As a long-time UK fan, I want to see more marquee basketball games at Rupp
Dear Mitch (not McConnell),
It feels great to be back in-person at Rupp this season experiencing basketball games and cheering with other fans for our CATS! On Nov. 19, the Bobcats of Ohio brought the energy to the floor and challenged the Wildcats. It was fun to be part of the environment where the team and fans responded, pulling out a victory over the tenacious foe from the North. ALL was great with the world, until ...
Until I turned on the post-game show. What I heard was an unsolicited and condescending rant on defending the home schedule. The longer I listened, the more I became frustrated AND convinced that I am spending thousands of dollars for the K-Fund and season tickets for what was described as “tune-up” games. I have been attending games since sitting in the Crow’s Nest at Memorial Coliseum. I am a second-generation UK grad and fan, but the more I listened, the more I felt like I must be “old” and not a “real” fan. I quickly turned the radio OFF.
My family has lost interest in coming to games with me. When I ask them to go, they ask “who we are playing?” When I tell them the opponent, they say “Who?!?!” and then say “No.”
Some compare us to other “Power-5” teams and their schedule. I DON’T CARE what other Power-5 teams schedule. At Kentucky “it’s just different,” right? And if the other team’s schedule looks like ours, I feel sorry for their season ticket holders also. And since when did we start rationalizing that playing weak teams in November helps us in March? Don’t we profess that the best form of practice is playing “against each other in our own practices?”
Pleeeaassee bring marquee names to Rupp!! Not just a team that might be good this year, or a team that has someone we used to know a long time ago. We want marquee programs! Big name games create a source of excitement and buzz of anticipation for months in advance. These games also helps the local economy. Hotel rooms filled, restaurants packed, fan apparel sells, and the nation focuses in on Central Kentucky. What better marketing is there?
Listen to local radio shows that reflect the true feelings of the fans who see the Wildcats as family. Don’t just listen to the corporate rhetoric that see our players as a “product” or “brand.” I understand it may mean home-and-home. GREAT! I hear voices in the media say “that will never happen!” I say, Why not? It is not rocket science. If UK wanted to make the Rupp fans happy, it COULD happen. Otherwise, please don’t make me buy 20 tickets for a season half filled with practice games. If UK does not schedule marquee games, then just sell some of those practice games to the general public. And if someone were to tell me that there is not enough interest in those types of games to get a good crowd, I would say, exactly! Those tickets we buy have little-to-no value.
PS: What happened to half-time entertainment? It feels like kindergarten nappy time. The lights turn down, a little back-ground music, and no Dance CATS. The big screen instructs us to download yet another app, but our phone just kept saying “still syncing”. Everybody just sits around and looks at their phones or each other. It is disrespectful to the Dance-CATS who work so hard. They are now forced to perform during a second-half time-out, competing with the dust-moppers and the team’s benches as they bring their stools way out on the floor. The Dance-CATS deserve better.
Desperately Seeking Marquee Games at Rupp,
Tony Thomas
Tony Thomas is an architect in Richmond and a third generation UK basketball fan.
This story was originally published December 8, 2021 at 12:55 PM.