A Sappy Christmas Greeting

As you read this, I am either in a Christmas Eve service, or spending time on Christmas morning opening up my new Big Wheel from the folks, so it is a happy time. Today there will be fewer posts than normal because....well its Christmas. But in so doing, I did want to say thanks to all that make this site so great. This has been a huge year for the site as it has officially made the transition from a hobby into something we would have never imagined. Often people dont realize who has helped make this happen, so a few kudos are in order: Rob Gidel: Co-founder of this site and person with the greatest knowledge of football recruiting of anyone I know. Great to have him back in the fold and still one the best young talent running around the Kentucky sports community. Hubby: The unsung hero of the site, who gave it this wonderful 1997 design and makes it work from a technological standpoint. Also helped put on the Barnstorming Tour and does more for less credit than anyone around these parts. Beisner/Evan: The best decision we ever made was bringing these two guys on. Great sense of humor and writing style. Beisner brings the heavy load in terms of number of posts and Evan does some of the harder type posts that help make the site work. Both of these guys deserve a lot of credit for what I believe has been and will be, THE most important year in this site's history. Turkey Hunter: Not only my best friend, but also the comic inspiration for much that we do. He doesnt write a lot (because if he did, he would get every radio host in the state fired) but he comes up with brilliant ideas for what we can do and gives many of the punchlines that make this site work. Still the funniest person I know. Tomlin: Best writer hands down that I know. We only get him one day a week, but people whose opinions I respect more than anyone always tell me that if Tomlin writes it, they read it. I am the same way. And when he is there, he is damn good on the radio too. Mosley: Got married this year, which made him lamer, but still a huge part of this site. Along with my law partner Johnny Bruce, the nicest person that I have ever known as good a human as you will find. Add to that the fact that he helps me Know My Enemy every week with the best pop culture references this side of Chuck Klosterman, and he really is the best. Intern: Now living in Charleston, South Carolina and soaking up the good life, Intern still finds time to give us a couple of posts a week that knock it out of the park. Like Rob, Hubby, etc he was here from the beginning and if you were to list the 10 bests posts ever on here, he has done 3 or 4 of them. Smart and funny enough to be originally one of our group of friends, but too good looking, which means he had to have been brought in by Rob. Bryan the Intern: Every site needs a person that folks can bitch about and BTI is ours. Every day he compiles links that folks can use and gives his (usually off) opinion. Webmasters and other sites write me literally BEGGING for BTI to link them so they can get the web traffic. Just like when he was my great radio producer, an unsung hero for the site, selling ads that help keep the thing afloat. If you like Boone's Butcher Shop or know that the Season Never Ends, BTI is why. Bobby Perry: Through work with the Barnstorming Tour, Bobby has become a good friend of mine and I have gotten to see what most have always suspected, mainly that Bobby is an intelligent, interesting and kind guy who genuinely loves this university and state. His writings on the blog have become a great inside look at what goes on inside the basketball program and have heped give us something resembling mainstream credibility. I hope his role continues to increase in the year to come. In addition, we have recently added Fake Gimel, Rob Radio and Hunter Campbell, all great additions and guys that we are glad to have on board and who I am sure we will learn more about in the next year. In addition, guys like Bomani Jones, Gregg Doyel, Tom Leach, Mike Pratt, Keith Taylor, Larry Vaught, Kenny Walker, Alan Cutler and others, have helped us grow not only with invaluable advice, but also friendship that I do cherish. Even though they may not write here, they have all contributed in their own way to the site's growth and advancement. Running this site on a daily basis can be difficult and often stressful. The goobers who bad mouth me and the rest of the writers on this site and others can often be difficult to take. But then I go out to games or in public and have folks of all walks of life come up and tell me how much they like the site and how much it means to them. People ranging from high school kids to folks elected to some of the state's highest offices tell me how much enjoyment they get from what we do here, often for vastly different reasons.....and that easily makes it all worthwhile. I really thank not only all that work on the site, but all that read it. This blog is an important part of my life and I appreciate you folks giving me the chance to do it and put a huge part of myself out there everyday. I never would have imagined when it began that it would become what it now is, but I do cherish that opportunity and hope that you continue to enjoy it and give us a chance to write our nonsense on a daily basis. And with that unnecessary sentimentality, have a Merry Christmas.