a good game.

Looking forward to it.  Be sure to stop by for the analysis, you might find something you can use.

I hope the CATS grind the Gators into dust.

Your going down GP...DOWN!!!!

Well, the Gators are going down.

So if you are going to drop by if you win I think it's only fair that you drop by when you lose so we can take our shots at you.

would love to take the high road and wish you and the gators good luck, but truth be told I truely hope UK blows florida off the court! :)

That being said let me assure you it's nothing personal. Here's hoping everyone stays healthy and you and BeatUL find a way to kick back a few cold ones after the game.  Ha, wouldn't that be a sight.

...  is actually a cool dude and I know he doesn't mean 70% of what he says.  He just lets emotion get the best of him and I'm sure if he could take most of that stuff back, he would.  Hopefully we'll have some beers together someday, just like you said.

and this one conversation thread has since kind of died out, but I wanted to comment on it here, since it seems appropriate.  GP said in this old thread, talking about the relative merits of Rupp and whatever place it is that they play:  "Players and fans alike have commented that Rupp is a morgue compared to the O'Connell Center.  Rowdy Reptiles...  makin' the difference."

However, Vandy's Alex Gordon (a senior, so he's played at both places plenty) said:  "Rupp Arena was the loudest crowd and had the most people that I have ever played in front of."

I think I'm gonna go with Gordon on this one.  Now we UK fans can't deny that for the less glamorous games, say a middling Auburn team on a blustery Wednesday, the Rupp crowd is hardly raucous.  Oh, sure we'll still have one of the biggest crowds in all of college basketball, but those 22000 can get sedate.  I would guess our fan base is not as student-centered as theirs (it's more entire state-centered) and the full grown adults are less likely to be half drunk with their chests painted screaming their heads off.  I have no idea what the O'Connell Center is like on a comparable game.  Doubt it would be a sellout like ours always are, but hey, I'll give them the benefit of the doubt and allow that it could be a louder environment in this scenario.  But come on, GP himself can't possibly believe that if you were to compare each facility when each is at its best that there is any comparasion. AT ALL.  

That's almost as crazy as saying that because UK fans discovered football this past year and people filled the stadium for the big games, and screamed like crazy and beat a few people, then Commonwealth is in the same category as the Swamp.  Commonwealth is far smaller physically, it looms far smaller in the mind, the home fans filling it probably tend to be less knowledgable and passionate about the sport and their team and victory maybe means a little less to them.  Same way with Rupp vs O'Connell.  They're two just are not in the same league.

Well, not thaw I've insulted GP's hypothesis, Florida home game attendees and hardcore UK football fans, I guess my work here is done : )

Hopefully the game on Saturday will be an exciting one...the SEC could use that positive ESPN exposure.  I seriously doubted we could possibly win over Vandy and that worked out great, so I am bringing this same negative attitude to this game, and hoping for another shock-to-me victory.

... is no Rupp.  Rupp is a basketball shrine, and the O'Connell Center is not.  I'm a Gator, but I can recognize that from 1,000 miles away.

BUT... I do believe it's louder.  And generally, more intimidating to opponents.

The culture is different here.  It's not a bunch of half-drunk students making the noise.  We don't even sell alcohol in the arena and since students have to camp out for hours to get in well before tip, it's safe to say nobody in the entire building has a whiff of alcohol in them.

The difference in our culture is that winning in both sports is really important.  Are we a football first school?  I suppose we're guilty as charged.  But we're not any less passionate about basketball.  We win national championships in both, for crying out loud, and have been two three Final Fours (and three title games) in the last seven years.  Staggering stat: if you've tuned in to watch a national championship game in this millenium, there's a 40% chance that Florida was playing in it.

So, yeah: there's no dropoff here from football to basketball.  It's nothing like Kentucky basketball and the 'backup' sport, football.  Nothing like that at all.  We expect to win in both.  Compete in both at the highest level.  And we do.

When our team takes the home court, our crowd gives them an advantage, something I feel frequently doesn't happen at Rupp.  I've lost track over the last few years how many times this subject has come up, whether it's from a student-athlete or a fan who's been to both, and it seems to be near-unanimous that playing Florida in Gainesville is one of the toughest stops in the SEC.

you've got to be approaching some sort of record for the longest adieu ever bidded. :)

...  I bid the final adieu, my sweet, sweet friends.

I must depart.  It is hard to leave, but it is best for all of us.

I will think fondly of you during our time apart.

Farewell!  Farewell!  Farewell!

<insert image of tiny figure waving frantically on the horizon until he disappears altogether>