Loge Level

Flip Saunders - “The analogy I use about how we played in the first fourgames is being like when you’re stuck in quicksand. The harder you try to get out, the deeper you sink” (Link)

Shane Falco -”You’re playing and you think everything is going fine. Then one thing goes wrong. And then another. And another. You try to fight back, but the harder you fight, the deeper you sink. Until you can’t move… you can’t breathe… because you’re in over your head. Like quicksand”

Bob Castellini is showing he has a little Steinbrenner in him. His lack of patience isn’t as famous as MFY owner George Steibrenner, but to those who have worked for him that lack of patience is legendary.

Wayne Krivsky didn’t deserve to be fired. The simple fact is Castellini probably wanted former Cardinals general manager Walt Jocketty to replace Dan O’Brien when he bought the team almost three years ago, but he couldn’t get him until this year because Jocketty was under contract in St. Louis.But Krivsky did a wonderful job reshaping the roster after all of Jim Bowden and O’Brien’s dead-weight contracts (Ken Griffey Jr., Eric Milton). He was brilliant at picking up young guys (Hamilton, Phillips, Volquez, Votto, Burton, Lincoln, Bailey, Bruce) for relatively nothing and stood firm on the few prospects the organization had from the previous management. His trades were often lacking, but he was always dealing from a position of having too many outfielders and teams not willing to offer enough because they knew Krivsky had to unload Austin Kearns/Adam Dunn or Josh Hamilton/Dunn because no one will touch Griffey and Castellini won’t allow Griffey to be traded until he hits No. 600 as a Red.

So about a year after saying I’d post on Logelevel.com and offer my thoughts on all things sports, I’m finally living up to my word. Much of my enjoyment with sports is derived from UK football and basketball, but I’ll offer my 2 cents on the Cincinnati Reds and (gulp) Bengals and whatever is stuck in my crawl at the time.

One quick story that isn’t very excited to probably anyone but myself, but last Tuesday at Harry’s I ran into the irreplaceable Mr. Wildcat — Bill Keightley. I said hello as he passed and shook his hand. He gave me a firm shake with a big smile and say, “Hey, kid.” To say it made my day is an understatement. I recently wondered how many years he had left in him on the bench, but I never imagined he’d soon be gone forever. He’ll long live in the hearts of Wildcat fans everywhere, and I feel lucky for my chance encounter with him.

On the University of Kentucky basketball’s version of Mount Rushmore, there would be at least three faces, only one of which would be a coach or player. Legendary coach Adolph Rupp would be the George Washington of UK’s Mount Ruppmore – the no-brainer – but the next two choices would be radio legend Cawood Ledford and equipment manager Bill Keightley.

The fourth or fifth faces may be up for debate — the players are innumerable – but those first three are undeniable. Rupp made UK basketball what it was, is, and always will be. Ledford was the voice, eyes and ears of the UK fan base for nearly four decades. He and Keightley are the only non-players and non-coaches to have their names or jerseys raised to the rafters.

Sadly, Mr. Wildcat, Bill Keightley, died on Monday. The 81-year-old was attending the Cincinnati Reds’ Opening Day game when he fell and sustained internal injuries that led internal bleeding that could not be stopped. According to BRett Dawson of the Courier-Journal, Keightley’s internal bleeding also resulted form an undiagnosed tumor on his spine.

Keightley was UK’s equipment manager for 48 years, serving Rupp, Joe B. Hall, Eddie Sutton, Rick Pitino, Tubby Smith and, this year Billy Gillispie. His impact on the program may have been far less than all thsoe coaches and the players he assisted, but he was a fixture in the program, a team mascot, the face of the fan base for almost five decades.

We’ll miss the guy the same as UK fans miss Rupp or Basil Hayden or Ralph Beard. We didn’t cheer for Mr. Wildcat as a player or coach, we cherished what he represented. He was what all in Cat Nation viewed themselves as — UK’s No. 1 fan.

I was in college when Cawood died and remember writing a breaking news story the day he passed. It was one of the saddest but most proud days of my career.  As interegal as Rupp was to UK’s legacy, Cawood and Mr. Keightley are easily the most popular people with any association to the program.  Keightley is the only Wildcat who may be mourned and missed as much as Cawood.

And that’s why two guys who never took a shot, made a pass or drew up a play are among the most hallowed of UK basketball personalities.

March Madness often leads to April Sadness or May Heydays. They are two of the most important recruiting months of the basketball season. They probably lack behind the summer months and November in sheer activity, but for the elite prospects who hold out or can’t make up their minds until the final moments these next several weeks are very intriguing.

Kentucky fans can look no further than last April and May when they held their breath as Patrick Patterson remained in limbo. Ron Mercer was another major May recruiting coup.

Again, the Cats still have a scholarship available late in the recruiting game and several players on their radar. Their top target may be (or may not, depending on how you want to interpret coach Billy Gillispie’s intentions) McDonald’s All-American Scotty Hopson, the scoring guard from Hopkinsville, Ky. Hopson originally committed to Mississippi State but never signed his National Letter of Intent. The final signing day is May 21. Read the rest of this entry »

OK, I apologize for the winter of inactivity. Of course, plenty of transactions, trades, and prospect happenings that I live for occurred over the five months since Moxie’s previous post, but I found myself more capitivated by a certain basketball team than a relatively quiet offseason for my favorite baseball team.

But I promise nearly as frequent Moxie posts the next six months, from the resurrections of Manny Ramirez and Pedro Martinez to the decline of Miguel Tejada and Jason Giambi. Super prospects Jay Bruce, Johnny Cueto, Jacoby Ellsbury, Phil Hughes, Evan Longoria and Colby Rasmus will be discussed. Hopefully, Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens will not.

A new baseball season begins Tuesday in Tokyo at 6 p.m. local time – at the break of dawn in the eastern United States and closing time on the west coast — with the defending champion Boston Red Sox taking on the Oakland A’s. So, I’ll have a bowl of Cap’n Crunch instead of a bottle of Bud to accompany the first pitch.

Opening Day is a Holy Day for Moxie Legion. Most years it’s a day-long event. Grill some burgers, drink some beer. Watch the Cincinnati Reds on one TV, the Red Sox on another, maybe a third game afterward. Then, the NCAA national championship follows in the evening.

But the NCAA Tournament is running a week behind this season and the Sox are starting the season overseas. So, I’ll watch with interest alone on Tuesday and Wednesday. But before Dustin Pedroia takes the first pitch of the season from Joe Blanton, check out some predictions after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »

In a season with so many dreadful lows — home losses to Garder-Webb, UAB and San Diego and blowout losses to North Carolina, Indiana, Louisville and Vanderbilt — the assessment of basketball coach Billy Gillispie’s first season at Kentucky through Blue Goggles may come as a surprise:

I enjoyed this season more than any season since Keith Bogans sprained his ankle. And for that reason alone it was an utter success through these Blue Goggles.

Sure, Tubby’s leftovers were preseason Top 25 picks, so maybe they didn’t achieve any more than initially expected, or maybe they even failed to advance as far as some expected. And, Billy G’s critics will point directly in his face in attributing blame for the rash of injuries that plagued the Cats.

Yes, his practices at the Joe Craft Center were more like gladiator matches at The Colosseum. Yes, he practiced ON gamedays. Yes, he played players 35-plus minutes per game.

But I looked forward to every game, especially after the scrappy Cats bounced back from the loss to Louisville to upset Vandy. Read the rest of this entry »

Looks like Andre’ Woodson’s draft stock is falling fast.  From MMQB (Link)

Fourth through sixth rounds: Eric Ainge, Tennessee; Andre Woodson, Kentucky; Matt Flynn, LSU; Dennis Dixon, Oregon and Joshua Johnson, San Diego.

Of all the players here, Dixon’s the most intriguing. He’s rehabbing the surgically repaired ACL in his left knee, hoping to work out for scouts in early April and do most of what the pros need to see. Woodson needs to have a good predraft experience with some teams to come out of his free-fall; scouts think he’s a guy who will need max protection because of mediocre mobility. Flynn? Not on many radar screens, but he’ll make someone a good third-string guy while he works 25-hour days adapting to the pro game.

Back in November, King projected that Woodson would be the first QB selected. (Link)

Jay Bilas - I don’t think there’s any way that Kentucky can get in unless they win their conference tournament. They’re ten and nine.