazy, and you think at school they would get made fun of. But there's
so many crazy names for kids now at school. If you and I like, your name is Gary, kind of weird name is that?
But the one thing the kid has going for and make fun of them, say, my dad at the time has two Super Bowl rings. How you doing? Exactly?
That justifies everything? Show them the rings, Show them the rings.
I would love it. I would have loved it if you had a child with a middle name Zeppelin, because you probably would have gone a Zeppo. The most famous Zeppos and Zeppo Marks.
I love it. Yeah, it never happened, although the life is still young.
True at uh maybe by Aim.
That's more likely going to happen to the night I.
Would say so. He is Gary Mories, our West m Bureau chief. Find him, honeymout seek him out on Twitter x at.
At nine five five Gary, that same lovely media joint where you're at.
I'm a big blue insider one, thank you sir, stay warm, same at you now. I'll do it for now thanks to Gary, Sean Woods, Anthony White. That's it. Good night from the garage in Lexington.
Bad guy in a little code, fat guy in a little code.
Dame