PAGE 5    THE CATS'  PAUSE, MARCH 5, 1977
Cats' Pause Publisher
How About A Football Repeat In Knoxville!
Sixteen of the eighteen SEC basketball games have gone by the board this season, but it's a whole new game as far as the Kentucky Wildcats and the. Tennessee Vols are concerned. The issue will be settled once and for all Saturday at 4 p.m. on NBC-TV in Knoxville.
Kentucky, 23-2 on the season and ranked second in the nation, fell victim to Tennessee earlier in the year at Rupp Arena by a 71-67 count in overtime.
It was one of the Cats' poorest shooting games of the campaign but that is not to take anything away from Coach Ray Mears' Vols. Tennesse has the most explosive offense in the nation with premier Ail-Americans Ernie Grunfeld and Bernard King.
All eyes will be on Knoxville and the winner will emerge as the SEC's official representative to the NCAA which will probably include a stop at Rupp Arena for the Mideast Regional semi-finals and finals.
Our prediction? Too close to call.
Spring is just around the corner and the Wildcats hit the diamond next week as Coach Tuffy Home has been sending his charges through indoor practices for some time.
Kentucky has the neuclus to better even last season's record when the Cats were SEC divisional champs. A big addition was the signing of pitcher Tim Branderburg who was offered a lucratice pro contract with Kansas City Royals, but turned it down for the Cats and an education.
Football spring practice begins on the grid-iron Monday and Fran Curci hopes to find some replacements for several talented offensive linemen who have played out their four years.
By the way, March 8 will be the date for the third annual Superior Scholar Athlete Lunchon at UK which honors all athletes with high academic standings.
The event will be held at the Student Center at 11:30 a.m. with former National Football League super official Tommy Bell as the speaker. Local sportscaster Denny Trease will be master of ceremonies.
A decision will be made in the next few months where the NCAA finals will be held in 1981 and the two finalists are Rupp Arena and the Superdome in Louisiana.
The NCAA likes to stay with university playing arenas and the word is out that Kentucky stands an excellent chance of being the selection. A big factor could be how smooth things are handled at the Mideast Regional here later in the month.
Jim Host & Associates of Lexington, the firm which has broadcasting rights to all University of Kentucky football and basketball games for radio, has also been awarded radio rights for all games of the NCAA tournament this year.
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Just a note to say we appreciate everyone's understanding of our situation the past few weeks. Things seem to be getting back to normal and we plan to provide you with top coverage of the Wildcats on the road to a fifth NCAA championship.
We've been handicapped in providing the coverage you're entitled to in the past three issues, but we hope to make it up to you now.
Also, our popular weekly UK sports quiz by Dewey Bentley will return to its regular schedule next week. Several of his quizes were destroyed during the great rainmaker and we have just received a new series.
HITS AND MISSES . . . "This is the cake-eatinest team I've ever seen," quipped Louisville sports columnist Dave Kindred in the Kentucky dressing room after the Cats' 85-70 win over Alabama when coaches, players and friends took part in a cake from the Committee of 101. The cake was presented minutes after Joe B. Hall had collected coaching win number 101 as head master of the Wildcats . . .
Also around was Kentucky booster Tombstone Johnny Owen all the way from Algona, Iowa, with his son. Prior to the Alabama game, Tombstone Johnny predicted a 10-point Kentucky win . . . Remember Mickey Gibson, the Hazard whiz who many though would become an All-American at UK before he was dismissed from the squad his junior year? Mickey now resides in Lexington and according to an Associated Press story, Gibson hopes, someday, that his son might be able to play for the Big Blue . . . Freshman Tim Stephens came out of surgery with flying colors Friday and doctors termed the operation a success. He is expected to fully recover and be ready to go full steam next season once the injured knee is healed . . . Even former UK cagers David Miller and Danny Hall may not be enough to save Bob Daniels' job at Marshall University. The Thundering Herd is-experiencing one of their worst seasons and the alumni are getting restless with the former coach at Kentucky Wesleyan. A wire story out of the West Virginia community says this may be Daniels' last go-around . . People in the media business around the state were shocked at the sudden "demotion" of Louisville Courier-Journal & Times executive sports editor Earl Cox to the position of a columnist. In a tune completely opposite to that which it preaches, the CJ & T provided readers with no explanation for the change and indicated that Cox had not asked for the new assignment. It was particularly shocking since the CJ & T sports -coverage is generally regarded as one of the best in America. According to some, the demotion came after others in the sports department had complained repeatedly of low morale and lack of understanding by Cox. That
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may be true, but you couldn't tell by reading the sports pages of the papers. The "putdown" of Cox certainly won't rank as one of the all-time favorite Barry Bingham moves . . . Another local favorite is in deep trouble with the natives and Dr. Bob Davis ma-have his days numbered at Auburn University. The Tigers are in danger of compiling a losing record and this comes just a few months after many had predicted Auburn would  be a challenger to the SEC title. Three-time All-SEC guard Eddie Johnson has not performed up to projected standards. The press is after the Davis program in Alabama while morale and discipline have   been   problems   this season according to people close to the scene. A   case   in   point   was Auburn's disappointing   home   loss   to LSU Saturday. Only 2,826 fans showed up for the game . . . Despite Kentucky's strong football showing in 1976 and the 21-0 Peach Bowl win over North Carolina, the weekly Football News lists Kentucky as only No. 26 for next season. It lists Tennessee as No. 23, has a two-page spread on new Vols coach Johnny  Majors,   then makes excuses for Majors by saying he has three road games "but they'll all be SEC toughies against Alabama, Kentucky and Florida." The other eight games will all be played in the state of Tennessee. Pitty poor Johnny .  . . Football News also lists Art Still as a third team pre-season choice on its All-America defensive team, but both Rod  Stewart  and Jim  Kovach are missing . . . Kentucky's football club will go through Pro Day this week. That's when representatives of the National Football League comes to town to clock times on all the UK Wildcats   as  well  as  weighing the players and checking their height. The annual affair takes away the problems of listing statistics to suit everyone's wishes ...  If you like to follow predictions, you'll love the picks of Basketball Weekly's expert staff for the  Kentucky-Tennessee  game this Saturday. The Five-man board is split 3-2 in favor of Kentucky defeating the Vols. Those favoring Kentucky predict the   Cats   by  2,   3   and   4 points respectively. The two liking Tennessee think the Vols will win by three points. All five like Kentucky and Tennessee in their season finales against Georgia and Vanderbilt respectively Monday night . . . There were some great signs in Rupp Arena Saturday for television during the Kentucky-Alabama battle. One of the best was the imitation of a national  hot  dog fast  food outlet, Weiner King. Complete with the logo, the UK students' sign read: "Bernard King, King of Hot Dogs, USA."