So long, Mr. Wildcat
March 31st, 2008 by Travis
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.
