Talking Sports with WHAS11 on Twitter

I've been a sports broadcaster for about a decade now and the business is definitely changing. There used to be the day when all I had to do was worry about what to air on the 6:00 and 11:00 news. Then about 5 years ago blogging really took off. I was a little hesitant at first. I thought there's no way with all my job duties I would have time to blog. But as you can see I've pretty much gotten the hang of it.

Then two years or so ago Facebook was all the rage. I have to admit I jumped on the bandwagon and created my Facebook page. It's been a wonderful tool to catch up with old friends, discuss sports, and just meet new people.

But now the latest craze is Twitter. Once again I was reluctant to join but now that I'm on there I can't go a day without checking it. It's crazy how many celebrities, including local athletes, are tweeting constantly. From Shaquille O'Neal to John Calipari. From Alyssa Milano to Paris Hilton they're all posting tweets about the interesting things going on in their lives. It's a great way to get your message out and keep people updated on the latest sports news. So you can follow me on twitter right here. I've recruited my coworker Danielle Santoro to take up Twitter, so you can follow her also. And don't forget the mother ship, WHAS11, is tweeting so whether it's sports or news you can be the first to know by following us on twitter.

HBCU Football Comes To the Ville

There's a long history of quality football being played at historically black colleges and universities. Some of the biggest names to lace 'em up on the gridiron played for HBCU's. Jerry Rice played for Mississippi Valley State. Walter Payton suited up for Jackson State. Doug Williams, the only black quarterback to lead his team to a Super Bowl win while also winning the MVP, played under the late Eddie Robinson at Grambling State. Now HBCU football is coming to Louisville with the first ever Derby City Football Classic.

Saturday September 12th the Kentucky State Thorobreds will take on the Morehouse College Maroon Tigers at Central High School's football stadium. It's being billed as the Derby City Football Classic and the organizers say it's more than just a football game. The weekend will feature a Presidents' Meet and Greet, Battle of the Bands, Greek Step Show, and party.

Kick-off is set for 1:30 at Central Stadium. For more information just hit up the website DerbyCityFootballClassic.com

Dream Night for Clark and Williams

Thursday night will be like none other for former UofL basketball players Terrence Williams and Earl Clark. It's NBA Draft night and although they're like night and day, they'll share a common bond. Williams is Mr. Flamboyant. He seems to relish the spotlight. When you walk into a room he's the first one you notice. Clark is more subdued. He's soft spoken. He doesn't beat his chest much. But on Thursday night the two basketball talents who hail from opposite coast (Williams is from Seattle and Clark is from New Jersey) will become the first pair of Cardinals picked in the first round, in the same year, since Greg Minor (25th to the Clippers) and Clifford Rozier (16th to Golden State) did it back in 1994. All the mock drafts I've checked have Clark and Williams somewhere between picks 11 and 20. DraftExpress.com has Williams 12th to the Bobcats and Clark 14th to the Suns.

I had a chance to talk with Clark on the eve of the draft and you could tell this is something he's been waiting his entire life for. He says he's worked out for several teams including the Kings, Warriors, Pistons, Knicks and the Nets but he's not sure where he'll go. He said he's already looking past the draft, figuring out ways to get better and help whatever team drafts him. I asked him if he preferred to stay close to his east coast home and he said it doesn't matter. He's just happy to have the opportunity to get drafted.

One interesting thing we talked about is his consistency on the court. I asked him what's the one questions scouts and general managers are asking him and he said they want to know about his consistency. There's no doubt at times Clark can be a beast on the court. We all remember that dunk on Notre Dame's Luke Harangody this past season. But at times it seems like he's passive. when we talked during the season he said it may look like he's not playing hard, but that's not the case at all. He says he wants to win as much as the next person.

Check out the draft Thursday night at 7:00 on ESPN and watch WHAS-11 News at 10:00 and 11:00 for reaction from Williams, Clark and UK's Jodie Meeks.

UofL Basketball Alumni Social

Some of the biggest names in UofL basketball will come together next Friday, June 26th at the Sports & Social Club in downtown Louisville. I'm hosting the first ever Larry O'Bannon Foundation Alumni Social. It should be a lot of fun and here's the release the foundation is putting out:

Louisville, Kentucky - June - Friday, June 26, 2009 from 7:00PM -10:00 PM Kyle Draper of WHAS 11 will host the 1st Larry O'Bannon Foundation Alumni Social Event. The event will be held at The Sports and Social Club located at 4th Street. This affair will bring together University of Louisville Basketball Alumni players to reunite, meet and greet with the community and local business leaders. The event will introduce the work of the Larry O'Bannon Foundation. Guest will enjoy hors d'oeuvres and cocktails while the foundation holds a silent auction, which benefits the foundation. Auction items include, University of Louisville coaches autograph basketball, Alumni Autograph basketball, Larry O'Bannon autograph basketball and autographed football, signed by Oakland Raider's Michael Bush and Kerry Rhodes of the New York Jets.

I'm looking forward to seeing all the former UofL stars get together to and reminisce about the good ol' days.

If you have an event you'd like me to be a part of just hit me up on my website http://kyle-draper.com/Event-Form.html

Louisville Community Day with the Reds

The Cincinnati Reds are rolling out the red carpet for Louisville area residents on July 5th when they take on the St. Louis Cardinals. The club is offering tickets at half price for select locations. Here's the full release from the Reds:

CINCINNATI (June 10, 2009) - The Cincinnati Reds and ESPN 1450 The Ticket have teamed up to offer Louisville area residents the chance to enjoy the excitement of Reds baseball at a special discount.

Louisville Community Day will take place on Sunday, July 5th as the Reds take on the St. Louis Cardinals at 1:10 pm at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati, OH.

Louisville residents and those of surrounding areas can purchase half-price tickets for select seating locations.

Select youth league baseball teams from the Louisville area will march in a pregame parade around the field.

Tickets can be also purchased by visiting www.reds.com/Louisville. Fans can also pick up hard copy order forms by visiting the Louisville Bats ticket offices at Louisville Slugger Field.

Discount tickets must be purchased by Saturday July 4th to receive the Louisville Day discount. Discount tickets cannot be purchased at the box office on the day of the game.

For questions about Louisville Day, youth league parade, group seating, and scoreboard messages, contact Bart Conway at (859) 552-4524 or conway@reds.com.

Ralph Willard Joins Cards Staff as Assistant

It's official former UK assistant coach Ralph Willard has left Holy Cross to join Rick Pitino's staff at UofL. Here's the full release from the University of Louisville:

LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- Ralph Willard, whose 38 years of coaching experience include the last 10 as head men's basketball coach at Holy Cross, has joined the University of Louisville men's basketball staff as associate coach to Cardinals' head coach Rick Pitino. Willard, who also served as head coach for four seasons at Western Kentucky (1990-94) and five years at Pittsburgh (1994-99), has previously coached with Pitino at two others stops. Willard was an assistant under Pitino with the NBA New York Knicks (1987-89) and at the University of Kentucky (1989-90). "I've been pursuing Ralph for the last 10 years," said Pitino. "I can't tell you how excited we are that he has joined our staff and we are back together again. Ralph is truly one of the best minds in our game. I can't be happier for our players, our program, our university and our fans that such a quality coach and person has joined our U of L family." "Leaving my alma mater and the players at Holy Cross was obviously a difficult decision," said Willard. "However, the opportunity to work for U of L and coach with Rick is very special. I'm excited about tackling the challenges a great program like Louisville will present." Eight of Willard's collegiate teams won 20 or more games, including four that won as many as 25. His teams participated in
postseason competition on nine occasions, including six NCAA Tournament appearances. Willard compiled a 192-117 record in 10 seasons at Holy Cross, his alma mater, while guiding five teams to postseason competition (NCAA Tournament in 2001, 2002, 2003, 2007; NIT in 2005). Holy Cross advanced to the Patriot League tournament championship game seven of the last nine years and Willard had a 17-6 record in the event. Second in career coaching victories at Holy Cross, Willard built the Crusaders' program from one that had won just 22 games collectively in the three years prior to his arrival there. A three-time choice for the Patriot League Coach of the Year, he led the Crusaders to three straight league tournament titles in 2001-03, marking the first time in conference history that a team had accomplished that feat.

Willard gained his first collegiate head coaching position at Western Kentucky, where he produced an 81-42 record in four years. In his third season there in 1992-93, the Hilltoppers were 26-6, reached the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16, and achieved WKU's highest national ranking in 22 years (No. 16 ESPN/USA Today, No. 20 AP in the final polls). He was the head coach at Pittsburgh for five seasons, including finishing fifth in the BIG EAST in 1996-97 when his team produced an 18-15 mark. While at Pitt, Willard helped to develop a pair of NBA Draft picks in Mark Blount (Seattle SuperSonics) and Vonteego Cummings (Indiana Pacers). Prior to his first collegiate head coaching position in 1990, Willard compiled 19 years of coaching experience. After one year as an assistant at the Merchant Marine Academy (1971-72), he spent 13 years as the head coach of his high school alma mater, St. Dominic (Oyster Bay, N.Y.), where he posted a 162-89 mark. He received five conference coach of the year honors there and his 1980 squad won the New York Class B Championship with a 24-3 record. St. Dominic is also the high school alma mater of Pitino. He returned to the collegiate ranks in 1984 as an assistant coach at Hofstra, followed by a year on Jim Boeheim's staff at Syracuse, where he helped the 1986-87 Orangeman team reach the national championship game. Willard left the college game for two seasons to serve under Pitino with the Knicks, before following Pitino to Kentucky, where he served as the Wildcats' associate head coach for one season. A 1967 graduate of Holy Cross, Willard was a three-year letterwinner and served as the 1966-67 team captain as a senior when the Crusaders posted a 16-9 mark. Willard and his wife, Dorothy, have three children: Pamela, Keith, and Kevin, who is a former U of L assistant coach under Pitino (2001-07) and is currently the head men's basketball coach at Iona College.

Rhodes, Bush and Burton Putting on Football Camp

Former University of Louisville football players Michael Bush and Kerry Rhodes, along with former UK star Keenan Burton are hosting a free camp for kids ages 8-18 this Friday (June 10th) at the Oldham County Youth Football Complex. The camp runs from 8:00 am-1:00 pm.

The press release from the organizer states it's "an opportunity for NFL athletes who played their college football in and around the Louisville / Lexington area to give back to the community and a free opportunity for kids to learn the fundamentals of football from NFL superstars."

Bush currently plays for the NFL's Oakland Raiders, while Rhodes is with the New York Jets. Burton is set to play his second season with the St. Louis Rams. For more info on the camp just email nflcamp@franceathletes.com.

Former Western Kentucky Hilltopper star Courtney Lee has scored close to 800 points (regular season and playoffs) in his NBA career. At Western he averaged 17.6 points and scored more than 2200 in his career. But it's the two points he didn't make on Sunday night that may haunt him forever.

With the scored tied at 88 and 0.6 seconds left on the clock Lee had a chance to even up the Orlando Magic series with the Lakers. But instead of being a hero Lee turned out to be the goat. He missed an alley-oop lay-up to win the game and the Lakers went on to win in overtime and take control of the series. For a guy who has scored so many points on the hardwood to miss that critical of a shot is kind of unbelievable. Lee has to make that shot. I don't care if he is a rookie. I don't care if the timing was off on the pass. He had a look to win the game and blew it.

Those in Lee's corner will say he was partially under the backboard when he caught it. They'll say the pass was off a little bit. They'll even try to make the argument Pau Gasol should have been called for goaltending for getting his fingers caught in the net and rim. I say cry me a river. Lee is a professional. He's one of the best players in the world. He's hit big shots before. He's supposed to make that one.

It was a perfectly drawn up play by magic coach Stan Van Gundy and Lee blew it. As Van Gundy said after the game, "We executed well. Hedo made a great pass and we missed it. I don't really know. I'm not trying to be a pain in the butt. I just don't know what else to say about it. It was a great pass. He was right there and he missed it." That's about it all right. Lee missed it but in all honesty if the Magic are to win the series he had to make that shot.