Wednesday, October 20, 2004
red fans & blue fans
A bitter divide.At Louisville's annual Tip-Off luncheon, Rick Pitino delivered to his partisans the red meat they craved.
In discussing the Cardinals' Dec.18 game against the University of Kentucky in Freedom Hall, Pitino noted that the only red shirts in Rupp Arena when UofL plays there are the ones the Cards are wearing. Then he issued a plea to UofL fans.
"If you're a corporate sponsor, please do not give any of your tickets to Kentucky fans," he said to a large ovation. "One thing I remember from when I worked for the Dark Side was that we would come into Freedom Hall with 4,000 blue shirts in the stands, and I always wondered how we did that at that time.
"Now, with modern technology, we have video cameras everywhere. And if you give a seat to a Kentucky fan, your tickets will be pulled."
After a loud ovation, he looked over to athletic director Tom Jurich and smiled. "Tom, they think we're kidding," Pitino said. "But we're not."
