Another UK Loss for the Ages

Although losing to rival by Louisville two touchdowns on their home field on Saturday, Kentucky football fans were quick to declare victory. This isn’t the first time the UK faithful have made the best of a bad situation. I did a little research and discovered the following:

• Upon tasting New Coke, a UK fan declared that it would get better if people would only give it a few years.
• After test driving a Segway, a UK fan immediately said cars had been “overrated.”
• A UK movie viewer who screened “The Lone Ranger” said producers had “shot themselves in the foot” by releasing it too early. He added it would’ve been a better film if they had waited a few more weeks to release it.
• A UK information technology professor proclaimed that Windows 8 “is not as bad as everyone thought it would be.”

Also, there were a few late developments following Saturday’s heroic UK loss.

• UK Athletic Director Mitch Barnhardt renamed the highway outside of Commonwealth Stadium, formerly known as Hal Mumme Pass, to “Mark Stoops Dropped, But Almost Caught, Pass.”
• Barnhardt said UK is likely to lose to U of L by even fewer points in future matchups. He calls this, “under promising and over delivering,” which keeps the fans satisfied until the next alumni basketball game.
• Barnhardt cancelled Monday’s classes in honor of Saturday’s performance, including Internet classes, so “basketball players can celebrate, too. After all, they also lost to Louisville by fewer points than expected.”

Finally, a UK journalism professor who edited this blog post conceded that I had written better than could be expected given my poor training. He added, however, that Kentucky’s incoming freshman class could certainly do better.

Picture This: A Photo That Never Goes Away

The photo never goes away. It’s the Bennett family equivalent of such iconic images as the Beatles at Abbey Road or the soldier kissing the girl on Times Square. It arrives in my email when I least expect it as a reminder of summer’s past.

We were fresh from Kentucky Kingdom’s water park. I’m in the middle, wearing Cardinal gear as usual and carrying towels. My wife is carrying what looks like a Sponge Bob backpack. My oldest is to my right with an overbite that has long since been corrected. And my youngest rounds out the crew when he still looked, well, young.

As people left the park that day, a worker corralled us, snapped the photo and gave us a claim check. Somehow, in a moment of weakness, she must’ve captured my email address, too. So the picture arrives every so often with a reminder that it would make a great calendar or Christmas card or coffee mug.

As it turns out, the picture had a longer shelf life than the park, which has been shuttered for years. A local businessman is currently in the process of reopening it.

Regardless of the status of the park, the photo lives on. The company that captured the image just won’t give up, despite the fact that I’ve never spent a cent on it and never will. If park officials had run the whole thing as efficiently as the photo concession, then it probably would’ve never closed in the first place.

It’s clear to me that I should’ve unsubscribed from this email years ago. But now I can’t even imagine a future without the photo. Perhaps my ancestors will get a reminder via brainvision and make a nice t-shirt from it.

Danica Patrick Doppelganger

As I’ve said before, my super power is being able to tell regular people which celebrity they most resemble. Occasionally, inspiration strikes even when I not trying. Such was the case recently when I was watching a celebrity edition of the Food Network show “Chopped.” As NASCAR driver Danica Patrick was hustling around the kitchen, I couldn’t help but think that she reminded me of someone else. (Truthfully, I was also thinking how I wish she’d invite me over for dinner, even though I'm sure my wife wouldn’t let me go.) Anyway, it finally hit me ... Patrick looks like Zoe Barnes of “House of Cards,” who is another woman known for her fast moves. Barnes is played by actress Kate Mara. Check out the pictures below and tell me that you don’t agree that Patrick could play Mara’s stunt double.

PR is Like a 'House of Cards'

Fictional U.S. Rep. Frank Underwood smooth talks his way through Congress in the Emmy-nominated Netflix original program, “House of Cards.” Along the way, he teaches us some lessons about public relations, both good and bad.

Following are lessons from D.C.’s manipulator in chief.

Always prepare for an interview. Rather than prepare for a CNN debate about a contentious teacher’s strike, Underwood underestimates the opposition and decides to wing it. When things go poorly on live TV, he throws an instinctual Hail Mary pass that misfires badly, setting back his cause and making him a viral video sensation for all the wrong reasons.

Respond quickly to a crisis situation. When fingers start being pointed following an accident in his home district, Underwood heads home immediately, despite being up to his elbows in alligators in Washington. Once back at home, Underwood shows such remarkable responsiveness and caring that he brings the crisis quickly under control, clearing the way for his return to D.C.

Tell your bad news before someone else does. Peter Russo, a flawed congressman with a checkered past, is Underwood’s pick to run for governor of Pennsylvania. Rather than wait for news of Russo’s past drug use to trickle out, Underwood advises Russo to tackle it head-on, framing it as a comeback story.

Put a face to your story. With the teacher’s strike at an impasse, Underwood rallies support by telling the story of a child’s untimely death. This story is broken instantly on Twitter, showing that even an old-school Washington powerbroker appreciates the power of the new media.

Don’t speculate. Underwood goes off the record to predict the outcome of a precariously close vote. When he gets it wrong, it hurts both his credibility with a reporter and the reporter’s credibility with her audience.

Put yourself in a good mental place before an interview. Russo parties all night before an important radio interview. The results are predictably bad, torpedoing his gubernatorial campaign.

Keep your media relationships professional. Underwood selects Zoe Barnes as his primary media confidant. For a while, things go swimmingly. But when the relationship gets too personal, both suffer.

Sign of the time for Cardinals

If you want University of Louisville quarterback Teddy Bridgewater’s signature, then you better have a summons.

Bridgewater isn’t signing autographs anymore nor or the rest of the football Cardinals. Head Coach Charlie Strong has replaced the team’s regular fan day autograph session with an extra public scrimmage. This is a radical reversal for Strong who scheduled autograph sessions both before and after his team won the Sugar Bowl.

I know this because my son and I stood in the line at one of them, getting signatures for my favorite Sugar Bowl keepsake, which is an autographed poster framed with a family photo and some Bourdon Street beads.

Strong was particularly gracious with autograph seekers that day. His change of heart is obviously in reaction to Texas A & M quarterback Johnny Manziel allegedly being paid thousands of dollars by an autograph broker to sign memorabilia, placing his college eligibility in jeopardy.

I appreciate Strong’s passion for running a clean program. However, the answer to the Manziel situation isn’t to reduce fan access or even crack down on the autograph market, it’s simply educating and policing players. If Manziel is in trouble, it’s not because he signed autographs, but because he got paid.

I can’t imagine there’s a huge market for most U of L players’ signatures outside the Cardinals’ fan base. In that regard, Strong’s policy hurts his own fans most. Additionally, it risks placing a wedge between the Cardinals and their fans. After all, gathering autographs is a time-tested tradition that builds relationships, especially with younger fans.

U of L Basketball Head Coach Rick Pitino knows this. He has been signing so many bottles he’s probably got carpel tunnel syndrome. His players are signing, too. I recently got Russ Smith, Chane Behanan and Montrezl Harrell to sign a championship basketball. You can find that ball proudly displayed on my shelf; not in an eBay listing.

The space for a football will apparently remain empty.