How long has it been since a Louisville high school player really got college basketball coaches excited? When was the last time U of L had any talent to pick from in its own back yard? Seems like forever.
The long dry spell may finally be over. Quentin Snider, a 6-foot-1 guard at Ballard High School and a member of the 2014 recruiting class, committed to Louisville Thursday, according to Jody Demling of the Courier-Journal:
“Any other school and we might have waited,” his father, Scott, said. “But Louisville is where he always wanted to go, so there was no other offer he needed to wait for. It’s a top-10 program and it’s right here.”
Louisville first and foremost.
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The family of Steve Kragthorpe has had a stretch of terrible luck since he left Tulsa in 2007 to become head football coach at Louisville. Sad to learn that he has contracted Parkinson’s Disease, a year after his wife was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis.
Kragthorpe is giving up his post as offensive coordinator at LSU to become the quarterbacks coach, a somewhat less stressful position. As we’ve seen with Muhammad Ali, the disease leads to shaking and tremors and difficulty with walking, movement and coordination. There’s no known cure.
Kragthorpe always seemed to be a likable individual, despite his shortcomings as a head coach. They’ve had plenty of opportunities, but few former players have disparaged him. What’s done is done, time for the trashing is past. We wish him well.
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A couple of more thoughts about the “UK Legends” playing the Dominican Republic national team at the KFC Yum! Center.
If the UK basketball coach were anyone besides John Calipari, the game could be perceived as a good will gesture. As we all know, however, Calipari has no good will for Rick Pitino or the University of Louisville.
A more appropriate opponent at the Yum! Center would have been a team consisting of former U of L players. That might have earned Calipari some respect and less suspicion about his motivation.
As for Denny Crum, he’s obviously not concerned about associating the rivalry with an exhibition game. It gets him a little notoriety and back on the basketball court, things he has obviously missed.