Golden Nugz for 1.30.09

by PJS on Jan 30, 2009 3:00 AM CST in Golden Nuggets Comment 18 comments

Sometimes for fun, sometimes because it's easy and sometimes because it's been warranted, GN and I have taken a few cracks at Kentucky head coach Billy Gillispie.

The latest foray into Billy G. tweaking brought a swift rebuke from a UK blogger we very much respect. And that has nothing to do with the fact it's an SBN blog. Here it is from A Sea of Blue.

It baffles me why Gopher bloggers seem to have the need to continually find fault with Gillispie. It is an ongoing issue that has frankly begun to get on the wrong side of my normally even disposition. It's as though they feel they have to tear Gillispie down in order to validate Tubby Smith, which is utterly preposterous.

So I ask the rest of you who don't try and find things to write about on a daily basis. ... What is your perception of Billy Gillispie? Good? Bad? Just another college coach? Are you more interested in him because of Tubby Smith's UK connection? Does Billy G's success or failure at UK have anything to do with the reputation or legacy of Tubby Smith?

In short, what say you of Billy Gillispie?

Harsh, harsh criticism for Iowa head man Todd Lickliter (and this was before Michigan State throttled his Hawkeyes Thursday night). The first line from a Daily Iowan column: "Only two seasons into his contract, Todd Lickliter is in jeopardy of having a Big Ten career as bad as former Minnesota basketball coach Dan Monson's."
Proving that everything is so obviously relative, this Long Beach Press-Telegram columnist leads his column with "The esteemed Long Beach State coach, Dan Monson"
Joe Krabbenhoft is being ragged on for a dirty forearm to the head of a Purdue guard on Tuesday. I think the play was flagrant. Read Bucky's Fifth Quarter for more, including video.
Jay Bilas has a nice piece on what it means to be hard-nosed college basketball player.
Penn State blogger Zombie Nation is already looking ahead to 2009 football (come on, man, Talor Battle and company deserve some love!). Anyway, the Gophers battle with California in the first tilt in TCF Bank Stadium makes the list of top non-conference games of the upcoming season.

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I Hope Gillispie Does Well

I’m still a UK fan. So far, he is 34-18 at UK. But improved this year over last.

Tubby is a more proven coach at this point. Now 38-17 at Minnesota. And better than last year, too.

by FortyYearCatFan on Jan 30, 2009 5:48 AM CST reply actions 0 recs

2 way street

Here in the great white North, we may pick on Billy a little bit more than others do. That may be a fair criticism. But let’s be honest. Billy gives everyone who wants it a lot of ammunition.

The “Meeks/Kentucky” interview was picked up by every sports website, not just TDG. And everyone else seemed to point out that Billy is more than just an All-Conference prik, he’s an All-American prik.

by the accomplice on Jan 30, 2009 7:21 AM CST reply actions 0 recs

He seems to mean well

but I feel he just leaves a really bad aftertaste… about as short and sweet as I can put it.

"If we got to we're going to crawl in this locker room. And on our back is going to be an axe..."

by buddylee853 on Jan 30, 2009 7:32 AM CST reply actions 0 recs

What's your agenda?

(Full disclosure: I had this post all thought out as soon as I read the lead, before I even read the body of the post.)

Do you like ragging on Gillispie because he’s a d-bag, or because you like to remind Kentucky fans of what they’re missing out on? I don’t care either way, I’m just wondering what your agenda is…

Is this a Tubby Smith site, or a Gophers site? If it’s the former, then keep on talking about Gillispie. If the latter, however, then I for one have had enough. He’s just about as relevant to Gopher athletics as Clancy Barone (the current TE coach for the Broncos).

by dpodoll68 on Jan 30, 2009 9:08 AM CST reply actions 0 recs

Agenda.

Good questions. I can only speak for me, but I guess I will pick up on Billy G. items for a few reasons.

1) I do get a little enjoyment for ragging on Gillispie because, as you say, he’s a “d-bag.” Just being honest.
2) Yes, I do like to remind Kentucky fans that they are missing out on a pretty good man. Tubby’s a good coach, and as far as anyone can tell, as high class as they come.
3) This is a Gophers site.

And aside from the enjoyment factor on occasion we get from taking a potshot at Billy G., it should also be noted that UK fans/blogs talk incessantly about Tubby Smith—not always in relation to the Gophers. They are comparing Billy G. and Tubby all of the time, just as we would compare Tubby and Dan Monson if there were any comparison.

And because of that, there’s this constant Billy G. v. Tubby banter out there, mostly driven by UK fans or national pundits. That’s fine, but it also tends to sway against Tubby. We hear the usual drivel about how Tubby couldn’t recruit, or he won his national championship with Pitino’s players.

Point is, many, not all UK fans still like to tear down Tubby and blame him for what ails UK (though not thank him for recruiting Jodie Meeks).

Maroon and Gold Headquarters: The Daily Gopher

by PJS on Jan 30, 2009 9:49 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Tubby Vs Billy (2008 And 2009 Seasons ONLY)

Tubby 38-17, 2-2 in postseason games. Top 20 class in 2008, Top 15 class in 2009.

Billy 34-18, 0-2 in postseason games. Top 15 class in 2008, Top 15 class in 2009.

Edge Tubby (so far).

by FortyYearCatFan on Jan 30, 2009 7:45 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

personally

I just thought it was a D-bag response and I happened to tune in shortly after it happened. I really didn’t care that it was Gillispie, that part was just gravy. Had it been anybody else, I likely would have posted the same thing.

Someone else pointed this out, but it’s not like we were the only ones who did a post on it.

Lexington Herald thought it was a legit question and it was an inappropriate response. This isn’t The Daily Gopher grinding an axe.

Yahoo – http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/basketball/blog/the_dagger/post/Billy-Gillispie-hates-your-question-Ms-Sidelin?urn=ncaab,137355
Fan house – http://ncaabasketball.fanhouse.com/2009/01/28/billy-gillispie-thinks-your-question-sideline-reporter-is-dumb/
Awful Announcing – http://awfulannouncing.blogspot.com/2009/01/billy-gillispie-is-not-fan-of-sideline.html
USA Today – http://blogs.usatoday.com/gameon/2009/01/billy-gillispie.html

what you say here can, and will, be used against you

by GopherNation on Jan 30, 2009 11:33 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs

OK, I'll come clean

I had Tex A&M in the Final Four a few years ago for my bracket. They of course lost Memphis in the E8 and I’ve hated that arrogant prick ever since.

what you say here can, and will, be used against you

by GopherNation on Jan 30, 2009 1:58 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

There now, was that so hard?

The truth shall set you free!

by dpodoll68 on Jan 30, 2009 3:42 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

I don't care about Billy G

I do, however, care about Kentucky. They ran Tubby out of town for only winning 20 games a season and consistently making the NCAA Tournament. How dare he do that?

I’m also curious about the reason for their complaint about Gopher blogs. Are they complaining because of the video of Billy G saying it was a stupid question? What do you expect? I have a feeling that if it were any coach that video would find it’s way here, and it was just made even funnier by the fact that it was Gillispie.

It’s not like TDG was the only place talking about this. Look anywhere, the majority of major blogs out there had the video. Should they all stop talking about Gillispie?

Kill, maim, pillage, burn! Kill, maim, pillage, burn! Eat babies! Badger babies!

by Felix on Jan 30, 2009 9:13 AM CST reply actions 0 recs

Why Would Kentucky Fans Defend That Behavior?

I don’t understand why a Kentucky blog would try to defend that. It’s nothing personal against BCG, I think it is more in retalliation of all of the Kentucky fans coming onto our boards and telling us how much Tubby sucked. They are kind of like Wisconsin—It’s not their team or coach we dislike, it’s their fans.

by Narby on Jan 30, 2009 9:41 AM CST reply actions 0 recs

Kentucky fans have every right to talk about Tubby, because he was their former coach. It’s the same argument many fans have about Mason v. Brewster (which I think is ridiculous, but I digress). Why are we even discussing Gillispie? It just makes no sense to me. He has no current or former association with this program in any way, shape, or form. It wastes time we could be using to discuss the growth of RSIII, the pursuit of Tubby by other programs, the impending arrival of TCF Bank Stadium, national LOI day on Wednesday, or any other number of topics. Seems more like a personal agenda between a certain faction of Gopher fans vs. a certain faction of Wildcat fans than anything.
And yes, I agree that many other blogs picked up on this story as well. However, this particular incidence comes on the heels of this blog talking about Gillispie so much lately it makes one wonder if he will become a regular part of the rotation.

by dpodoll68 on Jan 30, 2009 10:50 AM CST reply actions 0 recs

well, the post above that chronicles RSIII's progression a bit has one comment.

This post has about 10. So, the quesetion remains I guess. Are readers by and large interested in Billy G?

Maroon and Gold Headquarters: The Daily Gopher

by PJS on Jan 30, 2009 11:52 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs

I just wanted to add...

I live in Kentucky and I can’t tell you how many people have told me they wished they had Tubby back. He was a classy guy who did a lot for the community and they recognize he wasn’t as bad a recruiter as some of the “Lemming” fans want to believe.
But Kentucky fans are rabid and believe that their Kentucky basketball program owes them a “Final Four” team at least once every five years. But what the Kentucky fans are forgetting (or living in the past) is that Kentucky isn’t the “only great team” in the country anymore. They aren’t going to get the “cream of the crop” three McDonald All Americans every year. UConn, NC, Duke, Wake, Kansas, and others have become as much of a destination to top-notch players as Kentucky and maybe even better. Kentucky will probably never return to the glory years when they were in the NCAA almost every year and one of the countries top rated teams. They will continue to get their wins. And they have an excellent program. And they may even get a better “seed” than Minnesota this year.
But the simple fact is, while Minnesota is growing in stature and Minnesota fans are jumping with joy, Kentucky fans continue to grump and moan about their coach and team. Kentucky seems to be heading toward the same kind of season they had under Tubby. I wonder how long it will take the fickle Kentucky fans to want to fire Billy G?

by COJOMAY on Jan 30, 2009 3:07 PM CST reply actions 0 recs

3 McDonalds A-A In 1 Year

Tubby signed 3 in 2004 class. UK hadn’t done that (signed 3 McD A-A in 1 year) since 1984.

UK averages ~2 FF per decade (13 FF from 1939 through 2008).

Tubby 38-17 with team that was 9-22 before he arrived.

Billy 34-18 with team that was 22-12 before he arrived.

by FortyYearCatFan on Jan 30, 2009 7:43 PM CST reply actions 0 recs

Jay Bilas (Chat) On Tubby Smith

Jay Bilas chat: Q on Tubby and his time at UK/Minn

’nuff said.

Quote:
Andrew (Highland Park, New Jersey): Jay, why do analysts frequently comment on UK needing to get back to an elite ‘level’, and in the same sentence mention what a good job Tubby Smith did here? Sounds like a contradiction to me.

Jay Bilas: UK is one of the greatest programs of all-time, and has been great for so many years that it has become an expectation that UK will be in the Top 20 annually and in the Final Four every so often. Tubby Smith is credited with doing a great job because he did a great job. He won a National Championship in 1998 (and save the Pitino’s players routine) and he had his team in the Elite 8 a few times. In 2003, Tubby would have been in the Final Four if not for the injury to Keith Bogans, in my judgment. In my humble opinion, Tubby did not recruit some kids because he grew tired of off court issues that had been troubling him, and during his last few years there he proved how great of a coach he is. I am not surprised at how well he is doing at Minnesota. Tubby Smith is one of the finest coaches and finest people I know. It is not a contradiction. Thanks for the question.

by FortyYearCatFan on Jan 30, 2009 9:00 PM CST reply actions 0 recs

The grumbling is beginning again...

Today (Saturday) the Wildcats lost again — that’s two in a row. This time to SC 78-77 on a last second shot by SC. Kentucky had 21 turnovers in the game and Meeks only scored 3 points. I think team have found the way to beat Kentucky.

by COJOMAY on Jan 31, 2009 7:52 PM CST reply actions 0 recs