alt.sports.college.sec.kentucky

On Sun, 23 Sep 2007 01:56:05 -0400, "DC"
wrote:

:From being old enough to be not only your father, but probably your
:grandfather and from watching and attending UK games all my life, I can say
:without question embrace and enjoy what is going on in University of
:Kentucky football. Trust me this season is going to end up VERY special.
:Possibly our best ever.

I'm old enough to be grandfather to a few myself and IMO
it's going to take quite a season to top the 1976 season
that was capped off with UK's second SEC championship and a
a Peach Bowl victory against that bunch of Tar Holes from
UNC. The lure of a brand new stadium brought in better
players than UK had seen in years.

I'm old enough to have been in college in 1976 though I had
left UK that year. I was going to Morehead at the time. I
was at UK when I could sit in one of my classes and watch
the wrecking ball work on Stoll Field/McLean Stadium. The
new stadium drew Fran Curci, Frank Ramsey, and crew who were
easily the best Cat football team I've ever seen personally.
It's going to take a lot to top what they accomplished. I
do see a lot in this current team but I don't see them
losing only one game in a season. Yes they lost 3 games in
1976 and they went on probation the next year but they also
went 10-1 the next year (1977) beating a string of tough
teams on the road.

Then there's the Babe Parilli led 1952 team that had a
Cotton Bowl victory. A guy named Bear walked the UK
sidelines in those days. That one was before my time but
obviously the Cats accomplished a lot that year. Of course
the 1951 team did even more. They finished 10-1 also, they
won the SEC, and they ended the current national champion
Oklahoma Sooner's 31 game win streak in the Sugar Bowl.
According to Jeff Sagarin UK ended the season with the top
ranking using his method of rating teams which IMO made UK
the national champion that year. A lot of people believe UK
won the national championship that year.

I really hope UK does exceed all the teams in their past but
unless they win a national championship I don't think they
will have accomplished that goal. For one thing people
don't even realize that overall UK's football team has a
winning record. They have been bad for so long people
forget that they weren't always that way. Bear Bryant put
together a string of really good years and the guy that
followed him (Blanton Collier) didn't do too bad including
the fact that he had a winning record against UT.

UK football has more history than most people realize
because most of it is ancient history. But IMO they did win
a national title in 1951 and that sets a pretty high mark to
exceed.