You didn't mention James Lee, Charles Hurt, Chuck Hayes, Heshimu Evans, who would be the top 4 on my list.
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Yes, there's been so many that I forgot about several players. These all definitely belong on the list.
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BTW, anyone hear how he's been doing? He's been battling some form of cancer for a while now.
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A lot of fans aren't aware of this but Mike Pratt broke his nose during the 1969 season. He still managed to play the following game against Miss. State at Starkville and kept a towel in his pants to wipe the blood from his nose, during the game. These days he would not have even been allowed on the floor.
Jason Parker - That was one intimidating looking dude
Gimel Martinez - Don't know how tough he was. But he might have been the meanest S.O.B. to ever play here. Anytime he was in the game, and the refs would stop play for something that was going on off the ball. He was always involved.
Zion Williamson - Hopefully one day we can add him to this list.
Gimel Martinez - Don't know how tough he was. But he might have been the meanest S.O.B. to ever play here. Anytime he was in the game, and the refs would stop play for something that was going on off the ball. He was always involved.
Zion Williamson - Hopefully one day we can add him to this list.
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Yeah, wish it had worked out better for Parker. Guy looked more like a defensive end than anything else.
Josh Harrellson could play the rough and tumble game as well.
The big guy could maul you.
The big guy could maul you.
Yep, same here. Those two and Ulis were the first three I thought of.
I don't lump Hayes in this group. He played real hard but had the respective air about him the others mentioned did not. TU reminded me of the Tasmanian Devil the first time I saw him play. Teague would get in your face and quickly. Teague also had a dirty streak in him, a win at all costs sort of game. (He was a pecker checker's pecker checker.) There were a couple other UK players who seemed to be able to shank you if needed but I digress.
Alan Feldhaus probably whooped his a$$ several times.
Allen was a man among boys. I played a ton of softball against Allen and Columbia Houchens.
Pitched against that team once,hoped like hell they didn't hit any line drives back up the middle,luckily several went over the fence(a good poke at Richardson field with a softball)
If my memory serves me correctly Stamper actually knocked somebody out during a game. I don't remember who it was but I remember Cawood saying Stamper had laid him out.
I agreed with your first line. I wish everyone would quit calling people fans of other teams and requesting "mods" to ban people. It is all very sophomoric. Disagree with people if you disagree with them. Quit trying to exclude people that don't share your opinion. Everyone on here is not defined by their UK fandom. Those that are have less to do daily than I do.
This + Chuck Hayes is a great start.
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I saw him take a swing at a Marquette player in the Mideast Regionals in '72, I believe. He wore out their big men that game and finished with 17 points and 10 rebounds. That was the last game Rupp won, if I remember correctly.
As slight and soft spoken as he was after last season I thought DeAron Fox was really tough. He drove relentlessly to the hoop and finished. Got knocked to the floor over and over but just kept coming. I didn't expect that toughness when he first got here.
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And he was obviously playing on a really bad ankle through the latter part of the season. Not something that's easily overcome.
I want to say it was a Tennessee player but I'm 65 years old now and a lot of things get muddled up from that many years ago.
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It could very well been against Tennessee as well. He backed down from no one.
Sports Hernias aren't much of a big deal far as pain... They are just rather annoying!!!
Rupp said his toughest player was Wallace Jones and Hall gave that title to JD Connor. I'd go with their views, but after the Rupp and Hall eras, I'd go with MKG and Ulis for being tough as nails. I also liked Larry Johnson. He wasn't a brawler, but he played great D, handled the ball and ran the team to perfection and had the heart of a lion.
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He was always the first in the mix when someone tried to bully any other UK player. He was the enforcer in his day.
IF you mean feared by others with no conscious of knocking you out if they needed to, Magloire and Robey. A few others like Bennett, Lee and Hurt for instance, was very physical and mean looking.
Of what I've seen and can remember (born 91) my short list is:
Hayes
Fitch
Boogie
Ullis
MKG
PPat
Harrelson
Bledsoe
If a opposing player got hot, Rupp would call on Larry Stamper to turn off the heat. They would pay the price of being guarded by Stamper.
Go back and watch a tape of James Lee running the floor and dramatically dunking over the top of the huge Soviet center in the Olympic championship game. Probably still available online. Everyone can certainly have own lists, but I don't think anyone can say that another player besides Lee was "clearly" tougher. Lee was the toughest, most physical UK basketball player I ever saw. I say this while respecting others like Hurt, Evans, Hayes, Stamper, Bennett, Mashburn, all of whom I watched many times. In any case, it's an interesting discussion, and a lot of fun to recall so many great UK basketball players.
It was Percy Howard of Austin Peay(game in Nashville)I was at the game and had my radio listening to Cawood.
Late in the second half the game had gotten pretty rough,on one exchange under the basket Cawood remarked " it's getting pretty rough out there,this isn't going to last long" as the teams headed for the other end of the court after a rebound Stamper stopped near the jump circle at mid court and waited for Howard.When Howard got to him Stamper swung and knocked Howard down,he slid on his backside all the way under the scorer's table at mid court.Cawood finished his "this isn't going to last long" comment with "Stamper decks him"
Stamper was tossed out of the game UK eventually won 106 to 100 (I think) in overtime
