Kentucky Sports Radio
[Moderated by Matt Jones, Drew Franklin and Tyler Thompson]
[Moderated by Matt Jones, Drew Franklin and Tyler Thompson]
I’ve been a Kentucky basketball fan since before I can remember. Literally, I have a scrapbook of the 1994-95 season in my room that predates my first Kentucky basketball memory by about two years. Like any fan my list of great memories relating to the Cats is a long one. That is one of the reasons why I was so excited to go to Vanderbilt. Most people get into a college and immerse themselves in their school’s spirit. I, on the other hand, was just happy that I got a free ticket to see Kentucky play once a year. Throughout the past four years people have asked me why I would root against my own school. Why I would camp out in the cold just so I could get a seat in the front row of my student section wearing the opposing teams colors. For me it was never even a question. It’s nothing against Vanderbilt. I’ll support the Commodores just like any other student in any other game. But not this one.
I’ve learned a couple of things over the past four years. One thing that will stick with me forever, though, is that Memorial Gymnasium is not an easy place to play a basketball game. I didn’t get to go the game my freshman year, but when I was a sophomore I saw how hostile an environment Memorial can be. The atmosphere for that game was much different than this year. Kentucky was ranked 18th and Vanderbilt was ranked 23rd. I camped out all night for a noon game and only got seats in the sixth row. That year I had some backup. My friend, a fellow Cats fan, came up to Nashville from Rhodes College and through our combined cunning (and the student ID of a look-a-like Vandy student) we were able to sneak him into the student section. That’s right Vanderbilt administration, that “student” you let into the game back in February of 2011 was actually Hugh Madison, international con-man and Cats fan.
That year we both expected there would some playful smack talking. It’s reasonably to assume that’ll happen when you walk into someone else’s house wearing the opposing teams colors. What we didn’t expect was its intensity. I feel sorry for the Vandy fans sitting next to us because they became the unintended recipients of the near constant stream of trash being thrown at us. Despite the animosity, and the Kentucky loss, I had a great deal of respect for the Vanderbilt fans. These were real, knowledgeable fans. We had the audacity to come into their student section wearing our blue and they let us know how they felt. I don’t blame them for it and I imagine that if someone walked into the eRupption zone wearing black and gold, starting commodores’ chants, that they would receive similar treatment.
My first experience didn’t discourage me from openly supporting the Cats. The next year I got my redemption. It was a day worthy of its own post, but to make a long story short the atmosphere was just as intense as the previous year. Despite the ridiculous hoops that students had to jump through to get tickets I was able to be the first person in Memorial for the game. I sat front row as the eventual national champions squeaked out a win.
That brings us to this year. What an odd game. All the usual pieces for a Kentucky game at Vanderbilt were there; the student section was packed, Memorial was filled, and there was a good amount of blue scattered throughout the crowd. This year was different though. Kentucky has a young team that lacks the national cache of previous years’ teams and Vanderbilt, with all do respect to my peers, has been terrible so far this season. Before the game the students were seated, patiently waiting for tip off. The crowd seemed to expect the lackluster game that everyone had been predicting. Kentucky got out to an early lead and the atmosphere continued in this vein into the second half.
Then everything changed. As soon as Vanderbilt began to make their run Memorial snapped into action. The student section that had just minutes before seemed sedated turned into the raucous environment that I’d experienced the past three years. Rupp arena is an amazing basketball environment, and I’ll go to my grave saying it’s the greatest place to play a basketball game. But I’ve never seen a crowd influence a game more than I have at Memorial Gymnasium the past three years. Yesterday, a 6-6 Vanderbilt team took Kentucky and all of our future NBA draft picks down to wire. It may not have seemed this way on TV, but the crowd fueled their comeback. In the final minutes that gymnasium was hot, it was loud, and it was downright uncomfortable.
My last Kentucky game I’ll get to see at Vanderbilt ended in a two point victory for the Cats. Despite all the animosity, the heat, the trash, and the profanity I have to admit that I’ll miss watching games there. In a college environment you want your student section to have a negative impact on the opposing team. And I can tell you from experience that Memorial Gymnasium is one helluva place to try and win a basketball game.
Now, the only question I have is what do I do with this fancy schmancy SEC championship ring?
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Bill Keightley Report : Never to be forgotten.
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January 11th, 2013 at 10:36 pm
Is jorts still on the heat.
January 11th, 2013 at 10:49 pm
Glad to see you rep’ed UK from enemy territory. I am always happy to see some blue bloods mixed in student sections from other schools.
January 11th, 2013 at 10:54 pm
I felt confident the only response I could muster was an intelligent-sounding grunt.
January 11th, 2013 at 10:59 pm
We should destroy it in the most ridiculous manner possible. Drew can take photos and write up a story on it’s destruction.
January 11th, 2013 at 11:26 pm
I might be a douche, but you sir are a giant douche. Anchor Down.
January 11th, 2013 at 11:36 pm
No UK memories before ~1997…. What a pup. You missed some good basketball.
January 11th, 2013 at 11:38 pm
Go Bearcats! Why is Austin so short?!?!?! Lulz hehehhehehe
January 12th, 2013 at 12:04 am
Wow. This Heyburn kid is a real go getter. Best article I have read in this site in a while. Go Cats
January 12th, 2013 at 12:15 am
You don’t camp out the night before to get sixth row to a UK-Vandy noon game. You show up two hours prior to the game and get front row. I’m calling BS.
January 12th, 2013 at 8:44 am
lotta vandy posts on here lately. this is a uk site i thought
January 12th, 2013 at 9:18 am
Jack: if you want to make a go at this writing thing, please learn how to correctly use the word “literally.” There is no reason to use “literally” unless there is a metaphorical alternative to the phrase. For example, “I literally put my foot in my mouth.” In your article, there is no metaphorical alternative to owning a UK scrapbook, so there is no need to use “literally.”
January 12th, 2013 at 9:27 am
10. Agreed
January 12th, 2013 at 9:46 am
Hope your experience as a Vandy student was better than mine. Regardless, thanks for bringing back some pleasant memories of watching the Cats from the front row of the Memorial students’ section many years ago. How many years? Do the names Bowie, Turpin, and Minniefield mean anything to you?
January 12th, 2013 at 10:34 am
What to do with the championship ring momento, don’t you have a trash can?
January 12th, 2013 at 11:00 am
I have seen you in the student section the past 2 years. I saw you Thursday. I did think it was pretty cool that you represented UK in the student section. I have to disagree with your description of the Vandy Fans fueling the comeback. That is pure crap. I have been going to the UK-Vandy game for years now. This was the quietest Memorial has been in YEARS!!! The Vandy fans gave the token cheers when a basket went in, a little louder when they made a 3 point basket, but the fans didnt get into it until Vandy cut the lead to about 8 or so. And even then, it was not very loud. I could still hear DEFENSE! chants when UK was on defense. Vandy came back despite the fan base. I remember thinking as I walked out of Memorial that if I was a Vandy player or coach, I would have kinda been disappointed in the crowd. The last 3 years I have left the game with a screaming headache, and wishing Rupp was that loud. I heard another fan behind me telling his buddy this game sounded like it was being played at Rupp because it was so quiet. Understand that the student section, which didnt even look filled, is one small portion of the crowd. Dont give the entire colliseum credit for what a few college kids did, in my opinion, a little to late.
January 12th, 2013 at 11:30 am
11.) you mad bro?
Brb combing through every blog post for minute grammatical errors so I can show everyone how tight-@ssed and intelligent I am.
January 12th, 2013 at 1:27 pm
Great read! You gotta have balls to be in any opposing student section dressed in blue. Kudos.
January 13th, 2013 at 7:18 pm
#11 if you want to make a go at this commenting thing, please refrain from sounding like a prick. This Heyburn kid’s got talent.