blue 27 Red 2

2 pts – yes, dos…

This was a painfully ugly affair, by two mediocre teams.

It was like watching two armless men butt each other to death in a sauna.

UK had no offense…well, actually count 6 points for them–or, ok, give ‘em 13, with Dixon going in after one of our many miscues.

U of L had no…offense either. In fact, it was far, far worse. To a degree beyond what any even pessimistic Card fans could begin to fathom in their darkest , bourbon-swilling moods.

Balls hit our receivers in their guts, in the “numbers”, and in, and through, their hands many times. Hunter Cantwell I’m sure was frustrated–but something is wrong when a 6′5″ QB’s throws keeps getting tipped–like 6 ? times. And he just plain forced the ball too many times.

Oh, and our three-headed running game was neatly guillotined, producing little all day.

To their credit, UK does have a very solid D, and that may somewhat compensate for an incredibly bad QB, and a mediocre O line, and permit them to eke out another winning season. (They may do a bit better than that by just putting the versatile and impressive Randall Cobb in at QB, and turning him loose, ala Pat White.)

Bright spots?

The Card D actually looked much improved and aggressive, and that was the most pleasant surprise of a most dismal day for our side. Ron English…Please. Don’t. Leave.

Where from here?  Lordy…

Well, the D did look better, and may unexpectedly serve as a bulwark for the Card O to get some experience over these next two “easy” games. And get something…anything…working.

But my eyes also told me this: We simply don’t have the number of studs on the field right now, that we have had in the last several years. The talent is just not there.

Of course, that just brings us back to the black-hole conundrum of why the house had to be cleaned to begin with, and why we are now begging for even  2 and 3 star recruits.

No matter how you slice and dice it… I think we may unfortunately be in for a very long season.

My thoughts rush immediately to three issues…intense fan reaction and discontent with K… even worse recruitment problems than we currently are experiencing…and discontent extending possibly even to Tom Jurich with the fan base if it gets really fugly.

Bad, bad weather ahead indeed…

Well, that was fun.

Fans, bloggers, Card cheerleaders and Ladybirds mixed, chatted, snapped tons of photo ops–and consumed many tall cold drinks in the thick summer air– at the laid-back party at the BBC Bash at Theatre Square.

Personally, I truly enjoyed getting a chance to actually meet some of the people I have “talked” to on the message boards and blogs for so long– such as JTownCard, TexasHoldem, and Cardhusker of ITV, among others.

And, it is always a treat to get together with the other Card bloggers–guys like myself who put in a ton of time and effort into a “hobby” simply for the love of the Cards and sport. Guys who understand the passion of Card fans everywhere, and who want to fuel it through their own talents and energies.

Of course, the highlight of the early evening was the show by the University of Louisville Cardinal cheerleaders and the Ladybirds, who arrived rather impressively via two stretch limosines.

I’ve seen their routines at Freedom Hall in seats near the floor. But let me tell you…those propelled flips into the air take on a whole different perspective, when viewed from just a few feet away–and generate a much truer appreciation of the athleticism and risk -taking involved. Their highest toss reached a height of probably 15′ — and this was over the asphalt of Theatre Sq. Made me catch my breath for a moment!

i had an opportunity to talk with Todd Sharp, the creative force primarily responsible for the stunning national success of both the cheerleaders and the Ladybirds. Todd is a walking dynamo of energy. I learned that his base is across the river and he has engineered 9 straight state titles for the Floyd County High School cheerleaders, and that many from that school make up the Card contingent. (Todd is at front left on the next pic.)

After talking with some of the cheerleaders, I also came away with the very pleasant impression that we as fans are represented by some great young people.

As the cheerleaders and Ladybirds departed, the first band kicked in, and the crowd kicked backed or milled about on an increasing pleasant summer evening, as a mild breeze softly circled through the Square.

The Cardinal Bird hung around for plenty of photo ops. Da Bird this year is a young man who is the newest member in the proud line of those who have donned The Suit. Full of enthusiasm and energy–as one must be to wear that costume in 90 degree heat–he is someone that I may do a story on, once he’s had a few games under his, err, feathers.

The long-standing Card message board, Card Empire was there, represented by Brandon (Prudat) and Chris (Lindy), as well as Chris’s wife Sarah. (Brandon and Sarah are shown in the pic below.)

Brandon is the man behind some of the coolest Card wallpapers and graphic designs on the internet, and the creator of Wallpaper Wednesdays at the Empire.

He was handing out some of his best football wallpapers, and the Empire was taking names for a drawing for a poster signed by this year’s football team.

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Charlie Springer (on the left in the pic above), blogger-in-chief of Card Game was there, also doing a drawing for a football. He was next to me at our table top. Shannon of Card Dominance was also there, and I handed out some stuff for Justin at Cards Hoops too–an excellent basketball blogger based in Chicago.

One of the biggest treats of the night for me was meeting a young man named Zach who was very proudly carrying around probably the coolest Card football helmet in creation signed by a bunch of great Card players–and with prominent signatures by both Brian Brohm and Michael Bush right on top.

I smiled at the sight. It reminded me of my own souvenirs from my youth–talismans that evoke strong memories and feelings even now for me, 40 years later. Such power that many fans choose to have these items buried with them. I’m not embarrassed to say I’m one of them. I have at least a at least one item I’m taking with me all the way. OK, three.

(BTW: I told Zach I would post his pic, and to ck out my blog–and he did. This is his post:

zach Says:
August 30, 2008 at 7:10 pm e

its me carrying around my helmet. just a few autographs include Brian Brohm, Micheal Bush, Art Carmody, Hunter Cantwell, Earl Heyman, Elvis DUMMERVIL, Harry Douglass, Will Gay and many more.)

Michael McCammon (shown below cking out Zach’s helmet) of the blog, Ditchball, was the chief on lining up the bands, and he needs to be thanked for arranging an evening of good, diverse local music.

The crowd and I got into the smooth groove of the second band, Chemic, and chilled down even further as the sun set.

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I finally sat down  with some friends, including my sister Robin and her husband, Matt– a diehard Card like myself, and the man responsible for these photos today. After all that water I had drunk during the humid evening, I needed something to really quench my thirst. Woodford on the rocks seemed right. So I settled in nicely, and sipped the night away to a very pleasant conclusion.

On with the Game!