Adam Lefkoe, a local sports reporter with Louisville's WHAS and soon to be radio partner of yours truly, has put together a series of videos on the young, but intense, Kentucky and Louisville rivalry. With the two teams set to meet again today at noon in Rupp Arena. I like Adam's work because he, like me, did not grow up in the state of Kentucky, so being a transplant from the outside, he's come to see the intensity and passion of the game from the perspective of other fanbases and other rivalries. The videos capture it perfectly.
The first video gives the history of the rivalry which dates all the way back to...1983. Prior to that, Kentucky refused to play Louisville, despite Louisville having won a national title in 1980 and having multiple final fours. When the two teams met in the "Dream Game", a rivalry was born. Fantastic older footage of Joe B. Hall and Denny Crum.
The second video delves into the moder roots of the new level of hatred and heat developed by the constant jabbing between John Calipari and Rick Pitino.
The third video is a bit shorter, but helps provide some local flavor and provide some sense of the local fans frenzy over the game. Overall, a great, fair, three video series on the game that'll be worth watching today.