RED AND BLUE

Kentucky is split right down the middle. One side is red, the other side is blue.  Both sides are passionate, both sides are loyal to their teams, but the question in my mind is, why does both sides hate each other so much?  I was talking to a buddy of mine who happens to be a Louisville Fan, and he ask me a question that I really could not answer.  He asked me how I could be a Kentucky?  I had no answer because I was confused.  My sister graduated from UK and so did her daughter with honors.  My brother went to UK for a period of time before transferring to U of L.  My mother, God rest her soul, was a die hard UK fan, and if that wasn't enough, my father, who is from Wheeling, WV,  bleeds blue.  But my buddy knew all of this information already.  He wanted to know how I could like a racist program like UK.  I was shocked to say the least, but I had heard this before, so I was not caught off guard with the question.  I just wanted to know how anyone could ask that question in 2011.  The first issue he brought up was that Adolph Rupp was a racist and he didn't want to recruit black players.  I did some research on the matter and I don't doubt the Rupp was a racist, but so was everyone else in the early 1960's.  As far as recruiting black players, from my research, there were mixed interpretations about Rupps overall view of getting black players at UK.  The one solid piece of information that stands out about Rupp was that he got his ass handed to him in the 1966 National Championship game against Texas Western and he understood that he need some black players at UK to continue being success.  Another solid piece of info was that the whole SEC was segregated  not just UK.  Even after Brown vs The Board of Education, SEC schools still did not allow black students on their campuses because they didn't want race riots all over the South.  So, basically, he didn't really have a clue what he was talking about.  Kentucky first black basketball player was Thomas Paine in 1969.  Louisville recruited Wade Houston, father of Allan Houston of the New York Knicks, in 1962.  You mean to tell me those seven years makes that much of a difference.  I mean does it matter that UK was the first school with black athletes in the SEC?  Not to U of L fans obviously.  Louisville has never had a black head basketball coach.  Rupp might have been turning over in his grave, and I have heard UK fans say that, but Tuby Smith did coach and win a National Championship in the house that Rupp built.  Of course, none of this makes a difference to U of L fans because to them UK stands for racist.  I personally think we need a Pro team in Kentucky.  The only problem with that would be the fans on both sides who believe they would be taking away from either the Cats or the Cards.  I think the whole thing is stupid and I also think die hard fans who paint their whole house Kentucky blue or decorate their house in U of L colors needs to grow up and get a life! The Hosscat20 has spoken!