Barnhart says UK had Verbal Agreement to Series with IU
UK Athletic Director Mitch Barnhart released this statement:
“We are extremely disappointed in Indiana’s decision to end our annual men’s basketball series. We were under the impression that we were in continued negotiations with Indiana University on signing a two-year contract to play the annual game at neutral sites. After the NCAA Championships, both schools verbally agreed in principle to play for two years at neutral sites (December 8, 2012 and December 7 or 14, 2013) and agreed to revisit campus sites upon completion of the two-year deal. The public comments by Indiana prior to today over the last week led us to believe that our previous verbal agreement could be in jeopardy, but at no point did we ever have any mutual discussions with Indiana to end the series. We were contacted by Indiana today shortly before 2 p.m. ET and informed that due to our desire to move to neutral sites they were moving on for the 2012-13 season and would revisit continuing the series at a later date. Our desire to play the series at a neutral site was due mainly to the success of the series from 1992-2006. It allowed the fans of both schools to enjoy the experience of one of the greatest rivalries every year. Everyone that watched or attended those games said it was a great atmosphere for college basketball. We looked at this as an opportunity to recapture that atmosphere and unfortunately it ended today.”
I hate when people break verbal agreements…
48 Comments for Barnhart says UK had Verbal Agreement to Series with IU
F IU!
i want my mommy!
I hate when people make verbal agreements.
yawn. Next topic. We will have UofL, Duke, and probably another good one. Let the boys get ready for another conference run.
They should have at least shook on it. Hand shakes are legal in court.
Maybe Cal was afraid of their ghey warmup pants and that Jared Polson would transfer there so he could wear them too…
HOO HOO – Shut your pie hole……scoreboard bitch!
And I hate that I live in a state that is as flat as a 8 year-old girl and follow a basketball team that peaked with disco music. Why oh why could my school just pull up our candy cane striped pants up and play two more games in neutral sites? Oh wait, cause we are actually the pu$$ies.
Hoo Hoo get out of your mom’s basement and off of her hoohoo and get a job in the nearest combine you can find and start picken some corn
What a shame. Those neutral court games were really incredible. Like Mitch said, if you went to one you enjoyed the experience. It was unlike anything else in sports.
Is Mitch picking his nose?
Perhaps if the IU fans at Assembly Hall had a little bit of class UK would have agreed to continue a home-and-home series, but if the fans are going to act like idiots and trample our players and coaches when a last gasp, lucky shot goes in you can’t blame them.
Aaaaah…i remember the days when IU won their last national championship in 1987. I had just released my “20 Greatest Hits with Loretta Lynn” album and my big hit “Snake Boots”. I hate to see IU take their ball and go home…but I guess that is the only place they can win a game.
Hey, you all wanna smell my finger?
IU = COWARD UNIVERSITY
Maybe they’ll build a display about this
It appears that this is more than just PR grandstanding. Cal and the Atheltic Department seem legimitately pissed off. Good for them.
It would have been nice to get to see them in freedom hall.
Hey, did you all hear that UK will not be playing Indiana next year?
We saw how terrified IU fans were in December when 5 UK fans got into Assembly Hall. They totally freaked out. Imagibe their fear of having 25,000 UK fans at Lucas Oil Stadium. IU fans/players are just too fragile to be put in that kind of environment. They needed 99.9% of the fans to intimidate the refs or they lose that game in December.
Hi, this is Murray State. We had a better team this year than IU, but we didn’t build a display case worthy of a middle school team. Instead, we want to play UK. In fact, we’ll do neutral sites, both games in Rupp, an aircraft carrier, Mammoth Cave, wherever.
Who cares? People under 40 DO NOT care about that game. How about playing Syracuse or Villanova in DC? Or Michigan State in Chicago? I like the idea of playing big name teams at neutral sites that are big media markets with lots of recruits.
i smell vagina.
The game has been going on for 40+ years and we stop it because of the venue? Who cares where it’s played, get it done. I haven’t heard one good reason from either side why their position is superior.
22 – 4 years ago, not many people would care. Now UK is back on top and IU is finally worth letting step foot in the gym. This is the worst time to end it. Villanova? When has Nova been relevant? And how many times do Kentuckians run into Villanova or Syracuse fans? IU was fun because the proximity of the schools make it so that everyone in KY knows a few rabid Hoosier fans, and vice versa for people in Indiana.
What I don’t understand at all is the reasoning from Crean that “we can’t get our students to Indianapolis” Really?!? IU is worried that its students will not drive 35 minutes to watch their team play their biggest rival (and likely best game on the schedule) in a frickin’ football stadium?!?!? If that’s the case, then IU has a lot more problems than deciding whether to play UK. #bamboozledbyhoosierlogic
When IU beats Tubby and the Gophers they hang a banner! The coach, players and fans are arrogant just like Bobby we don’t need to play them! UK has owned them for 30 years!
I wouldn’t care if the series was ever revisited. Good riddance!
Lets play Ball State instead. I’d rather Ball u than IU.
21. That has NOT been Murray’s position in the past. Kentucky wpuld be happy to host the Racers in Rupp. I believe something could be worked out to play them in Freedom Hall. What Murray has always insisted on is a home and home series. That might be a possibility in the future if Murray continues to have succes like they enjoyed last season, increases theier fan base, and builds an arena twice as large as the ones they have now. Oh yeah, their fans would need to be better behaved than the IU fans when the Wildcats come to town, but that shouldn’t be a problem.
Hi, this is Butler. We’re actually the premier program in Indiana, in case anybody is wondering. We’ve also got the best coach in the state. We’d love to play UK at neutral sites like Yum! (we played the first game there) and down the street at Lucas Oil Stadium. Not sure why IU fans are too cheap to come to our lovely state capitol.
Cowards..and talking so much!
To #22: Some of us fans over 70 do not care either, and I grew up in Indiana. If they can not control everything about the game, they won’t play.
Hey….I thought “little” Bobby-boy got fired!!!?
Unless the SEC improves by leaps and bounds this year, I’d much rather see UK play a tough Indiana team than watch them beat up on Arkansas or whoever.
Getting rid of the home and homes is going to make the schedule pretty boring next year. At least we play Dookie.
If the NCAA is about the opportunity for athletes to get an education, why not play the game on campus for students and for the student-athletes? If it is about money, pay the players.
What is UK’s obsession with wanting to use UofL venues to play their games? You can’t play neutral SITES when a team from one state has no legit neutral site to play the game. Yum! is off limits and Freedom Hall is obsolete, what will it look like 2-4 years from now? Why does UK want to play in Louisville’s complexes anyway? That’s like IU wanting to play Kansas in Mackey Arena on Purdue’s campus. Hilarious.
What is odd about this whole scenario is that the almighty RMK was happy to play a neutral court series with the reigning NATIONAL CHAMPS….
Oh how the MIGHTY have fallen!
#37 – People also forget that the last three years at The RCA Dome IU/UK couldn’t fill the place (35,0000). They may sell a good number year one in Lucas, but college basketball isn’t near as relevant as it was in the 80’s/90’s. There is no waaaaaay IU/UK put 40-50,000 in that building like Matt Jones suggests. It’s not designed to seat 50,000 without opening it all up anyway. Be informed.
It’s just funny that UK would rather play IU in a crippled Freedom Hall next year, rather than Rupp. (1) Is there something wrong with Rupp we don’t know about? (2) What’s up with the creepy, stalker-like fascination with UK wanting/begging to play games in UofL complexes? With all the “little brother” talk it sure does seem UK is star struck with UofL’s shinny new toys, as well as their old rusty ones too.
This is silly. Just play the games on campus. It is more exciting and has more of a collegiate atmosphere. Who cares if the refs are biased in bloomington and the hoosier fans spit on people? It makes winning in bloomington all the more fun. It is weird to want to play the game at a neutral location every year. Perhaps it is UK that just didn’t want to play.
I’m under 40 and do care about this series. Why? Cause I’m a season ticket holder. I don’t want the games played on neutral sites. Why would I want to drive to Louisville for our home end of the neutral series? I pay money for season tickets so I can watch the team in Lexington – where the university is. So what now? IU and UNC are off the table. Who do UK fans get to see come into RUPP? IU was pre-season number 1, so don’t give me “we will pick up another team just as good”. And again – even if we pick up a top 20 team, where will season ticket holders have to drive to in order to see the game? Louisville,Nashville, St. Louis, Atlanta…I’d rather save my money (and days off work) for the end of the season neutral site trips – SEC and NCAA games.
I was at one of the late ’90’s games held in Freedom Hall where it was half and half. My boss at the time was a big Hoosier fan and had played HS ball in Indiana. We had a blast (the Cats won, of course) in a uniquely charged atmosphere.
This is annoying. Both sides have retarded Arguments but with us getting to host next year I have no idea why we won’t play them. It’d easily be the most hyped regular season game of the year. I don’t get coaches/administration sometimes. Creans a puzzy but cal is going to regret ever making this an issue. You’re kids wanna play the game and the fans sure as hell wanna see it. Step on the neck of pride and compromise for once.
Screw it, verbal is binding. Somebody call the Heavy Hitter.
28. Ball State! CHIRP CHIRP
“I know her”
Ever notice how Mitch is always smelling his fingers?
Three facts –
#1 – It sucks not to play IU. Life will go on, however.
#2 – UK can replace IU with a number of great programs.
# 3 – IU cannot replace UK with anyone. Instead, they will play a team like Ohio Tech or The Louisville School of the Blind.
Too bad because IND had more to gain from continuing to play the top BB program in America. They finally had one good year and believe they have the power to kill a good thing…believe they will forever regret this one!
#46 – Looks like IU will replace UK with Kansas. I’ve heard their usually pretty good. Better than Ohio Tech anyway. Also, UK can replace IU with a good team. But will they? And will they ay them in Tulsa, Phoenix, or Argentina?
#47 – Neither team really needs the game obviously. IU is on track to have 13-15 games against preseason top 25 teams. Their SOS will be fine for the RPI tally. Who loses is the fans and CBB. CBB needs more reasons to have people watch the sport outside of just 3 weeks in March, not less. Ratings are poor outside of March and CBB is increasing irrelevant nationally. Pretty much the only places that care about CBB are places that stink at CFB. That’s a fact.