Is This the New Coach-Mobile for "John Cal I"?

Question for Kevin

Is your new "Planet Earth" box set narrated by Segourney Weaver or Sir David Attenborough? Thankfully, mine is Attenborough. I think it's funny the BBC uses an actual famous naturalist, but the United States production needed to be "sexed up" with an actress. Not that it really matters I guess, but for some reason it bothers me. It would be like Morgan Freeman doing "Cosmos" on PBS instead of Carl Sagan.

Sunday Prognostications: Tiger, Tiger Woods Ya'll

I see Tiger is in 2nd place going into the final round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill. Problem is, he's 5 shots back of Sean O'Hair. Giving a professional golfer a 5 shot lead on Sunday should be a lock, but how often do you see them yack on their custom Dry-Joys the first couple of holes and let the field back in. O'Hair is skinny like me, so I think he'll win. Prediction: Tiger will smell blood and pounce early, but O'Hair holds him off and wins by one.

Michigan State makes "P-Spill" and the rest of Pitino's Crimininos go cold on 3-pointers. The Spartans will have a tough time with UofL's interior game, but eek out a win, thus giving me another final four team in my bracket. If Oklahoma beats UNC, I'll then have 3 of the 4.

As a side note, I have only missed one game in the West region of the bracket (BYU/Texas A&M)

Day 2: Coach Search

I have exhausted myself trying to think of possibilities for UK's next hire. I have been looking at the big boys as well as coaches from the mid-majors. The only place I haven't looked is the NBA. Not because I don't think UK wouldn't look there, I just don't know any coaches in the NBA. I have tried to keep myself away from the computer most of the day to keep from checking every few minutes on the latest news. I realize it will probably be a little while before a decision is made, but reading the same speculation over and over again is still fun.

I went to a Texas A&M basketball forum to see if they had any comments on Gillispie's firing. Most stated it was because of his record, but many acknowledged it was also in combination with his personality. If this is the opinion on a fan forum, shouldn't Barnhart have known this before he hired BCG?

And Digger Phelps is an idiot.

Thanks, Kevin!

Thank you Kevin for the heads up on the Planet Earth Box Set deal at B&ME on Bardstown Road. I've been wanting to get it for a while now. This was my first visit to the store and I enjoyed looking around. They have a nice collection (I even saw the first season of "The Great American Hero!).

The Usual Suspects

The trickle of news out of Lexington throughout the day has been agonizing. Knowing the decision has been finally made (right or wrong) is at least some consolation and allows my brain to mellow out a little. But now, I feel the weekend will feel the same as we await the announcement of Kentucky's next coach. The media outlets have not helped with my headache. Reports of Gillispie staying and leaving were everywhere and the speculation by the media concerning who will be the next coach are no different.

I have heard from numerous news sources, CBS, ESPN, Florida news papers, Fox Sports and more, that Donovan was to be named head coach. Then the same outlets reported he was not interested. Some reported Travis Ford was the pick and others reported Kentucky has not asked for permission to speak with him. Calipari has said he is not leaving Memphis. Izzo, Pitino, and Dixon are still in the tournament. So they are untouchable at least through the weekend.

As I attempt to collect my thoughts about Kentucky's next move, I sincerely hope Barnhart and Todd have a plan in place and aren't looking at each other right now saying, "OK, now what?" Firing Gillispie without reasonable leads would be foolish. The several names being tossed around all have pros and cons attached to them. Here are my thoughts and feelings on a few of them (excuse me if I misspell their names, I don't feel like checking the spelling).

Billy Donovan: Like any coach, he has qualities I strongly dislike. But he has proved himself to be capable of putting together championship teams. I think he would be a good fit at Kentucky, but a little voice in my head tells me it may not be the best choice.

John Calipari: Great recruiter and very solid coach. I have a bad feeling, however, his style of players would not give Kentucky the type of teams I can root for. Plus, his background is a little sketchy and a little baggage can become a full dowry at a big program (see IU).

Tom Izzo: I think if given the choice, Izzo would be my pick. Sure, low scoring games would be the norm, but I'm used to it by now. I'd rather have a boring, but winning, basketball program over a fast paced losing squad. I like Izzo's personality and he has shown his loyalty by living in Michigan all these years. He is playing Kansas right now, but I'm not sure if he'd be willing to leave Michigan State. He may be there as long as Boeheim has been at Syracuse.

Travis Ford: No no no no no no no no no damn crap damn it to hell no. Nothing against Travis (although I know Kevin doesn't care for him), but I just don't see him working out in Lexington in the near future. Maybe 5-10 years down the road with some success, but not yet.

Mike Anderson: The Mizzou (RAH!) Tiger's current trailblazer (pun intended UAB fans) has his kitties rolling after thumping Memphis last night, all the while keeping my bracket exceptionally strong. Anderson has obviously shown he can coach. He is obviously not stupid. Say what you will about whether Tubby's treatment at Kentucky was fair or not, but he and Anderson are good friends and I don't know if Tubby would recommend he take the job.

Rick Pitino: Yeah right. I would welcome Pitino back with open arms, as I think most UK fans would. But Pitino is not leaving Louisville. Not yet. And not for UK.

Thad Matta: Good recruiter? Most likely. Good coach? Sure. But this just does not get me excited. I know it's hard to compete against football at Buckeye U, but he has done a hell of a job. But the prospect of this coaching move doesn't make me all giggly. Maybe I'm wrong.

No matter what decision is made, I'll do my best to support and cheer like I always have. I know if things go poorly, more changes will be made...and made...and made again until Kentucky once again contends for a championship. But it won't stop this weekend from being a tortuous test of patience.

Idiot News

While checking on the latest news concerning the fate of Billy Gillispie, I surfed on over to WAVE 3's website. A headline read that UK fans were strongly in favor of a coaching change. Just below this headline, the WAVE 3 poll had 59% of voters IN FAVOR OF GILLISPIE GETTING ANOTHER SEASON. 5% had no opinion. The last time I checked, 36% is not very overwhelming.

WHAS 11 News reported with a breaking news crawler that Gillispie was fired. Nice considering no other station has reported this and they only reported this based on a rumour so they could be the first to break the news. Now I hope Gillispie stays just to spite WHAS. These must be the same people who called 2000 election.

I Want To...

• Walk Augusta National barefooted
• Vacation in Ireland and Scotland and play a little golf
• Visit the Grand Canyon, Meteor Crater in Arizona and the African Rift Valley.
• Spend another night under a clear winter sky in the Rockies
• Tour the Museum of Natural History & Science in New York
• Go on a ghost hunting trip
• Spend a summer reading all the books I ever wanted to read
• See St Louis beat the Cubs at Wrigley Field
• Find a meteor
• Experience a big earthquake (but I know I should be careful what I wish for)

If I think of more, I'll add them later. I'll also be blogging about tomorrow's metel detecting trip across the river.

Tonga Volcano

Seismic activity off the island of Tonga in the South Pacific has produced a 7.9 earthquake and a tsunami warning. The activity is also linked to this under sea volcano that has been erupting for the past couple of days.

Late Night Thought on Patterson's "Return?"

A late night report states Patrick Patterson has decided to return for his junior season (although I'm very cautious about this story). If this is true, I really like the thought of incoming freshman Daniel Orton at Center with Patterson moving to the power forward spot. But first, let's hope the sophomore Patterson and the rest of the Wildcats can get a win against Ole Miss in the first round of the SEC Tournament. GO CATS!

Tribute To Chuck Olmstead

As long as I can remember, Chuck Olmstead has been the on the spot reporter for "Action 11 Neeeeews." It didn't matter what the situation happened to be, he was there. With a voice as smooth as the grain in his fine leather jackets and as deep as his luxurious brimmed hats, he reported breaking news before it was news. If a snow flake fell on the corner of 2nd and Market, he'd stand upon it and alert the good citizens of this fair city. If dirty swindlers plagued our neighborhoods, Chuck would track them down like a blood hound and ask them the tough questions all the while chasing them around the house or into their car. Chuck Olmstead never lost a story, he made the story.

I saw Mr. Olmstead a few months ago standing on the corner of Story Avenue and Brownsboro Road. He was by himself, no camera or microphone, and wearing suede so fine it would have made an emperor blush. I don't know if he was tracking down clues or if he actually thought he was on TV, but I know Chuck was watching out for Louisville, for you....for me.

And that is how I want to remember him.

The Three Rs

I have been catching up on the three Rs this week.

Reading: I am finishing "The God Delusion" by Richard Dawkins tonight. I will then begin "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" tomorrow. Then my hope is to read "The Power of One" starting at the end of this week.

Running: I have spent sometime this week working out. I have been doing light lifting trying to get used to the routine. I have run on the treadmill three times since Tuesday, each one for 20 minutes. Tuesday I ran 2.1 miles. Thursday I ran 2.3 miles and today I ran 2.5 miles. My goal is to get 3 miles in under 20 minutes before I lengthen my running time and distance. I'm trying to get the "Tiger" affect on the golf trip group. Before you know it, all of them will be in the weight room 5 hours a day.

Ranting (and hopefully resting): I am going into my 7th straight day of work tomorrow with another 7 in a row following that. This 14 day stint may go to 21 days straight, but I'll try to take a day off. It is just hard this time of year getting ready for the season, especially this year. This schedule will no doubt inspire some rants and blogging, so stay tuned.

Post Regular Season Predictions

Now that Kentucky has been de-clawed by the SEC during the regular season, they will now be thrown defenseless into the SEC Tournament playing the worst basketball I have witnessed from a Kentucky team. I feel Kentucky will get its 20th win in the opening round, but that's it. One and done. Hello NIT.

Here is my prediction for the coming off season and next year. I will have to dig this up sometime next winter to see how I do.

1. Patrick Patterson and Jodie Meeks will BOTH be back.
2. Deandre Liggins and AJ Stewart will not.
3. Daniel Orton and Jon Hood will be welcome additions, as long as they both stay healthy following the surgeries.
4. The point guard position will improve, but still be tough to swallow.
5. Billy Clyde will still play man-to-man every minute of every game.
6. Kentucky will be in the top 20 for at least two weeks.
7. Kentucky will beat UofL in football AND basketball.
8. I will quit making predictions because half of these will be wrong.

Birthday Season

Now that birthday season is in full swing, as Pop has dually noted, I have been asked what I would like for my birthday. Seeing that a UK run to a championship, a huge raise in my salary, or a winning lottery ticket are tall orders, the only thing I can think of I could really use is a little donation towards our new computer. Ours bit the dust last night. It looks like the motor may have burned out, but it has been really slow and arduous for quite some time now.

I got a good deal on a laptop (YAY, more space!) from a company we deal with at work, but still it is not cheap. So any small donation within reason would help.

Also, we will probably be getting rid of the computer desk we have now (if it is OK with my beautiful wife) to make way for a smaller, more basic desk or table. If anyone has a table in the garage or basement they are wanting to get rid off or happens to see one at a yard sale, that would help too.

Thanks and a Happy Birthday season to all and to all a good March.