2025-01-17- KSR - Hour 1

Summary

Kentucky Sports Radio (KSR) Episode Summary – January 17, 2025

Hosts: Matt Jones, Ryan Lemond, Drew Franklin, Shannon "The Dude," and occasional guest Kentucky Joe.

Location: Live at Bespoken Spirits in Lexington, KY.

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1. Upcoming Kentucky vs. Alabama Basketball Showdown

The primary focus of this episode centers on the high-stakes basketball game between the University of Kentucky (UK) and Alabama, scheduled for January 18th. The hosts engage in an in-depth analysis of the teams' prospects, player performances, and strategic implications for the SEC standings.

• Matt Jones opens the discussion by highlighting the significance of the game:

  “[09:42] Matt Jones: ...this is the kind of game that if you win, okay, now we can start talking about maybe we could win the SEC.”

• Ryan Lemond projects a tight game, anticipating a close score:

  “[08:01] Ryan Lemond: Ooh, very tight.”

• The hosts debate the potential outcome, with Drew Franklin expressing optimism about Kentucky’s gameplay:

  “[09:35] Drew Franklin: And I feel good about it, really, because, you know, Alabama plays the way that we want to play and that's why we kind of excel.”

• Shannon "The Dude" emphasizes the excitement surrounding the game:

  “[09:44] Shannon The Dude: ...this is going to be a fun basketball game.”

Key Takeaways:

• The game is pivotal for Kentucky's chances to contend for the SEC title.
• Player performances, especially Amari leading in rebounding efficiency, are crucial.
• Defensive strategies against Alabama’s three-point shooting could determine the game's outcome.

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2. Supreme Court Upholds TikTok Ban

A significant portion of the discussion delves into the Supreme Court's unanimous decision to uphold the ban on TikTok in the United States, effective January 19th.

• Matt Jones explains the legal standing:

  “[16:03] Matt Jones: ...they can do that basically doesn't violate the First Amendment.”

• The hosts speculate on the enforcement under the incoming administration:

  “[17:22] Shannon The Dude: Trump has any ability to keep it.”

• Matt Jones voices skepticism about the ban's practicality:

  “[18:08] Drew Franklin: What are your thoughts about the president of TikTok supposed to be in the front row at the inauguration on Monday?”

Key Takeaways:

• The ban's immediate enforcement is in question due to administrative transitions.
• Potential shifts in policy under new presidential leadership remain uncertain.
• Public reaction includes backlash from TikTok users migrating to other platforms, sometimes unknowingly compromising privacy.

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3. Title IX Decision and Its Impact on College Sports

The hosts discuss a recent decision impacting Title IX, which mandates equal opportunity for men and women in college sports, potentially revolutionizing scholarship distributions and revenue sharing.

• Matt Jones provides a concise explanation:

  “[15:16] Matt Jones:...Title nine, as it applies to college sports requires schools to give equal opportunity to men and women in sports.”

• Drew Franklin underscores the chaos this decision may introduce:

  “[27:41] Drew Franklin: That's crazy, man, because these athletic budgets, they're set up a year or more in advance.”

• The implications for athletic departments and budgeting are explored:

  “[28:39] Ryan Lemond: Yeah, you talk about it getting chaotic...”

Key Takeaways:

• Schools will need to reassess and potentially redistribute athletic funding and scholarships.
• The decision emphasizes equal opportunity over equal funding, requiring justifications for current financial allocations.
• Anticipated short-term chaos as institutions adapt to new regulatory requirements.

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4. Louisville Basketball Team’s Struggles and Ticket Giveaways

The episode shifts focus to the performance and fan engagement strategies of the Louisville basketball team.

• Matt Jones critiques Louisville’s ticket giveaways:

  “[36:25] Matt Jones: ...they have to give away a thousand tickets...”

• Ryan Lemond expresses disbelief at the continued fan disengagement despite team success:

  “[36:35] Ryan Lemond: I'm doing everything I possibly can...”

• Shannon "The Dude" voices frustration over the lack of ticket sales:

  “[37:25] Matt Jones: ...giving away a thousand tickets on a Saturday at home against Virginia...”

Key Takeaways:

• Despite a strong record (5-1 in the ACC) and marquee wins, Louisville struggles to attract fans to their games.
• Generous ticket giveaways indicate underlying issues with fan loyalty and engagement.
• The hosts debate potential reasons, ranging from team performance to marketing inefficiencies.

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5. Listener Engagement and Lighthearted Segments

Amidst serious discussions, the hosts incorporate interactive and entertaining segments to engage their audience.

• Kentucky Joe attempts to perform an impromptu song titled "Old Mama," leading to humorous exchanges:

  “[31:05] Kentucky Joe: Mama is kind of special...”

• The hosts provide constructive (and comedic) feedback, enhancing the show's dynamic atmosphere.

Key Takeaways:

• Interactive segments like listener songs add a personable touch to the broadcast.
• Lighthearted moments balance the intense sports and political discussions, maintaining listener interest.

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6. Sponsorships and Promotions

Throughout the episode, the hosts acknowledge their partnerships and promote local businesses, integrating these segments seamlessly into the content.

• Promotion of Bespoken Spirits’ products and events:

  “[02:00] Shannon The Dude: I want to try that one in.”

• Giveaway announcements, including tickets to upcoming games:

  “[02:28] Matt Jones: ...we're giving away two of them today right here...”

Key Takeaways:

• Sponsorships and giveaways are integral to the show's format, offering value to listeners while supporting local businesses.
• These segments are presented naturally, avoiding disruption to the main content flow.

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Conclusion

The January 17th episode of Kentucky Sports Radio offers a comprehensive blend of sports analysis, political commentary, and community engagement. From dissecting the crucial UK vs. Alabama game and exploring the ramifications of significant legal decisions to highlighting local team dynamics and fostering listener interaction, the KSR crew delivers an informative and entertaining broadcast for their audience.

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Notable Quotes:

• Matt Jones on the UK vs. Alabama game significance:

  “[09:42] ...if you win, okay, now we can start talking about maybe we could win the SEC.”

• Shannon "The Dude" on the new bowling strategy:

  “[09:44] ...this is going to be a fun basketball game.”

• Matt Jones on the TikTok ban’s ambiguity:

  “[19:54] ...our dumbness is part of the problem more than anything.”

• Drew Franklin on the Title IX decision's impact:

  “[27:41] ...this decision puts chaos on top of everything else.”

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This summary encapsulates the key discussions and insights from the January 17th episode of KSR. For full details and additional segments, tuning into the episode is recommended.

Transcript

[Matt Jones]

If you love your phone but not your carrier, just switch to T Mobile. You can keep your phone, keep your number and we'll help pay it off up to $800 per line. You can also use our savings calculator to compare our plans and streaming benefits against Verizon and AT&T. So switch and keep your phone, keep your number and keep more of your moolah. @t mobile.com up to four lines via virtual prepaid card. Allow 15 days qualifying unlock device credit service port in 90 plus days with device and eligible carrier and timely redemption required.

[Ryan Lemond]

Card has no cash access and expires in six months.

[Matt Jones]

Comedy Off Broadway in Lexington welcomes Kentucky's.

[Drew Franklin]

Own Ariel Elias January 9th through the 11th.

[Matt Jones]

Then from the Southern Fried Chicks comedy.

[Drew Franklin]

Tour catch club favorite ETA May January.

[Matt Jones]

16Th through the 18th and experience the outrageous comedy of KC Rocket January 23rd through the 25th. For tickets to all shows, call 859-271-joke or purchase seats online at comedyoff broadway.com comedyoff broadway welcome everyone. It is Kentucky Sports Radio Friday, January 17th here at Bespoken Spirits in Grayline station with the crowd probably already bigger than gonna be at the Louisville basketball game tomorrow by there by their ticket giveaways you can give a shout out Clark's Puppet Shop phone line 859-280-2287. A Vision Auto Glass text machine is 772-774-5254. In this edition sponsored by the TJ Smith Law Office. Call TJ Homemaker Pay. This is the first time that I can ever remember back to back remotes in one place and we are here at Grayline again Bespoken Spirits, the partner of the club Blue Nil Bourbon. They also do a bourbon for Leonard Skynyrd called the Hell House which which is quite a name. Whiskey Myers country singer I like the Uncle Chicken and then Sable the they have a bourbon Sable. Not. Not the Sable.

[Shannon The Dude]

I want to try that one in.

[Matt Jones]

Partnership with the movie the Best Man Movie. Tay Diggs etc. These folks at Bespoken Spirits here at Gray Line and they have their launch party tonight right here.

[Drew Franklin]

Yeah, Shannon Drew's already got into the Hell House. They started early so as they tell us.

[Matt Jones]

Well, it is early.

[Drew Franklin]

But it is early. But this, this bourbon, you know you need to try because it is really, really good. They gave us some samples last week. I took some home. I'm not a bourbon guy, but it's really good.

[Matt Jones]

It is. It's a great day. Kentucky and Alabama play tomorrow at noon. Another early Start and another big game. It's just every day, Shannon, different big game. Big game, big game. This one Alabama coming off a home loss surprising to Ole Miss. And now we get them here. I have. I have friends who are like trying to get tickets who are telling me the tickets on the secondary market are insane. Insane. But you know what, we're giving away two of them today right here in this.

[Shannon The Dude]

That's right. Come on out. You can grab those tickets. And I'm not really worried about the early game. You know, we had that 11am start for Florida and they came out and scored 106 points. So I think tomorrow's going to be much of the same.

[Matt Jones]

You know, you can tell when people have gotten bougie. Drew, where's my friend Stephen Horn? Is he here with Club Boo? He's gotten very bougie because I said, these are amazing tickets. And he came up to me and he was like, listen, be careful when you say they're amazing. He was like, they're only center court up like 15 rows. This is not the tickets on the floor. I'm like, I still feel like that's pretty amazing. Center court, 15 rows. I think people will take it. Yeah.

[Ryan Lemond]

Anyone here gonna turn those down if you win? Is that close enough? Everybody? I think that's a good ticket.

[Matt Jones]

I mean, that's. You're pretty bougie when you're like, oh, my feet aren't on the front row. I don't know if those are good. Right? Yeah.

[Drew Franklin]

These are fantastic tickets. People lived their whole life just hoping to chant, one chance is get these tickets. You get it today.

[Matt Jones]

Somebody will have a chance today. Well, it is. It is cold, but the cats have bama tonight. I've got a big day today. Ryan and I are going to, at 2:00, be filming a commercial at KS Bar for UK Federal Credit Union with Kobe Braya. Right. Otherwise, I think he may have already done his part. I kind. I don't know if he'll be there, but you and I are in a commercial with Kobe Bryant. They've asked us to get ready for it. You know, this is. We haven't done a commercial in a while. Are you excited?

[Drew Franklin]

Today I actually got up, shaved, took. Shaved my goatee off for the first time in a month and a half. I want to look my best for the commercial.

[Matt Jones]

I didn't even notice you have taken.

[Drew Franklin]

Off your ghost cuz I look so damn handsome. You were just taking them back a little bit.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah, I mean it was. It was gray.

[Drew Franklin]

A lot of Gray.

[Matt Jones]

So you're trying to, like, have a baby face for the commercial?

[Drew Franklin]

Yeah, I think, you know, you got to look your best, you know?

[Matt Jones]

Have you read the script?

[Drew Franklin]

Well, I don't have to do a whole lot.

[Matt Jones]

What's. I was going to say, Shannon, they kind of made in the script, like, I don't. Kobe Bray and I are doing this thing where, like, I'm. I don't want to spoil it, but it basically includes Ryan. His whole role is to just spit water.

[Shannon The Dude]

Well, I think he can do that. I'm very confident in Ryan to be able to pull that one off. Probably one take his entire role in.

[Matt Jones]

The commercial to sell, going to UK Federal credit unions to have him spit water.

[Shannon The Dude]

I'm interested in how that ties into the script. We don't have to spoil it, but.

[Matt Jones]

You don't tell the finale of Sopranos until it's over. But are you glad that that's what they decided to use Ryan for?

[Ryan Lemond]

Yeah, it makes a lot of sense. I'm sure that the casting director is like, we got one guy for this job. Call Ryan right away. He'll nail that.

[Shannon The Dude]

Best water spitter in Lexington right there.

[Matt Jones]

So then this evening, I am. Am speaking to the Kentucky Young Farmers Association. Drew, last night, I sat down to try to figure out, okay, 300 farmers from across the state that are young. What do you say to them? And I don't really know because I don't know a lot about farming. The other thing I'm trying to figure out is what I wear. You know, I have that cowboy hat, but I'm worried I'll walk in there wearing the cowboy hat, and then I would have the. I'd be the only person with the cowboy hat possible, at which point then I would look like a clown. So I. I feel like I'm gonna not take the cowboy hat to the farmers convention because I don't want to be the only guy in a cowboy. And then, you know, I'm gonna talk to the farmers about farming things. Cows, soybeans, crops, all kinds of good stuff.

[Ryan Lemond]

I'm confused. You're going to a farming convention, and you're worried you're gonna be the only guy in a cowboy hat? Where else would you wear a cowboy hat?

[Matt Jones]

That's the place. But, see, I kind of think, like, when they're at the convention, maybe they don't wear the cowboy.

[Shannon The Dude]

The John Deere hat, maybe the camo hat.

[Matt Jones]

Well, maybe they dress up. I mean, this is a convention, and it's a dinner. Like, they may decide, like, this is when they wear it. So I just.

[Ryan Lemond]

I. I don't Suddenly over at 35 and a half cowboy hats, you're gonna go. That's the over under.

[Matt Jones]

I'm going over. So it's close enough I can walk from my house. Should I carry the cowboy hat and then decide whether or not to walk.

[Shannon The Dude]

In, address, you know, kind of scope out what's going on, read the room and then decide. And then decide. Okay, decision.

[Matt Jones]

And then later that night is my friend Byron Roberts. There's a tribute concert for him at Manchester Music hall with lots of musical guests. And, you know, the rumors of surprise guests that I think is definitely the first time in Lexington for me to break out the cowboy hat.

[Drew Franklin]

That's why you got to take it with you. Like, if you need it for the. At the farmers convention, you've got it. But you definitely want it for that concert tonight. So, yeah, just take it with you just in case.

[Matt Jones]

But all of this is just a setup for tomorrow where Kentucky and Alabama will play at noon. In my opinion, for the Cats, this is the kind of game that if you win, okay, now we can start talking about maybe we could win the sec, right? I mean, this is. That's actually not something that I have thought was likely, but with Broom out still probably for a couple weeks. Auburn, our one game against them is in Rupp Arena. We don't have to go there. So, like, you know, if there was ever a tiebreaker, you'd get to have that one, I think. Drew, you know, if we can win this one. What. What's. What do we think the spread will be, by the way?

[Ryan Lemond]

Ooh, very tight.

[Matt Jones]

You think. You think Bam is a fan, Babe is a favorite.

[Ryan Lemond]

I think that'd be tough to do, but maybe. I think it's going to be like one point.

[Matt Jones]

Maybe UK I'm going to say Bama by like one or one or two, I bet. But either way, because. Just because their numbers are a lot better than ours, and I could see that being how they get favored. But do you agree with me? If you win this game, you could start going, okay, maybe we are a contender to win the sec.

[Ryan Lemond]

Yeah, I think so. I mean, you don't want to cheer for injury or be happy about an injury, but broom going down, that's a big hit to them, that it's an opportunity for someone to compete with Auburn. Right now you're tied with Alabama. I think Alabama, Tennessee and Florida are with Kentucky just behind Auburn. You've already got.

[Matt Jones]

Ole Miss is undefeated.

[Ryan Lemond]

Already got one On Florida, though, you win this one, I think it's huge.

[Matt Jones]

It's. You would. You would have the tiebreaker over Florida. Now we still have to go to Alabama. Right. So the other part of this is if you lose to Alabama and you still have to go there, then it becomes hard to figure out, okay, how are we going to pass them if we still have to go there? We still got two games. Games against Tennessee. But if you want to have a chance to contend for the SEC regular season title, you win tomorrow. I mean, I think if you lose tomorrow, it's not the end of the world, even though it's a home game. But if you win, I think it sets up some real possibility.

[Drew Franklin]

And I feel good about it, really, because, you know, Alabama plays the way that we want to play and that's why we kind of excel. Like we said that Florida game, one of the, you know, up both. He's playing a high efficiency. I think it could be the same thing tomorrow. I don't know if somebody's going to have a Justin Edwards performance like we got last year, but somebody needs to step up and knock down some threes for sure.

[Matt Jones]

What? We scored 120 points last year.

[Drew Franklin]

Yeah.

[Matt Jones]

I mean, it was just an absolute insane performance offensively.

[Ryan Lemond]

Yeah. That's why I'm so excited tomorrow. Win or lose, this is going to be a fun basketball game.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah.

[Ryan Lemond]

Alabama's number one in the country at 90 points. Kentucky's right behind them. I think both coaches are going to look at each other and be like, let's put on a show. Let's get up and down. Let's make this a fun game. Regardless of winning the sec, because I think Auburn still without Broom is going to be tough to beat. This will be huge for Friday in the SEC tournament and seating in the NCAA tournament, getting a win over team.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah, that's one of the things that I really think about is that Friday is the double buy. The double buy requires top four teams in the conference. This is the kind of game where you start to feel good about getting that. I mean, remember, this team could have an amazing record and still be like a five or six seed in the SEC tournament. Alabama, though, has struggled, Ryan, in the last few weeks. I mean that they're not. Even when they've won, it hasn't been exactly. They've not been completely efficient. You know, they went. They went to A and M. Could have easily lost that game. That was what. They had 50 fouls called or something during that game. Then the Ole Miss game, Ole Miss led most of the game and beat him and beat them. I think we're catching Alabama when they're not yet really rolling and maybe that's.

[Drew Franklin]

A good time to do it because I think going into before the season even started, I thought they were the best team in the conference. Auburn is obviously taking that crown.

[Matt Jones]

Four of their five starters from a final 14 back.

[Drew Franklin]

Yeah, the Sears kids back is one of the best players in the conference.

[Matt Jones]

Grant Nelson, the big dude.

[Drew Franklin]

The, the Ole Miss games. When it puzzles me because I kind of watched a little bit of that it was going on the Ei Ole Miss was up by 15, 18 points. A lot of the second half ended up being a 10 point win. They kind of dominated that game.

[Shannon The Dude]

Alabama had 21 turnovers in that game. Yeah, so it's completely uncharacteristic. The key is I think for this game keep Alabama under 80 points. Every time they score 80 points or more.

[Matt Jones]

I think there's. Yeah, I mean I think if, if you keep them under 80, you're going to probably beat them. I mean Mark Sears is their best player. A lot of people had him as a, a preseason national player of the year and he's been good, but he's not been what I think people thought. Lamont Butler will probably be on him. How do you think that matchup goes?

[Ryan Lemond]

I'm pretty confident with Lamont Butler guarding just about anybody. But Sears led the league last year through four SEC games. Now he's averaging like 20. So he's starting to get it back up a little bit from the non conference. They also took Auburn's Aiden Holloway. He's tough. He was all freshman last year. Made an awkward transfer going from Auburn to Alabama for them. So they have a lot of recognizable names and star power that play a lot of good basketball already.

[Matt Jones]

When Kentucky played against A and M, Mark Pope said that they looked inspired. Basically said we wanted them to shoot threes and then they made a bunch at the beginning but then didn't make one in the second half. This is not, this is not a team.

[Shannon The Dude]

Ryan.

[Matt Jones]

You can let shoot threes. If you let this team shoot threes, they can score 100 on you like that. They're going to have to go out on them and make them beat them at the rim. Now we've seen some teams have success doing that against Kentucky. Do you think Alabama can I.

[Drew Franklin]

You know that that's the key. You know, I think once again Alabama a very strong offensive rebounding team. Seems like every time we play an SEC team now that's their scouting report. Very strong on the offensive glass.

[Matt Jones]

Well, this one's not. This one's not. I'm saying you want them to beat you with. You cannot let them shoot threes. If you let them shoot threes, you're. You're done. Because they. They will make them. You got to make them beat you at the rim. You got to make Grant Nelson beat you at the rim. Do you think they can do that?

[Drew Franklin]

Amari played so well last week. You know, he seems to be coming on and on. And by the way, I thought Pope said something really good about Amari, considering this. He said when he. When he was playing at Drexel, you know, he barely touched somebody get called from a falcon. He was so much bigger and stronger than everybody. Now he's kind of learning how to play in the SEC where he can be more physical, and I think we're seeing that. I think he played money his best game of the season last week, by the way.

[Matt Jones]

Just, you know, I don't know what to say about this, because I've been critical of his arms down the. Amari is leading the country in rebounding efficiency, and it feels like, to me, he should still be getting four or five more. He is literally, literally, after the last game, leading the country in rebounding efficiency, and it doesn't. And it feels to me, Drew, like he could still be better than that. He is right now on pace to be, like, one of the best rebounders we've had in 25 years. By the numbers. Only Oscar right now is in higher offensive efficiency than Amari. I know that's crazy to me as I watch it, but it's true. Yeah.

[Ryan Lemond]

As much as we, you know, love Butler and want Jackson Robinson to be this big star, the guy that's really having the biggest impacts, Amari, if you look at numbers of, like, usage, the offense goes through him more than anybody else on the team. He's leading in rebounding. I think the last two games, he's even had taken another step forward and at least get a little more physical. Like Ryan said, I think he's getting comfortable in the lead.

[Matt Jones]

I mean, they have a. They have a stat where it's like, of the rebounds you should get, how many do you get? And he's literally number one. And the next nine all playing, like, little leagues, like, in the small leagues, where some big guy can just get every rebound. He's the only one in the Power 5 that's in the top 10. That's crazy to me watching, because I still see him sit there with his hands down. But you know what I mean, the numbers are what they are. You know, they he's clearly done an amazing job.

[Ryan Lemond]

I think keeping him in the game will be very important tomorrow. Like 2/4 quick fouls or something like that. And Amari has to go down and we have too much Garrison I think could be an issue. I need a big Amari game tomorrow.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah. Bespoken Spirits here at Grayline station UK Alabama tickets giving away the which one do you like better, the whiskey Myers or the Leonard Skynyrd Bourbon?

[Ryan Lemond]

I stayed an hour after the show last night and tried that whiskey Myers Bourbon. That is very, very good.

[Matt Jones]

All right. So whiskey my very smooth called the help. No Uncle Chicken.

[Ryan Lemond]

Uncle Chicken bottle for everyone over here.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah. We will take a break and be right back. This is Kentucky Sports Radio. Welcome back. It is Kentucky Sports Radio here live at Bespoken Spirits in Lexington. You can come see us. We got a couple of lines. 859-280-2287 Rick I have break the Supreme Court this morning decides nine zero unanimous that tick tock is banned in the United States starting Saturday 9.

[Drew Franklin]

Oh, starting tomorrow.

[Matt Jones]

Starting, well the 19th. So I guess Sunday, Sunday now it is interesting. So even so legally, basically what so you know what the Supreme Court decided is the law that was passed which said it was banned, the Supreme Court just said they can do that basically doesn't violate the First Amendment. And it's nine. Oh, you always hear me say when it's nine zero there ain't a lot that's not oh, so that means it's pretty unanimous. I mean. Well, it's not pretty unanimous. It's completely unanimous. But last night Joe Biden said because technically it's supposed to start Sunday, which would mean he would, his administration would have to enforce it. He said that out of deference to a new president, on Monday, he would wait and let the new president decide whether to enforce it. So that means it'll come down to what Trump wants to do the next day. And he has suggested he might not enforce it. So we'll see. But the supreme but I, I, I don't know how Congress can pass a law and then the president just not enforce it. I don't think you could do that. So we'll see what they end up doing. But at least for now, the law is constitutional, which means another kind of notch against tick tock standard or if.

[Shannon The Dude]

Trump has any ability to keep it. I mean what but he was the.

[Matt Jones]

Original person that wanted to ban It.

[Shannon The Dude]

Yeah. But now new presidency, new term.

[Matt Jones]

Right. So he's just going to change his.

[Shannon The Dude]

Opinion completely, come in and look like a hero, gonna say he will like it.

[Matt Jones]

But the whole reason this started was he was the one that wanted to get rid of it. And now you're right. He might come around and say I'm the one that sa.

[Shannon The Dude]

And reverse it. You see, nobody will remember that first.

[Matt Jones]

No, no. But nobody knows. Probably. But, but anyway, I. I actually thought there'd be a couple of the liberals descent but nano that says so Tick Tock might go away. Just after we built our account, we have 22000 followers and we got it going and now go does it.

[Drew Franklin]

What are your thoughts about the president of Tik Tok supposed to be in the front row at the inauguration on Monday?

[Matt Jones]

I. I don't get that. I don't. I mean I. If I fully buy that Tick Tock could be a national security issue. I get it. Like, I think, listen, I like it. And part of me is like with you, Shannon, like we already give them everything. At the same time, I understand why it could be. I mean we essentially give all of our personal details to a country that we're is hostile to. I get it. With that said, I don't understand inviting the. The head of Tick Tock to the inauguration. Like if it's so bad.

[Shannon The Dude]

Yeah.

[Matt Jones]

That we have to get rid of it, why is he at the inauguration? I don't, I. I do not understand that.

[Shannon The Dude]

I don't get that.

[Matt Jones]

But I also don't understand why if, if they were against it, then they might flip it. I think it's just like, it just shows how nobody really believes anything. It's just like, well, people like it. So I don't want to get rid of.

[Shannon The Dude]

My favorite part of this whole thing is we're worried about giving up our information. And there are TikTok users who are going to this other app that has an agreement in a language that's not English and they have no idea what they're.

[Matt Jones]

First of all, you want to talk about the American people being dumb. As a protest against Tick Tock going away, a ton of American young people went to another Chinese app that explicitly says in the terms, we will give your stuff to the Chinese government and. And signed up out of protest. Like it goes to show like people drew. At the end of the day, our dumbness is part of the problem more than anything.

[Ryan Lemond]

Last time I got on Tick Tock a few days ago, it was people introducing their new spy that they met on the new app. Like, I've switched to this app. This is my new spy. And they're like playing it up like it's a game.

[Matt Jones]

I mean, I know that everybody thinks it's a joke and I get it. Like, I don't want it to go away either because I, I really do like it. But we'll see. So anyway, that'll be one of the decisions that will be, be made. But Supreme Court upholds it. 908-59-280, 2287. One person writes in and goes, matt, we have to hit threes. What is the magical number of threes we have to make tomorrow to beat Alabama? What do you think?

[Drew Franklin]

Oh, that's a good question. I'll go 12.

[Matt Jones]

12. That's a lot. I mean, that's a big number.

[Ryan Lemond]

I was going higher. I'm gonna say 13.

[Matt Jones]

Okay.

[Ryan Lemond]

So you guys might be in the hundreds tomorrow. I think both sides are gonna light it up.

[Matt Jones]

Do you think though, we have to hit 13 to win? Like if we hit less, we can't win?

[Ryan Lemond]

I mean, I, I'll stick with my answer.

[Matt Jones]

Okay.

[Shannon The Dude]

I'm going to say 10. And the reason I say that is because Alabama, one of the things they do really good defensively is guarding the three.

[Matt Jones]

So I think they're the best.

[Shannon The Dude]

Really tough to knock down that many threes against them.

[Matt Jones]

I mean, we, you know, you know my dis, my dislike of mid range jumpers. But you actually can get as many of those as you want against Alabama and because they'll get, they give them to you. And part of the reason we scored 120 last year, we hit a lot of threes, but people don't remember we actually hit a lot of mid range jumpers. Yeah. Likes to shoot and so you're going to get a lot of those. And we have a couple guys that seem pretty good at it. Jackson Robinson seems pretty good at it. Butler away. They actually seem like pretty good at those things.

[Drew Franklin]

Jackson Robinson, that's money for him. It seems like, you know, he gets. Once he gets his feet set, he can hit it.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah.

[Drew Franklin]

So I don't want to see Kobe bray. They'll go another one or five. He's one of five. Last two games. He's got, he's got a nail.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah, I think, I think you're right. He's going to get shots. He's got to make them. Who's up first? Ed is up first. Ed. Go ahead, Ed. Hey, man.

[Kentucky Joe]

I was reading a couple days ago that the price for A ticket to.

[Matt Jones]

See Arkansas was over a thousand dollars. Yes. As of now, it is over a thousand dollars to get in for Arkansas. I bet it'll go down, but that's what it is right now. Yeah, that's what was my next question. I mean, if they keep having a bad record, do you think the price.

[Kentucky Joe]

Is going to drop?

[Matt Jones]

I mean, Drew, maybe a little, but I, I pre. I mean, it's going to go down just because it always goes down right before the game. But I do think, Drew, the reason people want to go to that Arkansas game has very little to do with whether or not they're good. It has to do with that moment when Cal walks in. That's why people want to go.

[Ryan Lemond]

I think people might be more excited to go if they continue to suck, honestly, because they'll go in a little comfortable not having to sweat out a game. I wonder and this wouldn't be a big hit to tickets, but I wonder if the Arkansas fans that were going to come are like, nope, I don't want to do that anymore. And they're going to back out.

[Drew Franklin]

Not a good point.

[Ryan Lemond]

That wouldn't be a big percentage of the crowd.

[Matt Jones]

Let me ask you a question. If he were to go, I mean they've got three semi winnable games. They play at Missouri, then they play Georgia at home and then they play Oklahoma at home. Now they could lose all three of.

[Ryan Lemond]

Those games, but they also underdog and all three.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah, but they also could win them. But let's say they lose them all and they come in here 07 and they were to beat us. Oh, what would that happen?

[Drew Franklin]

It would be awful for Caliperi to have a bad team and come in here on our own floor and beat us the first time they face each other. That would be awful.

[Matt Jones]

He's gonna win one game against a good team. He's gonna. They all. He even in his worst teams, they'd always win one surprise on the road. We just can't let it be us.

[Drew Franklin]

Amen.

[Matt Jones]

Because he's gonna do it once. He'll win one of those. He always does. We just can't let it be here. We'll take a break and be right back. We are here. Bespoken Spirits. This is ksr. Welcome back. It is Kentucky Sports Radio here at Bespoken Spirits. If you're in the area, come on out here. You got a chance to win the Kentucky Alabama tickets. Also at noon, they're going to give a tour of Bespoken Spirits back here. You can see all their various stuff. Leonard Skynyrd, Whiskey Hell House. And they can also make private labels for folks as well. Here at Bespoken Spirits. They're giving out stuff here for people. I think they're enjoying it. You know, I didn't. But you don't expect to talk about two government things in the first hour of the show. But there is another decision that came yesterday that will have a major impact on college sports. Potentially major impact. So I could literally bore you to death because I teach a two hour class every year at Georgetown on this topic. So I'll try to distill two hours into one minute. Title 9, as it applies to college sports requires schools to give equal opportunity to men and women in sports. That's been interpreted over the years by the Department of Education to mean scholarships. So they basically said you have to give people equal opportunity, you have to give them equal scholarships. It didn't necessarily mean though that you have to give them equal money. Okay, so like for instance, you can spend more money on your men's team, their travel than on the women's team. That is allowed under Title 9. I think a lot of people don't realize it doesn't mean equal. It means equal opportunity. All right? So now starting in July, schools are going to be. Schools are basically going to be revenue sharing money, $22 million a year sharing with athletes. Most schools had decided to give 75 or 80% to the men's football team, 10 to 15 to basketball, 5 to women's basketball, and then the rest to all the other sports. That was kind of all of the NCAA's agreement as to how the money was going to go. Yesterday the Department of Education said, hey, Title nine, when it says equal opportunity, that will also include nil money, revenue share. Now a lot of people who don't know the law are out there saying that means they're going to make them split the money equally. I don't think that's what that means, but it is going to mean equal opportunity, which is going to mean the school is going to have to like, the school is going to have to prove that it makes sense to do it the way they do. So for instance, if you're at Iowa where Caitlin Clark made you all that money on the women's basketball team and you still pay your women's players less than your men's basketball players, you're gonna have some explaining to do, right? How can you justify doing that when the women's team made more. I don't read the decision as saying they will have to give $11 million to the men, $11 million to the women. But they're just saying that the same rules that always apply will now apply to this. Then you throw in the wild card that we're going to have a new president on Monday, and his education department might look at it differently than Biden's and might just say, we don't think that's the case. So it's up in the air. But I will say this, Ryan. A lot of athletic departments had created an entire system based on something that now another wrench gets thrown into. So, for instance, if you're a football program out there that went and recruited a roster thinking you were going to have 18 million to give them, and now you have 12 million to give them, you might have a problem. You might actually. So it will be interesting, I think, the next three or four months. I said this before, but it's now even more true after the decision yesterday. The next three or four months will be the most chaotic. Three or four months in college sports. On the back end of it, it'll be better than it is right now. But we are going to see chaos for the next few months as schools try to figure out how to set up this new system.

[Drew Franklin]

That's crazy, man, because these athletic budgets, they're set up a year or more in advance. And now, just like that, it's all. It's. It's wrong. It's all wrong. We got to do it, redo it again. So what can schools see?

[Matt Jones]

I think it's. I think it puts. I actually think the decision, it's probably the right decision, and I don't think it has the impact people think. I don't think they're saying men and women have to make the same amount of money, but because we don't drew know exactly what it means, it makes it really hard. I was told Mitch Barnhart, and again, this is a scuttlebutt, not a scoop, but I was told Mitch Barnhart met with, like, the 40 biggest donors to UK Athletics and basically looked at him and said, we need X amount of money from each of you all to get through this transition. And I don't know if people will do it. And it was, let's just say it was not a small amount of money. I think all these schools are dealing with this right now.

[Ryan Lemond]

Yeah, you talk about it getting chaotic. I mean, it's been so chaotic, and it's just going to keep getting worse. And we say on this show that, you know, we don't have a lot of sympathy for these coaches making all this money. But at some point when the rules keep changing, that has to be a little difficult on them. When they're, when they're just truly uncertain of what rule they're going to be playing with in one month, that's got to be hard to fill these rosters because this is a pivotal point in a lot of, a lot of teams year of what they're going to have for next season. And if the rules are going to.

[Matt Jones]

Keep changing and not to again bore you with law, Trump can change what Biden's administration just did. But he according to the law, once the president does it, you have to have a really good reason to change it. And it will be hard for him to explain what the reason was. And it's only a few weeks later. So that's why I said, shannon, I have no idea what's going to happen.

[Shannon The Dude]

Going to change. Probably a lot of scholarships, recruiting opportunities as well. You know, you promise a guy X amount of dollars, all of a sudden now you got to change that.

[Matt Jones]

And you're also going to have to raise it. Now, I will say the winners in this, even if they don't get equal money, women's basketball players are about to get paid. Like if I was, if I was a young women's basketball player and I could go to the wnba, but I could take this new fifth year of eligibility. Girls, take it because there's going to be money next year that there just wasn't in years past. Who's up next?

[Drew Franklin]

Kentucky Joe is up next.

[Matt Jones]

Oh, good. Kentucky Joe, go ahead. Hello there.

[Kentucky Joe]

Good morning.

[Matt Jones]

Good morning.

[Kentucky Joe]

I first made comment and I'm hope I'll be able to do a song.

[Matt Jones]

Oh, that's right. Well, to be fair, I did say I wanted a song. Let's just do the song. Okay, so what, what is the name of the song you're gonna sing?

[Kentucky Joe]

The name is called, it's called Old Mama. It's called. It's called Old Mama. Old Mama.

[Matt Jones]

Okay, I get it.

[Kentucky Joe]

He's running on, on, on high octane.

[Matt Jones]

Oh mama. He's running on high octane or maybe oh Mama, oh mama, oh mama, oh mama. He's running on high. No, no, no.

[Shannon The Dude]

It's.

[Kentucky Joe]

It's Old Mama.

[Matt Jones]

Okay, Just one. Omar. Okay.

[Kentucky Joe]

It really called Obama.

[Matt Jones]

Okay. That's plenty of Old Mamas. Go ahead, Joe. Go ahead and let's start the song.

[Kentucky Joe]

All right.

[Matt Jones]

All right.

[Kentucky Joe]

Mama is kind of special. Opposition go crazy. They have players that can score. They also have Players that produce easy buckets.

[Matt Jones]

Okay.

[Kentucky Joe]

Always the best one who does it all. Oh, mama ain't just running on high octane.

[Matt Jones]

All right, here's the thing. Here's the thing. Joe. We're gonna have to work on this one. You're right. Okay, Joe, Hang on. Joe. Joe, Joe, Joe, Joe, Joe, Joe, Joe. Jo. Okay, Joe, Joe, Joe, this. You're writing a Dostoevsky novel. I need you. All right, so here's the thing. I need you to, like, cut the verses down. You're right. Like, these are sort of meandering sentences. This. We. We got it. We. We need an editor for the. For this. I mean, there's something there, but it's a little. It's a little much, Joe. Okay, can we. Can we try to cut it down a little bit? Not again. Like, not now, but, like, during your spare time.

[Kentucky Joe]

Well, I mean, I'm just curious. In what way?

[Matt Jones]

Well, just in a way that makes musical sense, you know, when it follows, like, a musical pattern and, you know, that kind of thing.

[Shannon The Dude]

That was his opus.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah, it was a little bit. There was a little bit of Lord of the Rings to the length of it. But, Joe, I appreciate it. I think it's going to give the team exactly what they need going into the Alabama game.

[Kentucky Joe]

Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey. Matt, I apologize.

[Matt Jones]

Well, you don't have to apologize. Listen, you. We're just. We're working on.

[Kentucky Joe]

You still there, Joe?

[Matt Jones]

Yeah, I'm still here. It's fine. Don't worry about it. We're good. Okay.

[Kentucky Joe]

Okay.

[Ryan Lemond]

Okay.

[Matt Jones]

All right. There you go. Thank you.

[Ryan Lemond]

Great song, Joe.

[Matt Jones]

Great, great song.

[Shannon The Dude]

He created that in, like, the moment. There's no doubt. I think he made completely impromptu.

[Matt Jones]

A lot of long word, longest words I've ever heard.

[Shannon The Dude]

Opposition.

[Matt Jones]

A lot of words.

[Drew Franklin]

Oh, mama, serve pro.

[Matt Jones]

If you were to have a disaster.

[Shannon The Dude]

See, it's catchy, like.

[Matt Jones]

Like the relief valve on your water heater falls. Or it pours gallons of water in your basement. Or an electrical shortage. You could call this call ServPro. Hopefully you don't need it, but 1-800-servpro. That's S-E-R-V-Pro.com. see what you could do to get back to make it like it never even happened. From ServePro and ServePro.com we will take a break and be right back. This is Kentucky Sports Radio. Welcome back. It is Kentucky Sports Radio here live at Bespoken Sports Spirits in Lexington. In Grayline Station 859-280-2287. Go to clubbluenil.com you can. You can try the Club Blue Bourbon. It's made right here at Bespoken Spirits. Drew, we got to talk for a second about Louisville. So, like, I want to make fun of them for this, but I also don't want to be, like, too mean because I think part of this is nice, but part of it is a little sad. I mean, for those of you that haven't followed Louisville since we beat them, they're five and one in the acc. And their. Their five wins include beating, like, pretty much everybody good in the acc. That's not Duke. They beat North Carolina. They beat Clemson. They beat Pitt. Wake Forest is the only other team with a winning record they haven't played yet. I mean, they have a chance to finish with an amazing record, actually. And I'm not. I mean, they're good. I'm not sure they're that good, but I mean, they're probably. I think they're probably going to finish second in the acc. So good team. Still can't get anybody to go their games. They had Mike Rutherford, who I like a lot, who does card Chronicle. He tweeted out last night, I'm giving away a thousand tickets on the radio. Let me say that again. A thousand tickets on the radio. Apparently, once again, one of their donors bought a thousand tickets and today they're giving them out all day to people who will go to the game now. Nice gesture by whoever did it. I think it's cool. Rather than leaving them empty to give them out. So I'm not like, crushing it, but this is a team that is going to make the NCAA tournament after years of being bad. Might be the second best team in the ACC is playing Virginia, who I don't think they've beaten in Louisville in like a decade now. Virginia is still not good, but they haven't beaten them in a long time. And you have to give out a thousand tickets just to fill the arena of one of the best basketball programs in the history of college basketball. Are you shocked?

[Ryan Lemond]

Actually, at this point, I'm not shocked. But it is crazy that this continues to happen. If I'm Pat Kelsey, I at my next press conference say, do you all not like me?

[Matt Jones]

Are you out there?

[Ryan Lemond]

I'm doing everything I possibly can. Tell me what I need to do to get you all to come speak support this team.

[Matt Jones]

A thousand tickets on a Saturday at home against Virginia when if you win, you'll probably be ranked. I just. Ryan, I can't believe it.

[Drew Franklin]

What? I understand they're lower arena Tickets to me.

[Matt Jones]

No, they're not.

[Drew Franklin]

That's what I thought I heard on the radio this morning.

[Ryan Lemond]

No, no, surely not.

[Matt Jones]

They're not low half of them or.

[Drew Franklin]

Some of them low arena.

[Matt Jones]

See that? That's crazy to me if, I don't know if that's true. But if that is true, Ryan, that's crazy.

[Drew Franklin]

It's shocking, honestly. I mean, I give them an A for effort. I mean, they're, they're trying everything they can to try to get fans in there. The fact that they've kind of just like Drew keeps saying, they're broken. They can't get over the what's happened the last couple years and Kentucky just beat them this year. I don't know if they just can't get over all that, but they're good.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah, I mean, they're pretty good this year.

[Shannon The Dude]

It's crazy.

[Matt Jones]

I, I, I just, I don't get it.

[Shannon The Dude]

First of all, a thousand tickets to me sounds like a logistical nightmare. I'd rather just take them all and dump them out of a window and say, people just take them.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah, but oh yeah, can you imagine if you call in, get all their email when we do eight tickets and my fingers are like, no more. Yeah.

[Shannon The Dude]

But their coach came in and did more than Kenny Payne did in two months, than Kenny did in two years. Thirteen wins and you're still not excited enough to go see your team play. I don't get it.

[Matt Jones]

I don't get it. I mean, I would just say to Louisville fans, like your team. Besides the fact you can't iron your uniforms or wear the same uniform correctly, your team seems likable. The coach seems extremely likable. They're going to make the tournament. I the fact that you have to give, give away a thousand tickets, like give them away. I, I that is shocking to me. For an ACC game against Virginia, I.

[Ryan Lemond]

Think the next step is, I know this sounds a little ridiculous, but I think you just got to fill the ump sitter with concrete and call it a loss, get a smaller venue. I mean, they're never going to fill that thing again.

[Matt Jones]

There was a time backwards. There was a time that was the number three ranked attendance fan base in the country behind Kentucky and Syracuse. It would be Kentucky, Syracuse, Louisville, and somehow it's gone to this awesome arena.

[Drew Franklin]

One of the best in the country, great environment for college basketball and they've got a good team. It just doesn't add up why they.

[Shannon The Dude]

Remember when they had like those cardboard cutouts during COVID Yeah, we maybe put some of those in the yum center to fill it up.

[Matt Jones]

I like that idea, actually. Who's up next? Jay is up next. Jay, Go ahead, Jay.

[F]

Hey, Matt. What's going on?

[Matt Jones]

Hey. Hey.

[F]

I got two. I got two quick things. So you've been kind of driving me nuts with this because you're pulling around lemon, and you keep saying when you talk about how Pope has overachieved with this team, that the greater is hole than some of the parts or something like that.

[Matt Jones]

The hole is greater than the. The whole is greater than the sum of the parts.

[F]

The sum is sum. The saying is the sum is greater than the part.

[Matt Jones]

No, it's not the sum. The saying is the whole is greater than the sum of. That's the same. The whole is greater than. If you add up each individual. If you add up each individual part, you would get a number or a. A group that's not as good as the whole. Is this right?

[F]

But some and whole are the same.

[Matt Jones]

Word s. I didn't make the saying up, sir. Like, I didn't make the saying. The saying is the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. That's the saying. I didn't make it up.

[F]

Okay, well, here's my. Here's what I really wanted to ask.

[Matt Jones]

Did you think I meant. So did. Hang on a second, sir. Did you think I thought some was s o m e some hole? Did you think I literally. Did you think I'm so stupid that I thought the hole was like a hole in the ground and st was just one of the parts?

[F]

I don't think that. Matt. I don't think. Okay, I thought you just you on how it went. Anyway, the point of that saying is that hope has gotten a lot out of these players.

[Matt Jones]

Correct.

[F]

Could you imagine? Can we imagine for two seconds, what if he was the coach of last year's team? What he would have got out of a Justin Edwards or somebody like that with a talent that they had?

[Matt Jones]

Yeah, I don't know. You know, I don't know. And I appreciate the call because I don't think he would have ever recruited a Justin Edwards. Like, I just. Because Justin, although, I mean, shot well against Alabama last year, but that wasn't his strength. Guys that take people off the drip, like, take a D.J. wagner or Justin Edwards, Drew, I don't know that a guy like that is a dude that he would recruit, you know? But now Reed Shepherd, Rob Dillingham, and Antonio Reeves, it may be even Aaron Bradshaw. I think he recruited all the Z he'd have recruited those dudes. I don't know if those driving guys that Cal liked, I just don't know if that's the kind of guy that he would recruit.

[Ryan Lemond]

No. And even if he had him, I mean, here we go. We're gonna do it again. But he wouldn't have put Justin Edwards as the three hanging around the perimeter. Probably would have played a little smaller ball and gotten Read and Robin there more. But we, we don't have to bring that pain up again.

[Matt Jones]

I do think Aaron. Aaron Bradshaw would have played well under him. Honestly, I think he's kind of a big. That would be. Obviously he wanted Z so clearly he thought he could do something with him.

[Drew Franklin]

I guarantee you one thing Pope would have played. The right analytics was told him what's the right lineup to play.

[Ryan Lemond]

Those analytics were clear last year.

[Drew Franklin]

Yeah, yeah.

[Matt Jones]

I mean, you know, I mean, it doesn't matter because it's not going to happen. But Read, Rob and Antonio with Pope are breaking like all time records for most three. I mean they are. They're like. They would have been unbelievable. And they were still really good way cow but they would have been unbelievable.

[Ryan Lemond]

Mario, hand me a bourbon.

[Shannon The Dude]

I was gonna say can we just. Can we just go back to some hole? Because that conversation made me feel drunker than any bourbon.

[Drew Franklin]

Some old parts better than a few.

[Matt Jones]

Of the parts that guy thought. I thought it was so me. He did. He thought. He thought. I thought. Okay, we'll be right back. We're here. But smoking spirits, this is KSI.