We’ve wondered for several years why sportswriter Earl Cox gives so much ink to University of Kentucky athletics in the Voice-Tribune (formerly the Voice of St. Matthews), a Louisville suburban newspaper. Visitors to town would think UK was the local team by the amount of space given to the Cats.
This week’s edition, like so many others, features bold headlines on UK athletics, this time on the South Carolina loss. In a long-winding co
lumn, he also writes at great length about the upcoming schedule and the SEC and interviews long-time friends about their UK football memories.
The Irvine, Ky., native and former CJ sports editor relishes his state ties and obviously enjoys hyping UK sports in a community where, in football, U of L fans outnumber UK followers by 61.3% to 20.8%, according to a 2005 CJ Bluegrass Poll.
Okay, so Kentucky is winning this year and Cox can argue that UK has fans in this area. But the coverage has always been overtly generous.
Cox is unable to resist proclaiming the “demise’ of U of L football, stating that Steve Kragthorpe inherited a “pot problem” and lamenting a report that Tom Jurich turned down an interview opportunity with ESPN. Then he suggests that the media should “not cover U of L athletics until current restrictions are lifted.”
This week U of L announced that injury reports will be released weekly. Cox may have been suggesting that the media needs to be investigating the use of pot. I’m fine with that, as long as it includes the marijuana at both universities. The final straw was his suggestion that there were problems with another U of L team and that we should “stay tuned for another shoe to drop – loudly.”
Really.
As far as the UK administration is concerned, Earl can hang on to those Wildcat press passes for life, along with that spot in the UK School of Journalism’s Hall of Fame.
UofLCardGame 
Most people Earl’s age would have been forced to retire by now. He is from a different era and STILL doesn’t understand that UK is not the only game in town as it was many years ago when his musings had a bit more relevance.
You araen’t going to change an old man from promoting the only team he has ever supported( and denigrating the competition).It’s disappointing that he is such a UK homer but I doubt the Voice-Tribune has a circulation over a thousand or so.
Earl doesn’t get out much anymore so his complete list of sources has been reduced to random posters on the Cats Pause message boards, the place he undoubtedly got wind of this latest unfounded rumor.