A few weeks ago, I mentioned the following over at the now-mega-modernized ASoB:
Finally, a point of discussion for you Wildcat faithful. From all accounts, the new Barnstorming Event is going along swimmingly. From what little I’ve gathered, Louisville doesn’t offer the same kind of fare-the-well tour for its basketball seniors. Which is kinda sad; who wouldn’t want to boo David Padgett one last time, for old times sake?
Would it be too much to ask to try and schedule a Barnstorming event that included the UL players? You could have it held in Louisville, and have the old foes battle back and forth for a half. Then bring in the regional all-stars and combine the UK and UL teams. (Now that’s a scary thought, huh?)
And why limit it to just Louisville players? How about bringing in Courtney Lee and the rest of the great WKU seniors for a stop near Bowling Green? That would make each event unique for the region and promote the state of Kentucky as the state that loves basketball. I think the Barnstorming basketball spotlight is big enough to share with all our in-state players.
The very few comments I received concerning opening up the Barnstorming event to non-UK players were negative. One of the comments mentioned that Louisville or other players shouldn’t be in an event that is promoting the University of Kentucky. But, in actuality, the Barnstorming tour really has nothing to do officially with the University. From C-J’s Brett Dawson:
If Bradley and Crawford had their way, current Cats would be making the trip as well. NCAA rules prohibit that — UK can’t be involved in any official capacity — but Bradley and Crawford said the perspective they’ve gleaned through the barnstorming tour would serve any player well.
In all truthfulness, this Barnstorming fare-thee-well tour is a good way to let former players like Joe and Ramel to make a little money. There’s no harm in that. After cheering for them for 4 years, I think I lot of us consider them part of the Wildcat family. And like real families, you always have to send even the most distantly-related graduating seniors some sort of gift. I mean, what will your Momma think if she heard you didn’t help the family?
I would pay money to see Woo defend Louisville’s David Padgett. (Remember, Woo claimed to own Louisville during his tenure at UK!) I’m sure there would be tons of Louisville fans who would pay to see their senior heroes get together for one last stab at the UK Seniors.
I’m not Matt Jones, who’s helping run the event. But if I was, and if I made the UK/UL Barnstorming Brew-ha-ha, I would force the autograph session to include UK and UL players. So everybody gets a few autographs they wish they could Windex off. That would be delightfully EEEE-vil!