National Champions?

    I'm not even going to bother sugar coating this statement with some fancy introduction: Louisville is NOT that good, and all of this "National Title" nonsense needs to cease and desist.  For those of us who enjoyed watched the game Saturday from the confines of our homes, you may have heard the commentators mention that Kentucky could (and in my opinion, is) be the toughest challenge the Red Birds will face all season.  I don't know if it was bias or what have you, but they continued on the Louisville bashing with the trivia question, revealing that the Cards are the only top 25 team that will not face another Nationally ranked team this season, further evidence of the cake walk that they apparently call a schedule over in Southern Indiana. Yes, Kentucky got beat.  And yes, the young Cats team did have their standard "bad news Bears" moments.  But if you're a Kentucky fan, the one thing that you should be able to take from this weekend is that these people down I-64 must be drinking water out of the Ohio River or something.  A National Title? I think that I'll go share a laugh with Nick Saban on that one.   So, a rebuilding Kentucky team is the toughest competition you will face all year, and you score 10 points in the first half? In the name of objectivity, I'll allow that Louisville probably came in to the game overly confident and didn't necessarily give their "A" game Saturday, while Kentucky (especially on defense) was focused dialed in riding adrenaline and came out swinging.  With that being said, it speaks loudly to the character of a team if they can't get up for a rivalry game.  If Kentucky had a Heisman hopeful at QB and a team with BCS buzz, they'd look to hang 100 on Louisville, Tennessee, or anyone else for that matter.  Anything can happen in these types of games, and this whole "we overlooked Kentucky" argument is bogus.  If you overlooked the Cats, then I don't see how you can take any of your opponents seriously.  The truth is, Louisville came out flat and got punched in the mouth in the first half.       Did you see how good our Freshman are? Yes, our Freshman.  This isn't a basketball post, you're reading that correctly.  I know people thought I was riding the kid because we're both from Frankfort, but I told you to keep your eye on Ryan Timmons, which admittedly is difficult to do because he runs that fast.  Even at this stage in his career, he's one of the best play makers on the offensive side of the ball and is capable of breaking one anytime he gets an opening.  But JoJo Kemp is that man right now.  In the words of one Louisville fan, Kemp ran through the Cardinal defense like green apples through a Fourth Grader.  So once Teddy goes pro, Michael Dyer goes back to jail, and Charlie Strong takes a better job, I just don't see how the Cards can keep up (literally and figuratively).       Does Teddy have a street named after him yet? Or at least a restaurant in the Yum Center? Muhammad Ali move over, there's a new boss in Louisville and his name is Jennifer Lawrence Teddy Bridgewater.  The kid can play, and outside of the criminal that stands in the backfield with him, he's the whole team.  That much is pretty obvious, and without him the Cards really don't have much else.  If there's anything that can be taken from Saturday's game, it's that (and evidenced by the grass stains on those pearly white jerseys) Teddy doesn't like to be hit.  Hit em' early, hit em' often, and Teddy will shut down.  If Louisville does end up with some success at the conclusion of this season, I think number 5 at least deserves his own commemorative flat bill or maybe even a shot named after him or something (which would probably be a shot of Watermelon Four Loko).   It's a rivalry, folks, and I understand that Saturday's game may be an unfair assessment of UofL, but let's all be honest for a second.  Kentucky physically whipped Louisville in the first half but couldn't move the ball to save their life.  Take away the inexcusable botched hand-off in the red-zone and Kentucky and Louisville go in to halftime tied at 10.  Who knows from there?  Maybe the offense comes out and moves the ball and gives the defense a chance to catch their breath?  Regardless of the hypothetical scenarios, I want this Louisville National Title talk to quit.  Take it from a program who knows, you will not beat Alabama, and you would not last in the SEC.  The difference between the "real" SEC teams and Kentucky is that the Bama's and LSU's of the world have a second string that is just as good as their first.  Those defenses don't get tired, and the speed on offense isn't just reserved for freshmen phenoms.   With all of that being said, Congrats on your Governor's Cup victory (and I don't mean quick recall) and good luck with the rest of your "season."  It think it would be interesting to see U of L play Western to determine the best team in the state and then Kentucky would play Eastern for the consolation game, but I digress.  The main thing to take from this weekend is that the potential for a legitimate rivalry is there, and that rivalry will extend into several different sports.  The sports competition between the two schools speaks to a much larger conflict in the state: Louisville against everyone else.  It's not a knock on Louisville as a city, it's just the truth and if you've grown up in the Commonwealth you know it's true.  These sentiments go down to the very core of the citizenry of Kentucky, and what better venue to showcase these feelings than in the one sport where it's still legal to knock the snot out of someone.   I'll leave you with this... I know it's been on the site before and it's circulating around both Lexington and Louisville media, but the composer (is that what you call it?) is a close friend of mine.  I know it was tough for you Gabe, I know you're a big Louisville fan, but way to keep to the objective nature of things.  Well done sir.  Enjoy.   If you feel like I feel, I got the anecdote (hahahaha).   Follow on Twitter @WEJarboe_KSR