UK RADIO NETWOR
THE WILDCATS ON RADIO
A Kentucky basketball tradition through the years has been the ability of the legions of Big Blue fans to "catch the Cats on the radio." Listening to Kentucky basketball has been a tradition in the Commonwealth and across the country for decades. Nearly every Kentuckian has fond memories of sitting around a radio on a cold winter night, living and dying with the fortunes of the Big Blue.
As usual, the excitement and action of Kentucky's 84th season of basketball will be broadcast to fans across the country on one of the largest college networks in the nation. The UK Basketball Network features 96 stations in six states, including Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, West Virginia, Tennessee and Arkansas.
Anchoring the coverage this season is a station new to the lineup, the powerful 50,000-watt clear-channel WLW in Cincinnati. Located at 700 on the AM dial, WLW will beam the Wildcat action to at least 40 states.
"I can distinctly remember listening to the Cats when I was a kid growing up in Kansas," says UK head coach Eddie Sutton. "Our radio broadcasts have helped make us the premier program in the country by providing us with a national audience for a number of years."
The network also features WVLK in Lexington and WAVG in Louisville, as well as ten 100,000-watt FM stations throughout the state.
The rights to Wildcat basketball are held by Kentucky Network Inc., of Louisville, which is currently in its
seventh season of broadcasting UK sports.
The UK Network presents one of the most comprehensive lineups of programs on game night, starting 1 Vi hours before tipoff with a statewide call-in show, followed by Cawood's Look at Basketball, the Coach Eddie Sutton Pre-Game Show, Wildcat Warmup and the game play-by-play. Following the game, the network presents the Wildcat Wrapup, Wildcat Scoreboard and the Coach Eddie Sutton Post-Game Show.
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CAWOOD LEDFORD
Now in his 34th season of broadcasting Wildcat games, Cawood Ledford is truly a legend in the Commonwealth. In many drug stores and barber shops across the state, conversations in the winter begin with, "Well, Cawood said last night..."
His brisk, informative style has won him a spot in the hearts of Kentuckians for years and to many people who never have a chance to see the Cats in person, Cawood IS Kentucky basketball. As one station promoted him once, "When you listen to Kentucky basketball, you don't just hear it, you SEE it, through the eyes of Cawood Ledford."
Cawood has made some of his phrases legendary in Kentucky, especially his traditional, "The Wildcats are moving to the right-hand side of your radio dial." When he appears at courtside at Rupp Arena, the Kentucky band salutes him in unison with a loud, "Hello, Cawood!" That's the kind of respect Kentuckians have for "their" announcer.
The native of Harlan County, Ky., (actually Cawood, Ky.) has been named Best Basketball Announcer in the Nation, in addition to being named Kentucky's "Sportscaster of the Year" 19 times. He is president of his own Lexington-based company, Cawood Ledford Productions, and has produced
many award-winning radio and television sports programs.
In a recent survey of active college basketball announcers, Ledford ranked tied for sixth in longevity:
Name	School	Years	Name	School	Years
1. Larry Birlefli	Wyoming	48	13. Jack Cristil	Mississippi St.	29
2. Bob Brooks	Iowa	41	14. Jack Eaton	Memphis State	27
3. Max Falkenstcin	Kansas	40	George Hale	Maine (Orono)	27
4. Ray Scott	Arizona	40	16. Gene Davidson	Tennessee Tech	26
5. Bob Fulton	S. Carolina	34	17. Walt Ausley	N. Carolina St.	25
6. Cawood Ledford	Kentucky	33	Tom Kelley	Southern Cal	25
jack Dale	Texas Tech	33	19. Tom Hemmingway	Michigan	2
Vern Hawkins	SW Missouri	33	20. Dave Carr	Bowling Green	22
9. Al Ciraldo	Georgia Tech	32	Wes Strader	Western Ky.	22
10. Ray Christensen	Minnesota	30			
Morry Mannies	Ball State	30			
Don McLean	St. Bonaventure	30			
RALPH HACKER
Ledford's sidekick on Wildcat broadcasts in Ralph Hacker, president and general manager of radio station WVLK in Lexington. Hacker is now in his 15th season as the color analyst on the UK Network, offering his knowledge to the broadcasts, as well as handling all pre-game, halftime and post-game programs.
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