The Week That Is About To Be

The sports schedule is getting a little hectic. The NFL is rolling with the playoffs. College football is in the bowl season. High school, college, and pro basketball is running strong. Mondays Tuesdays are good days to plan out your week and make sure you don’t miss any of the UK-related action. Tuesday -Rifle Team - Alaska-Fairbanks at Kentucky - ESPN2 - 7:00: Actually, this isn't televised, but I wanted to see how many people were paying attention. Last week, the UK team beat Army and they take on the Aimin' Palins tomorrow today. Thursday -Women's Basketball - Arkansas at Kentucky - 7:00: Arkansas weeks begins for UK basketball as both teams take on the Hogs in conference action. The UK Hoops team continues to impress after a win against Alabama this past Sunday. The second of a three game homestand, the Cats seek to improve in the SEC after a loss at South Carolina last week. The ladies are getting some votes in the polls and could be ranked if they win out this week. Saturday -Men's Basketball - Arkansas at Kentucky - SEC Network - 4:00: I'm not sure how to feel about Arkansas anymore. In the 90's, they were the perfect Kentucky foil. A hateable coach, players that preened but played tough, and a fan base that had the most annoying schtick west of Rock Top. The first six times we played the Razorbacks in the modern era, Pig Red won 4 of those games (two of those wins coming at Rupp). Almost every game was a slobber knocker with both teams usually ranked and the winner snagging bragging rights in the SEC. I went to the SEC tournament in 1993 in Lexington and the UA fans were the most passionate representatives in attendance (outside of UK fans, of course). After a couple of losses in the early aughts, the wheels pretty much came off for Arkansas. Nolan Richardson shot his mouth off and got fired. The Stan Heath experiment failed. Now, UK legend John Pelphrey is trying to put the sooey back into the team and it isn't going well (however, note that when the situation was reversed and UK hired a coach with Arkansas ties, the damage to the UK program was far worse than anything John is doing). The last time UK played a ranked Arkansas team was in 1999 and the fans have abandoned the team. The luster is gone and that is a little disappointing. I like rooting against Arkansas. I like hating them. The SEC is better when there is a strong basketball power in the West and the Razorbacks fit that role well. This game should be UK rolling in pig blood with a big, bounce-back win at home against a great rival. Unfortunately, we are going to sharpen our claws against a team that is a shell of what they should be. It is just sad. Sunday -Women's Basketball - Auburn at Kentucky - 2:00: The end of the home stand. Hopefully, the UK Hoops team will be shooting for their third straight win at this point and finally be ranked. Get out there and support your Cats.