IU/UK is no more

I'm disgusted at both sides right now.

 

Pretty much blows.

 

It was IU or Louisville.

 

It's about the venue, not about any other teams on either of their schedules.

 

Yep, Cal didn't want to play at IU's arena.

 

Sounds familiar.

 

It's a shame these guys really don't give a crap about what makes sports awesome.

 

Why does Cal not want to play at IU?

 

Or Indiana didn't want to play neutral. This game hasn't always been home and home.

 

It goes in rotations. I wonder if the Fieldhouse in Indy was ever on the table in exchange for whatever arena Cal wanted in Looye-ville. That to me would have made more sense than Lucas Oil.

 

.

 

It goes like this. Up until the late 80's, the game had been swapped from home/home to neutral sites. From 1991 until 2005 the rivalry was at neutral sites, being the RCA Dome and Freedom Hall. In 2005 it was time to renegotiate, and there was a scheduling issue with Freedom Hall that did not allow them to play there. This forced both schools to go back to the home and home format. So technically it should still be at neutral sites. Thing is, at the time in 2005 when it switched, Indiana sucked enormously. Now that they are on the rise, they are hellbent on not giving up that homecourt advantage. A #1 vs #2 draw at a neutral venue would be through the roof this season, which may have enticed Indiana to give the verbal agreement to play neutral sites, that they ultimately backed out on this week. We knew all along before the season that one of these games were either getting restructured or axed.

 

Yeah, I think the blame lies with sides. UK/Cal for being insistent on a neutral site. IU/Crean for being insistent on home/home.

I'm glad these sorts of issues can't get in the way of UK/UL. That one's required by law (or force of law...same thing).

 

IU is beholden to season ticket holders, students, and other various folks in Bloomington. Cal is trying to figure out how playing a game in Bloomington or suffering the occasional loss in Lexington helps his recruiting or national exposure and doesn't give a damn about tradition, students, or boosters unless it will directly help his program.

In short, Indiana is stuck on the way things should be in college sports while UK is reacting to the way things actually are.

 

Good synopsis.

 

Just another example of John doing what he does best. When he has the leverage, it's his way or no way.

 

UK will play regular season games in the new Barclay's Center in Brooklyn, in the GA Dome against Duke, and in Cowboys Stadium. Cal just flat gets it when it comes to scheduling.