I'm well aware of our basketball tradition and as a UK fan I appreciate it as the many books and prints in my house would attest. But I also feel like college basketball is increasingly a niche sport. Officiating is horrible, cheating has no repercussions for all of our rivals except Louisville and one and done has really killed a lot of passion for my sense of them being "my team". Most of the country doesn't care except here, Kansas and NC. The Final Four is on TBS now. I get joy out of the big games but only time it's a serious high is from a Final Four or better. That could be because UK basketball has spoiled me in a way that fans of 98% of other schools that aren't named Alabama, Notre Dame, or Duke wouldn't understand.
That being said, nothing gives me total joy the way a big football win does. The wins last year against Florida (who was still full of steam after their moral victory against Bama and not the same team USC and Mizzou played) and the bowl win against Iowa made me giddy for days. We've gotten a couple of those wins each year for the last 5 seasons and basketball hasn't done that for me since 2012. Where the football team has come from to get to this point after years of neglect from the powers that be has been a true joy to watch.
We all know or are in families with multiple siblings where one shines a little brighter than the others, they have the looks, the smarts, the social ability, the athleticism, everything comes easier for them than everybody else. That's our basketball program. Then there is another one where everything is a little harder, they're in the others shadow, but keep working and in time through a lot of perseverance they come into their own. That's our football program. You're proud of both, you're expectations are a little different for each one but you love them both. For the one who has everything to try and put himself above a brother like that is narcissistic and really disappointing.
