POLL: Rupp Name Change

Should Rupp Arena be renamed?


  • Total voters
    0
  • Poll closed .

SemperFiCat

Heisman
Mar 2, 2009
14,566
30,005
0
Probably an unpopular take: Let's put the naming rights out to bid. Then take that additional revenue it generates and put it towards the facilities to attract recruits.
Maybe if fans submit ideas and alumni and season ticket holders (neither of which I am) vote among the top three popular choices or something. Otherwise UK would be playing in George Soros Memorial Arena.
 

BlueRunner11

Heisman
Mar 26, 2011
11,563
35,624
0
Something to think about....If you change the name because it’s offensive, then by the same logic you’d have to remove the banners, delete the records etc with his name on it. Taking Rupps name off the arena will set a precedent for everything else of his legacy (and major part of UKs) to be deleted.

Slippery slope and the cancel culture is never satisfied.
 
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kygrandpa

Heisman
Mar 28, 2012
6,410
17,298
113
Rupp was no racist, but he has been called that for many years after his death.. Not while he was alive to tell the liars to kiss off.. He was no mare a racist that Coach Stoops or Cal!! Who believes those two are racist?? Leave his name alone and move along with your other bull crap is what should be suggested to these fool's..


GBB
 

IUfanBorden

Heisman
Dec 11, 2011
53,775
52,300
0
I doubt there are many of us on here that know what Rupp was....Only thing most of us know is what has been written, disputed, and then told to us. I have said it time and time again----IMO Rupp was no different than any other man, living in the era in which he did. Does that make him racist? Not IMO...If so, then that means my grand-father was racist...And every other person who lived in an era where blacks had very liitle rights..

There are many aspects to look at it...But the one to me, is the fact(s) that UK played in a very, very SOUTHERN, conference...A conference that in the 40's, 50's and 60's, had cities/towns that simply would not have been safe for a blck man to be in....Now, do I think Rupp "balked" later in his tenure on integrating the program? Yes. But again, that doesn't make him a racist...

SO for me, its an easy answer to the poll----NO idea. I don't know enough about Rupp, outside of what I have heard, or read...MOF, I doubt any of us do.
 

BigBlueFanGA

Heisman
Jun 14, 2005
26,435
23,456
0
I doubt there are many of us on here that know what Rupp was....Only thing most of us know is what has been written, disputed, and then told to us. I have said it time and time again----IMO Rupp was no different than any other man, living in the era in which he did. Does that make him racist? Not IMO...If so, then that means my grand-father was racist...And every other person who lived in an era where blacks had very liitle rights..

There are many aspects to look at it...But the one to me, is the fact(s) that UK played in a very, very SOUTHERN, conference...A conference that in the 40's, 50's and 60's, had cities/towns that simply would not have been safe for a blck man to be in....Now, do I think Rupp "balked" later in his tenure on integrating the program? Yes. But again, that doesn't make him a racist...

SO for me, its an easy answer to the poll----NO idea. I don't know enough about Rupp, outside of what I have heard, or read...MOF, I doubt any of us do.
You clearly haven't watched the documentary. Rupp starting trying to get UK to allow him to integrate the program in 1961 if I remember correctly. That is well before Dean Smith and most other coaches.
 
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IUfanBorden

Heisman
Dec 11, 2011
53,775
52,300
0
You clearly haven't watched the documentary. Rupp starting trying to get UK to allow him to integrate the program in 1961 if I remember correctly. That is well before Dean Smith and most other coaches.
I listened to his interview....It didn't sound as if he was trying to get UK to allow him.....More so that they(UK) President was giving him a direct "order" to do so. Its why I think Rupp balked on doing so...After all, he built the program. Who was someone to tell him how to run the program HE built?

Either way....whichever story(doc,or the interview), its irrelevant. None of us knew the man. So IMO, it reckless to comment on who he was(as a person). At the end of the day, his racism, or being non-racist, is mostly built on opinions....Personally, I wish folks would just leave it alone...
 

Panthur

Heisman
Aug 5, 2008
9,225
12,782
0
I voted No and I’m glad to see most other folks did too.

But this is really a piss-poor poll. The strongest available negative is that “there isn’t ‘enough’ evidence to warrant a name change.”

Enough evidence?

There’s no evidence Rupp was racist at all.

Give me the option to “——- slap everyone who remotely believes there’s any bit of a reason to take that man’s name off that building.”

That’s the only sane answer. Political correctness is a vicious attack on all that’s pure and decent in this world.

Enough with it already.
 

Son_Of_Saul

Heisman
Dec 7, 2007
45,170
98,213
113
If we change the name of Rupp Arena because of some vague, relatively small sin of minimal bigotry on Rupp's behalf, do we then also get to change the name of every street named after Dr. Martin Luther King because of his sin of infidelity? Only seems fair to me. If we're going to topple Society for one perceived sin, why aren't we toppling society for the others?
 

BigBlueFanGA

Heisman
Jun 14, 2005
26,435
23,456
0
I listened to his interview....It didn't sound as if he was trying to get UK to allow him.....More so that they(UK) President was giving him a direct "order" to do so. Its why I think Rupp balked on doing so...After all, he built the program. Who was someone to tell him how to run the program HE built?

Either way....whichever story(doc,or the interview), its irrelevant. None of us knew the man. So IMO, it reckless to comment on who he was(as a person). At the end of the day, his racism, or being non-racist, is mostly built on opinions....Personally, I wish folks would just leave it alone...
You aren't fully in context. Please watch the documentary. It was done by Dick Gabriel who previously did believe Rupp was racist. He made it by interviewing dozens of players, coaches, staff and people who knew him, and at times Rupps own words. An opinion without taking the time to watch it is irrelevant.
 

SemperFiCat

Heisman
Mar 2, 2009
14,566
30,005
0
I voted No and I’m glad to see most other folks did too.

But this is really a piss-poor poll. The strongest available negative is that “there isn’t ‘enough’ evidence to warrant a name change.”

Enough evidence?

There’s no evidence Rupp was racist at all.

Give me the option to “——- slap everyone who remotely believes there’s any bit of a reason to take that man’s name off that building.”

That’s the only sane answer. Political correctness is a vicious attack on all that’s pure and decent in this world.

Enough with it already.
Good Lord, dude. It was a simple question. Sorry if semantics got your panies in a bunch.
 
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IUfanBorden

Heisman
Dec 11, 2011
53,775
52,300
0
You aren't fully in context. Please watch the documentary. It was done by Dick Gabriel who previously did believe Rupp was racist. He made it by interviewing dozens of players, coaches, staff and people who knew him, and at times Rupps own words. An opinion without taking the time to watch it is irrelevant.
I mean, I listened to an interview given by Rupp himself...He said himself that the University was pushing hm to recruit black kids, and done so mostly b/c UK was the last school to do so(in the SEC). I'm basing my opinion on the words of the man hmself, Rupp----not a documentary. Don't see how that is not relevant.
 
May 27, 2007
31,899
24,996
113
Part of me wonders if the movie Glory Road rekindled these fires a bit. I'm not definitely saying that's the case, but that movie portrayed Coach Rupp as being resentful of the blacks on the Texas Western team (or very close to it).

I thought about this as well.

Great movie but I did feel it portrayed Rupp in a really bad light........which I'm not sure was entirely accurate.
 
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BigBlueFanGA

Heisman
Jun 14, 2005
26,435
23,456
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I mean, I listened to an interview given by Rupp himself...He said himself that the University was pushing hm to recruit black kids, and done so mostly b/c UK was the last school to do so(in the SEC). I'm basing my opinion on the words of the man hmself, Rupp----not a documentary. Don't see how that is not relevant.
Yes, what you would learn in the documentary is that they wanted Rupp to get any black kid, basically a token. Rupp refused to bring in a kid who couldn't play at that level. He had been warned by Branch Rickey or Happy Chandler to make sure his first black player had the academic and athletic skills to belong and do well, a local kid would be even better. You see, you need to watch the documentary. You formed an opinion with partial information and you were incorrect. You are also incorrect that UK was the last school in the SEC to integrate basketball. The only reason it took that long is no one wanted to be "that guy". The documentary is 100% on point to this entire discussion and you could use the help.
 

Wildcats1st

Heisman
Sep 16, 2017
18,949
28,911
0
Probably an unpopular take: Let's put the naming rights out to bid. Then take that additional revenue it generates and put it towards the facilities to attract recruits.

Terrible idea to compromise tradition in order to attract recruits. If this is what cal needs to do then he’s not the recruiter we all thought he was
 
Sep 19, 2006
669
277
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T-shirts required of season ticket holders. Each half will be lectures full of scorn, condescension, and near or real violent contempt issued by 18-20 year olds who never learned multiplication tables but own the same books Lebron does for photo-ops.

 

Tapemaster8

All-Conference
Feb 9, 2003
14,631
3,887
98
All I know is when I was at the State Tournament in 1967 and I was luck enough to walk down to the end of the court at half time to get Coach Rupp's Autograph, he was watching Allen County and the great Jim McDaniel play. I know he was recruiting Jim. That was 1967. I don't think he was racist at all. But the SEC was and it was hard to get the great players to come to UK.
 

DraftCat

Heisman
Moderator
Nov 5, 2011
13,138
14,740
113
IMO if someone is a racist... it isn't going to take that much digging.

Sh** my grandpa is a racist but he's also 85 and a product of his time. I call it how it is... if you can't prove without a doubt that Rupp is a racist then stfu and focus on real world problems and not a dude who's been dead for 40 years.

If you succeed in removing Rupp name off a building.... congrats? You did nothing to move society forward other than having a name removed from a building.
 

UK90

Heisman
Dec 30, 2007
31,460
27,814
0
Probably an unpopular take: Let's put the naming rights out to bid. Then take that additional revenue it generates and put it towards the facilities to attract recruits.

Too late. The naming rights were sold in January and are locked up through the year 2033. So there's no more money to be made by that route for the foreseeable future.

The actual official name of the place now is Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. If they change the name, they'll likely just drop the Rupp part and call it Central Bank Center or Central Bank Arena.
 

BigBlueFanGA

Heisman
Jun 14, 2005
26,435
23,456
0
Too late. The naming rights were sold in January and are locked up through the year 2033. So there's no more money to be made by that route for the foreseeable future.

The actual official name of the place now (after selling the naming rights) is Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. If they change the name, they'll'just drop the Rupp part and call it Central Bank Center or Central Bank Arena.
By contract, they aren't allowed to drop "Rupp Arena".
 

kl40504_rivals

Heisman
Oct 5, 2018
15,258
11,184
0
I mean, I listened to an interview given by Rupp himself...He said himself that the University was pushing hm to recruit black kids, and done so mostly b/c UK was the last school to do so(in the SEC). I'm basing my opinion on the words of the man hmself, Rupp----not a documentary. Don't see how that is not relevant.
You know nothing about Rupp but you should know that IU had one of the most abusive basketball coaches in college basketball history and the IU administration enabled his actions for decades.
 

420grover

All-American
Mar 26, 2006
7,703
7,860
0
Could be...Through the interview, Rupp made the comment that then President Dickey wanted Rupp to "get it going", because UK was lagging behind other SEC schools....I most certainly could have misunderstood...
Not "could be". It's easy to look up. Rupp "recruited" black players long before he ever signed one. That is an absolute fact, it's well known that he recruited Beard and Unseld. As far as stepping foot on the court in uniform, Tom Payne played a year before Collis Temple at LSU.
 

JPScott

All-American
Sep 16, 2001
7,677
7,380
62
I mean, I listened to an interview given by Rupp himself...He said himself that the University was pushing hm to recruit black kids, and done so mostly b/c UK was the last school to do so(in the SEC). I'm basing my opinion on the words of the man hmself, Rupp----not a documentary. Don't see how that is not relevant.

Unfortunately I think you're coming into this topic with only a partial understanding of the facts. When the University President was pushing him to recruit black players, Rupp was ALREADY recruiting black players. The contention was over recruiting token players, something that Rupp refused to do. But Rupp was indeed recruiting bona-fide black players every year at that time, and in fact UK was the first school in the SEC to recruit a black player (Wes Unseld in 1964).

I've mentioned this before but I think people who read about the argument between Rupp and President Oswald not only don't realize this is about tokenism, but they end up giving Oswald entirely too much credit for UK's efforts at the time. First of all, the work of getting UK prepared and pubicly open to integration in their athletic programs was due to Frank Dickey. By the time Oswald arrived on campus, all the preparatory work was done, it was just a matter of getting a recruit to accept a scholarship offer. Oswald claims he made some recruiting trips early in his administration (for example he claims he went to see Unseld as well as Rupp) but that didn't last long. Rupp also mentions in his tape that he was asking Oswald to loosen the academic requirements in order to help get black players accepted by the school, but Oswald didn't provide any help in that regard.

Also, you claim that Oswald was pushing because "UK was the last school do so". Again if you're talking recruiting, that's absolutely wrong and the opposite of the truth, as UK was the 1st SEC school to recruit a black player. If you mean to sign a black player, that's also wrong. At the time Oswald resigned from UK (March 1968), the only black player in the SEC at the time was Perry Wallace at Vanderbilt. Rupp had actually sign Felix Thruston of Owensboro in 1967 which would have made UK the 2nd team in the SEC with a black player, but Thruston was lost to another school.

If you're interested in this topic, I have a webpage which goes into great detail at:

Adolph Rupp: Fact and Fiction

There's also the Dick Gabriel Video which also has some very good information and interviews from people who were there.

Adolph Rupp - Myth, Legend & Fact
 
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