Catching Up with Jeff Walz -- Baseball enters ACC Tournament today -- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

CATCHING UP WITH JEFF WALZ

Paulie was able to catch up with the extremely busy head coach of the Louisville women's basketball team yesterday, Jeff Walz, and catch up with the affable Cards skipper on what's been going on with him since the 2017-18 season ended. 

As you listen to the interview below, you'll hear that: 



-- Coach has been doing some travelling since Columbus...both coaching related and taking some time off with family. 

-- Coach also discusses three of his players, who are now part of WNBA rosters. 

-- Coach talks about the grade point average of the team, the highest since he's been there, and the work that the players had to do to get it during an extremely busy time for the squad. 

-- Coach is working on an extended contract with Louisville. Hear the updates on that procedure. 

-- Coach's review of the 2017-18 season. 

We appreciate Coach Walz spending considerable time with us, in our "Catching Up" series and giving us an update on how things have been going.  

LINK: JEFF WALZ INTERVIEW



BASEBALL BEGINS "SECOND SEASON" 

With Louisville Baseball about to begin their ACC Tournament appearance and so few sports left with work to do on campus, we thought we'd take a look at what is ahead for them. 

The ACC has this funky pool play system, where they take the top 12 ACC baseball playing teams and put them in four pools. No, not the wading kind or the ones at a country club...but four competitive pools where you have to have the best record in your poll in the games you play against each of the other two teams in your pool.

 Boston College and Virginia Tech, the other two teams that play ACC baseball, were thirteenth and fourteenth in the league standings and left out of the pools. I guess they'll go on a hike or maybe a nice drive in the country. Maybe a picnic. 

And no rambunctious splashing or diving in shallow water!...you folks in the pool...

The Cards have Wake Forest and Duke in their pool, and that has to be some "hot" water with the Blue Devils and Demon Deacons. UofL would need to go 2-0 as the #5 seed to advance to the semifinals, where more action awaits. If they beat the "satanic" members of their pool, they go into a four-team, single elimination tournament. If the Cards were to tie (1-1) in their pool play (and can we get a beach ball or snorkel here?) with Duke, then Duke advances, because they are the #4 seed. 

Confused yet? Welcome to the club. 

Such nonsense, fortunately, hasn't invaded softball yet. 

Good luck to the Cards, who play their first pool game today (we like "Marco Polo") at 11 a.m. The Cards get #9 seed Wake Forest first. They're playing these contests in Durham, NC and that is a huge advantage, one would think, for Duke. I wonder if there is a baseball version of the "Cameron Crazies"? 

Some games have already been played in the pool. You can follow the action and see the results at this link:  ACC Baseball Tournament.  The games are being shown on RSN on your local cable provider. Here in the "Ville" that usually means Fox Sports South. 

Play ball! Hit the pool! (And no running on the wet pavement!) I'm going for a steam, sauna and whirlpool. I hope I beat the two other guys that are in the pool to the "good" jets...




paulie
xxxxx  



  

Cards women's golf falls short in bid for Great Eight -- Do you know Cassidy Rowe? -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

CARDS FINISH FIFTEENTH IN NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS

Four 18-hole rounds in four straight days. Against the best in women's collegiate golf. 

Louisville women's golf's bid to advance to a fifth day in the NCAA Championships fell short yesterday in Stillwater, OK. The "chip and putt" Cards did record their best performance of the four days with a 8 over par 296 at the Kirsten Creek Golf Club...but it wasn't enough to move them up in the standings to eighth, which is where they needed to be in order to continue to Tuesday action. 

From the ACC only Florida State and Duke remain in contention for the title. After four days, UCLA and Alabama are tied for first at +9 for 72 holes. The Cards finished +47 for the four days in Oklahoma. 

It was Kristen Engle's day to have the lowest total for the Louisville five-some. She carded a 1 under par 71 in Monday's action. The freshman had five birdies on the final day and a total of nine birdies for the event. Out of Barbourville, KY, Engle was the top ranked golfer in Kentucky high school in 2016 and originally committed to play at Tennessee. She ended up a Card, though and has been a consistent performer for UofL head coach Courtney Trimble her freshman season. 

Lauren Hartlage and Molly Skapic had 74's on Monday.  Hartlage, a sophomore from Elizabethtown, KY was considered one of the best in the state during her high school playing days and forms a strong returning nucleus with Engle for next season. Skapic, a senior from Miamisburg, OH, had two eagles in the four-day event. 

Olivia Cason, a junior out of Elizabethtown, KY and Delaney Shah, a sophomore from North Potomac, MD filled out the Cardinal five-some and both also return next season...giving Trimble a strong and experienced nucleus back on campus and out at the UofL Golf Course links. 

The Cards also return several talented golfers who did not compete in the NCAA Championship. Expected to return for their sophomore seasons are Jordan Susce (Birmingham, AL), Linda Trockel (Berlin, Germany) and Margot Bechadergue (Aix-en-Provence, France). Also back is Meghan Nay, who will be a red-shirt junior. 

The finish for the Cards was quite impressive and is, we hope, the prelude to an even stronger showing next year "out on the links". 


NAME FOR THE FUTURE? 

There is a 8th grader playing girls' high school basketball in Pikeville, KY for Shelby Valley High School that you might want to get to know. We've mentioned her here before at Cardinal Couple...CASSIDY ROWE...says that Louisville is her favorite school, the Cards have shown reciprocal interest in the class of 2022 prospect, and...it appears she's got huge game. 

I know, teenagers can change their minds almost daily. A soon-to-be freshman, though, she has followed Louisville since the fifth grade, from many accounts. 

Former Cardinal Couple columnist Jenny O'Bryan might be one of the best authorities around about Cassidy. Our attempts to reach Jenny, unfortunately, have failed recently...but we figure she's probably busy with life. 

For you, a You Tube clip that shows this "Cassidy" doesn't need the "Sundance Kid" to help her shred defenses and rob opponents of wins. 

CASSIDY ROWE


WANT CHANGE? DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT ! 







Go Vote today if you're a registered party member and live in Kentucky. It's Election Day. 

 Being a staunch "independent", I don't cast my ballot in party primaries...but...I can tell you that anyone associated with current governor, UofL hater, Matt Bevin wouldn't get a dry piece of toast from me...much less my vote. 

Voting IS important! We have that right. In some countries, that right does not exist. It doesn't matter who you are, rich or poor, black or white, city or country, Cat or Card...research, make your choice and go vote. If you're not registered, GO REGISTER! 

If you don't vote, don't complain about political leaders.

Classic rock band Chicago has a great song about
making it happen: DIALOUGE PARTS 1 &2 - CHICAGO




paulie
xxxxx

Women's Golf "sneaks" into Fourth Round of NCAA Tournament Play -- Opening WNBA Weekend --MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

CARDS IN 15th PLACE AND MOVE TO MONDAY

It took winning a non-sudden death tiebreaker over Auburn and then waiting five hours until play was completed on Sunday by all 24 teams, but Louisville claims the 15th and final spot in the NCAA Women's Golf Championships "Sweet Fifteen". The top 15 teams with the lowest 54 hole scores move into Monday play, where the field will be further cut to eight teams after 18 more holes on Stillwater. OK's Karsten Creek Golf Club. 

Head UofL women's golf coach Courtney Trimble was "on pins and needles": 

"We're really excited to have to have the opportunity to advance. We were waiting on pins and needles and even went to see a movie during that (waiting) time. We needed a distraction since it was out of our hands, but we couldn't be more excited." 

One has to wonder, what did they go view? CADDYSHACK? . Maybe HAPPY GILMORE? .

The Cards will have some work to do to get to the top eight. The UofL squad is +39 after 54 holes of golf. Alabama leads the way at -2. UCLA follows at +6. In eighth, where the Cards will try to get to today is Kent State with a +27.

Freshman Kristen Engle's score of 73 yesterday helped propel Louisville to "quarter-final action". She finished the day with birdies on two of the final three holes. Lauren Hartlage was not far behind with a 74 and Molly Skapik kept the Cards in contention with a three-over-par 75 that included an "eagle" (her second of the tournament) on a par 5. Qlso participating for UofL were Delaney Shah (80) and Olivia Cason (83)

No, she didn't bring America's proud symbol to the course. For the golfing terminology lacking...an "eagle" is 2 under so she shot a three. Tee time for Louisville today is 12:30 p.m. and the "chip and putt" Cards will have Texas and Washington (13th and 14th place respectively) accompany them on today's 18 holes of "stroke" play. 

Good luck extended from all of us at Cardinal Couple to these student-athletes! It's in the cup! 



WNBA OPENING WEEKEND AND THE LOUISVILLE THREE

The WNBA opened their season over the weekend and three UofL WBB stars were part of the actions. 

-- The Washington Mystics start the season perfect with a 82-75 win over the Indiana Fever. Myisha Hines-Allen saw 11 minutes of court-time in a reserve role and ended up with six points on 3-5 shooting. She also grabbed two rebounds. 

-- Angel McCoughtry's Atlanta Dream didn't fare so well against the Dallas Wings. They were on the short end of a 101-78 final score. Angel started the game and got in 24 minutes. She tallied 13 points on 6-13 shooting that included a three. She also gathered three rebounds in the loss. 

-- In Uncasville, CT...the Las Vegas Aces were blinded by the Connecticut Sun 101-65. Shoni Schimmel came off the bench for 8 minutes and got off two shots, one a "three", but ended up with no points and no assists. 

Everyone have a marvelous Monday and join me in celebrating Victoria Day (in Canada). If you know a "Victoria"...or I guess Vicki or maybe even a Vic would suffice here, wish them a "Happy Day" and then wait for the blank look you get back. The only Vic's I can come up with are former UofL Field Hockey star Vic Stratton, ex-Dallas actress Victoria Principal and the Victoria's Secret shoppes. 

Victoria Day actually celebrates the birth-date of Queen Victoria, who passed away in 1901 and was actually born on the 24th of May. The holiday is traditionally moved to the closest Monday each year. 

And, now you know. 


paulie
xxxxx

Golf and Baseball Result - Sunday Cardinal Couple

Golf Leaderboard

After two days of play, Louisville Women's Golf sits in 10th place of the preliminary rounds.  The initial winnowing of the field, which will happen after today's action, will take the top 15 teams on for another day of play.  The top 9 individuals not on advancing teams will advance as well.

Molly Skapik had a good day of golf, leading the Cards in the clubhouse with a 1 under par for the day, for a total 3 over for her two days.  Lauren Hartlage stuggled through much of the teeing off on 18 for +5, but hopefully pulled herself out of the doldrums with the eagle that she got on the last hole of the day.  While the other members of the team, Delaney Shah, Olivia Cason, and Kristin Engle all ended up back in the clubhouse with +5s for the day.

Again, the consistency across the team is serving the Cards well, putting them in solid position to be able to advance to at least another day of play on Monday with a solid round today.  The squad will also be looking to put themselves in the best possible position to advance beyond Monday's play.  They will need to at least maintain the status quo to do so as a team, as the top 10 teams advance beyond Monday.

Baseball Rounds Out the Season With a Win

Louisville Baseball has Notre Dame's number, winning the last 16 meetings between the teams, but
sometimes the wins are a bit nerve-wracking.  Yesterday's come from behind win wasn't the soothing romp we would've like it to be, but the Cards got the job done, finally taking the lead in the bottom of the 8th with 4 runs in the frame for the 10-7 win.

The Cards were powered largely by Josh Stowers, with 2 touch-em-alls in the game with 6 RBIs, including a 3-run shot in the bottom of the 8th.

The win to close out the season lands UofL in the 5th "seed" for the ACC tournament, putting them in the D pool with #4 Duke and #9 Wake Forest.  The Cards will have to win both games in the pool play to advance to the four team single-elimination bracket for the championship.

The other accomplishment with the finale game win was to reach 40 wins on the season for the Dan McDonnell squad.  That is now 7 consecutive seasons with 40 wins, and for the last 6 of those, they reached the mark during the regular season.

The Diamond Dwellers will not just be looking to advance from pool play in order to win the ACC championship, there will also be an eye towards their rankings as they have made a late season run up the ladder.  If they can, with potentially 4 games in the ACC tournament, climb to the Top 16 vicinity (they're currently 25th ranked, so this is a long-shot), they then stand a chance to host a Regional in the NCAA tournament.

A Moment of Commentary

Who, on earth, could possibly think this ACC Baseball tournament format is a good one?  First you have a pool play format that results in many of the 2nd games for teams being played with no mathematical chance of advancing.  You have to go 2-0 in pool play to advance, unless you're the top seeded team in the pool, in which case you can potentially drop one of the games.

OK, I'm not a huge baseball fan, in general, but I enjoy following Dan McDonnell's squad late in the season after other UofL Athletics have wrapped up...and then every year, this monstrosity of a tournament format is foisted upon us.

Ultimately, this is a week that I have to figuratively grit my teeth and get through, to get to the more sane NCAA tournament format.

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour

 The four knuckleheads were all re-united in the studio for the first time in...months?  Merriment was
had, and I think we even managed to convey some useful information for those listening.

A special "Thanks!" to Arica Carter for the interview with us.

Check out the fun with the Facebook Live video at https://www.facebook.com/WCHQfm/videos/2038248432865096/

--
JMcA

Women's Golf Opens Championship Play; WNBA Rosters Finalized -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Women's Golf Tied for 7th After Day 1

Louisville opened their second ever NCAA Championship run with a respectable first round, finishing the day with a team total 13 over par. That mark ties them with Arizona and Florida State for 7th place, and keeps them only 10 shots off of the lead held by USC. Lauren Hartlage led the Cardinals with a final card of 1 over par for the first round, good for a tie at 19th in the individual standings. While the top of the leaderboard is jam packed, the tournament's opening round was a very close one. Working in Louisville's favor was team consistency. A 13 over wasn't the best team mark out there, but in addition to Hartlage's +1, everyone else on the team shot the same +4 for the day. The +4 mark for the team's lowest golfer ties Louisville with both USC and Alabama, the top two teams of the tournament, in that category. If Louisville can maintain a floor of +4 and get some improvement out of a couple of golfers, they can position themselves very nicely to continue their run in this tournament. 

The Cards will look to continue a good start to the weekend when they tee off in the afternoon session today. Louisville takes to the course at 1:21 according to the tournament site, which I can only assume is local time based on available context clues. Louisville is paired up with Virginia and Baylor, both teams that did not have very good days. Hopefully, the Cards can avoid a commiserating style of play in which their performance is pulled down by that of golfers around them. Tune into the NCAA site for live stat tracking information regarding the tournament all weekend.

Three Cardinals Named to WNBA Rosters

After sitting out the 2017 season, Angel McCoughtry returns to the roster for the Atlanta Dream, a move that really comes as a surprise to no one. Everyone here is familiar with what Angel has done since being selected as the number 1 overall pick in the 2009 WNBA Draft. McCoughtry has won two Olympic gold medals, earned the WNBA scoring title twice, and has been named an All-Defensive first team selection five times, a WNBA All Star selection four times, and All WNBA first team twice. McCoughtry has had a storied career in the WNBA thus far, and it was widely expected that there would be no issues about the 31 year old returning to the team this season.

From a WNBA vet to a WNBA rookie, we next go to the Washington Mystics, where Myisha Hines-Allen was named to the final roster. Hines-Allen is one of two rookies to make the team, and seems to have her position cemented. The Mystics cut their roster to twelve players for their announcement, and maintained two players that are currently disabled, due to illness and injury. With only 10 players available, and one of the unavailable players being a forward, Hines-Allen should get ample minutes to prove herself early in the season. After concerns about her ability to transition to the WNBA game due to size issues, Hines-Allen will need to do extra work to compete at her preferred position or work on additional skills to carve out a different role.

One of the more surprising roster makes comes from Shoni Schimmel's spot on the Las Vegas Aces roster. The Aces roster currently sits at 11, with the expectation that they will sign a 12th player before tomorrow. Schimmel is listed on the roster, but has not been assigned a number. The difference between Schimmel and Hines-Allen's current situations, though, is that the Aces named three players to the temporarily suspended list. These three players are not included in the roster of 11 (12) and are expected to return to the team shortly. Two of the three are Kayla McBride, an all-star guard, and Kelsey Plum, the 2017 first overall pick and a guard on the all-rookie team. Once those two return, there will be a log-jam at guard, and it seems clear that Schimmel would need to make herself irreplaceable in the next couple of weeks to avoid being one of the players that gets bumped to make room.

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour

For the first time in a long time, we'll have "the A Team" back in the studio on Mellwood for the Cardinal Couple Radio Hour. Jared is off of work this week and I'm getting more mobile by the day. We'll talk season wrap-up for a couple of teams, and likely hear some of the audio from Paulie's excellent interview with Arica Carter. Regardless of the topic, it is sure to be a great show. The Cardinal Couple Radio Hour airs at 11AM on WCHQ FM. It's available on FM radio at 100.9, the WCHQ App in the app store, and online at wchqfm.com and Facebook. 

Until next time, Go Cards!

-CH-

Golf Begins Championship -- Softball Awards -- Track and Field to Prelims -- FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Women's Golf Begins NCAA Championship Play Today

The big day has arrived and the Louisville women's golf team begins their first day of NCAA Championship play in Stillwater, Okla.  UofL is one of 24 schools competing for the trophy and is the sixth-lowest ranked team in the bunch.

The three-day first round event begins bright and early at 8:30 a.m., with the Cards teeing off precisely at 9:36 a.m., with the top 15 advancing to Monday.  Molly Skapik, Olivia Cason, Delaney Shah, Lauren Hartlage, and Kristin Engle will suit up for the Red and Black.

This is Louisville's second trip to the NCAA Championships.

The entire field (NCAA ranking) is listed below:

1. Alabama
2. Arkansas
3. UCLA
4. Duke
5. Stanford
6. USC
7. Furman
8. Texas
9. Arizona
10. Arizona State
12. Florida
13. Northwestern
15. Washington
16. Kent State
18. Wake Forest
19. Auburn
20. Oklahoma
21. Florida State
25. LOUISVILLE
26. Baylor
27. Virginia
28. Colorado
34. Ole Miss
38. Ohio State

*All times are EST

Ferguson and Hensley Earn Regional Honors

Megan Hensley continues to rake in awards.  She is joined by teammate Caitlin Ferguson in earning National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) All-Southeast Region Honors.  Ferguson was named to the second team while Hensley made the third team.

Ferguson was named as a utility player after playing third base, shortstop, first base, and right field this year.  She finished with a .317 batting average, 40 RBIs, four home runs, 10 doubles, and scored 31 times.

Hensley has broken into Louisville's career Top Ten in several categories as a junior: RBIs (batting), home runs (batting), wins (pitching), saves (pitching), appearances (pitching), innings pitched (pitching), strikeouts (pitching), and complete games (pitching).


Track and Field Sends 23 to Prelims

Louisville is sending 23 athletes to compete in 24 categories in the NCAA Division 1 Outdoor Track and Field East Preliminary Rounds hosted by the University of South Florida from May 24-26.  The Cards will compete for a chance to head to the NCAA Championships held in Eugene, Ore. from June 6-9.

The women sent 11 athletes to compete in 12 events while the men sent 11 to compete in 11 events with a 12th competing in the decathlon, which is an automatic qualifier for the NCAA Championships.  Makenli Forrest is the only Cardinal competing in multiple events- the hammer throw and discus throw.

Other News and Notes

Louisville baseball won in walk-off fashion against Notre Dame last night 5-4.  Game two of the series has been moved up to 2:00 p.m., today with the series finale set to begin Saturday at 1:00 p.m., shortly after the Cardinal Couple Radio Hour concludes.  I know they aren't a women's sport, but they are the last UofL team still playing at home.

The most hated woman in Louisville, Katina Powell, found herself in some trouble and is headed behind bars.  After causing the men's basketball team quite a bit of pain and stress it appears karma has caught up to her.

The Spring Cleaning Yard Sale hosted by Louisville Athletics is tomorrow from 9:00-2:00 on the south side of the football stadium up against Central Ave.  This giant tent sale is a great place to get all of that expensive Adidas Louisville gear for a fraction of the price.

Happy NASCAR Day, Bike to Work Day, and Pizza Party Day, Endangered Species Day!

You should be able to catch the entire "A-Team" in the studio tomorrow.  Between my Saturday banking and Case's injury and studying it seems as if we all haven't been together since shortly after Christmas.  Tune in to see what us four knuckleheads will be up to.

Happy Friday and Go Cards!

- Jared -

Legalized Sports Betting -- Arica Carter Interview -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

IT'S COMING...LEGALIZED SPORTS BETTING

The Supreme Court of the United States made an important ruling on Monday and, in some circles, questionable ruling when they cleared the way for a bunch of individual states to legalize sports betting. They overturned the PASPA...which was a 1992 law designed to protect professional and amateur sports from gambling in most states. The ruling clears the way for sports bettors to be able to go to places beside Nevada or offshore online sports books to put down money on college and professional sporting events. 

Led by New Jersey, other casinos and sportsbooks will legally be able to accept wagers on pro baseball, football, midweek college basketball games and college football....plus more. Will women's sports be involved? The real question is how soon and where will the revenues go?

New Jersey's main concern is the rapid demise of east coast gambling mecca Atlantic City.
Corporations that deal in casino gambling are on the verge of bankruptcy there. There would be some rules in place, for example, bettors would not be able to wager on in-state colleges and universities...like Rutgers... or collegiate events held in the state. The pro teams, though, would be fair game...like the New Jersey Devils, New York Giants or the Jets. It is proposed that these betting options would be available also at New Jersey horse racing facilities...like Monmouth Race Track.   

Some say that as many as 12 states could have wagering for events in place within two years if those states choose to sanction it. An interesting concept comes from West Virginia, where they would give the state's two major universities....WVU and Marshall a cut of the sports betting profits. Pro sports are griping about a "integrity" pay out to them from this, as well. 

Aren't they making enough money already? Have you looked at what they're paying players lately?

It'll be up to each state that has an interest in sports gambling to design and try to ratify their own model. Over 30 states have some form of gambling already in their borders...whether it's horse racing or casinos. 

New Jersey gaming officials can't wait to get started. Reports are they could be in place to offer the service as soon as June at racetracks and casinos in the state. 

So, how about Kentucky? What are the prospects of going to, let's say Churchill Downs or Keeneland and getting a bet down on the Cubs as well as on the fourth race? 

I truly believe it'll take a bit longer than a couple of years to get such a proposal through Kentucky legislature and past the populace. We're more likely to see it first over in the casinos in Indiana, Ohio, West Virginia and other gambling states than here. You know how slow things come to fruition in Kentucky. They'll officially recognize we're in the 21st. Century by 2021. 

Is expanded gaming good for college athletics? I have to wonder about that. The West Virginia idea has merit, but there are more than just two major colleges or universities in the commonwealth of Kentucky. And, will there be the temptations there for bribing or "payola" to a college kid to miss an extra point or miss a tackle so some high profile gamblers can "beat the spread" or "cover the points"? Look out clothing apparel companies. You just might have a new roommate ready to dole out cash. Organized crime is ready to slip between the sheets with you.  

How'd Don's Dad get $30,000 in his checking account overnight? Why, he must have bet the Packers! Or, someone "got to" Don and that pass he dropped in the fourth quarter helped State cover the spread against Tech. Hey, he took his eyes off the ball. Was starting to run already. It happens all the time. The plausible deniability is there.  

And, more importantly...what's it going to do for me...average Joe citizen? I don't want to hear the litany of how money will go to improve the state finances, education and roads. They tried that song and dance when lottery sales began and our state is still struggling to meet bills, pay income tax refunds and the roads are still deplorable. Education is still substandard here in Kentucky. Don't try to sneak that one past the goalie again. I want to see it parlayed somehow into something I can benefit from. A reduction in some taxes, maybe? Credits or reductions in some fees or licensing for certain things? A yearly check, maybe, to me...the resident of the state. 

Interesting times ahead indeed. And, don't expect the NCAA to be on top of things and have all the bases covered. They can barely slap bunt to try and get on base. Unless, of course, there is a piece of pie for them in all this. They promote amateurism and make billions each year. No hypocrisy there. Move along, nothing to see.  

We'll see...but I think it'll be awhile before a patron can walk into a sports book or track here locally and bet a horse across the board and then bet on the Cards to cover the spread. Maybe that's good. It needs to be set up very carefully and have safeguards. You know the saying...you can't buy a Kentucky Lottery ticket at the track and you can't bet the Preakness at your local gas and grocery outlet. Take some time and think this thing through, legislators. 

I have been to Nevada and bet on sporting events. Years ago, a good friend was getting married and decided to fly the best man and the groomsmen out to Tahoe for his "bachelor's weekend". Being a part of that party, I went. The best man got us together and suggested our wedding gift to the groom would be to pay our own way. We agreed. When we told the groom this, he resisted at first. Then, he came up with a plan. He asked us to take that money and bet it on the upcoming Kentucky vs. Tennessee football game. He liked the Vols to cover the spread. He proposed that if we did and won the bet, just give him the profit and we could keep the original amount of the bet. If they didn't cover...no hard feelings. So we did. Tennessee slaughtered the Cats, easily covered the spread and all of us were happy about that. We basically had paid for our trip. 

One thing we know. Expanded sports gambling is here. The Supreme Court paved the way for that.

You'll get no argument from our President Donald Trump. His group owns gambling casino Trump Taj Mahal. Let's hope gambling can be structured and set up in a way that the student-athletes can be protected. And these organizations can find a way where it helps the residents of the state, not just the organization or state projects. 

Here we go. 


ARICA CARTER INTERVIEW

As part of our "Catching Up" series here at the Couple, we're getting with student-athletes and letting them catch you up with them. Today we have Arica Carter's interview. You will find a link to the interview at the bottom of this article and we will play it on Saturday's Cardinal Couple Radio Hour broadcast, which airs at 11 a.m. this week. 

I asked A.C a variety of questions and she came through like a champion with her answers. Some teasers: 

-- What is one of her memories of Myisha Hines-Allen?

-- What do the student-athletes do in the summer? 

-- Who is one of the teachers that has impacted A.C. life?

-- Who would play Arica in the movie "The Arica Carter Story"? 

-- How would A.C. like to be remembered by the UofL WBB fan base? 

A throughly delightful time talking with her and we hope you enjoy it! 

A big thanks to WBB SID Nick Evans for helping me set the interviews and making the contacts, and, of course to the players that'll be answering the questions and sharing their viewpoints. We'll try to have some fun with it, also, in true Cardinal Couple fashion. 

LINK TO INTERVIEW: 

INTERVIEW WITH A.C. Arica Carter. 5/17/18


Everyone have a great Thursday!

paulie
xxxxx