Whoever we get should be in Rupp right, since we went to Clemson this past season?
Out of conference sked next year
- Thread starter FurdTurgason
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I don't think it's a given we get Duke or UNCheat in the SEC/ACC Challenge. We were far from the top SEC team last year. Sure, we think it makes sense, but scheduling and ratings gurus know how to maximize viewership. Alabama, Auburn, Florida, and Tennessee are going to be used as well. I wouldn't be at all surprised if we don't get another Clemson level game.
Given access to the teflon treatment the ACC and ESPN give Duke, I'd say the likelihood of a Duke trip to Rupp Arena falls somewhere in the neighborhood of Benjamin Netanyahu being elected the next Mayor of Tehran. If I was a betting man I'd say you're getting Will Wade's Redemption tour coming your way.
The belief at Louisville is we are going to Alabama or Auburn as our leg; Duke is likely to play at the other Alabama school or in Gainesville.
I don't think it matters how good everyone was in 2025, everyone is going to have a completely different team, it makes more sense to look at team projections for the 25/26 season.
Also, UK and duke are still blue bloods and those two schools generate more viewership than anyone else.
It would be shocking if ESPN does not take advantage of a home and home between UK and Duke. That would be the biggest viewership match up by far. It would also be tremendous for the sport.
It needs to happen.
It needs to happen.
Guess we'll see. Personally, I don't think it's a given. They know they will get Kentucky and Duke fans tuning in either way.
Pretty sure they don't care what's "good for the sport". I'm not disagreeing with you, from a fan's prospective. I'm just jaded by money now and feel they'll simply do what an algorithm says will generate most total views among the contract, not just one game.
Perhaps not. But they absolutely care about ratings which is why I listed that first.
Don't think there is any way that Kentucky would be okay with the SEC league office, or Duke being okay with the ACC league office, for scheduling a road game against each other and not getting a home game in return the following year, or having to wait 3 years to get the return game.
This is the biggest possible matchup the 2 leagues can provide, by a large, large margin, so when they do it, they'll do it right (home and home in consecutive years). So either next year, or 3 years from now.
We will not get Duke. Duke will play TN because they want revenge for losing to them a couple of years sago. They felt like TN was too physical and have been wishing they could put a beat down on TN. I think I would support that beat down. Duke will be allowed to hand pick their opponent and you can bet your sweet ***, they don't want us next year.
The powers that be won't allow Duke to come to Rupp. They are only allowed to leave North Carolina or MSG
twice in the OOC schedule
It's not UK fans that are going to make viewership boil over, it will be the casual fans and most of the fans from almost every other program in the country.
Nobody really cares about UK playing Miami, or Florida State and with Hubert Davis at uNC, that matchup has lost some luster, not to mention, it's been done multiple times in recent history.
If you get Duke @ UK, the viewership will be off the charts.
We're going to find out just how much power Duke brass has when the matchups come out and it will also tell us just how protected duke is.
We already have a pretty good idea how those things work. Since UK and Duke played last year the excuse will be that different match-ups create fan interest
I think it will be Duke at Florida, Louisville at Auburn, Clemson or UNC at Kentucky and the other of those two vs. Alabama
Seeing how the game is in Rupp, I would expect to draw a Wake Forest, BC, FSU, or Georgia Tech, LOL. On the road, it would most certainly be Duke.
Those games have absolutely nothing to do with competition.
It has to do with viewership.
UK and Duke are the biggest draws no matter who they play.
So they won’t put them in the same game.
It has to do with viewership.
UK and Duke are the biggest draws no matter who they play.
So they won’t put them in the same game.
I'm not predicting it (yet!) but we could very reasonably go undefeated in the non-con. We beat better teams this year than probably anyone we play next year, and I think our team will be better
Me too and if tv gets their way you know that's the match up they want.
I suspect they would never allow Duke to have to come to Lexington. My Guess it'll be UNC since we just had Clemson last season.
Here's my guess for the top 8 teams in the SEC\ACC Challenge
UNC at Kentucky
Auburn at Louisville
Duke at Florida
Clemson at Tennessee
I believe this too Duke Alums have to much political power. They won’t come to Rupp. We may go to Cameron in 26. ESPN won’t allow Duke in Rupp. To much chance of two straight losses.
The internet says ESPN chooses who plays each other. It is not either league who controls that.
If any sane person watched ESPN slob Flaggs knob last year can only come to one rational decision. Dukes Alumni controls ESPN. Zero chance they allow Duke in Rupp.
This is a bit delusional.
You think the entire ACC/SEC challenge, they will arrange for Duke to just never play Kentucky?
ESPN works in conjunction with the leagues to create matchups that will make ESPN (and the leagues) the most money. That is ALL that matters.
Money doesn’t matter as much to the rich from one game if their team is involved. If it did, we wouldn’t have 10 million dollar donations from fans to pay players. You think the Crafts donate 6 million to UK and are worried about pennies from ESPN ? We can play UNC, and not lose hardly anything. UNC alum may control the NCAA, because they are littered with their graduates. Duke Alumni controls ESPN and the NCAA. I stand by my comment 100%. I would be willing to wager. Zero chance ESPN puts Duke inside Rupp Arena to possibly lose back to back years. Their corporate lawyers Alumni would block it. Zero.
The Alums would allow us a trip there, but not in a a year after we just beat them. That would look bad.
Dukes Alumni is extremely powerful. Like the poster said. NBA and USA basketball heads. They were placed there by even more powerful people. ESPN is tiddly winks to what these people control.
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If you haven’t been around government or worked for large corporations you don’t know how much power people wield I guess.
David Stern had the director of the FBI shut down an investigation in 24 hours. The officiating scandal.
I worked at Toyota for 28 years. The things they would do for important people were insane.
I was once part of a coverup operation. Literally. lol. An extremely important executive from Japan was coming to our area to walk thru. It was Thursday when they found out. We had hundreds of engines we had built in advance to save on overtime which was a no no. We hired 10 construction firms and payed them triple to build a wall by Monday to hide them. I think the total was 800 thousand to work that quickly thru the weekend for 10 companies. 800k to. Hide something from one man. He walked thru and didn’t notice. That’s power.
If he had seen them, those managers careers were over. They would have been moved out in time and blackballed from moving up. They saved their careers with money and deception.
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Not only that, but Gene Banks clearly lost the ball OOB on previous Duke possession (I was at the perfect angle to see it clearly). Only 2 officials back then and baseline ref who could not possibly have seen if any contact called the foul. Banks made both to give Duke the final score.
If you haven’t been around government or worked for large corporations you don’t know how much power people wield I guess.
David Stern had the director of the FBI shut down an investigation in 24 hours. The officiating scandal.
I worked at Toyota for 28 years. The things they would do for important people were insane.
I was once part of a coverup operation. Literally. lol. An extremely important executive from Japan was coming to our area to walk thru. It was Thursday when they found out. We had hundreds of engines we had built in advance to save on overtime which was a no no. We hired 10 construction firms and payed them triple to build a wall by Monday to hide them. I think the total was 800 thousand to work that quickly thru the weekend for 10 companies. 800k to. Hide something from one man. He walked thru and didn’t notice. That’s poweri
i did say I would wager. If this wasn’t the internet and you were a friend. I’d put 5K on it. That’s how sure I am. Zero way those doners allow it.