I know this sight is tame compared to TCP and during the season I was surprised at some of the posts on here after a loss,mean, hateful and taking it to extremes. I don't belong to TCP, but go by what you guys post on here, and I think the fanatics over there far outnumber the ones on BGP. So, yes in some instances I think it hurts us, but as was previously stated if a kid doesn't want the attention on the internet then he probably wouldn't be a good fit for a high profile program.

Patrick Patterson -

"I saw what he did at his last school [Texas A&M], and Kentucky was always a favorite of mine. Their fans are great."

 

With that comment, a Kentucky fan yelled out, "We love you, P.P." To which Patterson said, 'I love you, too."

Ah, its all roses and champaigne when the honeymoon is still fresh.

I have a couple of thoughts on this topic.

 

First I think it is a double edged sword. Some players and their families are going to look at the fan base and say "WOW. I want to be a part of a program that has fans that are going to follow us everywhere we go and play. And they are going to sell every game out at home with 24K plus. I am going to be treated like a king there" Other side of the sword says "Man they are nuts and there is no way I am going there to be put under a microscope like that."

I think that it works both ways and depends on the recruit.

 

Second thought on this subject is that every school has them. I went to the Kentucky-Tennessee basketball game in Knoxville year before last. I had on my Kentucky pullover and was obviously cheering for the Cats. (And yes Chris Lofton at the same time.) During halftime I chatted with the UT fans around me about this subject. I said that sometimes I am ashamed of the way some of our fans act. The UT season ticket holder said that UK fans were no worse than their own and some of the other fans in the SEC. I told him that I thought some UK fans were over the top tho. He said that the Big Orange had fans that made UK fans look like choir boys. I laughed and we changed the subject and chatted some more. Really great fans. One of them even looked at me after the game was over and said congratulations on the win.

 

As Dennis Miller would say "That's my opinon. But I could be wrong."

The problem comes in when "fans" become "fanatics". We all know there are fanatics of every school, but UK seems to have more of them.

 

 

UK has a lot of fans...that's why they have more idiot "fanatics".

 

Like LMB said, outside of UL, who really does UK compete with in this state for fans?

I have a couple of thoughts on this topic.

 

First I think it is a double edged sword. Some players and their families are going to look at the fan base and say "WOW. I want to be a part of a program that has fans that are going to follow us everywhere we go and play. And they are going to sell every game out at home with 24K plus. I am going to be treated like a king there" Other side of the sword says "Man they are nuts and there is no way I am going there to be put under a microscope like that."

I think that it works both ways and depends on the recruit.

 

Second thought on this subject is that every school has them. I went to the Kentucky-Tennessee basketball game in Knoxville year before last. I had on my Kentucky pullover and was obviously cheering for the Cats. (And yes Chris Lofton at the same time.) During halftime I chatted with the UT fans around me about this subject. I said that sometimes I am ashamed of the way some of our fans act. The UT season ticket holder said that UK fans were no worse than their own and some of the other fans in the SEC. I told him that I thought some UK fans were over the top tho. He said that the Big Orange had fans that made UK fans look like choir boys. I laughed and we changed the subject and chatted some more. Really great fans. One of them even looked at me after the game was over and said congratulations on the win.

 

As Dennis Miller would say "That's my opinon. But I could be wrong."

 

During the brief time I lived in Tennessee, I kept wondering if anyone had ever done a study on reports of spousal and child abuse and how they correlate to UT football losses.

UK has a lot of fans...that's why they have more idiot "fanatics".

 

Like LMB said, outside of UL, who really does UK compete with in this state for fans?

 

Yeah, but that's still only about 3 million people out of about 4 million living in this state. Ohio has about 11.5 million people, and I bet 9 million consider themselves Buckeye fans. Pure numbers tell us we should hear reports of overzealous and out of control fan action roughly three times more often.

I have a couple of thoughts on this topic.

 

First I think it is a double edged sword. Some players and their families are going to look at the fan base and say "WOW. I want to be a part of a program that has fans that are going to follow us everywhere we go and play. And they are going to sell every game out at home with 24K plus. I am going to be treated like a king there" Other side of the sword says "Man they are nuts and there is no way I am going there to be put under a microscope like that."

I think that it works both ways and depends on the recruit.

 

Second thought on this subject is that every school has them. I went to the Kentucky-Tennessee basketball game in Knoxville year before last. I had on my Kentucky pullover and was obviously cheering for the Cats. (And yes Chris Lofton at the same time.) During halftime I chatted with the UT fans around me about this subject. I said that sometimes I am ashamed of the way some of our fans act. The UT season ticket holder said that UK fans were no worse than their own and some of the other fans in the SEC. I told him that I thought some UK fans were over the top tho. He said that the Big Orange had fans that made UK fans look like choir boys. I laughed and we changed the subject and chatted some more. Really great fans. One of them even looked at me after the game was over and said congratulations on the win.

 

As Dennis Miller would say "That's my opinon. But I could be wrong."

 

:thumb:

 

I agree. I don't see a big difference in UK basketball fans and the fans of most other elite programs, whether it basketball or football. Notre Dame and Alabama football fans have been ridiculed recently...I already posted some facts about UCLA and UNC basketball programs...I just think we hear and focus more on UK because we're right in the eye of the storm and UK is in the spotlight right now because of the coaching change. This will blow over soon (just like ND and the Weis/Willingham deal) and Dick Vitale will be back on ESPN rambling on about how great UK fans are. Frankly, I'm sick of hearing about this. I've always thought a large portion of sports fans were nuts, not just UK's. I've yet to see anything that changes my view.

It is not just the sheer number of fans. Notre Dame has more football fans than anyone, but while one or two fan letters might make the news, their message boards are not featured topics on ESPN like TCP was this spring.

 

Notre Dame fans, for the most part leave South Bend and tend to get on with their lives a little better than UK fans. I love UK basketball, but I've got a life. E-mailing or texting an 18 year-old kid to come play basketball isn't my idea of money well spent nor a good time. Those hillbillies are most definitely not going to do anything but push recruits away. I find it hilarious how many high school shoulda' beens get all eaten up on the success of a college basketball team. The minority of fans need to get a hobby and learning to read should be at the top of that list.

:thumb:

 

I agree. I don't see a big difference in UK basketball fans and the fans of most other elite programs, whether it basketball or football. Notre Dame and Alabama football fans have been ridiculed recently...I already posted some facts about UCLA and UNC basketball programs...I just think we hear and focus more on UK because we're right in the eye of the storm and UK is in the spotlight right now because of the coaching change. This will blow over soon (just like ND and the Weis/Willingham deal) and Dick Vitale will be back on ESPN rambling on about how great UK fans are. Frankly, I'm sick of hearing about this. I've always thought a large portion of sports fans were nuts, not just UK's. I've yet to see anything that changes my view.

 

Seriously??? I watched a game at Rupp Arena three years ago. UK was beating Ole Miss by 18 and fans were nitpicking every little thing in the stands. Not just nitpicking but being flat mean. UK WAS WINNING BY 18. The minority of UK fans are the eternal obsessive pessimists, and unfortunately they make the most noise.

How many UK fans do you think have ever been on UK's campus as students?

I'd bet it's not 35 percent.