Don Francisco's Friday News and Views

Maybe you have been like me and at home on an occasional Saturday night, flipping through the channels and you stop at what can best be described as an explosion of color, movement and odd camera work and thought to yourself, "what in the world is this?" If you have, it is very likely that the show you flipped on was "Sabado Gigante," with its host, today's birthday boy, Don Francisco. "Sabado Gigante" is a cultural phenomenon that is not really recognized in the American mainstream press, but is a huge hit across Latin America. Set upon the simple premise that if you put an old guy in a suit and make him act goofy (think a Hispanic Lee Corso), surround him with beautiful women who wear tight dresses and smile, and then make goofy noised in the background that is followed by dancing for no reason, you have television gold! And that is what Gigante does every Saturday of the week. On Univision, I sometimes turn on the show, use my little Spanish to see what is going on and then marvel at how ridiculous the next few minutes can be. The guest is always a soap star, fawning questions are asked and then we all dance....sort of like a normal episode of Kentucky Sports Radio. Don Francisco is a phenomenon and his show occasionally outdraws what the major networks put out on Saturday night. So if you havent seen it, turn it on and prepare to be baffled....but watch out, you may find yourself up and dancing for no known reason. To the news.... (1) DARIUS MILLER: I spent most of today in Lexington for the Fifth Third Tournament, where the main event tonight was the first of four games for Darius Miller and Mason County. Lexington Catholic's gym was packed for the game and it was clear that many Kentucky fans showed up to get a taste of the future. While many parts of Miller's game are impressive, including his scoring ability and athleticism, what is great to watch when he plays in a more team-centered environment (not AAU) is just what a passer he is. Darius finds a way to consistently hit the open man but also has a quality rarely seen in high school players. Many times, great passers on the high school level are good at making a strong pass but often arent rewarded due to the lack of talent of the receiver of the pass. Darius clearly knows the strengths of his teammates and gives them the ball where THEY can do something with it. This quality is rare and UK hasnt had a great distributor like that since Cliff Hawkins. Watching Darius tonight, it occurred to me that he is the type of player that can get the most out of a guy like Mark Coury by making him look better....and that is the type of special passing ability you dont see every day. (2) CLARK STEPP: Also today, I watched June Buchanan's Clark Stepp who has a huge matchup for himself tomorrow versus Mason County. Stepp is the latest in the long line of Kentucky high schoolers who has put up huge numbers over his high school career but still leaves people wondering just how good he really is. He had an off game today and hasnt been quite as explosive as some would have wanted early in the season. But UK is considering him as a possible walk-on, a possibility that Stepp is very excited about. He matches up tonight against Darius Miller, in a game that will be attended by a couple of members of the UK staff. The Fifth Third has gotten people scholarship offers over the years (Brandon Stockton the best example) and made walk-on offers come to reality (Preston LeMaster) based on big games. Tonight is Clark Stepp's turn and what he does tonight will be very important in what will likely be Stepp vs Darius Miller on both ends of the court. (3) TYRONE APPLETON: The Cats Pause tonight has an interview with Tyrone Appleton in which he comments on his visit. There isnt a great deal new there, but what is clear from the article is that Appleton is not committing to UK soon. He says he wants to wait until the Spring, a somewhat surprising result from my view. In the week leading up to the visit, both Tyrone and his coaches were talking about what a great opportunity UK might be for Tyrone's services and while no one said it explicitly, you got the feeling that a commitment could occur soon. Now Tyrone has decided to wait, postponed our radio interview and is letting the process play out. It will be interesting to see if the mutual interest between the two parties remains. (4) MUSIC CITY RIBS: With the good news out of Nashville that Keenan Burton may be able to play (no word on Kel), thoughts immediately drifted to the other bowl festivities. And most importantly today we found out that UK players can eat some ribs. In the annual Music City rib eating contest, Kentucky defeated Florida State 41-31. The UK team, made up of Steve Johnson, Andre Woodson, Jason Leger and Josh Winchell brought home the prestigious prize back to the Bluegrass. Leger was the top dog, eating 15 ribs in two minutes, an absurd rate that puts him as the morning line favorite for next year's Kentucky Sports Radio White Castle eating contest. This is the second year in a row that the Cats have taken the contest, showing that if Kentucky football knows nothing else, it knows ribs. (5) RAVI MOSS: Finally, some tough news for us here at Kentucky Sports Radio to report. Ravi Moss was arrested Thursday on suspicion of a fourth degree assault charge after a situation with a female that Moss knew. There are no more details on the incident at this time and this is all we know. As many of you know, we have had Moss on our show many times in the past and he is a friend of the site. Its tough when someone you know has such an incident and we wish all parties involved the best. Look for your official San Diego Toreros game preview tomorrow and much more.....tonight is Vic's party....and if you know what that means, you are excited....and if you dont, well have fun in honor of it. Until later........