UK Fans Have Always Had a Special Connection, Now Need a Rocky Flop

Kentucky players and fans have always had a special connection. (Vicky Graff Photo)

By KERI SCAGGS, Contributing Writer

The Sweet Sixteen. Has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it? And yet … who in the world thought that Kentucky would be there with a first-year head coach — and zero returning point production? If you did, well, good for you. But I’d have a hard time believing that because it’s the first time it’s ever happened. In all the categories UK basketball leads, there’s a new one to add to the list.

It’s easy to think this is our birthright, but I’m hoping that we can learn to choose joy and gratitude instead of entitlement. When you look at how hard it is to win a championship, how tough it is to advance due to the format and the possibility of poor matchups, my prayer is that the BBN begins to adopt the character of Coach Mark Pope.

And yet … when it comes down to it, we are one of one regardless of this season’s outcome (or the next, for that matter). Have you tried explaining what this is like to an outsider? The way that this connects us (especially in an increasingly disconnected world) should cause us to pinch ourselves because we’re so fortunate. Since last weekend I’ve been on the phone with family and friends in the Bluegrass, and boy did the stories and memories begin to flow.

My Uncle Phil shared about sitting by the radio as a kid to listen to Claude Sullivan on the call. How his uncle took him to games on school nights when there was no I-64 — a 4 hour drive from Ashland that got him home around 4 a.m.. My pal Dana shared the same, though by then they’d cut that time a bit to get home by 2.

I began thinking of when my sister was going through chemo and had an extended hospital stay. A cousin brought her a signed calendar from the 1998 team, which she said gave her courage. Two days before she died, we watched the Tennessee game in her hospital room.

In 2011 I flew in to spend the first weekend of the NCAA with my folks. Uncle Phil came over, and I’ll never forget watching the end of the Morehead/Louisville game after Kentucky beat Princeton. I flew back to Los Angeles, and led worship at church in a UK sweater before the UNC win. Little did I know that was going to be the last time I saw my Dad alive, as he was gone a few weeks later.

Who remembers Jeff Brassow with that tip-in at the Maui Invitational? We were watching at my sister’s in Louisville, and we all leaped in the air — pretty much just like Coach Rick Pitino.

I’ve seen more games in bars while on the road, even having one in Colorado Springs open early so I could watch the Louisville game. Same thing in Cooper Landing, Alaska. In 1992 I pulled over on I-64 to listen to Cawood call the Duke game, and I just knew I was going to be able to call my sister to celebrate. Thought the same would happen in 1997 when I was the only Kentucky fan in a New York City bar for the Arizona game.

I never dreamed my friends and I would be leaving the Final Four in Indianapolis early in 2015, nor will I ever forget the grief that hung over Lexington after 38-1. The year before that had been my first postseason, where Aaron Harrison hit those unbelievable shots. I got to see that IN PERSON! I went back to LA and was watching the Final Four with a dear friend (from Greenup Co), her husband and another pal. When Harrison hit the shot to beat Wisconsin, we went from sitting to jumping up and down. Her husband shot off the couch and started running in circles. He is no longer with us, but that memory will never fade. It’s what binds us together, in just about every aspect of life. Which brings me to …

Yeah. It even spilled over into my dating life. Met a great guy from Louisville at the 1999 Outback Bowl. The next month, he had that panicked look on his face when he asked what I wanted to do for Valentine’s Day. I said, “Listen, every place is packed. It’s a stupid made-up holiday. Besides, Kentucky plays so why don’t we stay home and watch the game.” After the shock wore off, he replied “I think I love you.” (Still friends.) When I moved to LA, I didn’t think it was a big deal that my fella wasn’t really into college sports. He came over one evening when I was folding laundry and wondered aloud why I had so many pairs of UK pajamas and said it didn’t seem necessary.  (No longer friends.)

When Mark Pope was presented as the 23rd head coach, my Mom was dying. I was in Boyd County, and my family encouraged me to head to Rupp. Boy. Did I want to. I share season tickets with a friend who is like a brother, and he was going. To have watched that with him would’ve been a thrill — but I simply couldn’t do it. Uncle Phil kept saying it would be a once-in-a lifetime experience. He wasn’t wrong but we were about to have one of our own as I knew we could watch it online. For the rest of my days I’ll never forget the three of us on the couch huddled around my laptop, the emotion we felt and the beauty of that time together.

Listen, I can go on with these stories and I sure hope you haven’t found them boring. I know they aren’t special or unique because we all have them. It’s what makes the ties we have to Kentucky basketball unlike anything anywhere else. I’m hoping it’s caused you to reflect on YOUR memories as well. To think that we have a coach who not only has this connection but shares these experiences makes me feel like we’ve captured lightning in a bottle. Let’s not squander it.

Does it hurt when it doesn’t end well? Of course! But that’s true for anything that you love. You don’t get one without the other. But who wants to look back on their lives and feel nothing but indifference? Embrace this. Make more memories. The only thing we know is we’re promised another game. Beyond that, we’ll just have to wait and see.

Until then, may Rocky Flop. Because nothing sucks like a big orange!

GO CATS!