1 - The 4-14-12 campaign is a week and a half from completion. What would the new helmet have to look like for you to be totally aghast/offended/angry?
2 - So uh, is Kentucky killing college basketball like some pundits are saying?
3 - Who wins the basketball national title next year? And no, I don't care that we don't yet know who is staying or going. It's not like we're actually striving for accuracy here.
4 - So I opened up EW.com to see if I could find a good entertainment/pop culture question for today. Virtually every headline on the front page has to do with Dancing With The Stars, The Voice, Idol or some other reality competition. Never mind how depressing this is -- this is summer content, not "late in a given scripted show's season" content. Let's just go ahead and admit which of these types of shows we watch.
The Beef: #1 – Someone will probably post a picture of the kU helmet here for this one. Evidently the stripe remains on the helmet, which is probably a good thing since that would have to temper and manage the size of the Tiger head we are all expecting to see. To me, the stripe means the helmet will probably be closer to something more traditional rather than something like a HUGE Tiger head
#2 – As compared to basketball 25+ years ago...sure...but the landscape has changed a number of times since then. And even if college basketball was dying, it is the NBA which is killing it....which is stupid because the NBA helped (start to potentially) save it with the one and done rule to begin with.
#3 – If Zeller comes back for Indiana, I like what they could do since I believe they have a solid class coming in and they are not losing much else. Beyond that, I think we still need to wait to see where the recruits land since I believe there are a LOT of high ranked folks still up in the air.
#4 – Never watched a single episode of Dancing with the Stars. Watched the end of each show within a season of American Idol (believe it was Season 2) because it led into 24. Have seen a couple of episodes of The Voice and it is not awful. The Tailgate Queen enjoys the Sing Off, so I have seen bits and pieces of those, and the quality of music there is not bad either. But for the most part, neither of us are big into the Network reality shows.
Michael Atchison: 1. It is possible that I was searching for a KU football helmet when I saw Beef’s response. It is possible that I was not. I don’t care what it looks like. I’m sure I’ll be completely fine with it.
2. They’re not killing college basketball; they’re exploiting the situation that exists. As long as we have the silly rule that a kid has to wait at least one year, but not more than one year, after high school before going to the NBA, this is what is going to happen. Calipari is the first guy to fully embrace the new reality.
3. Kentucky. Lamb, Wiltjer, Muhammed, Noel, etc. Get used to it.
4. My kids have started watching Dancing With the Stars. One of the contestants is a British woman who sings classical music and she’s an unbelievable dancer. That’s all I can give you.
The Beef: Also let me say that my thoughts and prayers go out to the Tepper’s window. Cut down at such a young age...always tragic.
ghtd36: #RIPTeppersWindow
Michael Atchison: Or for the old folks:
Doug: 1 - If there was pink in it, you guys would be pissed, right? So, let's go with pink. And, speaking of uniform/helmet modifications: anyone have any thoughts on the new Nike NFL unis? The biggest take-away I got is that the new leg pads look kind of weird, at least on the manikins. Sort of overly chunky and oddly shaped.
2 - I don't feel that way. Even for all the one-and-done talent, Kentucky still played very much like a team throughout the entire season. I don't think you ever saw any one of them decide for a night to get "his shot." They played within a system that was devastating to opponents and never seemed to break from it. You can't ask for more of that from a team, regardless of how long any of the players will be in college. That said, I prefer Bill Self's way of team-building, there is something more satisfying about seeing guys who were third and fourth options off the bench for a season or two, step into their own as starters.
3 - Stealing directly from ESPN: I think Indiana will be very strong, Louisville to be solid and Kansas to return a really good core with a lot of new pieces to integrate. On Kentucky, there's a better-than-a-coin-flip chance that Calipari gets a big NBA contract, and if it's one that offers him roster control, he's gone.
4 - I watch more of Auction Hunters, Storage Wars, Pawn Stars and crap like that than I should, but sometimes it is entertaining. I don't watch a ton of celebrity reality stuff, even though I work at a station with Dancing. Something about those shows just do not appeal to me.
The Beef: Also...have people seen this?
SleepyFloyd7: Those guys got really lucky. Nacadoches is WAY better than Lubbock.
1 - I don't think I would be offended with anything. Bring it on!
2 - UK and Coach Cal are just really awesome at being awesome. Only non-awesome people have a problem with that. I look forward to many years of watching and appreciating the Awesomeness up close.
3 - Duh, Kentucky.
4 - Blargh. If those are the choices, I'll just read.
ghtd36: While I'm not claiming Lubbock as some sort of beacon of culture, Nacogdoches...well...it ain't Lubbock. Though it did produce Clint Dempsey.
Michael Atchison: There’s a great Lucinda Williams tune that mentions Nacogdoches (“Lake Charles”), so it has that going for it. The most famous song I can think of about Lubbock is the one where Mac Davis sings “happiness is Lubbock, Texas in my rearview mirror.” I bet the chamber of commerce doesn’t use that one. Though I think by the end of the song, he likes Lubbock again. It has been a long time since I’ve heard it.
Doug: And, that concludes this week's edition of "Old People Music with Atch." Thanks for tuning in, everyone!
The Beef: Coming up at 10:30...Matlock...followed by Murder She Wrote and then we go off air at 12:30 to allow everyone enough time to get to dinner.
ghtd36: Next week: the beauty of jug music!
Doug: Followed by, "Everybody Who Died Today."
Michael Atchison: I wasn’t going to do this, but screw you guys:
Bill C.: I mean ... if we're just going to start sharing old songs ... why not...
Michael Atchison: Ever notice that “Bad, Bad Leroy Brown” and “You Don’t Mess Around With Jim” are essentially the same song? There’s a badass that no one should mess with, and then some guy comes along and takes him out. “Time in a Bottle,” too.
The Beef: I was just in the middle of saying that...that the songs are so close that I often mix them up in my head and end up with a Bad Bad Slim or something
ghtd36: Does this count as old music?
Bill C.: I hate you so much, Tepper.
Doug: Yes, yes. Embrace the hate. There is no hate as strong as the Old Man Hate.
Michael Atchison: This is music so new that they don’t have an American release yet. I could float away on this tune.
ghtd36: I figured Atch's iPod was filled with this.
Bill C.: IT'S AN OLD SCHOOL ROUNDTABLE YOUTUBE FEST.
Michael Atchison: I’ve just been playing Kenny Loggins’s “This Is It” nonstop to scrub my mind of the hideousness of “One Shining Moment.” If “This Is It” was good enough for Dr. Dunkenstein, it’s good enough for Anthony Davis.
(An hour later…)
Michael Atchison: Was everyone so mesmerized by the awesomeness of the Kenny Loggins fog machine that it killed the roundtable?