The always lovely A Sea of Blue has a summary of that CatsPause.com rumor about Billy Donovan’s deal with UK all but done. Of course, WLEX-18 in Lexington, ran the story for their Monday evening news and are now blaming CatsPause.com for publishing it.
The editors and managers at WLEX have only themselves to blame. Their sports folks should well know that CatsPause.com publishes rumors along with researched facts, and had no business making this top story. Anybody who knows anything about television knows why WLEX went with this rumor: they wanted to be first with the story, so that during the next Sweeps Week, we can see commercials about how WLEX was FIRST with the Billy Donovan story.
Honestly, if Donovan comes to UK, I think WLEX 18 will still run a commercial about that, even though they’ve backtracted from the story.
I just hope Ryan Lemond wasn’t involved with this decision. I’ve enjoyed his friendly & joking presence for WLEX and on radio shows. Instead, I hope that the decision was made by the infamous Snarky Alan Cutler.
Speaking of Dynasty Defending Alan, I have to share this video clip of WLEX breaking the Tubby Smith story. They cut to Alan, but he’s not snarky, he’s giddy as a schoolgirl! (Thanks to WildcatThunder.com for putting this up.)
Anyways, you hear a lot of hyper Wildcat fans spewing a lot of hyper tales about how Billy the Kid has all but signed. This rumor that the UK Fire Marshall has been told to plan for press conference in Memorial Coliseum early next week is by far my favorite.
Meanwhile, every Florida fan I’ve talked to about Billy D leaving — save for Ryan — has stuck their fingers in their ears and screamed. Impossible, a lateral move, they say. I agree that’ll be difficult to sway Billy from his good thing, but I think Kentucky is the one program in the nation that can compete for Billy’s services. Ultimately, some group of fans is going to look really stupid: either the grandstanding “I have a cousin lawyer who knows Billy Bob Joe Bill at UK Athletics” types who are swearing up and down that the Billy Donovan deal is done, or the Florida fans who argue that they are a national power in basketball.
And if Billy stays at Florida, fortunately UK can acquire one of the “Plan B” coaches on the Intern’s list (from over at Kentucky Sports Radio). Although I’d skip Coach Carter and jump straight to Jules Winnfield, who has coaching experience.
March 27th, 2007 at 4:56 pm
Come on Billy, work with us here!
If $3.5 million a year ain’t enough, you name a price. Heck, the “Get Rid of Tubby” slush fund wat at $5 million. Maybe you would consider that a signing bonus?
Face it, you don’t want to stay at a football school where you will always be the “other coach”. Heck, we were ready to elect Pitino Governor if he wanted it before the chicken shit bailed for the NBA. You ever had any interest in politics Billy??
As soon as the NCAA tournament is over, win or lose, just pack your bags and come on up to Lexington. If you want to bring all those blue chip recruits you have been looking at with you, tell em to meet you here.
We’ll leave the light on for ya!!
March 27th, 2007 at 8:26 pm
Bruce Pearl for $1.75MM and put the rest of the money into the football program. Pearl can coach and he’s done well at a “football school” that has never done anything. He’s got a huge ego and he’s tan. He would love and embrace the pressure cooker of Lexington and the crazy UK fans.
Forget about Ford. Not only is he a little man, but see Carolina with Doherty to see an inexperienced coach flop.
For a good laugh:
http://www.logoshak.com/~asgsport/images5/1990-91_UNC_bskbl_gd.gif
March 27th, 2007 at 8:32 pm
(from the previous comment)
“He’s got a huge ego and he’s tan.”
I think that was really good humor that went unnoticed because of some grammatical errors … it should have read
“He’s got a huge ego and he is tanned” …
… I don’t care who you are, that is funny.
March 27th, 2007 at 9:35 pm
I think Billy is going to the NBA, not UK, just more of a reason to hire me.
March 28th, 2007 at 9:27 am
Actually Pearl is not a bad choice as a candidate. Knowing his ability to get worked up however, do you think he could coach a whole season at UK without having a heart attack?
PS. He is tan - wonder if it comes from a bottle?
March 28th, 2007 at 9:30 am
Pearl might. I think he is just using the Tennessee job until something bigger comes along. He won’t wanna be at a school where he is number 3 in the order for too long.
March 28th, 2007 at 2:35 pm
My dads boss has the inside scoop when it comes to UK Basketball, he is a strong financial booster and has actually eatin dinner with tubby a few times… anyways his wife is a real estate agent in lexington and called my dads work office today during there weekly meeting to tell everyone that billy’s wife is currently in lexington browsing the housing market… take it for what it’s worth fellas, even though I am 99% positive that coming from this source it is true info, it’s still technically a rumor… The same source says that Patt, Jai, and Calethes are all UK locks also… This list is what makes my dads boss a UK insider, he usually knows about UK news before the general public…
1.) He eats dinner with UK’s coach once a year, going back to pricktino’s days
2.) He has been mentioned in UK books for his strong financial support of the program eg. the new practice facility
3.) In his house he has his own full court gym, painted like Rupp Arena with the autographs of former players and Tubby
4.) Every year he recieves tickets too a private practice section
March 28th, 2007 at 2:45 pm
Dang Shooter, you run with the “Big Dogs”. Sure hope you’re right. Can you dad’s boss maybe send a limo to get Billy after the NCAA tourney? I’ll drive!
March 29th, 2007 at 5:17 pm
Dang Shoot is right, here is something I found to support your rumor shooter… It shows a flight from Gatorland to Catland yesterday just as you said, also it is a private business jet… The puzzle pieces are falling into place, Go Cats!!! http://flightaware.com/live/flight/LXJ255
March 29th, 2007 at 5:37 pm
Nice find Bones maybe you should work for the CIA or something… Seriously though it would make perfect since that someone of importance was on this flight, mabe someone like Billy D’s wife… This just is adding more fuel too the fire, I can’t wait till the Gators season is over and we find something out… I’m ready for Midnight Madness already!!!
March 30th, 2007 at 6:00 am
I can confirm shooters remarks because billy d’s wife looked at my farm that is on the market pay the man 2 million dollar farm buyers dont come along that often
March 30th, 2007 at 9:34 am
I can confirm to because Dononvan called several Kentucky recruits and offered lumps of cash to go to UK, looks like we got us a winner…
March 30th, 2007 at 3:05 pm
Daniel? Are you sure it isn’t danielle, All your posts are always so negative… Can you provide a link that (Dononvan, nice spelling Dan) oops sorry I mean Donovan offered money to recruits, it’s always nice to have proof of such a serious posts… Anyways, As always good post shooter I look forward to Billy as our next head coach as does 99% of UK fans excluding Danielle, Pansy!!!
March 30th, 2007 at 4:22 pm
Before you correct grammer, shouldn’t you have something better than “it’s always nice to have proof of such a serious posts” awww, grouchy grammer man
March 30th, 2007 at 4:25 pm
I guess “he said that she said that my dad’s boss said” counts as serious proof
March 30th, 2007 at 4:47 pm
Daniel, your a complete tool!!! Shut your mouth, you always have to get the last word in… One person corrects you and you go on a complete rampage of correcting everyone… Lets talk UK B-Ball fellas!!!
April 1st, 2007 at 6:47 pm
Actually in your sentence Lee, you wouldn’t need to capitalize b-ball, haha. you slimballs have no sense of humor…and apparently a short memory…I wonder if Mr. D still invites Teddy Dupay over for dinner.
April 3rd, 2007 at 2:38 pm
Here’s a scenario no one wants to acknowledge - maybe no one who might be able to satisfy the few whiners would actually want the gig.
It very well may come to pass that those select top coaches in the US right now are (1) happy where they already are, (2) intrigued and interested by the possibility of coming to UK, (3) more than a little sure of themselves that they might be able to find some reasonable level of success at UK, but (4) they saw what happened to Tubby, and have heard some of the silliness, so that (5) their spouses (as in the case of Jim Boeheim) or their realistic side of the brain says NO F-ING WAY do I trade a good thing in hand for some possible future in the Bluegrass bush.
Which leaves UK to hire the best possible choice of the second or third tier of NCAA coaches … which could work out, and probably will not satisfy the loudmouth whiners, who will put us in this same situation again a few years down the road. Kentucky basketball may be the Chernobyl of the NCAA - deadly to any career and unapproachable for years to come.
April 4th, 2007 at 12:11 am
Some of what you say is true, but Smith deserved what he got and I believe UK’s done more for people’s career than it’s ever hurt.