11.12: Respect the Rivalry - Hour 2

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Those that turned on ESPN last night anywhere across this
country and saw the atmosphere at the KFCM Center, And
even if you aren't a big time college basketball fan,
there aren't many at the national level that are really
focused on college hoops in early November. But thought it
was a good look for the sport, but also a

(00:20):
really good look for what it's like around here in
this city, not just the state, but the city. I
talked about that a lot yesterday, and I talked about
it quite a bit over the years when I was
hosting Sports Talk that the rivalry is at its absolute best,
and it's really different than it is anywhere else right
here in Louisville because there's so many on both sides

(00:40):
that coexist together. Every day. There are people right now
getting up, getting their day started, getting ready for work,
and there's some that just can't. They're more excited about
getting to work than maybe they've ever been, even if
they're hungover from last night because they stayed up too late,
and it's because they're going to walk in chest out,

(01:04):
head high, maybe their mouth running to let anybody and
everybody know who's on the other side of the rivalry.
That you know your team lost in our team won,
and there are some that might not make it to
work today, might use a little PTO because you just
you don't want to you don't want to face the music.
Maybe if you're a Kentucky fan, you've had good reason

(01:24):
to be talking in recent years. Let's be honest. But
last night, Louisville ends up getting a win, a much
needed one to make this rivalry more competitive. And it
was a game that throughout they looked like the better
team really at every spot. That's not to say that
if they played ten times Louisville wouldn't lose, but Louisville

(01:45):
looked better and left it, left it out there for
a while for Kentucky to make it interesting. But in
the end, Louisville wins ninety six to eighty eight. So
at what an atmosphere it was at the Young Center.
And I always hesitate to act as if there's certain programs,
certain franchises in pro sports that need to be good

(02:09):
for the sport to succeed. And I don't think that
college basketball will suffer if this rivalry wasn't great, or
if Louisville's bad or Kentucky's bad, But to me. And
again this sounds like a Homer thing to say, not
as a Lowell fan, but just as somebody who advocates
that this is the biggest and best rivalry in college basketball,

(02:30):
above Carolina and Duke. And I know some don't agree
with that. I'm just saying for me, when you think
about a rivalry, you think about fans, and that to
means why this one is is better than any of
the others. But what I'm getting at is, I do
agree that college basketball is better when you have something
like this going, because this is one of those things

(02:52):
where you don't if you don't have a dog in
the fight, and you don't really care about one of
these two teams because you're from you know, the other
side of the country, whatever it may be. If you
know that there's going to be that kind of an atmosphere,
if you know that there's gonna be at any moment
a potential fight. Maybe I mean that doesn't happen often,
but a little dust up as they call it, those

(03:12):
things can happen. I mean it happened last year when
they played in rop So a good a good night
for the rivalry, certainly a great night for Louisville fans,
and if you're a Kentucky fan, you're you're reminded what
it feels like to lose this game, and you've had
many wins in recent years, and I understand why some
Kentucky fans are quick to run with, well, you had

(03:35):
to win one at some point, it's about time. Those
are just common things you say when you're in that situation.
I don't fault them, but it is also just probably
the first thing you pull out of your pocket because
you're reminded of you could lose. You could win one
hundred in a row. You lose one oh one still sucks.

(03:58):
The feeling of losing to your rival is a stronger
emotion than I think the joy you get from beating them.
And for me last night, acting like a lunatic at
the end of that game, just thinking that the unthinkable
was going to happen. They're going to blow a lead
that big and lose. At that point, I would have
just said, it isn't meant to be. We don't need

(04:18):
to play anymore, We're done. If Louisville loses last night,
I'm using what little power. In fact, I have no power,
but I would try to just get the game ended
for the sake of my mental health. But again Louisville wins,
Kentucky loses, and overall clearly two fan bases here having
much different feelings and emotions today, But big picture, the rivalry,

(04:44):
I thought it was an awesome night. Atmosphere was great,
and I actually think that because the game was played
so early, it got a little more attention. And I've
always believed that the weak night, although it's what a
lot of people don't like because it just it's it's
just it's just another work day, and then you've got
that at the end of the at the end of
the day, it's just the Saturday is always going to

(05:06):
be more convenient for folks, especially during the holiday season,
because that's just what we've come to know over the years.
But I do think it gets more attention on a weeknight,
and it being this early, you got to to get
it started right after the college football playoff rankings, which
is a big, big TV event. That's a lot of
viewership there and you lead into that. Also, it's not

(05:28):
lost in the bowl seasons. I mean, I know people
around here, myself included, make fun of how many silly
Bowls that still that still exist, especially knowing that we
now have the playoff, which makes those Bowls seem even
less relevant. But go look at the numbers. Millions of
people watch those silly bowl games, and that impacts how
many people watch Louisville and Kentucky play in basketball. So again,

(05:51):
good night for the rivalry overall. All right, let's get
to an update of travig in weather, shall we. It
is Coffee and Company and we are fueled by Thornton's
right here at news Radio eight forty WS. It is
six seventeen here at news radio eight forty whas Coffee
and Company with you, and we are fueled by Thornton's
got the full crew in the house today is We've

(06:11):
talked a lot about last night's big game in the rivalry,
Louisville getting a win. That of course is a step
in the right direction when it comes to making this
rivalry more competitive. But the atmosphere overall, that was my
takeaway because it was our time to shine, and I
think we delivered as far as just providing an atmosphere
and a visual that if you tune in randomly, you think, okay, wow,

(06:35):
that makes sense. They're college basketball crazy around there, and
we are. And as I've said many times, I wouldn't
have it, wouldn't have it any other way, all right,
So listen up, folks. You have a pet. I'm sure
a lot of you have a pet. I mean maybe
not everybody, but a lot of people have pets, and
they're members of your family. And at times, emergencies can

(06:56):
happen to family members, including pets, and you may not
know what to do. Well, I'm here to tell you
what it is that you should do, and that has
reached out to my friends at Jefferson Animal Hospital because
they're open twenty four hours a day, even on Christmas.
They have a doctor on call that's available because emergencies
can happen anytime, any place, including holidays. So just know

(07:20):
that when that happens, there's going to be a lot
of worry, a lot of stress, and who knows, I
mean it could be you just never know when those
things happen. But one thing you should know, and now
you do know because I'm telling you, is that Jeffersonnimal
Hospital They're going to be there for you. The location
on Naterloop again twenty four to seven emergency care around
the clock, with the doctor on site for over forty
five years. That's how you build the brand and the

(07:43):
reputation in this community that Jefferson Animal Hospital has is
because they've been doing it for forty five years. But
it's not just for those emergency situations. If you do
not have your pet getting regular checkups, getting shots that
they may need, no better time than now to stop
being a procrastinator and go ahead and get that done.

(08:04):
So reach out to them. Five oh two nine hundred
pets is the number you can get more information at
Jefferson vets dot com. Helping the community, also helping pets.
What they have done to really be a leader when
it comes to awareness with pet blood donations, that's just
been awesome to see, but not so surprising because that's
what they do. They're awesome, but they will let you

(08:26):
know how your dog or cat can qualify to be
a pet blood donor because they've got their pet blood
bank and each donation can say the lives of pets.
So again, appreciate them and I just don't want you
to know they're there for you if you ever need them,
but don't wait till that emergency happens potentially for you
to reach out to them. Give them a call today
five oh two nine hundred pets. Make an appointment, get

(08:48):
a consultation. Your pet is a loved one, right, it's
a family member. You want to you want to know
that they're in good hands. And I can tell you
what the folks at Jefferson Nimal Hospital, they're in very
good hands, all right. We're in good hands with Rory O'Neil.
In fact, why do I keep giving Rory another job?
Rory does not need to do traffic for us. It's
Bobby Ellis. Rory's great, But Bobby Ellis is great too.
And I tried to I tried to guess him up

(09:09):
there and completely, what are the kids say, John, I
fumble the bag there? That's a good Yeah, that's funneled
the bag. I mean, it's Bobby Ellis who's going to
keep us updated on traffic, and he'll do that right now. Also,
we'll get a look at the forecast for Matt Melosavitch.
It's gonna warm up today. That's good, right, highs in
the low sixties, so that's good news. But we'll get
the details on the forecast for mister Matt Melosovich as

(09:29):
we rolled along. Here also a sports update coming your way.
It's news Radio eight forty whas with more than a
one hundred million dollar deficit, JCPS, they're going to have
to take some drastic measures in order to get themselves
out of this financial situation. And there's no easy fix,
and there's no one thing to fix it. It's gonna

(09:51):
be a variety of things. And I do not envy
doctor Brian Yearwood, who is in his first year on
the job as the JCPS superintendent, and he said admitted
that he was not aware of the financial issues being
this bad. No clue if he would have hesitated to
take the job. Only he knows that he certainly wouldn't
come out and say it. And I'm sure he was
aware that there was some financial issues, but that is

(10:14):
something that didn't surprise me. But certainly a big piece
to this story is that the new guy who took
over from Marty Polio, he was on the record a
few weeks back in saying that he didn't know that
they were in this big of a mess. And is
even more insane is that I'm not even sure JCPS

(10:35):
knew of the mess they were in. I mean, that's
an added component that really speaks to just the dysfunction
in the mess that they have is that one of
the bigger I guess steps in this process in fixing
it is actually truly identifying what the actual budget deficit is.
You heard one hundred and twenty, you heard one hundred

(10:56):
and eighty. What we do know is that it's more
than one hundred million dollars and needed cuts that are
looming over their heads at JCPS, and the thought of
closing a school that would be that'd be tough for
those that rely on that school, But there's no one
thing that they could do that would necessarily surprise me,

(11:16):
just because of how desperate they're going to have to
be in order to get this to get themselves out
of this financial hole. So what we now know is
what they're doing when it comes to identifying and evaluating
which schools could face closure. So they've already started that
process and it's a district wide effort to again address

(11:39):
this massive budget deficit. So the Chief Operations Officers, Rob
Folk and his team is studying all of their large
areas within this district and they're looking at other cities
that I guess are similar in size, meaning other school
districts elsewhere like Saint Louis, Atlanta, San Francisco, and looking

(12:01):
at what they've done when they've been in situations similar
to this. So schools across the country are consolidating their schools. Districts,
I should say, are consolidating schools. So in Saint Louis
they plan to close half of its buildings to save
over one hundred and eighty million dollars. In Chicago, they've
got severe under enrollment there in Chicago, but they've resisted

(12:24):
closures because of political pressure. That's certainly an element to
this that can't be ignored. But when it comes to
the JCPS numbers, the district currently has about eighty nine
thousand and five hundred students, but the capacity is for
nearly one hundred and six thousand students, so some schools
far below full enrollment. Now, they've got deferred maintenance that

(12:47):
has estimated at one point four billion, with a total
of two point five billion in unmet facility needs over
the next decade. Let me say that again slowly so
you hear me. They have deferred maintenance that is estimated
one point four billion with a total of two point
five billion in unmet facility needs over the next decade.

(13:11):
That's a different level of that's a different issue really
than just being you know, being in the situation with
the budget deficit. That's I mean, this is just for
maintenance of your buildings. So cost per student is a factor.
They're calculating each school's total cost per student, including transportation,

(13:33):
utilities and maintenance, and costs very drastically from just over
eighteen grand, which is at Male High School, to one
hundred and twenty two thousand at Churchill Park, which that's
a school that serves students with severe disabilities. So that
is that is going to be something that you got
to keep in mind if you're looking at just the

(13:54):
cost and thinking, okay, well, hey, if it's cost in
way way more to put kids in school here, you know,
that's an easy let's just shut that school down and consolidate. Well,
you can't necessarily do that. When it comes to schools
that are that are there for specific needs. There's a
reason the cost is what it is because they're they're

(14:14):
not it's not your typical school. It's there to support
those with special needs. And as the father of a
of a of a child with special needs, gives me
great panic knowing that like eventually those things could be
cut at certain areas. Now again, my my child is
not in the j CPS school system, but just I
mean again, I'm not trying to put fear in anybody's mind,

(14:36):
but when you consider just the overall mess that they're
in financially, I just don't think there's anything off the
table as far as the kind of cuts they've got
to make. But yeah, I don't I don't envy uh
those that are in the uh involved in that process
that are going to be making those difficult decisions. We'll
talk a little more about it later on, because I

(14:57):
can tell you just a rundown as far as just
what those what those numbers are as far as which
schools that are your standard traditional public schools that seem
to cost a lot more money per student than others,
and those are the ones that are going to be
on the radar to potentially be consolidated. All right, let's
get to a quick update of traffic and weather, shall we.

(15:19):
We'll see how the roadways are looking as we get
this Wednesday morning started. Also, we'll talk a little more
about last night as Louisville got one and it was
much needed to make this rivalry more competitive, There's no
doubt about that, and just a great look for what
this rivalry is. A packed arena, an atmosphere that was

(15:41):
very Even if you're watching on television from far far away,
you could tell that place was lively, to say the least.
All right, don't go anywhere, stick with us right here.
It's news Radio eight forty whas. We've had a couple
of very cold days to get the week started. In fact,
some snow on Monday, but gonna warm up today a
high I have sixty one and sunshine is expected. So

(16:04):
if you're somebody that was not ready for the cold
and the snow to arrive as early as it did,
you're going to get a break from it today. So enjoy.
Speaking of enjoyment, right now, courtesy of my friends at
Trick County Ford, you could be enjoying a brand new
twenty twenty five Ford F one point fifty. Did you
hear me? Brand new twenty twenty five Ford F one

(16:26):
fifty for zero financing, zero percent financing for sixty months.
I know it sounds unheard of, It sounds you know,
it sounds too good to be true. I'm here to
tell you that it's not so Track County, Ford. Go
see them Exited eighteen off I seventy one in Oldham County,
A quick little drive, a beautiful drive by the way,
especially today, I just mentioned the weather, how beautiful it's
going to be. Why not take advantage and get out

(16:49):
there on the road. Go see my friends. They've got
a beautiful showroom at a great selection of a lot
of different different brand new forwards. But I'm telling you
the f one fifty what a state people for the
Ford brand. And right now we're talking zero percent financing
for sixty months, So you've got until the end of
this month to take advantage of it. No interest, no gimmicks,

(17:11):
just pure for power at zero percent. So Exit eighteen
in Oldham County, go check out their lineup. Tell him,
I sensia, you're not going to feel the pressure that
comes with going to see folks at a car a lot.
They know that their service, their their inventory speaks for itself,
and it's gonna be hard not to to, uh to
take advantage. Right no interest for sixty I think it's

(17:35):
for sixty months. I mean that's think about that. That's
crazy and it's a brand new twenty twenty five fifty,
so you need approval from Ford Motor Credit. It's not
compatible with other offers. The offer expires Overmber thirtieth, and
you can see the dealer for details. All Right, So
we've got a lot more to get into this morning,
and I hope you guys will stick around. We'll continue
to keep you updated on the latest with last week's

(17:57):
plane crash. Mary Greenberg, he's been as you could expect.
But we'll let you hear coming up in the seven
o'clock hour what he had to say yesterday. As far
as just the final step for the families of those
that are presumed dead, but yet the actual identification of
each of the bodies that has recovered, that can be

(18:18):
a lengthy process, depending upon the the injuries, and and
and just the overall situation for each person. So that
that that's that's not the end of it for everybody,
but it is certainly going to be a big step
in this process for closures. So we'll let you hear
what Mary Greenberg had to say as we roll along here.
It's a Wednesday, it is coffee and company. We are
feel about Thorton's the news Ready to eight forty whas,