Cal Who?

Any chance a message was being sent about who the program and to whom it now belongs?

Me thinks so.

Pretty sure this is our best opening ever.

Enjoy.

Tommy Can You Hear Me?

I'm here to tell you - Tommy West told the truth about the program that he's leaving.

I say that not to defend the decision to let him go--it was probably time. Over the past couple of years, it seemed the program had destabilized and was not pointed toward strength. There's no question about that. The offensive scheme was tired and predictable. The defense had holes aplenty and don't even get me started about special teams.

I've been going to Tiger games for a long, long time. I played trumpet for The Mighty Sound of the South in 82-83 during the first of Rex Dockery's years when in two years we won one game - it was against Arkansas State, in the rain, and so excited where the 4,000 people who showed up, that they torn down the goal posts. And why? For ending the nation's longest losing streak at the time. That's the Tigers I watched during my college days. Rex's last year, 6-4-1, you'd a thought we'd won the Sugar Bowl. We had turned the corner. We'll get 'em next year finally meant "wait 'til next year." And then, the plane crash.

Between Rex and Tommy we've had Rey, Charlie, Chuck and Rip.

What I know of the program is what I've observed as a student and as a fan in the stands for coming up on 30 years. And any of us who've watched what's happened to Memphis over the years, especially in light of what's happened to foes we used to crush like Louisville and Cincinnati, and we knew exactly what Tommy was saying. Any of us who want this program to be something other than it is even as we sit in a city continually pilfered by what the SEC can offer, understands. Any of us who are sick of consistently losing to SunBelt Conference teams understands.

So I embed the video in its entirety. I'm pulling from a YouTube feed from Fox 13. I don't watch this station. I typically watch WMC 5, but having seen the raw footage before the news aired Monday night, and then seeing what Channel 5 did with the footage and the spin they put on it (the lead was "Tommy West blasts fans as he's fired as head football coach"), I was shocked by that take because that's not what Tommy said, and any of us who love the program know that's not what he meant. I am appalled by the editorial decisions of the WMC newsroom. Had I not seen this myself in its entirety in advance, and was left to Channel 5 alone to tell me what happened, I would have thought Tommy went off the deep end.

My only wish is that he'd gone on and said what the issues were. It's not that hard to figure.

Facilities? Sure.

Poor league, perhaps, but the Tigers can't really complain about the league we're in until we show we can compete in it, and on that front alone, Tommy failed miserably.

Money sufficient to bring in the best staff he can? Now we're talking.

Trying to get your program recognized in the shadow of Calipari? Uh huh. And why do I say that given that he's gone? Because he's not gone. He's on our sports pages, still. The impact of presence remains long after he's gone.

Poor leadership in the Athletics Department and University Administration? Now we're talking.

I say all this and I believe it's time for Tommy to no longer be our head football coach. I'm hoping, however the Athletics Director position at Memphis would be one he'd be willing to take once Elvis leaves the building.

Cue CC Rider - See ya RC.

Penicillin Anyone?

News of "vacating" our 38 win season does not come as a shock. It was predictable.

And if we Tigers are nothing else, we're predictable.

Predictably never reaching and sustaining greatness.

Predictably and irrretrivably stuck in a mediocre conference.

Predictibly mediocre. Yeah, that's it. And we like it that way. So we've got that going for us, which is nice.

No, not shocked. Not heartbroken. They did that to me long ago. Now it's just laughably sad.

When news of the investigation first broke, I commented on this blog that I was thankful we lost to KU lest we'd face the prospect of surrendering a national championship.

That's right, folks. We were one free throw away from having to open the trophy case and handing back the gold to whoever the heck you hand it back to.

And now the record books have been purged. And in a way, I feel that's appropriate. Maybe not purged, but sanitized. As it relates to Memphis, only one man is recognized again as taking us to the Finals - Clean Gene Bartow. Dana and John are examples of what will always be when you play it on the edge.

In an act that seems strangely just, John has to vacate 38 wins from his won/loss record, too--which means he is no longer the winningest coach at the U of M. Who is? #21. A guy whose love for his school, city and team could never be questioned - Larry Finch.

At the last, I have two things to say about this - one, if you bought a Final Four shirt from the Tiger Bookstore, thank you for the business and "they ain't no refunds!"

And two, for my friends who hail from the land of my birth, the Commonwealth of Kentucky, you'd do well to heed this warning:

"When you go to bed with the whore of Babylon, don't act surprised when you wake up the next morning with the Clap."

Why I'm Glad the Tigers Lost the National Championship Game Last Year

Because I can think of only one thing worse than losing the game the way we did. Winning it and then having to forfeit because of a culture of cheating.

In my years as a Tiger I've seen this before. Going to the Final Four in 1985 didn't happen on the books..it was vacated.

Thanks, Cal.

You're the best.

UK, hope you know what you got.

Bye, John - - It's Been Great--Oh, and You Have No Idea What Pressure Is Until You Play in Adolph Rupp's House

Let me say at the outset...it's UK...ready or not, you gotta go.

I don't begrudge you, John. In fact, of all the programs I feel best about you going to from here, it's UK (cue "My Old Kentucky Home.")

I'm from there, and brother, you have no idea what you're about to say "yes" to. As the ascendant High Priest of the Order of Wildcat Basketball, you'll find it a stage fitting for your ego. But make no mistake--it matters not how significant you impact on UK will or will not be...you'll never be "the man" at UK.

Sure you'll leave us, and you'll take all that we were counting on to make another run next year with you. Just the nature of the game, right?

In many ways, you're far better at playing the game around the game of basketball, than you are the X's and O's on the court.

I mean no insult. Just a fact. A recruiter par excellence. You can make somebody believe. You surround yourself with great talent to make up for your technical deficiencies.

A good quality for any leader, methinks.

In my observations, though, based on many a Tiger game attended and watched, when we got beat, it was because you got outfoxed, and great talent needs great technical skill for the moments when it all counts.

Mike Anderson
Bruce Pearl
Bill Self
and, of course, Rick Pitino, whose presence in the Bluegrass State makes this all the more intriguing. He is the one whose respect you want most and will never get in the way that will satisfy. It is the stuff of Holmes/Moriarty. The battle is rejoined.

But there's this. If the reports are right, and you're about to get a salary package equal or greater than the anyone in college basketball, how is that right?

Other than some C-USA rings, and a National Runner Up Ring, where's the national championships you've won to merit such a thing?

More than Coach K? More than Roy? More than anybody? Really?

Local reports showed Memphis put a package together that met and in some ways exceeded UK's offer. Unbelievable. It's take a lifetime to get Memphis to do anything of meaning, but if we're about to lose our coach, watch how fast we can get things done. And I would have said that had he stayed.

No question, while Cal was here, there were exciting times. And I'm thankful for that.

By about 3 this afternoon, I found myself ashamed by how many times I was checking to see what Cal's decision was going to be. Just leave, already. Quit playing around.

Let your yes be your yes and move on.

What's next for those of us left in Tigertown? A revisitation of old feelings thought locked away for ever. But here they come with relish.

I have some thoughts about the Tigers, Memphis and what's next. That'll come in my next post, but the overall thought is this--"GET INTO A CONFERENCE, WILL YA?" Until that one is handled, we're just playing games with guys on borrowed time looking to hit the big time.

Sometime next fall or winter, though, I'm going to see UK playing on ESPN with a Coach I recognize, and evidently a few players I once knew wearing a different shade of blue and I'm going to feel cheated, if only for a moment.

Exceeded Expectations

OK - I've said nothing about these guys all year.

And now it's over for the season.

A few thoughts.

They already exceeded what I expected of them this year. Back in early December, I was thinking a 25 win season would be a good, if not optimistic thing.

But they played hard. Won ugly, alot. This team was not better than last year's team. But they showed themselves well. I was at most of the home games, and it was not always pretty, but this was a determined bunch.

Of the four games we lost, only one did we get beat. That was tonight.

As I've alluded in previous posts...the Tigers can't break my heart. That's happened already. But what these fellas did was help me, maybe help all of us - move past what happened last April and determine that it is good to regroup, reload and fight on another day.

Don't get me wrong, I hope KU loses their next game 124-0!

Was, Is and Will Be . . .

A Tiger....

Thanks, fellas . . .for one helluva year.

Just in Case Any Tigers Check Out My Blog Before the Next Game.

OK, let me just say this - I don't think I'm exaggerating, and I'm certainly not bragging -
I can make 46% of 100 free throws right now - and that's not having practiced.

So, with hope I can help the boys out before our next game with another MSU - here's a word from "the man."

Nothing Until Now

Ask anybody who's talked with me this season - the UT game is the one I saw coming up main street. And then to enter the game #1 and undefeated - a recipe for what happened was better than any dish Emeril Lagasse could dream up.

Of all people, we'd lose to, you knew it would be them.

You, my couple of faithful readers, will also note that I've said nothing about Tiger basketball this season.

Not until now.

First, this Tiger team is incredible to watch, especially in person. I have a feeling with them that I haven't had since I was at Memphis State in the early 80's. Interestingly enough, sitting on the baseline nearest the Tiger bench Saturday night was the the school's leading scorer - Keith Lee, and next to him Penny Hardaway.

Legacy. Cool.

A couple of thoughts after losing to UT.

• No question, Cal has met his match in Bruce Pearl. Cal lives with the need for a foil. John Cheney, Rick Pitino, Bob Huggins - Pearl may have them all beat.


• UT is for real. I was very impressed with their talent.


• We still should have won the game by 10 points. Why didn't we? 46% from the FT line. Calipari says "we'll hit them when it counts." Well, if Saturday night didn't prove it, nothing will - THEY ALL COUNT!

Some Growl Left in My Tigers

I'll tell ya.

2-4, I was pretty sure our season was done.

And I had every right to think that. When we lost - it was ugly.

The Sun Belt Conference had killed us. ASU - MTSU losses to both.

Central Florida embarrassed us.

We win at Rice, but get run off the field a week later at our Homecoming by East Carolina.

Now we're 3-5, and it's time to think of "next year."

But then, a bit of a run.

Tulane on the road, Southern Miss on the road, and last Saturday, at home, UAB, in a game that looked more like what I had become accustomed to in the DeAngelo years. Fierce running game that opens up the pass. We hadn't beat UAB at all in what, like 7 or 8 years? But now, we whipped them.

It felt good, very good.

6-5, with one game left.

Any long suffering Tiger fan will tell you, "give me 7 wins a season, and I'll call it a success."

And I'll be darned if we just don't do that very thing.

It's been a schizophrenic year - but in the end, signs of life, signs of pride, and some guts, to boot.

Make no mistake, we're not that good. We play in a league that's not that good. But it's what we have, and it looks like we're starting to rise.

I'm proud of the boys.

One more, this Saturday, SMU - let's go get 'em.

Always Tiger Blue

33-4.

Thanks, boys.