UK’s 1996 title team to hold 20-year reunion in… Florida?
It has been 20 years since Kentucky won the 1996 NCAA Championship, the program’s first title in 18 years. That group is considered one of the best teams in the history of college basketball, so it’s no surprise they plan to get together for a 20-year reunion this spring.
But the location is very surprising.
Rick Pitino said today his ’95-96 team will get together in Miami to celebrate the anniversary of the championship.
Why Miami, you ask?
For the simple fact that Pitino doesn’t want to do it in Lexington.
“They don’t let me back there,” he told reporters today.
While we can all agree Pitino wouldn’t get the warmest of welcomes back in Lexington, I think fans would make an exception if he were out dining with The Untouchables to celebrate the 20th anniversary. Taking the team to Miami, far away from where it all went down, is blasphemous.
38 Comments for UK’s 1996 title team to hold 20-year reunion in… Florida?
I fully support Corpse Face staying out of Lexington. Blasphemous would be tarnishing the home of the Cats with his sleazy presence. Hope the players have a nice time remembering when he was more like a human though.
Maybe the hookers are hotter in Miami.
Isn’t it crazy that Bobby Petrino has become the poster boy for good behavior over on Floyd Street?
^^^^^^LMAO!!!^^^^^^
I think the anniversary should be recognized in Rupp at a game. We give Rick a one night hall pass. Hell, let him do the “Y.” It would make UL fans insane.
I’m afraid of what his middle fingers might be doing as he threw up the Y.
he’s just looking for an opportunity to expense that ridiculous house he has down there. i am sure there is a tax angle – and probably better ” entertainment” .
The dark side of his ‘saving the program’ was in his mind UK’s history had been wiped out and he built it from nothing. So the heritage as far as he’s concerned is his, not UK’s.
Sad
Won’t let him back there!?!?! Seems like he was let back in a few weeks ago and, well . . . he wasn’t too happy . . .
I agree with walkemjohnny
This is why the hatred for Pitino is idiotic. This team is one of the best of all time and we shun its coach because he took the best job that was available that year in college ball. Sure, he’s made a crap ton of mistakes in the very recent times, but they don’t have anything to do with us here at UK. We’re classier than this. Go Cats.
Nothing, including the current dumpster fire that is Rick Pitino, will tarnish my memories of 1990’s Rick Pitino.
Did we actually tell him no?
I’m sure that we didn’t but it’s the way the UK fanbase has treated him over the past 15 years or so that would make him not want to come back to Lexington for a celebration.
Um, what about the way Pitino has treated our fanbase? This is a two way street.
“This is why the hatred for Pitino is idiotic”
People loved Bernie Madoff. Until they didn’t.
Hatred is a little strong. Dislike immensely is probably more apt. I honestly don’t think that you’re a UK fan with a comment like this. Of course it’s understood by all UK fans that we appreciate what Pitino and his teams accomplished while at UK, but that doesn’t mean we have to blindly accept all the decisions he’s made since that time. He knew what he was doing when he took the Louisville job and he has to accept the consequences. He’s constantly making snide remarks about UK. F him. He’s a classless jackass now. Anyone with half a brain should see that, even someone claiming to be a UK fan.
To me, this is the biggest slap in the face Pitino has ever given UK. Yeah, hes not popular here. I sure as hell hate his guts, but like most every UK fan, I would give him a pass on this night. And to be honest, this would be his best last chance at making peace with the fan base here.
This is damn disgraceful, as bad as anything hes ever done to the UK fan base.
Chill guys. No reason to blow this out of proportion. This is not an official UK reunion. Sounds like Pitino is just getting together with the team. If he came to Lexington his appearance would take away from having our team here. I assume he meets and talks with those players every once in awhile. UK needs to have some type of reunion at Rupp during a game or something but if they don’t it doesn’t have anything to do with Slick Rick.
Most every UK fan would certainly NOT give him a pass. Some, like myself, are grateful for what he did for UK and would pay him the respect due for the job he did. Most would act like a bunch of jack asses and scream obscenities at him and ridicule him. How can you blame him for wanting to avoid that? And I love how Franklin calls it blasphemous when he’s one of the main ones fanning the anti-Pitino flames.
Nothing disgraceful or blasphemous about this at all. It is a bunch of former players and a coach or two getting together to eat, drink, reminisce and be merry. Rick has a castle in Miami. Could just as easily be done in Vegas or Hawaii. Rick is jerk but not for this.
He gave the fans a middle finger less than 2 months ago. Of course he is not welcome back at UK. I am sure he would say the same thing about being in his wife’s life. I am sure he is not welcome there either. If his own family dislikes him, I think as a fanbase it is safe with not welcoming him back for anything.
Sure. He was giving the finger to all UK fans. I wasn’t there but I can imagine all the crap being screamed at him as he was walking through the tunnel. I don’t condone what he did. He gets paid a lot of money to put up with stuff like that. But give it a rest. By the way I’m a UK fan and don’t like Louisville.
^^ riiiiiiiiight ^^
They should do something at the start of next season when, presumably, he is no longer the coach at UofL. Although, it would be really cool to celebrate that team on senior day this year, but with that being only a few weeks away, I doubt something like that could be reasonably organized in such a short time. I, like many others here, would welcome him back for that evening, as the coach of one of the greatest teams in the history of CBB.
we don’t want that slime in Lexington. UK just needs to come up with their own celebration and purposely not invite little ricky or his ho’s.
The coach of that 96 team is dead. WHY would they invite him back to Lexington? If the ’58 team got together, would they invite Adolph Rupp?
Because if it was in Lexington it couldn’t be all about him. He has to have it on his terms because he wants it to be about him.
Will it be in March? We know Rick won’t be busy.
And you’d expect anything less from Rick? I’m more annoyed at the players agreeing to that than Rick suggesting it.
And why exactly would the players have a problem with Pitino? He coached them to a championship and I’m sure a lot of those players still like him and appreciate what he did for them.
If we think so little of him why does his jersey still hang in Rupp? Childish reaction on his part IMO.
Rick won’t show up because the “Untouchables” got touched by Cal and UMass. Cal owned Rick’s ass then. Cal owns Rick’s ass now. F**k Pitino aka Coach Mike.
Cal is a lot like the Green Bay Packers. He owns a piece of Rick’s sorry ass.
Rupp Areana rules won’t allow the installation of stripper poles.
or Arena even
I’m tired of Pitino constantly griping about Kentucky fans! He complained when he was the coach at UK and continues to use them for his poor little me routine! Poor baby might get booed. Well, suck it up butterup!