- Sports in Kentucky
=High school sports=
Despite the national stereotype that Kentucky is a diehard basketball state, at the high school level the state produces many times over more top nationally ranked football players than basketball. In the past ten years the state has produced many players ranked among the top 20 in their position, notably
Tim Couch , Chris Redman, Dennis Johnson, Eric Shelton,Michael Bush ,Brian Brohm , Mario Urrutia, Earl Heyman,André Woodson , and Micah Johnson. An increasingly growing number of top baseball talent is also coming from Kentucky, such asBrandon Webb ,Austin Kearns , andPaul Byrd .UK has had practically a monopoly on the state's top players, although UofL has made modest in roads in the past five years. The football Cardinals have historically depended on the states of
Florida and Georgia for a majority of their talent, and currently over 65% of the team's starters are from those two states.College sports
Despite a recent surge in the quality of the
University of Kentucky football team, college basketball remains the sport of choice in most ofKentucky .Western Kentucky University 's men's basketball program is one of the ten most winning in the history of the NCAA, and has one Final Four appearance (1971).Murray State University is a perennial threat to win theOhio Valley Conference and appear in the NCAA Tournament, having done so 13 times. However, the question in Kentucky college athletics is most often "Red or Blue?" referring to the primary colors of its two flagship universities - theUniversity of Kentucky (blue) and theUniversity of Louisville (red).The Battle for the Bluegrass
The rivalry between the
North Carolina Tar Heels and theDuke Blue Devils is perhaps the only in-state basketball rivalry that compares on a national scale to the rivalry between theKentucky Wildcats andLouisville Cardinals . A 2002 "Sports Illustrated " poll found that 63% of Kentuckians areKentucky Wildcats fans, while 16% areLouisville Cardinals fans. [ [http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/magazine/features/si50/states/kentucky/ Splendor in the Bluegrass] ]A 2006 "
Lexington Herald-Leader " article stated that interest in UofL sports is surging across the state of Kentucky, especially in Hopkinsville and Owensboro. [ [http://www.kentucky.com/mld/kentucky/sports/fans/15763558.htm Where is everybody? - "Lexington Herald-Leader"] ] AnOctober 21 ,2006 "Louisville Courier-Journal" article also stated that the total sales of UofL merchandise has tripled since 2001 and that the school now ranks 32nd nationally in sales, up from 41st in 2001. UofL ranks 2nd in theBig East Conference and the 3rd highest among all urban universities (to Southern California and Miami) in merchandise sales. UK's merchandise sales have steadily remained around 14th in the nation, by far the best in the state. UofL now has more registered collegiate license plates than theUniversity of Kentucky (18,300 to 17,000); a fourfold increase since 2004. In 1995 UK had a 15,000 plate lead on UofL. [http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061021/NEWS01/610210358 Racking up sales - "The Courier-Journal"] ]Fuel was added to the fire of this rivalry when
Rick Pitino , the UK coach who led the Wildcats to their 1996 National Title before leaving to become coach of the NBA'sBoston Celtics , returned to the Bluegrass State to coach the Cardinals in 2001. Many in the state compared the move to the treachery ofBenedict Arnold . The situation was exacerbated by the transfer of underachieving Wildcat power forward/center Marvin Stone. Stone's best season with the Cats was his sophomore season, when the former McDonald's All-American averaged 6.0 points and 4.6 rebounds per game. [ [http://www.nba.com/draft2003/profiles/StoneMarvin.html NBA.com Prospect Profile - Marvin Stone] ] Under Pitino, however, Stone averaged 10.7 points and 7.3 rebounds for the Cards, including a 16 point, 7 rebound, 2 block performance against the Wildcats in an 81-63 Louisville win onDecember 28 . [ [http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/basketball/college/men/players/1634/ CNNSI.com Player Profile - Marvin Stone] ]College basketball
It is perhaps impossible to overstate the importance of college basketball in Kentucky. At least three college coaching legends have been associated with programs in the state of Kentucky:
Adolph Rupp (UK),Denny Crum (UofL), andRick Pitino (both UK and UofL). Also, several successful NBA players played in the state, includingPat Riley ,Wes Unseld , andDan Issel . Only theUCLA Bruins have won more NCAA championships than theKentucky Wildcats , with the Wildcats ranking first in almost every other significant measure of a successful program.NJCAA
Professional sports teams
Professional football, baseball and basketball all at one time had teams in Kentucky. The
National Football League andNational League had early franchises in Louisville, and theKentucky Colonels were a mainstay of the American Basketball Association but folded when that league merged with theNational Basketball Association in 1976. The New ABA added a Louisville-based team called the Kentucky Colonels, which was active from 2004 to 2006, and announced it would locate an expansion team inMurray, Kentucky in 2007. [cite web |url=http://media.www.thenews.org/media/storage/paper651/news/2007/01/19/Sports/American.Basketball.Association.Team.Looks.To.Bring.New.Energy.To.Murray-2653852.shtml |title=American Basketball Association team looks to bring new energy to Murray |publisher="The Murray State News" |date=2007-01-19 |accessdate=2007-02-14] That team was originally also named theKentucky Colonels , but the name was changed to theKentucky Retros in March 2007 in deference to the tradition of the Louisville-based teams. [cite web |url=http://www.abalive.com/news/releases/?newsid=2007031406004 |title=Kentucky team announces name change |publisher=American Basketball Association |date=2007-03-14 |accessdate=2007-03-16] The team eventually announced that they would relocate to Louisville [ [http://abalive.com/news/releases/?newsid=2007061806001 ABAlive.com - Home of the American Basketball Association ] ] .Pikeville, Kentucky will also become home to pro basketball in the 2007–2008 season, with theEast Kentucky Miners joining theContinental Basketball Association [ [http://www.news-expressky.com/articles/2007/06/14/news/01team.txt Appalachian News Express ] ] .The state is home to several minor league sports teams. The
Louisville Bats of theInternational League are the AAA affiliate of theCincinnati Reds . TheLexington Legends are a Class Aminor league baseball team affiliated with theHouston Astros in theSouth Atlantic League . TheFlorence Freedom are a member of theFrontier League 's eastern division, playing their home games atChampion Window Field .Minor league baseball
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Louisville Bats (Triple-AInternational League affiliate of theCincinnati Reds )
*Lexington Legends (Single-ASouth Atlantic League affiliate of theHouston Astros )
*Florence Freedom (IndependentFrontier League )Football
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Lexington Horsemen (arenafootball2 )
*Louisville Fire (arenafootball2)
*Louisville Bulls (Mid Continental Football League )
*Northern Kentucky Xtreme (Mid Continental Football League )
*Hardin County Wolverines (Mid Continental Football League )
*Kentucky Karma (National Women's Football Association )Basketball
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East Kentucky Miners (Continental Basketball Association )Hockey
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Louisville Chill (Midwest Hockey League )
*Bluegrass Hockey League (Benton, KY )Former Professional Teams
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National Football League
**Louisville (NFL) (Brecks/Colonels) (defunct)*
South Atlantic League
**Lexington Giants (defunct)
**Lexington Indians (defunct)
**Lexington Red Sox (defunct)*
Frontier League
**Tri-State Tomahawks
**Kentucky Rifles *
KITTY League
**Bowling Green Barons (defunct)
**Paducah Indians/Chiefs (defunct)
**Hopkinsville Hoppers (defunct)
**Henderson Hens (defunct)
**SeveralMaysville based teams*
American Hockey League
**Kentucky Thoroughblades (moved toCleveland, Ohio and became theCleveland Barons (2001-2006) , would move again toWorcester, Massachusetts and are now theWorcester Sharks )
**Louisville Panthers (moved toDes Moines, Iowa and are now theIowa Stars )*
East Coast Hockey League
**Lexington Men O' War (Moved toUtah and becameUtah Grizzlies ).
**Louisville Icehawks (Moved toFlorida to become theJacksonville Lizard Kings ).
**Louisville River Frogs (Moved toOhio to become theCincinnati Cyclones ).*American Basketball Association
**Kentucky Colonels (defunct)*
American Basketball Association (2000-)
**Kentucky Retros (defunct)
**Kentucky Colonels (defunct)
**Kentucky Pro Cats (defunct)*NASCAR Busch Series race team
Keith Coleman Racing , based in Eddyville (defunct)*
NASCAR Busch Series race team Brewco Motorsports, was based in Central City but now renamedBaker-Curb Racing and moved toNashville References
ee also
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Sports in Louisville, Kentucky
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