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“The two questions I hear the most are :  Does it hurt? and,  How does it feel when it’s cold?”

Ryan Payne, U of L’s barefoot kicker

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In the late stages of Louisville’s thrashing of Tn Tech, as the crowd thinned predictably early into their tailgating and high-tailing home, and as my own thoughts began to drift from the game,

my attention was jolted awake by the sight of a new kicker for the Cards who was…barefoot.

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It’s not everyday that you see a barefoot kicker.  It kinda grabs your eye, and makes you watch.

Ouch!

That kicker was Ryan Payne.  His kick was good for the point after–and he looked pretty damn good doing it.  I was awake and impressed–and curious.

You see, I had seen such a thing before–here–at U of L, in the 70’s.  But I couldn’t remember the player’s  name–only that he was a hippie, with very long hair, and that he punted barefoot (See  my post below on All-American Scott Marcus and the link  to  a hilarious Sports Illustrated article on him.)

Luckily, the same thought hit Matt, my photographer on the field , and he took several good shots of Ryan (See my post below on the Tn Tech game and the pics, as well as the post on Scott Marcus.)

Very pleasantly, I also got an email visit from Ryan’s mom, Debbie, who shared some background on Ryan (see post below.)

Well…

I grabbed Ryan after practice today for an interview.  I found an engaging, well-spoken young man, with a ready smile and laugh.  A great representative of the University.

This was an interview I looked forward to.  I have always wanted to ask barefoot kickers a couple of good questions….

Frank: Why in the world would you want to kick a football with your bare foot?

Ryan: (laughing)  Well, you’d be surprised.  I was able to kick it much straighter–and farther.  I was surprised myself.

I had always worn a shoe to kick until I started working out with Mike Lansford (former NFL Ram’s kicker for many years–who kicked barefoot).  After Mike trained me for awhile, he kept saying, “C’mon, try kicking barefoot just once.”  So, I finally said OK and kicked one barefoot.

Wow! The first one went real straight.  I felt I could guide it better.  After a few, I found I could kick it a lot farther too.

I went back to using a shoe. But then I went back and  forth for awhile with being barefoot, until Mike finally said I had to  make a choice, or it would mess up my form.  So I decided to kick barefoot.  I had kicked soccer balls barefoot, so it was somewhat the same.

Frank:  Does it hurt?

Ryan: (Grinning)  The two questions I hear the most are: Does it hurt? and, How does it feel when it’s cold?

It doesn’t hurt – unless I catch my foot in the turf.  Then yeah, it really can jam my toes.  I had a big toe that looked like this (makes bent shape with his finger.)  But it went away after awhile…

When it’s cold outside, the football gets  harder.  I’ll admit:  It stings.  But, you go into the game  with a lot of adrenaline , and you don’t really feel it.  Until later on the bench.

Frank:What part of your foot do you hit it with?

Ryan :  It’s just like a soccer style kick and you hit it the same way–on the side of foot, where the hardest part is, right here (points to just below his big toe).

Frank: What’s the longest field goal you can make?

Ryan: Chris (Philpott) and I can make some from 55 to 60 yard–with a little wind.  Without wind: I’m good to 50- 52.

Frank:  I understand you and Colt Brennan, former QB for Hawaii, are friends.  How did that come about?

Ryan: Colt’s dad is my godfather.  He and my dad are close friends and the families grew up with each other.  It was Colt’s dad that knew Mike Lansford.

I used to see Colt 20 or so times a year.  Now, of course, I don’t see him so often, but I still call him and pick his brain — how he prepares for the games, any tips he can give me.

Frank:  Did you know that we had another barefoot kicker here at U of L in the 70’s?

Ryan: Yeah, in the Unitas museum, I read something about him.

Frank:  His name was Scott Marcus.  He was a real flower child of the 60’s.   And he was an All-American kicker for us!

Ryan: Wow!  Sometimes I wish I had started playing football sooner.  I feel like I’m still in the early stages.

Frank: From your mom, I know that you excelled at soccer, and played that sport  rather than football, until your dad urged you to try to make a few field goals.  How long have you actually been kicking a football?

Ryan:  One year, and eight months.  I played soccer my first two years at a small college only about 20 minutes from my home (in southern California)

Frank: Less than two years kicking a football?!!  That’s amazing!  Where’d you get those genes from?

Ryan:  (Laughing)  It’s funny you asked.  Cory (Goettsche) and I were just talking about that.  I told him neither my mom or dad are athletic.  Yet I’m good at most sports I try.  I really don’t know where it comes from! (Ryan’s mom owns two Montessori centers, and his dad is in sales in the hardwood industry; they are divorced).

Frank:You’re from southern California coming to Louisville, KY.   What’s the biggest differences you notice?

Ryan: Well, things move a little slower around here.  But the parties are better than at the small college I was at.  I’m away from home. I have to take care of myself and be independent.  (Grinning) The other college was so close to home,  I could have my mom do my laundry.

Also: Snow!  For the first few hours I was , like, “Wow, look at all this white stuff.  How cool!”

But then, you have to scrap it off your car windshield..and the cold burns your face.

Frank:  Your ultimate goal I’m sure is to be the # 1 kicker.  What’s your situation now?

Ryan: (Frowning slightly for the first time) I’m fighting through a small groin injury now. I injured it 4 days before the Kentucky game.  I was rated the # 1 kicker up to that point.  I haven’t really practiced much the last few days–mainly just getting treatments and stretching.

It’s frustrating.  I felt I had it right there…

Chris is a good kicker and settled down fine after a few bad kicks.  People think it’s easy–all you have to do is go and kick the ball.  But if you are off only an inch or so in how you plant your foot, or how close your foot is to the ground, you can hook it,  or worse.

Frank: Did you ever have anyone cleat you on your foot?

Ryan: Not yet.  After I kick off,  I try to let everyone go past me.  And when we’re celebrating, I stay away until I have my shoe on.

Frank: Last question: Kickers are not known as tacklers.  Do you think you could make an open-field tackle if you had to–with one shoe on?

Ryan: (Grinning) I think I could.  I am pretty fast–I can run as fast as most of the guys.  I wouldn’t try to tackle the upper body; I’d go for the legs.

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By god, K’s  no quitter!

But…he’s no winner, either:

0-6 versus UK, UConn, Syracuse

35-35 lifetime against I-A schools

6-19 lifetime versus BCS schools.

4-10 record in the Big East

11-13 as head coach at Louisville…..

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(The following was written over a year ago, after the FIRST Syracuse meltdown, but it still reads fresh…)

Nothing could be worse than the total debacle that was Card football   year.  My expectations have now been lowered to Cooperish levels.

Football last year? I’ve already bitched and cried and drank enough bourbon about it. It’s time to laugh.

It was such a total farce, that I wrote this post last year soon after the 4th game of the year–the Syracuse shocker.  Coach K-speak had reached cliche’ heights unimagined. It was roughly at that point also that Card linebacker Willie Williams was pulled over with a mouth full of marijuana evidence he was trying his best to to chew and swallow.

Also, a few months earlier, former UK guard Dirk Minnifield had suddenly emerged after 20 years to let us know that it was a joint he smoked THE DAY BEFORE the original Dream Game that caused him to miss that key layup late in the game and THAT cost UK the victory. Darn! (Naww, it couldn’t have been the Card shot blocking machine of a center, Charles Jones! )

BTW, please note that only a major second half rally by the Cards in the Rutgers game kept me from correctly predicting the final W-L for the season….

Scene: K’s press conference after a 48-28 drubbing at home by Rutgers to finish a 5-7 season.

K: I know this has been a long, difficult season for all Card fans. And, I want everyone to know that the buck stops here, there will be no excuses, and we’ll go back to work and fix this right away.

But, I guess this is finally the time to let everyone know WHY this has been such a difficult season.

I’m sorry to say this: But everyone at U of L– except of course the Koaches — were pot-smoking felons!

Crowd: (Collective gasp)

K: Yes, even Tom J and Doc Ramsey…

Crowd: (People faint)

K: In fact, Tom was smoking a big doobie when we signed my contract. I should have known then, darn it!

Tom: Yes, it’s true. I hate to admit it, but after that Orange Bowl, well, I just kicked back and celebrated — a lot. Doc here didn’t indulge as much…

Doc: No, Tom, I won’t let you take all the heat. I was toking on one of your special J’s when I signed off on that damn thing too.

K: I know this is a shock to everyone. Let me introduce an expert on the subject who can go into more details. Dirk?

Dirk Minnifield: (Still obviously dazed from that toke in ‘83) If I could just do it over again. I was going up for that easy layup…

K: No, err, Dirk, please…focus on the current situation…

Dirk: Oh, yeah… MaryJane …evil woman… bad stuff. F*ck you up…Bad, bad, really bad. Really, really…

K: Uhh, thanks Dirk for that insight. Now fans, you can see the total mess Dirk is, so now you know it was an uphill, no-win battle for the Koaches.

In fact, even Brian…

Crowd: (Screaming now) No, not Brian!

K: Yes, BB didn’t indulge directly but he got plenty second-hand stuff, didn’t you, Brian?

Brian: (Sheepishly) Yeah, I didn’t know how dangerous this stuff was until Dirk told me. I was just riding in Willie’s car…

K: Now, Brian, it’s time to come totally clean — you were ALL in Willie’s car.

Brian: Yeah, 22 guys stuffed into one car — it seemed funny at the time…

K: Yes, that’s when the red flags really went up for the Koaches. We knew we had to nip this in the bud…

Tom: (Grimly determined) That’s when I cleaned my own act up , and suggested that K bring Dirk in. We owe an eternal debt of gratitude to this man.

Dirk: (Smiling at Tom) Thanks Joe B!

K: Now, I’m open for any questions.

Mike: Card Chronicle here. Koach, if you and the Koaches haven’t been high on weed all season, then my readers want to know just what drugs have you been taking? Because, frankly, they want the good stuff too..

K: I want to assure you and everyone again that the Koaches are certainly no pot smoking felons!

Mike: Could you be any more specific about …

K: No, that’s my statement

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“There have been some great games over the years, but none so big. So much was at stake, and the winner went to the Final Four. The weight of the State was on the shoulders of the players and coaches.”

“There was only one–the original–Dream Game.”

Charles Jones, U of L center in The Game

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It was — and still is– the most important, most exciting, most meaningful

single sporting event

in my life.

I have never since been so thrilled for a game–and so tense about it’s outcome.

Yes, this was the ultimate “show me” game — against the sport’s dynastic power and for recognition in our own state as an equal.

And, yes, the feelings of tension and anger still well up as I write even these simple words….

Younger Card fans….

you just don’t know.

THIS ONE WAS FOR BLOOD!

24 YEARS !!

24 years of Big Blue condescension, ridicule, and refusal to even consider scheduling us

rising to a peak of hatred and revulsion with the smarmy, snarling UK AD Cliff Hagan

and a Joe B. Hall at his clumsy, arrogant worst.

Hell, they wouldn’t have played us in 1958-59 if they hadn’t been forced to!

And that year, Peck Hickman’s unranked Cardinals whipped Adolph Rupp’s second-ranked Wildcats 76-61 in the Mideast Regional semifinals on the way to U of L’s first Final Four.

Before that, the teams hadn’t met since 1922!

UK was the dynasty, the traditionally dominant player on the national scene for decades. They had only recently been humbled by John Wooden and UCLA. The Cats had claimed five NCAA championships and had produced dozens of All-America players.

Louisville was the upstart, a successful program in its own right starting in the 40’s with coach Peck Hickman, and then regularly crashing the NCAA party in the 1970s under Denny Crum. Only three years earlier –in 1980–the Cardinals had finally won their first NCAA championship.

“I don’t think UK wanted to recognize that our program was on a competitive scale with theirs,” Denny Crum says. “They certainly didn’t want the media to recognize that.”

In those long 24 years, the teams had just missed meeting on a couple of occasions.

In 1975, both teams marched into San Diego for the Final Four.

Even then the fever for a match-up was hot. I was a senior at U of L at the time, and somehow managed to get a ticket in the student lottery– and went on my first airplane trip!

The game was in a small gym (around 15,000) in San Diego — basically a “home” game for UCLA. It was Denny’s second Final Four in his first four years, and he faced his mentor and perhaps the greatest college BBall coach of all-time. John Wooden. In what at the time was considered one of the finest games ever played (and deserves a story in its own right), U of L lost in overtime to top-ranked UCLA 75-74 in the semifinals; Joe B’s first Final Four team at Kentucky fell to the Bruins 92-85 two nights later.

(Wooden has been quoted as saying he feared Denny’s team the most. It has also long been rumored that Wooden announced to his players before the U of L game that he would retire, to fire up the Bruins.)

After Denny won his first championship in 1980, basketball aficionados throughout the nation began to clamor for a match-up. The NCAA committee seemed to want such a pairing too, and they started putting the Cards and the Cats in the the same Regional.

In 1982, Big Blue needed only to beat 11th-seeded Middle Tennessee State University in the tournament’s first round to earn a matchup with third-seeded Louisville. The Mildcats fell in a huge upset, 50-44. U of L then pummeled Middle 81-56 on the way to its second Final Four in four years.

“I really thought (that year) we were ready to play,” says Charles Jones, a 6-8 center for the Cards. “We were disappointed when they lost to Middle Tennessee State.”

The next year it happened. In 1983, UK beat a tough Bobby Knight-led Indiana squad, and U of L –with Razorback US Reed’s 50′ dagger a few years earlier still etched in their minds–edged a very difficult Eddie Sutton-coached Arkansas on a last second tip-in.

Finally…the Game was on!

And it was for the Regional championship, pitting two of the nation’s top programs against each other for a spot in the NCAA Final Four–and with both teams coming off recent NCAA championships- U of L in 1980, UK in 1978!

But there was of course a lot more was at stake when the teams took the floor at the tiny (12,000) and somewhat dingy old Stokely Athletic Center in Knoxville, Tenn.

“I can’t tell you how much more the game meant to U of L than to UK,” says Billy Reed. Then sports editor of The Courier-Journal, Reed incurred the wrath of UK’s coaches and fans for advocating a series between the two schools. “Had UK won that game they probably would never have played (the series).”

CBS and a national audience were focused on the game.

So that you have a true understanding of the intensity of the Game, take a moment and listen to the CBS pre-game show -particularly the classic John Tesch interviews with Denny at his cocky, sarcastic best and Joe B. at his clumsy worst –”Is that (camera) off?” ( You can also watch the entire game at Jerb’s site.)

My brother-in-law — a huge Card fan like me–managed to get tickets. We took our wives–both dyed deep Blue.

I was 29 at the time.

For six years, I had been working and living in Eastern Ky and I was definitely one of only a handful of U of L fans in that region — and EVERYONE let me know it.

I had been raised a UK fan –as most Louisvillians and Kentuckians were in that era. People younger than 50 do not understand this: Rupp was God in Kentucky, even in Louisville in the 50’s and 60’s. When Blue deigned to play at Freedom Hall, it was packed, and people were turned away.

The Cards did not fill Freedom Hall like that until the 80’s.

But after seeing Unseld play, and attending U of L, and being blinded by the brilliance of this new smart-ass coach from the West Coast who wore those so-trendy leisure suits– I had become a die hard Card fan.

You had to be a rebel in your own family and city back then to “come out” as a Card fan!

Now… I ached for –and dreaded –the Game.

If we won… supreme vindication…within our families, our city, maybe even our State. For our style of play…and our ideals (no need to go into race issues here- suffice to say UK did not integrate its BBall until the 70’s- well after U of L).

If we lost… oh God! It felt like we would never get over the hump then. More “little brother” nonsense, more feeling like a second class citizen in your own city, more daily abuse from family, neighbors, friends!

But I and most Card fans felt confident going into this game. Yes, Joe B and Denny each had one NCAA ring at that point. But Denny had taken the Cards to 4 Final Fours while Joe B had only the one. And the Cards were generally considered by impartial experts to have the stronger team in 1983. It had been clear for awhile–even in most UK fans’ minds–that U of L was at least equal to and probably better than UK from 1971-1972 to this point.

Yes, U of L “wanted” the Game more than UK–but let me tell you: UK feared the Game much, MUCH more.

I don’t remember much about the ride down, but I remember being somewhat surprised at how small the arena was. It was old and a bit musty. But every seat had a great view.

As you can imagine, the feeling in the crowd before the game was electric –I’ve seldom felt anything like that raw mix of emotions. Violence had been feared….

But then, just before the game started, in what is one of the most celebrated moments of the entire event, the cheerleaders from both schools locked arms and led the crowd in singing My Old Kentucky Home. The scene sent chills through me and thousands of others. Tears flowed openly in the emotion of the moment…

And then it was on!

From the opening tip it was war. Louisville fell behind quickly. The shooting of guard Jim Master and forward Derrick Hord bolted UK to a 15-6 lead, then 23-10. “I knew they would be tough,” Crum says of that Wildcats team. “Their players were as good as any in the country.”

I remember thinking that the Cards looked tight, and UK played a very steady, controlled game, never allowing our feared defensive pressure to find a crack.

Still, the Cards never panicked. Brothers Scooter and Rodney McCray began to take over inside, scoring six of Louisville’s next eight baskets. Charles Jones’ lay-up cut UK’s halftime lead to seven, 37-30.

Crum felt U of L had begun to take control. At halftime, “He told us not to worry about it,” Jones says. “He said ‘Let’s go out there and play ball.’ “

“There were no Knute Rockne speeches,” Crum says. “The incentive was there.”

UK once again jumped on the Cardinals at the start of the second half. Center Melvin Turpin’s hook shot gave UK a 43-32 lead with 16:38 left in the game.

Then the Cardinals took over.

In less than two minutes U of L outscored the Cats 12-2, cutting the lead to one point. The teams then traded baskets until a similar flurry put U of L up five, 58-53. I remember finally feeling some relief, thinking the Cards had finally rattled the Cats, and that we were ready to hammer the final nail in.

But UK fought back, tying the game at 60 each with just over three minutes left.

We missed our shot, and UK had the ball with about 2:00 to go. This was bad. Very bad. There was no shot clock then. The Cats could just run the clock down for the game’s last shot.

And that’s what they tried to do. The moved the ball around for what seemed a lifetime until finally, with 20 seconds left, UK guard Dirk Minniefield faked Lancaster Gordon right and drove wide open to his left for a certain layup.

Out of nowhere, Charles Jones soared across the lane and tipped the shot away from the goal toward Scooter McCray. He fired a pass to his brother, who then fed Gordon, who redeemed himself with a short jump shot and a 62-60 Cardinals lead. Only eight seconds remained.

Wild CARDS cheers echoed off the old arena walls. High- fiving, raucous Cards fans –after having waited those many long years–were ready, oh so ready, for that final sweet vindication. Imagine the energy of caged animals not fed for a lonnnngg time. I (we) could taste it!

But Blue refused to lose. The Cats got the ball to Master, who nailed a 12-foot jump shot with less than a second left.

The Dream Game was going to overtime!

By this point, the tension was almost unbearable. There was what can only be described as wild-eyed pandemonium on both sides. I could barely speak, my voice so raw from the shouting. This most hoped for victory by the Cards had been snatched away at the last possible second. I was drained dead.

Accounts after the game indicated that some people literally fainted and had to be helped out…

And then… what followed was what many, MANY fans still believe are the best five minutes in U of L basketball history.

As UK’s Master said after the game, “It was like a cavalry charge.”

The Cards took control from the tip. Gordon hit a baseline jumper for a 64-62 lead, which he followed with another jump shot. Jones contributed two free throws. Guard Milt Wagner hit a layup, then two free throws, threw down an exclamation-point dunk and drilled another two free throws to cap a 14-0 run. Two more dunks– by Gordon and Wagner–and three late Kentucky baskets led to a surprisingly lopsided final score, 80-68.

U of L had shot an unbelievable 81% during the second half and overtime and had been perfect in the extra period, hitting all six of its field goal attempts and all six free throws.

And on defense?

“They were all over the floor,” said UK guard Dicky Beal. “They were just everywhere.”

The Cardinals had made 30 of their final 36 shots. Crum described the Cardinals performace as “I don’t think we ever played any second half or overtime any better than today.” He went on to marvel at how Kentucky could shoot 56% from the field during the game and still get beat.

After the game, fans roared while players cut down the nets. Gordon, the regional MVP, stood on a ladder holding the rim with one hand. In the other was a sign that said, “Cardinals Best in State.”

It was a game for the ages… one that is still unsurpassed in this intense rivalry.

Here are some of the interviews with the players before and after the game (just ck out the first 2 minutes.)

In Louisville, fans rushed from the Cardinal Inn out into the streets near campus. Students dangled from telephone poles and street signs. Fans drove throughout the city, hanging out car windows, honking their horns and waving flags.

Yes, we had been denied a seat at the family table for many, many long discouraging years.

And now, as we were seated at the head… it felt good. Oh so good….

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After the game, my brother-in-law and I were of course ecstatic — but our wives…not so much so. : – )

Very prudently, we avoided any razzing on the trip home–although sorely tempted. My sister, when asked for her account of the Game today, simply says she was “devastated.”

After the Game, an emotionally drained Card squad continued on to the Final Four that year, where they lost to the the Houston Cougar’s ‘Phi Slamma Jamma’ squad in one of the more memorable games of the 1980’s.

The Kentucky players–and Big Blue Nation– were heartbroken. Over a decade later, UK point guard Dirk Minniefield still couldn’t bear to watch a replay of what was the final game of his career. After finally being talked into it, Minniefield remarked, “I played pretty well. Everybody on our team did. We played as hard as we could. Louisville just played better. I can give them credit.” And then a pause. “But I still should have dunked that ball.”

(Even as recently as 2007,  Dirk was STILL in denial, blaming a joint he smoked the day  BEFORE  the Game for causing him to miss that layup!)

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The Game caused seismic changes in Louisville and the State of Kentucky.

The governor, legendary entrepreneur John Y. Brown (who had diplomatically worn a half blue, half-red sport coat to the Game), legislators and even the boards of trustees of U of L and UK began to talk about a series between the schools. Shortly after, they announced that they would begin playing each other.

And, so …the U of L-UK series was born.

Denny’s and Joe B’s careers had run remarkably parallel time-wise to each other. And, although he posted a fine record at UK, Joe B suffered in the bright light of comparison to our truly brilliant coach– 1 championship to Denny’s 2, and 2 Final Four’s to Denny’s 6!

The high-flying, full court pressing Louisville style of play had obviously prevailed. Three years later, Joe B was looking for a job.

Yes, this game–the Game –was the tipping point.

We had gotten that first NCAA championship–but we hadn’t won our own State, yet. Now we had not only that inter-family vindication, but we also had cemented our position among the all-time basketball powers in the national consciousness. Denny put down his final exclamation point for emphasis in ‘86.

There is little question today whether U of L and UK should play each other in all sports. There is now at least grudging mutual respect.

Our own city of Louisville — previously dominated by UK fans — also began the major change to where the vast majority of Louisvillians are now Cards fans.

And the State of Kentucky — well, it’s still Blue.

But there is little doubt that there are a lot more Cardinals flying high throughout the State today because of

The Game.

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The following are memories of the Game that fans have sent to me. The very last one is one from my brother-in-law, Matt, who got us tickets for the game –and remembers some great details I had forgotten.

If anyone has any pictures or others story to share, please send them or leave a comment!

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I was there as a 14 year old

by neverwrongponchowright

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Actually if you will remember this game was pre shot clock days and the scored was tied at 64 at about the 2 minute mark and Kentucky held the ball till the Minniefield drive at about the 18 second mark. We all know that Jones blocked it we get a fast break and Gordon banks one in with about 10 seconds or so that set up the end. No 3 point line in those days either. Guys like Wagner, Jeff Hall and Jim Master would have had field days back then.

I was 7 yrs old. yet I remember it like it was literally yesterday!

UofLCardsFan

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I was 12. It was truly the most intense atmosphere Ive ever been to, even more so than the National championship games.IMO The best part of the whole weekend, with the exception of the overtime, was the tip at the buzzer in the sweet 16 game. Up to that point I was just sick that we were that close to getting to beat the hell out of UK finally and it was so close to slipping away. The year before in the tournament we were supposed to play them in the second round but they lose to middle tenn. st., I still think they threw that game just so they didnt get beat down by us.

Timb23

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I watched the ot on youtube a while back and it was as good as I remember. I thought we were toast at the end of regulation but that goofy Minnifield thought he could drive on Charles Jones – wrong. Blocked shot and Gordon bank shot and only Master saved them to take it into ot.

IamReady

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I was 29 years old and campus minister at the U of K…. it was fun “jawing” with the students and good naturedly watching the game together at our student center…it became wonder “fodder” for conversation for the next few years..

they were very good natured about the loss and it was edifying to see how they warmed up to some of the UL players afterwards.

In 1988 I was talking to Lancaster Gordon in a private health club (Louisville)…we talked about the Lakers and his time at UL….it was fascinating to listen to him vividly recall the small nuiances of the game itself ….and how defensive errors nearly cost them dearly near the end…. they just didn’t think Masters could beat them, unfortunately he had the game of his life in that loss.

Westport68

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Cardinaldave

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That article brought up a lot of good memories. I was 15 when they played that game. At that time, I was awestruck by these Louisville players. I consider them to be my first heroes in life and I still feel that way. They were 1st class all the way.

Before the Pitino era, a friend’s wife decided it would be a great gift to get her husband a copy of the 1st Dream Game. She called the UofL athletics office and spoke with one of Denny’s former assistants. I believe his name was Jones. He was one of Crum’s long-time assistants (the other great being Wade Houston). He kindly responded he would look around and see what he could find. A week later she received in the mail, not only the Dream Game, but also the Houston Final 4 game and the ‘86 championship. We spent all night watching all three games. Even in a loss, the Houston game was great to watch as was the ‘86 game. But nothing was more exciting than to watch the ‘83 game again. As thrilling as the comeback in the 2nd half was, the overtime was pure magic. They released the ‘80 championship on DVD to celebrate its 25th anniversary and I suspect they’ll do the same for the ‘86 game as well. More than anything I’d like to have the ‘83 game in my library.

AACards

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That game still gives me chills thinking about it. I personally felt I had so much at stake because of the trash-talking I’d done against all the other UK fans I’d grown up with. It was put up or shut up time and I was praying they’d take care of business like I knew they could. And while they scared me for the most part of 40 minutes despite still playing very good ball, I couldn’t ask for more from that overtime. To this day, about as good a five minutes of basketball that I’ve ever seen anyone play. Absolutely amazing.

Shooze

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‘ve noted that most on this board are ‘fairly’ young and only think of UL in terms of their generation. I go back almost 3 generations of being a UL fan; and, I’m here to tell you the real UL vs UK dream game was in the 1958-59 basketball season. I was there; and, also present, at the previous game against Eastern KY at the old arena in Lexington.

After beating Eastern 77-63 in the game before the big one I was in 7th heaven; the minute the game was over UK fans in the arena were chanting something like, “We finally get to stomp your ass”.

It was hard to scrape up the money to go to the NCAA Mideast regional at Evanston, Illinois where finally after decades UL would meet then #2 UK. I had my future mortgaged to cover bets with rabid UK fans I knew.

The game was a real nail bitter, somewhat similar to the 1983 meeting. In the first half, UL could do no right and trailed by 15 points at the intermission. A big red-headed fellow, Don Goldstein, from New York was our shooter. Coach Peck Hickman must have given a whale of a half-time pep talk as UL came out on fire. Now it was UK who could do no right and UL went on to win 76-61 (by 15). That’s a 30 point swing in the second half.

UK coach Rupp was unable to talk after the game and it was days later he finally admitted to Peck Hickman that, “You (UL) really kicked out butts.”

I sure wish video (movies back then) was available of that game on DVD. Maybe UL has film buried in some archive somewhere. But, unlike today, filming of games wasn’t as prevalent back then.

Unfortunately, UL lost next game to WVa (Jerry West) in a good game. I think they were totally worn out.

That was the first of second year the NCAA finals were held in then fairly new Freedom Hall which for years was the biggest indoor arena in the country for basketball. 6 or 7 championships were held here through the mid60s.

None of this should be taken as anything against the 1983 game which is one of my all time favorites too; and, of course, was the first to carry the “Dream Game” moniker.

Swamp Daddy

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And now, from my brother-in-law, Matt, who went with me to the Game:

Dream Game 1983 – Leaving Las Ville

1983 was a hopeful year for the Card Fans. We still had lingering karma from the 1980 championship, and we all thought we had the team to do it again. Little during the season occurred to sway our opinion. We lost to UCLA (we were robbed), and we beat a lot of very good teams. We strung together a couple of streaks, including beating NC State, which we didn’t think much of at the time. Milt “Ice” Wagner sank two clutch free throws to defeat Memphis in the regular season, and then we beat them again in the Metro Conference semis. We went on to win the conference tournament, and were waiting for a great draw in the NC-dubs. I don’t really remember when it started happening, but sometime around that time I started to feel that Louisville always got the short end of the stick in the draws. Instead of a slot in the Mideast, where they would have played in Freedom Hall, they drew the Midwest along with Tennessee, Kentucky, Arkansas, and a tough Indiana team. Denny said it was the toughest region. We all saw the possibility of the Kentucky game, but we knew it wasn’t a sure thing, since we were disappointed when Kentucky lost to Middle Tennessee in 1982 to kill our joy.

We were sure that Kentucky was avoiding playing Louisville, since the 1980 team had taken the national spotlight and Louisville was on a roll. If you were a Kentucky fan, you saw your beloved team in a transition period, with at least some loss of prestige. You probably knew you were the second best team in Kentucky, but you didn’t need any proof. The average Kentucky fan was in denial in the 80’s.

Kentucky beat IU in a close game, and the Kentucky fans and students lined up their tickets to Knoxville. Louisville had to go against a tough Arkansas team, which sunk the hearts and minds of Louisville in 1981 with the name US Reed forever etched into our minds when he sank a 50 foot prayer to end our run. This game was a cardio cards game as well, with this game ending in the final seconds with a miss by Ice and a tip-in by Scooter McCray. The impossible dream was set!

I remember the next morning being a turning point in my card fandom. The paper and the rest of the media jumped all over it, and didn’t hold back on any sensationalism. I had to look up the headlines, but the Louisville Times headline was WAR! in gigantic Pearl Harbor sized type. The papers printed special sections for the first time, and if you were a sports fan in Kentucky, you quickly got caught up in all the excitement.

I never got to see an NCAA semi or final in person, and fewer Louisville games in Freedom Hall than I would like. I was a poor working man at the time, with some prospects and a 1983 Renault Alliance 1.4 liter that I bought in 1982 at around a 14% interest rate. George C. Scott was touting the paint job on the car, and it surprisingly won the 1983 Motor Trend Car of the Year. It was about the only thing I could afford, as the government tried to kill inflation, I felt like they were killing me with a 13% mortgage to boot. But I was determined to see this game. The next day, I scoured the classified ads in every publication available to see about tickets. After a few calls, I found a UK student in Lexington that had 4 seats together for $50 bucks each. I couldn’t believe it. I called Frank, and he agreed to spring for the tickets if I could get them. (Thanks again Frank).

We set up the trip with myself and my wife Robin picking up the tickets at a typical UK off-campus apartment. I remember being a little wary about the ticket drop, but there was kind of a festive air about it, and to the best of my recollection the UK student said something about you guys will probably win it, good luck and all. Its kind of hard to understand now, but there were not a lot of confident UK fans, and a lot of them just did not want to go to the game. They had all the tickets, because they knew they were in, and we just appreciated being able to buy them.

We rendezvoused with Frank and Deb at the Holiday Inn on I-75 in Lexington, a famous place that everyone I know seems to use as a meeting point for going south. Not so odd in Kentucky, each car contained a set of UofL and Kentucky Fans in equal numbers (2 and 2). Each of us carried our respective colors, and we would root our teams on in typical fashion. Robin was a big Masters fan. Deb was a diehard UK fan. And Frank and I could hold our own in any arena in the country. So with great anticipation and fanfare, we headed down the winding road. I remember the Renault would go about 90 mph down the hills around London and beyond, and I could push it to 68 mph up the hills. It seemed like but a flash till we arrived for the big show.

The ambiance in the hotel was electric. We checked in and quickly got to the lobby bar. There were minor celebrities galore, and sports figures and team luminaries abounded. But I honestly can’t remember any of them. Maybe it was the Jack and Cokes we were consuming abundantly, or maybe it was the heady feeling that came with the Mardi Gras atmosphere. I do remember people without tickets trying to get them. I heard of $1000 courtside tickets, and all manner of transactions occurring around us. But the thing I remember most vividly was a pair of tickets going for face value just moments before we left for the game, probably around $24. Bottom line was that if you really wanted to get into this game, you could have done it.

The Knoxville Coliseum only seats around 12,000 {check this out}. We were in the upper deck, about 10 rows from the top, and towards the UK side. But I remember fairly good leg room and visibility. If you see the camera angle from the game, that’s about what we saw. It was all in all a pretty good venue for a game.

I will leave it to others to give details on the game itself. The game did not disappoint in any way. U of L center Charles Jones made one of the greatest blocks in UL history with the score tied 60-60, and UL drove the floor and scored with a short jumper to put them up 62-60 with 8 seconds. UK Jim Master hits a basket at the buzzer to tie it at 62 all.

I still regret this a little, it must have been the excitement and the need to relieve a little of the tension, but I got up and went to the concession stand to get a beer. By the time I got back to our seats, UL was up 6 in overtime and it never was in doubt from there. They ran 14 straight before UK scored. U of L won handily 80-62.

Another thing I remember was that UK players were classy throughout the game and afterwards in the interview. They came to play, and even though UL looked to have the better record and the better team, UK played like they didn’t know it, and when they got beat, they recognized U of L as probably the top team in the Nation. Except Louisville lost to the Phi Slamma Jamma in the semis in Albuquerque. They finished the season 32-4. Some say it was the altitude, others say that maybe beating Kentucky emotionally drained Louisville. I just remember that I don’t remember anything about the Houston loss. And remember the NC State team Louisville beat earlier in the year? They won the title that appears every year on your screen during March Madness with Jim Valvano running crazily out on the floor in celebration.

Billy Packard called the original dream game on TV, and every year Billy and Dick tout the great Duke/NC rivalry as the tops in college basketball. But Kentucky knows, and you know, and a large part of the sports nation knows that the Annual UofL/UK game is the original and the best Dream game in the country. They only thing that really comes close is the OSU/Michigan football game.

Lest you doubt the seriousness that UK fans take with the annual dream game, here is a random quote Googled off the net from a UK blog:

“BUT….I grew up as a small child hating UL, lived through the original “Dream Game”, and cried when UK was blow out in the OT. I waited in line for HOURS to get a student ticket to watch UK beat a sorry UL team. I give nose-bleed tickets to UK/UL to 2 uncles that bleed blue and it was like I had given them the winning powerball ticket. UK/UL is a passion. It is much more than a UK/TN or UK/Fla rivalry., although I do hate Tenn and recently learned to hate Fla. UK/UL IS unc/duke, it IS Kansas/Missou, not only is UK/UL a great rivalry it is one of the 5 greatest rivalrys in the country. When is the last time your family held an annual UK/Florida party???????? OH YEA I forgot, now Slicky Ricky coaches there. I wouldn’t root for UL to win a chess tourny, can’t stand to watch them win in football, girls’ BBall, baseball, or swimming for that matter.”

And so time goes on, and the dream continues. The Renault paint job that George C. Scott touted as the best in the world oxidized mysteriously in 5 years and flaked off. The 1986 Consumer Reports “Annual Auto Issue” surveyed owners after five years , and the 1983 Renault Alliance scored worst ratings in “Engine”, “Clutch”, “Driveline”, “Engine cooling”, “Suspension”, “Exhaust system”, “Automatic transmission” and “Manual transmission”. I managed to trade the vehicle in for another Renault that I bought in a giddy frenzy caused by mortgage refinancing my house for 8%, which blew a timing belt 4 years later, thus proving the definition of insanity is doing things repeatedly while expecting different results.

I still expect U of L to win every dream game every year. Regardless, we were young once, and we were there for the first one, and we have the liver spots to show for it.

Matt

“The Slam Dunk Contest went right to the heart of the old ABA. The dunk was a bigger play in the ABA than it is in today’s NBA; it was a statement of your manhood and your talent.”

Dan “The Horse” Issel, ABA and NBA all -time great, and forward on the 1975 ABA Champion Kentucky Colonels.

“The best halftime innovation since the bathroom.” Sports Illustrated

“Then he …. took off. His afro was big then, and it was blowing. He went up and threw that baby down and the crowd went crazy.”

ABA All -Star Ron Boone on Dr. J’s amazing leap into history and lore …

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The ABA was an artistic and innovative success, but it financially struggled due to lack of TV revenues.

In 1976, the league was desperately trying to force a merger with the NBA. To garner publicity, the league was determined to make a splash at its last All-Star game.

An entire weekend of events was created, including a concert by Glen Campbell and Charlie Rich (Remember: This was Denver and it was the 70’s. Trust me, they were big.)

But it was one innovation that created an indelible impression.

The halftime Slam Dunk contest.

“We were sitting around the office one day, discussing things that would draw more people, and it just came to us — let’s have a dunk contest,” said Jim Bukata, former director of marketing for the ABA. “That’s really where it came from — three guys talking about what we could do to sell a few more tickets.”

“We actually got the idea from Julius (Erving) in a roundabout way,” Bukata said. “We had a guy named Jim Keeler, who was African-American, who handled the business affairs for the league. Julius used to kid him all the time, saying, ‘I’ll bet you’re the only black guy involved in the ABA who can’t dunk.’ And it kind of came in some way off that.”It was Julius really giving us the idea that we’re the league of the dunkers.

“So I said, ‘Let’s have a Slam Dunk Contest!”

Everyone said: “Great!”

Then we all said, “OK… how do you have a Slam Dunk Contest?”

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Dr. J: ” When the idea of a Slam Dunk contest was presented, it concerned me some…. I always considered myself a very good dunker…but my best dunks were always done in the game. I didn’t think about them, I just did them.

The other thing….it would be held at halftime….our legs would be a little tired. Now the Slam Dunk contest is held on a different day than the All-Star Game.

Really, none of us did much preparing… we all sort of winged it.”

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The contest matched our own Artis Gilmore, the 7-2 center for the Kentucky Colonels; George Gervin, a 6-7 guard for the San Antonio Spurs; Larry Kenon, a 6-9 forward who was a teammate of Gervin’s with the Spurs; David Thompson, a 6-4 guard for the Nuggets; and Erving a 6-7 forward for the New York Nets. Dunks were judged on “artistic ability, imagination, body flow as well as fan response.”

All true basketball fans of that era knew it was going to be a showdown between Erving and Thompson.

One of the great leapers of all time, Thompson wowed the partisan Denver crowd with a windmill slam, a two-handed reverse and the first recorded 360 dunk.

For his first dunk, Julius Erving stood underneath the basket and dunked two balls at once. But Dr. J’s second was the one that will always be remembered.

“It was unreal,” said All-Star Ron Boone, now a television commentator for the Utah Jazz. “First of all, the contest was the first of its kind, which made it so exciting to watch. Everyone was bringing the house down.

“Then when it came to Julius’ time and he walked up to the free-throw line and started marking these steps off, going back to the other end of the court. Well, you knew what was coming — ‘Oooh, he’s going to take off from the free-throw line.’ Everybody was on the edge of their seats watching. The anticipation was great.”

“Then he went and took off. His afro was big then, and it was blowing. He went up and threw that baby down and the crowd went crazy.”

The Doctor himself: “Here was my philosophy — dare to be great…. I always like to take chances every now and then, and this was taking a chance because back then you didn’t have the spring-back (breakaway) rims. You had a rim that if you didn’t get above it, and dunk the ball through the right way, the rim would throw you to the ground…”

“With that rigid rim with no spring-back connection, you had to bring the truth in.

“I just wanted to make a nice, soaring play that would get the fans out of their seats. I really started going at half court and got a good running start and made sure that I made the shot authoritatively.”

A link to the video of Dr. J’s leap into history and legend…

http://www.imeem.com/people/lN30t7c//video/06yPB0TF/baskettball_julius_erving_1976_aba_slam_dunk_con test_free_th/

Replays of that dunk and the contest on the ( 3 ! ) national news channels electrified sports fans,  helped prompt a lifting of the ban on college dunking in 1976–and also  inspired a new Doctor just a few years later,  our own Darrell Griffith and his 360’s.

I checked Google–as you can imagine, there are not that many people in recorded history that have been able to dunk a ball from the free throw line.

In addition to Dr. J, Jim “Kangeroo Kid” Pollard –a 6′3″ white guy from the 50’s!– Wilt Chamberlain, Clyde Drexler, Michael Jordan, and Scottie Pippen, and Brent Barry have each dunked while jumping from around the free throw line, which is 15 feet from the basket. There are maybe a dozen other names of jumping jack no-bodies-you-never-hear-ofs.

Unlike all the others, Chamberlain did not require a full running start, but instead began from INSIDE the top half of the free throw circle. (Was this guy superhuman, or what!)

To show what kind of hops he had, Dr. J repeated his ABA feat 8 yrs later in 1984 when the NBA restarted the dunk contest–and that dunk is considered one of the greatest in NBA history.

Four year later in 1988 –but 12 years after the Doctor first did it– his Airness himself, Michael Jordan, replicated the Doctor’s dunk from the free throw line to win that year’s contest.

For a comparison to Doc’s dunk, here’s the video of MJ’s :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_3YyE9oyFQ

(Much of my research on the ABA came from two sources: the Web site Remember the ABA

http://www.remembertheaba.com/ABAArticles/MurphyArticleABA.html

and from probably the best resource on the ABA, the book Loose Balls by Terry Pluto.)

T Will blew my mind last night.

Thanks to Mike at Card Chronicle for the cool graphic pic and app.

In particular, that coast-to-coast slam brought me screaming out of my Lazyboy,  scaring the dog a mite.

Five dunks in all and two  Sportcenter dunks, including a windmill jam and an  alley-oop where he magically switched from his right hand to his left before dunking–as he flew out of bounds!

It got me thinking immediately:  Where have I seen such a display of dunking ability in Card history?

Not just dunking, but dunking with the creativity and fearlessness of the Doctors of old.  The fearless leaping into and over hapless defenders, jamming them into submission.

It is a signature of U of L basketball .  As is our pressing full court defense,  incredible athleticism and leaping ability–and of course, dunking.

This is  Louisville basketball,  known  both  to long-time Card fans and to national aficionados of the college game.

Well…here’s a sampling of some of the best dunks of all time in Card history.  I personally believe until we see another  360, Griff is still–by far–THE MAN.

But…you decide…

Up first…Darrell Griffith

Contenders for the throne:

LaBradford Smith

Terrence Williams–from last night against Rutgers.

Alvin Sims

Everick Sullivan

Jerome Harmon?  Cornelius Holden?  (Watch the last minute in particular.)

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Very…

In an international game in 1976, High School senior and future University of Louisville Cardinal great Darrell Griffith casually jumps over a Polish player , who happened to be in his way... (Ck out the Louisville Sports Scrapbook section tab at the top of the home page. Pic contributed by Charlie Springer at Card Game.)

Just a casual leap, in the '80 title game...

And now a bit more determined ('80 title game vs. UCLA)...

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So pics don’t do it for you?  How about video…

Here’s Geico’s College Basketball Top 10 dunkers of all time done in 2008.

Guess who’s #1 ?

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Ck out the Louisville Sports Scrapbook tab at the top for more memories.

Even as U of L baseball has edged it’s way into the Card Nation’s consciousness,  fueled by coach Dan McDonnell’s brilliance, some people still ask…

“Hey, what’s the big deal? Who cares about baseball anyway in this community?”

Well…sit back and let me tell you a bit about why we care–a lot.

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As America flexed its young muscles and bounded onto the world stage entering the 20th century, three sports dominated the public imagination: Boxing, Horse Racing, and Baseball, and continued to do so for the first half of the century.

And Louisville stood at the forefront in all three.

The first in the great line of heavyweight champions from Louisville–Marvin Hart–won the title in 1905.

After almost going broke in 1902, The Kentucky Derby quickly became the premier horse race in this country in the 20’s and 30’s through the efforts of Col. Matt Winn, one of the early great marketing wizards.

And in baseball…well, we were there at the very beginning.

The Louisville Grays were a charter member of the older of the two major leagues–the National League. And the National League itself was formed in Louisville. The Grays played only two seasons, 1876 and 1877. Their home games were at the Louisville Baseball Park –which was located on the spot where St. James Court now stands.

The Grays died a sudden death by being involved in pro baseball’s first gambling scandal. Four key players were banned for life, and the team folded.

In 1882, another pro team was formed, the Louisville Eclipse, who joined the American Association and then changed their name (logically) to the Colonels in 1885.

The Eclipse and Colonels played ball at Eclipse Park–which is actually the name of two (three?) former baseball grounds located in Louisville, Kentucky–from 1882-1899. Both Eclipse Parks were located at the corner of 7th and Kentucky streets.

One of the early stars of pro baseball was Louisville’s “Gladiator” –Pete Browning.

Browning was an outfielder in Major League Baseball from 1882 to 1894 who played primarily for the Louisville Eclipse/Colonels, becoming one of the sport’s most accomplished batters of the 1880s. A three-time batting champion, Browning ranks third among all major league players in career batting average, and fifth in slugging average. His .341 lifetime batting average remains among the top twelve in major league history; his .345 average over eight American Association seasons was the highest mark by any player during that league’s 10-year existence.

His other nickname was the “Louisville Slugger.” He was enormously attentive to the bats he used, and was the first player to have them custom-made, establishing a practice among hitters which continues to the present.

Of course, the story of how baseball bats came to be custom-made is the stuff of legend here in Louisville. On a spring afternoon, Andrew “Bud” Hillerich, then seventeen, witnessed Browning break his favorite bat. Bud offered to make a bat for his hero and Browning accepted. According to the story, after the young wood shop apprentice lathed a quality stick from white ash, Browning got three hits with it in the next game.

Other major leaguers began to inquire…and that’s how Louisville Sluggers became the gold standard for baseball bats.

The Colonels won the 1890 pennant in the AA. The previous year, they had finished dead last–and thus became the one and only team to rise from the cellar to the pennant in one season. (And, with a record of 27-111, they were the first team in major-league history to lose 100 games in a season.)

In 1892 the team moved to the National League as part of a league merger, and played there until 1899. A fire destroyed Eclipse Park in 1899, and contributed significantly to the once-strong Louisville club being contracted after the end of the season. Team owner Barney Dreyfuss moved on to acquire the Pittsburgh Pirates and brought 14 players with him, including future Hall of Famers Honus Wagner and Fred Clarke.

This major infusion of talent turned the perennial cellar-dwelling Pirates into a three-peat pennant winner, and a participant in the first modern World Series.

The Colonels played from 1902-1922 at Eclipse Park III, but I cannot find anything about its location. However, then they moved to much-beloved Parkway Field in 1923 and continued there until 1956.

(After the Colonels moved, Parkway became home to the University of Louisville team for several decades until they abandoned it in 1998 and moved to Cardinal Stadium. Parkway was south of Eastern Parkway and west of Brook Street. Prior to its demolition, Parkway Field had become a home run haven for U of L Head Coach Gene Baker’s “Over the Wall Gang.” The Cards led NCAA Division I in long balls in 1991 and 1992 while finishing runnerup in 1995.)

In 1909 the Colonels won the American Association pennant, as they also did in 1921, 1925, 1926 and 1930 while featuring such future Hall of Fame players such as Billy Herman and Earle Combs. Additionally, our own homegrown Hall of Famer, Pee Wee Reese, was a rookie with the 1938 Colonels.

The Colonels were one of few minor league teams to play throughout World War II and they won pennants in 1944 and 1945. In 1944 the Colonels played in the Junior World Series against Baltimore and the game drew attendance of 52,833 – 16,265 more than any single World Series game that year. In 1946 the Colonels played a role in the desegregation of baseball when they faced the Montreal Royals and Jackie Robinson in the 1946 Junior World Series.

They moved to Fairgrounds Stadium(later Cardinal Stadium) in 1957. They won (in 1960, with Hall of Fame pitcher Phil Niekro) one of three appearances in the Junior World Series in that time, but in 1962 the American Association folded.

In 1964, the colorful MLB impresario Charlie O. Finley flirted with bringing the Oakland A’s to Louisville (courtesy of card79):

“On September 18, 1962, after less than two full years of ownership, Finley asked the A.L. owners for permission to move the Athletics to the Dallas-Fort Worth area. His request was denied by a 9–1 vote. In January 1964, he signed an agreement to move the A’s to Louisville, promising to change the team’s name to the “Kentucky Athletics”.^[1] (Other names suggested for the team were the “Kentucky Colonels” and the “Louisville Sluggers.”) By another 9–1 vote his request was denied.”

In 1967, Walter Dilbeck purchased the Toronto Maple Leafs of the International League and moved them to Louisville, renaming them the Colonels. This last Louisville Colonels team played in the minor league International League until 1972 when they were relocated to Rhode Island . During this last incarnation, stars included Carlton Fisk, Dwight Evans, Luis Tiant, and Cecil Cooper.

The franchise came to an end when the Kentucky State Fair Board announced that their stadium would be renovated for football. Ironically, baseball returned to Louisville when the same stadium was renovated for baseball in 1982 and the great long-time baseball entrepreneur, A. Ray Smith, brought top-notch baseball back to Louisville. The Springfield Redbirds came to Louisville as the Louisville Redbirds, setting minor league attendance records and outdrawing several major league teams.

During the 1982 season, the Louisville Redbirds broke the minor league attendance record by drawing over 800,000 in 30,000 seat Fairgrounds Stadium. In 1983, the Redbirds were the first minor league team to draw over one million fans in a single season.

In 1999, when the Redbirds became affiliated with the Brewers, they took the name Louisville RiverBats and In 2000 the team moved to Louisville Slugger Field, a new stadium in downtown Louisville, seating 14,000 with a more intimate baseball setting than at Cardinal Stadium.

In 2002 the team dropped the word “River” from its name and became simply known as the Louisville Bats. While the logo and mascot still consist of the winged mammal, the bat is also synonymous with the Louisville Slugger baseball bat. (The naming rights for the stadium were purchased by Hillerich & Bradsby, makers of the famous Louisville Slugger baseball bat.)

Louisville has won the attendance title every season since moving into Louisville Slugger Field and the Redbirds have won the American Association title in 1984, 1985 and 1995.

In 2002, a unique sign of the power of baseball fever in this community was the public frenzy and pride displayed as our own Valley Sports Little League team won the Little League World Series.

In 2007, the Cards set the community on fire with a totally out-of-the-blue run to the College

World Series, led by Logan Johnson and Boomer Whiting.

And, In 2008, the Cards won the Big East.

By the way, it’s not just Louisville. Kentucky as a state holds its own over the years, particularly when you consider its small population relative to other states. Besides Pee Wee Reese, Kentucky has two other Hall of Famers- Earle Combs and Jim Bunning.

Add in Pete Browning–who many argue should be in, and we’ve got Kentucky born players in the Hall at baseball origins 80-90’s , then in 20’s-30’s with Combs and the immortal Ruth-Gehrig Yankees, the 50’s with Reese and the beloved Brooklyn Dodgers, and  the 70’s with Bunning.

Here’s a link to Kentucky players who have played in Major League Baseball(courtesy of rkblock2): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C…s_from_Kentucky

Look at the great pitchers. Besides Bunning,…Woodie Fryman, fire-baller Don Gullet of the Big Red Machine on the Cincinnati Reds, Steve Hamilton, and more recently Paul Byrd and Jeremy Sowers.

Throw in Gus Bell, Doug Flynn, and Phil Roof and several others….not too shabby.

And current MLB rosters are peppered with local and Kentucky born players: Matt Anderson, Chris Burke, Paul Byrd, Tyler Clippard, Aaron Cook, Scott Downs, Matthew Ginter, Andy Green, Sean Green, Corey Hart, Austin Kearns, Jon Rauch, Mark Reynolds, Jeremy Sowers, Ryan Speier, Jon Switzer, Dan Uggla, Brandon Webb, and Todd Wellemeyer, Bill White, and Brad Wilkerson.

So… for those still wondering about why we care so much about baseball— now you know.

Karen Cunagin Sypher was arrested yesterday in Louisville for trying to extort as much as $10 million from Coach Rick Pitino, and for lying to the FBI.

This might put a damper on her Derby this year…

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The criminal complaint detailed that Sypher was “aided and abetted by others” in threatening to injure Pitino’s reputation by making public “claims concerning alleged events in 2003.”

Here are the links to the FBI affidavit and to the front page article in the Courier Journal and a video of  Sypher, one of her sons, and her attorney Thomas Clay entering the court house:

http://www.juryverdicts.net/sypherindictment.pdf

http://www.courier-journal.com/article/20090425/SPORTS02/904250370&referrer=FRONTPAGECAROUSEL

http://www.courier-journal.com/section/VIDEONETWORK&videoid=1102927567

One of those alleged to have participated in this scheme just happens to be Sypher’s attorney in her pending divorce proceedings, Dana Kolter– the man who had the balls (and lack of sense) to demand $10 mil from Pitino.

This is Dana Kolter -- attorney, martial arts instructor, and an aficionado of umm, trashy women on motorcycles, judging by his Facebook photos...

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According the the FBI’s affidavit:

• Pitino told the FBI he received three voice mail messages in late February from a man (not Kolter) who threatened to go public with criminal allegations against Pitino.  In the third message, Pitino was told the allegations would be made public within two weeks.

(Oh by the way– Ms. Sypher  instructed the man to call Coach Pitino  during a critical period in the BBall season to increase the pressure on Pitino– and to make the calls from pay phones so they could not be traced.)

• After the first two messages, Pitino met with both Karen and Tim Sypher, played the phone messages, and asked what was going on.  Karen Sypher indicated she wanted payments for her house, two cars,  college tuition for her children, and additional money.

• On March 6, soon after that meeting, Tim Sypher delivered a written list of demands to Pitino in which Karen Sypher “promised to protect Pitino’s name for life”  if he paid off her house,  bought two cars for her, paid for college for all her children, and paid her $3000 a month for life.  (BTW, Tim Sypher has not been the target of any criminal allegations by the FBI or any authorities, and has been quoted as saying he does not understand the “bizarre allegations” being made by his wife.)

• On March 22, Karen Sypher hired an attorney (Dana Kolter), who sent a letter to Pitino that same day repeating the allegations and demands.

• Very soon thereafter, she filed for divorce, and Kolter withdrew the previous demands, increasing them to $10 million.

Kolter later filed an affidavit repeating the claims against Pitino in the divorce documents, but that affidavit has been sealed.

(For those that want more on Dana Kolter, here are  links to his web site, his martial arts studio, as well as his Facebook page:

http://www.kolterlaw.com/

http://www.louisvillemartialarts.net/viewInstructor.php?instructor_name=Dana+Kolter

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=160021&id=1253225041#/profile.php?id=1253225041

And here are some of the reactions nationally on this extortion story:

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=4096770

http://deadspin.com/5221838/karen-sypher-speaks-sort-of

http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/basketball/blog/the_dagger/post/Karen-Sypher-Rick-Pitino-s-alleged-extortionist?urn=ncaab,157978

http://the1cory.wordpress.com/2009/04/24/pitino-update-woman-charged/

http://graneyandthepig.wordpress.com/2009/04/25/crazy-blonde-woman-officially-charged-in-pitino-extortion-case/

http://thebiglead.com/?p=13519

Stay tuned…

The ABA.

The Colonels.

The memories…

Yes, in this off-season lull, we’re going back. To a time when pro basketball was at its wildest and craziest–and most fun.

From 1967 to 1976 — nine full seasons during my peak sports-crazed teen years — I got to witness close-up entrepreneurial creativity at its purest. The three-point play, the 30-second clock, the first dunking contest, Moses Malone leading high schoolers going pro, bikini-ed Ball Girls, incredibly talented and bizarre player/characters like Marvin “Bad News” Barnes, enormous Afros –and run-and-gun offenses.

Without the big lumbering centers of the NBA, who actually stopped their offenses, the ABA showcased its players’ skills, allowing them the opportunity to freelance, and turned basketball into an artistic venture.

It was playground basketball at its best.

And our own Kentucky Colonels were one of the ABA’s most exciting and dominant teams. Many observers believe that the later Colonels teams, anchored by Artis Gilmore in the middle starting in the 1971-72 season, would have dominated most NBA teams.

In 1974-75, before 16,622 screaming fans in Freedom Hall, the Colonels knocked off their arch-nemesis, the Indiana Pacers, 110-105, to capture the series 4-1 for their one and only ABA championship. Yes, I was there.

Most experts now believe that the Colonels would have beaten the Rick Barry- led NBA champion Golden State Warriors. That Colonels team had two of the greatest pro players of all time–Dan Issel and Artis Gilmore–and the premier scorer in ABA history, little Louie Dampier. Oh, yeah, and it was coached by Hubie Brown.

By the time the ABA folded in 1976, the Colonels had won the most regular season games in ABA history. Generally, Kentucky, Indiana, New York, Denver and San Antonio had been the most consistently strong ABA teams.

It was clear to everyone that the Colonels had the talent and the fan support to join the NBA for the 1976-77 season. So it was an incredible shock to Louisville fans–and to true basketball aficionados nationwide– when owner John Y. Brown sold off Issel right after winning the championship, and then later the team.

So, yes, we’re going back in the next few posts… to relive that first dunking contest with Dr. J… to find out who won the much coveted “Biggest ABA Afro” award… to see the proof that in its last few years the ABA was clearly superior to the NBA …

and most importantly, to understand how our own Kentucky Colonels once ruled the pro basketball world.

Former model, saleswoman, and yes, cake decorator, Karen Sypher was indicted yesterday.

The indictment came a day after Lester Goetzinger — the man who made the initial calls for her demanding money from Pitino– testified before the grand jury.  Goetzinger has not been indicted, most likely because he has cooperated fully from the beginning, with the probable understanding he would not be charged as long as he did so.

Another person of interest not charged yesterday was Dana Kolter, Sypher’s ju jitsu instructor / divorce attorney, who had upped the ante–considerably– on Pitino by demanding a cool $10 mil.  That  was after hitting Pitino up to pay off Sypher’s house, buy  her two cars, and pay her $3000 per month in cash– and threatening to disclose allegations of a “criminal nature” about  “interactions” with Sypher in 2003 in her divorce proceedings with Tim Sypher– the U of L equipment manager and long-time friend of Pitino’s.

Kolter now has his own attorney.  and all has been very quiet on that front.

But the criminal complaint issued against Sypher indicated she had been “aided and abetted by others.”    So….I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop–particularly, now that rumors of a possible  affair between Kolter and  Sypher have surfaced on the internet message boards recently.  It has long been surmised by both people who know Sypher and the FBI that she was not alone in this risky gambit, and may not have been its mastermind.

If convicted, Sypher faces a max of 2 yrs on the extortion charge,  5 yrs for lying to the FBI (never, ever do that!!!), and faces fines of $250,000 on each count.

Sypher’s criminal attorney, Tom Clay–a respected criminal attorney here in Louisville–has been uncharactersitically mute during all this.  He indicated his client will plead “not guilty.”  He has also stated that if his client’s allegations could be proven true, then they could be possibly used to defend her, at least against some charges.

But the FBI has refused to detail the allegations because they found them to be “suspect” and “unsubstantiated.”   Also, apparently according to Clay, the FBI believes her claims are also irrelevant.

Stay tuned……….

As we thunder into the home stretch toward the Greatest Two Minutes in Sport,  a remembrance of years and Derbies  past,  from long-time reader, Roz:

The First Derby I Never Saw

It was before microwave ovens, and bottled water. Before I pods and microbrews. Before laptops and Twitters. Even before Tweets.

It was in the spring of my early life, in my first year of college in Columbus, when my roommate, Tim Holder, a recently discharged Viet Nam Vet, and I decided to engage in The All American right of passage and attend the 1970 Kentucky Derby. Through the drink and the haze (you can imagine) and the newness of youth and freedom, we decided one late Friday night that nothing could prevent us from going the next day.

Although my last name, German, means “one who takes care of horses,” I have never owned a horse, fed a horse, groomed a horse, mucked-out the stall of a horse, and except for the black stallion at the now defunct Stein and Goldstein carousel at Shontags near Saugerties, New York, I have never been on a horse.

Yet I have a connection to racetracks through my sweet, late father. Saratoga. Monticello. Yonkers. Aqueduct. Green Mountain. These were all places with the Runyonesque characters that we have all become familiar with. I became comfortable with the sights, the silks, and the smell of the track. The hawkers. The tip sheets. The Morning Telegraph. The hot days in the grandstand. The waft of bad cigars. The thrill of a come from behind winner. The despondency of a nosed out loser. The tearing of the pari mutual tickets into small pieces.

On the trip to Louisville, Tim’s 1969 VW (bought new for under $1800) chugged admirably above the rising heat of the asphalt as we trundled toward Cincy on I 71. We made a couple of stops along the way to pick up different types of beer that might not be available in New York, as gifts for my father. We stopped in Southern Ohio. A small grocery store featured Weidemanns, Strohs, Blatz. Great souvenirs for the old man.

The beetle chugged ever southwestward and when we got into Cincy you could feel more of the heat lick upward through the floorboards. This day was gonna be on about the fourth level of Dante’s big furnace. To the left we saw the Reds old and pacific palace, Crosley Field, and soon came the new concrete monstrosity, Riverfront Stadium, as we crossed the dirty Ohio into northern Kentucky.

By about 3:00 in the afternoon we were within the Louisville City limits and didn’t have any trouble finding the track as we snaked our way through the urban streets. As we got closer to the old twin spired Grande Dame we were both surprised at how rural the area around Churchill Downs appeared. Red clay road. Small lean-to houses. Overgrown weeds. We weren’t expecting Royal Ascot but for a Yank like me, it seemed like I might have imagined Mississippi would be. Tim said he thought we were in “Dog Patch.” The environs around the great grandstand were more cousin to the scruffy and hard scrabble than to the sport of kings.

We entered the old place under the double spires and right away noticed that the cement canyons, dark byways, and open promenade areas of the place were like a steam bath. It was wall to wall people and you couldn’t help but lean too familiarly onto your next door neighbor as he or she did the same. The overripe human scent was an assault on your olfactory system.

I almost lost my breath in the hothouse humidity as dark stone walls sweat and puffed as we bumped and crawled, back and forth, in the bustle. I thought of many great horses. Man o War. Carryback. Citation. I thought of all the history as a cart piled high with frankfurter buns, and pushed by a blonde haired teenage boy, stalled in the traffic in front of me. All the history. All the victorys. All the disappointments.

We tried to make it to the infield through the tunnel and experienced “human trafficking” before there was such a term. Like the in and out tide, we crept forward, fell back, losing some ground, winning a little more, until we finally broke through and into the sun. You know the scene…colorful campers…beer…kids playing Frisbee…beer…very healthy coeds in straining halter tops…beer…sausages grilling…beer. Except for the ocean, we could have been at spring break in Fort Lauderdale.

Well, Tim and I bet a couple of races and came up empty and as the day went on, more and more people funneled to the already teeming infield. We both sampled the required Mint Julep in the Commemorative Keepsake Glass, which, by the way, turned out to be so brittle, that later that day when I tossed it into the back of Tim’s car onto some sweatshirts, it shattered into a thousand shards. The mint julep itself was undistinguished…so much so that Tim and I were forced to sample a couple more to ensure that our initial judgment of the bourbon laced drink was not flawed.

By now Post Time for the Derby was rapidly approaching. I HAD to bet on a horse called “My Dad George,” because, well…that was my father’s name. I heard the track announcer bellow, “Six minutes to post.” The $2 window was crawling, and I began to get a sick feeling in my stomach that I wouldn’t get the bet in. We all queued in a stationary dance as there appeared to be a problem at the head of the line…a middle aged women with sunken cheeks and wearing a yellow sun dress was barking at the black ticket seller that he had given her the wrong ticket. I got more and more nervous. “Two minutes to post,” and I could see that not only my palms, but my wrists as well, were sweating in the airless tomb. “What the hell,” I thought and bolted toward the empty $10 window and put my last sawbuck on my father’s namesake to win. I breathed a sigh of relief that I got the bet down in time.

Now it seemed the entire populace of Churchill, indeed, all of humanity, were trying to squeeze through the narrow tunnel to reach the fresh air of the infield to be able to watch the race. I heard the PA say with some flourish, “It is now post time!” and instead of moving ahead, the human tide seemed to stop, to freeze, to almost go dormant in the middle of the underground tube. I tried to miniaturize myself, to turn myself sideways, and got by a guy in a Hawaiian shirt and straw fedora, but got road blocked when a lady pushing a double stroller, both kids in tow, suddenly stopped right in front of me as I ground to a halt. Now I was sweating like a spout. I shuffled this way, that way, every way, but made little progress.

“They’re off!!” I still had maybe twenty feet to go and it didn’t look good. I could barely hear the announcer call the race as the crowd roared. Somehow I twisted myself into a small pretzel and made it near the end of the tunnel where a TV monitor showed the horses enter the first turn. I could barely hear the announcer and the names I could make out were foreign, nothing even remotely resembling “My Dad George.” Suddenly the whole crowd swelled and I felt myself swept backward losing this last bit of progress. In the distance, the PA guy sounded more and more excited as he described the scene as the horses entered the clubhouse turn. Finally, I clawed my way all the way back to where I could barely sneak a peek at the monitor when a woman, the size of Junior Sample’s sister, appeared from the right and drifted slowly across my limited field of vision like a nimbus, blocking out all light as the crowd roared at the finish.

Later, Tim told me that “My Dad George” finished second. I still hold the losing ticket in my wallet today.

We stopped for more beer on the way home. Burger. Falstaff. Ballantine Ale. Even though I couldn’t drive a standard, Tim insisted that I take over the wheel for part of the drive home. He didn’t seem to mind that I ground a pound or two from the transmission. I bet there are still some iron filings out on that highway today. No, Tim didn’t mind at all. I guess when you’re a Viet Nam vet you become more forgiving of such relatively trivial matters.

Anyway, that’s the way it was on the first Saturday in May almost forty years ago. Back then, the Derby, along with the Heavyweight Championship fight, and the World Series, was a “big thing.” But even then, the Derby’s power and attraction was already waning. Secretariat’s magnificent Triple Crown win three years later really just managed to put a final exclamation point on an era that was really over.

Times change and people change, though now and again I get a whiff of that burning stogie smell and I think of the first derby I never saw, and I think of my dad George.

Link

I will reserve comment…

http://www.fox41.com/global/Category.asp?c=163829&clipId=3671406&topVideoCatNo=131920&autoStart=true

Ms. Karen Sypher speaks...