A Kroger Field Suggestion So Ridiculous, It Just Might Work

The in-game atmosphere at Kroger Field has been a hot-button issue through the first 2.5 weeks of the Kentucky football season. It’s clear some of the loud criticisms were heard. Grove Street Party got the fans rocking in week two. Blue-White chants rang through the air on almost every second down, keeping the energy high before the coal whistle sounded on third down.

There is still room to grow. Matt Jones had conversations with folks from the University of Kentucky who asked for specific suggestions to improve the in-game experience. Allow me.

What Makes SEC Stadiums Great?

Over the last 14 years, I’ve visited almost every SEC football stadium and have missed less than a handful of Kentucky football home games. Trying to replicate another team’s tradition is silly, but there is a question worth asking: What makes a place tough to play?

Three SEC teams stand out from the rest: Mississippi State, Tennessee, and South Carolina. You know what all three have in common? They’re incredibly annoying.

Tennessee plays Rocky Top a thousand times. After a trip to Neyland Stadium, you’ll hear “WOO!” in your dreams. The clanga clanga from the cowbells requires you to wear earplugs to Davis Wade Stadium. Kentucky cannot recreate that magic from those two schools, but they can take a page from South Carolina.

Cats > Cocks

South Carolina’s Sandstorm is annoying on TV, but in person, it’s actually impressive to see the whole crowd bouncing to the same beat. You know what’s annoying, no matter where you are? That damn chicken. The Gamecock crows approximately 782 times during a football game. It’s time for Kentucky to get its rooster at Kroger Field.

Kentucky needs more Cats. Meow opponents to death. Play the Meow Mix jingle. Drive your opponents insane with random meows consistently flowing through the speakers, while featuring cat memes on the video board early and often.

Why More Cats Could Work at Kroger Field

1. Mass Appeal. I don’t care if you’re a 5-year-old, a blue hair receiving a senior citizen discount, or a 21-year-old, every portion of BBN can find a way to embrace this. Sure, it might annoy some dog people at first, but eventually the right meow and the right meme will hit that puts a smile on your face.

2. Irony and Self-Awareness. When folks criticize Kentucky for being out of touch, it’s because of a lack of effort to try to do things that young people enjoy. You know what works? TCU’s Hypnotoad. Those weird videos don’t make sense to a common person, but the obscure, viral videos were embraced by the students as TCU made its run to a CFP Title Game. This can be our version of the Hypnotoad.

3. We are who we are. This is Kentucky football. We will never be the richest team with the most talented roster in the largest stadium in the SEC, but by God, we can sure have some fun at Kroger Field.

Adding a bunch of meows to the in-stadium event space might just annoy the opponent to death, all while creating a few smiles in the process. Don’t think it can get fans on their feet? Imagine this…

ESPN goes to a TV timeout with 2:30 minutes on the sideline clock. Tom Jones’ “What’s New Pussycat” starts blaring through the speakers. That’s when the vinyl “skips,” and the video edit drops. We’ve got Cats wearing sunglasses, hanging onto tree branches, pouncing on birds, with quick cuts and over-the-top edits, before “The Lion Sleeps Tonight,” plays us into The Lion King intro. Then the camera pans to the field. It’s the Wildcat, but he’s not alone. He’s holding something. What is it? It’s a Cat! A Cat hold ing a Cat! He hoists the Cat into the air and the crowd goes WILD!

That crescnedo cuts to Grove Street and the place gets jumping for the final 30 seconds before the defense returns to the field to make a big stop.

Is this a crazy idea? Yes, and it’s the out-of-the-box thinking that the Kentucky football program needs.