NEW: For the first time this week, UK senior DL Tre’vonn Rybka shared his story about overcoming family trauma to reach the SEC. Now, he wants to be an example for kids in similar circumstances.
Start UK football media day by reading what he has to say.
John Calipari a week ago: "The way you judge a league is what's their record in the NCAA tournament?
"If half your teams are three-quarters losing the first game, it kind of tells you that maybe you weren't what everybody said."
Kentucky, Tenn, LSU, Bama all upset already.
Kenneth Horsey has a message for anyone who says non-playoff bowls aren’t important or that the Music City Bowl is a letdown because Kentucky will play Iowa again.
NEW: Three years ago when Kentucky snapped its 31-game losing streak at Florida, Josh Paschal was watching from his couch in Lexington while undergoing cancer treatments.
Last night, he and Big Blue Nation finally got to celebrate together
Worth noting that Square's good friend Chris Oats clinched the 2019 Citrus Bowl with a fumble recovery on last player. Oats was here today in his wheelchair as he works his way back from a stroke.
This ESPN broadcast really playing up Garrett's "courage" in playing through illness. Not sure that's the message we want to be sending right now.
Even if he doesn't have COVID, we should be normalizing not going to work or school or anything else while sick.
John Calipari tells Senate committee that the type of player who has made a mistake by leaving for the draft early in the past will likely stay in college with NIL money on the table.
Will Levis was asked before Kentucky's Pro Day if he was going to the draft in person:
"I’m looking forward to going, but I don’t want to go if I could be like a second-round pick. Don’t want to have the camera just on you all day.”
For all the attention of Josh Allen's rise from 2-star to National Defensive Player of the Year, how good Calvin Taylor has become might even be a bigger surprise. Dude didn't even sign until weeks after signing day.
The Music City Bowl has announced his 25th anniversary team.
Rich Brooks is the head coach. Josh Allen, Wesley Woodyard and Rafael Little also included.
NEW: Three years after it looked like they would play together for Kentucky, Terry Wilson is finally throwing passes to Wan'Dale Robinson this week.
Why is Wilson back at UK for pro day?
"I’m BBN for life. All in with Kentucky."
Chris Oats, who went through the Cat Walk with UK before the Citrus Bowl, is also n the field in his wheelchair for warmups. Cool sight.
He clinched the Citrus Bowl win three years ago with a fumble recovery.
Calipari just told the fans here for his postgame radio show if more games are canceled, he's going to try to play the best teams in the country.
"And I'll go on the road. I don't care."
Officials trying to prevent a skirmish here in early warmups at the Gator Bowl. Barion Brown, Maxwell Hairston among UK players exchanging words with Clemson players at midfield. Vince Marrow also trying to diffuse the situation.
Welp, slowed down that Calipari video from last night. This is what the sped up part sounds like at 1/4 speed.
"Scheduling, the guy down west, he's nuts, he's out of his mind."
SEC coaches name Lynn Bowden first-team All-SEC as all-purpose player.
They put Logan Stenberg and Max Duffy on the second team.
Media had those three and Drake Jackson as first-team picks.
DeAndre Square coming to the postgame presser on crutches.
Mark Stoops said Square knew he couldn't come out with his injury because of depth situation.
Fanatics/Topps announces it has reached deals with more than 100 universities, including Kentucky, to produce trading cards with school trademarks.
That means any active athletes at UK who sign NIL deals with the company can be featured in their jerseys.
Memorial Coliseum renovation should get final approval tomorrow from Board of Trustees and begin construction as soon as current STUNT season ends. Here are renderings for what facility will look like in 24-25.
NEW: Louisville native Jared Casey decided not to play at Vanderbilt so he could use one of his four games against his hometown team this weekend.
"All of those guys, me, J.J. and Tae Tae, we’re excited to play against this team for sure."
Mel Kiper now has Josh Allen at No. 14 on his NFL draft big board. There might be no better signal of Allen's increasing dominance than the way opponents are trying to do anything to keep him from the backfield
Mark Stoops says on UK's Pro Day broadcast that former OC Eddie Gran is there today rooting players on.
Cool for him to do that and for UK to welcome him.
NEW: Mel Tucker tried to hire Vince Marrow. UK took 2 Michigan St transfers. Spartans tried to flip Kiyaunta Goodwin on signing day.
Now, budding recruiting rivalry has a new development.
Tucker was 1 of 2 coaches not to include UK on final top 25 ballot
Don't worry, you're not rid of me yet though.
On Monday, I start my new job as the UK football beat reporter for the Herald-Leader.
Excited about joining the team. Please no football news during my two days of unemployment.
Assuming this UNC score holds, you’d understand Kentucky fans just pretending there is no Final Four this year.
All blue blood Final Four without UK in same city Cats won last title 10 years ago is nightmare stuff for Big Blue Nation.
NEW: After wearing a “Traitor Joe’s” hoodie at the Senior Bowl, former Uk OL Darian Kinnard called the pandemic a “scare tactic” at combine this morning.
Kinnard says he is enjoying letting teams meet his full personality
Hubert Davis calling a TO to draw up a last play here in tie game vs. Baylor.
Really overshadowed in the end of Kentucky/St. Peter's was John Calipari not doing the same on final possession of regulation.
On his radio show, Mark Stoops says there's no lingering issue with John Calipari. Says both coaches want the best for other's program.
"We move on in about two minutes."
ESPN's Pete Thamel just reported on College GameDay that Kentucky is preparing for Kaiya Sheron to start tonight.
Don't think that is necessarily different from what we already knew, but another data point to consider.
Just walked off the field with an emotional Freddie Maggard. Hard to believe there are many people happier than him tonight. Happy for him and a lot of hard-core UK football fans I know who have weathered more heartbreak than most fan bases.
On the UK Athletics Committee meeting agenda today.
1. Build new indoor track facility.
2. Improve Athletics Facility 2 (Nutter Fieldhouse) Capital Project
3. Improve Kroger
Field Stadium (Audio Visual Improvements) Capital Project.
Full BOT meets tomorrow.
Davion Mintz (
@deemintz1
) with a great backstory on how he broke out of his scoring slump tonight.
0 points against Kansas, 21 points tonight.
Sports, man >>>
#BBN
|
@FOX56News
UK baseball opens top-five matchup with Tennessee with a come-from-behind 5-3 win. Record crowd at Kentucky Proud Park to start the biggest regular season home series in stadium history.
Dontaie Allen has his warmups off on the bench, but no sign John Calipari is actually considering playing him. He's the only available scholarship player not to see the court for UK today.
Some trivia. These are the first commitments from the last four UK coaches.
Rick Pitino: Jamal Mashburn
Tubby Smith: Saul Smith (Jules Camara was the first commitment who wasn't related to him)
Billy Gillispie: G.J. Vilarino
John Calipari: DeMarcus Cousins
"Do I talk a lot of crap? Absolutely. Do I bump a dude here and there to get underneath his skin and talk while I’m doing it? Absolutely. That’s part of my game. It’s what I do. But am I out there to deliberately hurt somebody? Absolutely not."
Fourth straight draft a UK guard once projected as a lottery pick has slid into the 20s.
Worked out fine for Keldon Johnson and Tyrese Maxey. Even B.J. Boston exceeded expectations as a rookie. TyTy Washington will look to go same route now.
Some news: Today was my last day at the Courier Journal.
It's been a great seven years, and I will be forever thankful for the immensely talented team I worked with at the CJ. I'm going to remain a subscriber, and you should too.
NEW: Nate Sestina will play his final game in Rupp Arena tomorrow, capping a roller coaster regular season in his one year at UK.
"It’s crazy how much people actually support you, people you don’t even know."
Mark Stoops says SEC presidents are voting on change to rule about transfers within the conference. UK will vote in favor of change.
He thinks there's a chance rule gets changed for this season to let guys like Joey Gatewood, Tennessee's Cade Mays play.
Ravi Moss to crowd at halftime: "We're family and family is brutally honest. ... You guys have not been the greatest today."
Urging fans to stand up and be louder in second half.
Reached out to the NCAA for clarification on the hotel situation for Lexington baseball regional. Here's the statement on why Kentucky was allowed to host despite lack of available hotel rooms due to Railbird, HS state championships already in town.
Classy move from Barion Brown on the way out of the field. Even as a drunk Tennessee fan screamed "Loser!" at him, he stopped to give his gloves to a young fan.
NEW: Documents obtained yesterday by the Herald-Leader show the university investigated this spring an allegation that football players working jobs at the hospital had filed inaccurate timecards.
NEW: Joey Gatewood‘s personal QB coach is a Florida fan, but after learning more about UK’s program during Gatewood’s recruitment he’s worried.
“It gives you the sense of the direction that program is headed in. ... It scares me. It really does.”
Dontaie Allen is going to have to play for Kentucky this season. Nothing we've seen so far suggests this is a good enough shooting team to leave him on the bench.
UK AD Mitch Barnhart and many members of his staff are out drying off seats with towels at Kentucky Proud Park.
A good sign this regional game between UK and Indiana State might start relatively soon.