Like I said, "I always watched with my friend and his father".......I always took a nap and then went over about the time the news came on.....couldn't beat me and make me look at the score.........Dude would turn the TV off when the news came on and get us set up with popcorn and drinks.......what I would give for another one of those late nights....I bet a lot of people back then lost a lot of sleep staying up and watching those replays. I know when UK football was so often replayed at 11:30 pm on Saturday night made me really tired going to church the next day.
50 Years Plus Club
- Thread starter spartacat
- Start date
55 YEARS for me. 1965-66 season was when I really started following. I kind of remember Cotton Nash and Ted Deeken which obviously was two years earlier. Lot more great memories than not. Never forget going to Memorial Coliseum as a little kid. Was a student there between 1972-1976. Fraternity brother with three of three of the Super Kittens. Friends with several others from that group. It was a tough transition from Coach Rupp to Coach Hall.
Not yet there , 51. But in the early to mid 70s, listened to Cawood and kept stats on paper. Points mostly.
Cudos to MKTMAKER for starting the' 1966 worst loss' thread. I read every word of it and nowhere in it was anybody raising cane with each other(dang, I get tired of a good thread turning into a pizzing match).
Got me thinking, what was the common denominator? Realized it had to be maturity and just wanted to get the older guys talking about their experiences. Man, I have enjoyed these stories. Most of us had it tough(I know I did), but we were the fortunate ones...Especially our guys who saw ALL eight titles! Really respect older people and always have.
Since the early 60s. Listening to caewood on radio.
1966. I remember an article I believe in the courier journal it was on the front of the sports page and said 13-0 and number one and had a picture of the starters walking together. I was hooked
PLEASE EVERYONE...it is Cawood not Caywood not Caewood. CAWOOD as in the town of Cawood in Harlan County.
Spelling is irrelevant when it comes to Cawood and the age group of fans in this thread. I don’t think anyone here has had a problem figuring out who is being described. You could spell it Kaywould and I bet my mule none of us this age would have a problem figuring it out. No need for your post imo.
Seems like a lot of old blue farts on here. How many have been following UK for 50 years plus? I will start. I started following the Year of the Kennedy assassination, 1963.
That year I signed on with the Cleveland Browns, LA Dodgers and LA Lakers. Have followed all through thick and thin.
It is good to know that another Browns fan resides on here.
1949 is the year started listening to Kentucky. We did not have a radio until then. I am 82.
As a small child, my Dad followed the Cats in 48-49-50-51 3{NC's} and I listened with him on radio. His favorite player was Frank Ramsey who attended the same HS in Owensboro that my Dad had. It stuck from there on..
I have to say, it's pretty cool to see 60+ year old fans not only posting here, but still going strong.
I've only been following since the tail end of the Tubby Years... which amazes me to think, that it's been about 15 years for myself.
I've only been following since the tail end of the Tubby Years... which amazes me to think, that it's been about 15 years for myself.
Frank Ramsey was from Madisonville. Ky.
Cliff Hagan was from Owensboro.
Yeah we aren’t too bad with the Interwebz are we? ;-)
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anon_q409idbs5m40a
Guest
Been following UK Basketball since 1966 and I'm 63. Also been a Reds fans since 1965. First UK game I saw in person was against Florida in Memorial Coliseum in 1971. UK won 101-75 and the biggest thing I took away from the game was the size of Tom Payne. I had never seen anyone that huge in person until then.
Like many in the old days it seems like since I was born but I guess I remember following intently since 1968. Tom Parker was my favorite since I was a lefty too.Seems like a lot of old blue farts on here. How many have been following UK for 50 years plus? I will start. I started following the Year of the Kennedy assassination, 1963.
That year I signed on with the Cleveland Browns, LA Dodgers and LA Lakers. Have followed all through thick and thin.
My bad, my memory is not what it used to be.
Frank Ramsey ran a bank here in a small town that i live outside of a few miles. He got me the tickets for UK game a few years ago. I listened to a few story's he would tell playing for UK and Celtics. He was a good man.
I've been following the Cats since the early 70's. Loved the upset of Indiana in 75, the NIT championship of 76, and of course, the 78 Championship. We should've won it in 75 but there was no way the were letting Wooden go out with a loss.
Listen.. you guys have stories, wisdom for days, and enough guts for 100 people my age.. but the interwebz? Well, that's where we can help. lol
Funny enough, my dad is 68 and has been running his own YouTube channel about "not getting old". Tips and tricks. But he does his ENTIRE production. Video taping, uploading, managing his own social media. AND he does it while being a dad to my two little brothers.. 5 and 7 years old.
So if he can handle it, anyone can. Maybe I'll share his channel some day.
I'm 63 and my 1st year as a Cat fan was the 68/69 season with Issel, Pratt and Casey. Before that I just paid attention to Ky. Wesleyan and Evansville, 3rd region high school games. My Dad watched the Cats if they were on tv, but don't remember him listening to games on the radio. We listened to all St Louis Cardinal and St. Louis Hawks games, I started in 64. As many others have expressed, those are great memories that I miss to this day.
John, I chuckled when you said "we did not have a radio then".
People today cannot possibly understand the implications of your sentence. Life after the Great Depression and WW2.
You had to be there to know what you meant.
I'm close...born in 65. I remember being fascinated with UK games while at a Little League sign up for Lyndon Recreation in Louisville. Thought it was so cool how the teams had these long words "KENTUCKY" AND "TENNESSEE" across their chests. I had really only watched Louisville's games in the MWC until then. I cried when Louisville lost to UCLA in 75 and remember the first time I ever pulled hard for Kentucky was in that final, because I hated UCLA.
Couple of years later a neighbor got me into college hoops again (was mostly a Colonels fan during hoops season). He told me about how his UK Wildcats were a top team and only losing one player from the year before. That was the year they won it and I was hooked. Still liked U of L until their fans gave me crap for liking UK.
I'll never forget 1980 at Ballard High School. It was like 50/50 UK and U of L fans. We would rag on them about their loss to Iona (whom we beat in the Great Alaska Shootout). They would rag on us about one of our losses. We were both really good that year. We lost by one at home to Duke in the Sweet 16. Would have had a clear shot to play U of L in the final.
Those were the days of Cawood on radio and Joe Dean on TV. Stuffarino in Lexington K Y. String music in Baton Rouge. So much better than the TV guys today.
Couple of years later a neighbor got me into college hoops again (was mostly a Colonels fan during hoops season). He told me about how his UK Wildcats were a top team and only losing one player from the year before. That was the year they won it and I was hooked. Still liked U of L until their fans gave me crap for liking UK.
I'll never forget 1980 at Ballard High School. It was like 50/50 UK and U of L fans. We would rag on them about their loss to Iona (whom we beat in the Great Alaska Shootout). They would rag on us about one of our losses. We were both really good that year. We lost by one at home to Duke in the Sweet 16. Would have had a clear shot to play U of L in the final.
Those were the days of Cawood on radio and Joe Dean on TV. Stuffarino in Lexington K Y. String music in Baton Rouge. So much better than the TV guys today.
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I'm in the 50 plus club. Earliest I remember was just after the point shaving scandal from the early 50s. It was so much harder to keep with sports back in those days. All we had was a radio, and maybe an old newspaper. Talk around your town was how most of us kept up. We lived out of state for a good portion of my teens, too, and that made it even harder.
Johnfarrel, Graham51 and Sewanee Cat have witnessed all eight titles. Stories those guys could tell.
I worked in Corbin for years and knew Jerry Bird who played at UK . His son Steve told me a funny story about Bear Bryant, Rupp and Jerry.
Jerry was visiting UK while in HS . Jerry was not only great in basketball but was a pretty good football End. Both offense and defense.
Jerry had an appointment with Rupp and Bear found out about it. So, Bear intercepted Jerry when he got on campus and took him to his office to try and get him to play football.
Rupp found out about Bears devious play and ran to Bears office and yanked Jerry out of the chair . "Jerry is playing basketball you son of a ..." as he threw Jerry through the door and slammed it behind him , Jerry could hear Bear howling with laughter.
The first year I remember listening to the Cats was "Rupp's Runts" in '65-66".
Since 1964. I am 65. Wound up teaching Oliver Simmons in high school. We keep in close touch. He is moving to Minnesota.
You are right. We did not have electricity until 1949. The first radio I ever heard belonged to my Aunt Novella. She'd bring it to our house on Saturday night so we could listen to the Grand Ole Opery.
The first team I have any memory of is 1969-70, so this season marks my 50th anniversary of being a Kentucky fan. That was the first year I remember my Mom making scorecards out for us to keep score of the games. I have a very hazy memory of watching that Jacksonville game on TV.
As the early 70s wore on, I became more and more transfixed by Kentucky Basketball. My Dad took me to see my first two games at the Coliseum in 1971 (Vanderbilt and Tennessee). Back in those days, I remember us parking up on Linden Walk or Aylesford and walking from there. Sometimes we'd stop in the Burger Chef next to the Coliseum (where Qdoba is now) and get roast beef sandwiches to sneak into the game. lol
I was lucky enough to be at Rupp's last game, against Auburn in 1972. The 73-74 season was disappointing, but 74-75 was a ride to remember, and the day we whipped IUsedtobe in the Mideast Regional Final was the day that I went over the edge into full-blown UK fanaticism. I've pretty much been there ever since.
As the early 70s wore on, I became more and more transfixed by Kentucky Basketball. My Dad took me to see my first two games at the Coliseum in 1971 (Vanderbilt and Tennessee). Back in those days, I remember us parking up on Linden Walk or Aylesford and walking from there. Sometimes we'd stop in the Burger Chef next to the Coliseum (where Qdoba is now) and get roast beef sandwiches to sneak into the game. lol
I was lucky enough to be at Rupp's last game, against Auburn in 1972. The 73-74 season was disappointing, but 74-75 was a ride to remember, and the day we whipped IUsedtobe in the Mideast Regional Final was the day that I went over the edge into full-blown UK fanaticism. I've pretty much been there ever since.
We are going to have to start a Wildcat 75 Year Club before long. That is four of you guys from 48 onward.
Man, you guys were spoiled to death in the late 40's and 50's. Not just basketball but innovation and growth after ww2 .
Thats the thing about this nation. Nobody can make lemonade out of lemons like we can. We will come out of this also. Hell , its America
Yep , there was no way in heck they were going to let him go out with out winning that last championship !! I am afraid the Rat Faced Bastard at Dook will get the same treatment.
I have nightmares it will be against us. Bet your bottom dollar ,if we play them for the NC, he/they will pull this stunt.
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anon_q409idbs5m40a
Guest
I think that one of those guards for Jacksonville passed away a few years ago. They had Wediking and Rex Morgan as the ones I recall.
It's all good Brother. Not meant to be a criticism of your post. Sorry if it came off that way.
I can't remember what I had for lunch yesterday on most days. Short term memory issues.
But I am amazed at how some of these posts trigger memories of my childhood and so many past occurrence that revolve around UK basketball and football.
Better days and wonderful times spent with many that have passed on from this life. Keep posting what you remember.
After all, it is your memories and that makes it ok with me.
I remember Pitino talking about Ollie on his radio show and saying that "Ollie wasn't as tall as we thought he was when we were recruiting him", as though he had ordered Ollie out of a catalog and didn't see the *Actual size not shown disclaimer.
I attended my first UK game at the age of 9 in 1969. That year I began keeping full game stats listening on the radio until 1973 when Commonwealth Stadium opened. I became a "first half" Coke seller, making all my sales in the first half and spending the second half watching the games. In 1978 I was asked to walk on as a punter after the Baylor game. Unfortunately I was in a car wreck the night before the Tennessee game, crushing a lower lumbar vertebrae, going from 6'00" to 5' 11" in the course of a few seconds, ending my football career. Basically a life long fan
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