The House of Blue

I wonder why people are so determined to go so far out on the ledge on either side and then act like we are idiots if we refuse to stand next to them? And speaking of yin and yang I am hopeful we can be overachieving underdogs!

Nobody CONSIDERS themselves an LOD!

Well said, Catmando.

That depends on what LOD stands for... I just know I'm not a loud, obnoxious douche-bag.

I know you think a small segment of the fan base screaming loudly about Joker has put him on the hot and now he must perform, but I think that is fantasy land. Joker is on the hot seat irrespective of what you yell and scream. Every coach must eventually win or he goes. Yelling and screaming for Joker to be fired last year did nothing but maybe create doubt in the mind of some potential recruits. MB will do what he thinks is best for the program, no matter what you yell and scream. I have always suspected that the people who constantly critisize and complain really believe that their opinion some how makes a difference in how things turn out. Now you have confirmed this belief. I doubt very seriously if a small vocal group of fans have any measurable impact on decision making whatsoever.

To answer the OPs question, I don't think the LOD has any measurable impact at all other than how it might influence the thinking of potential recruits. I doubt the administration puts much thought into that segment of the fan base.

Nothing is similar in comparing Rich Brooks' second year with Joker Phillips. Brooks was coaching a probation ridden team that had a bunch of Guy Morris' leftovers. He had a 20+ scholarship reduction he was working with.

Joker took over a situation that was stable and had players that were beating mid-tier SEC teams. The group had been to 3 or 4 bowls in a row. He was inheriting a roster that HE personally played a huge role in building.

Yet there was a much larger, even more vocal group calling for him to be fired. I honestly don't think you were part of that group because you actually were indeed a "sunshine pumper" that switched. I'm just saying looking back on it, the situation was just as, if not more bleak and Mitch stuck with his guy. It worked out then, there is no telling if if it will work out now. We are definitely recruiting better players now, and we have a staff that should capitalize on any momentum that is gained on the field. With all due respect to Brooks, his staff sorely missed an opportunity to do so after 2006 and 2007, and it hurt us. This was due to having a staff of comprised of older guys who were excellent coaches, but flat out refused to recruit. The question now is, will the momentum on the field ever come?

I by no means consider myself a "sunshine pumper'" because I don't pump any sunshine, lol. I always have my expectation tempered because I have the ability to see the situation for what it is. I definitely get into the back and forth with some of the LOD members, because a lot of what they say (not what was said in this thread) is ridiculous and some of them are a broken record stuck on repeat putting their trash on threads that do not even contain the subject matter for which they are speaking. This has lead to some back and forth and I have certainly defended Mitch and Joker from the extreme accusations, but in no way do I believe things are in good shape either and whether Joker is right for this job or not could certainly be in question. Most of the back and forth, IMO has more to do with the delivery method of some of the LOD than their view points.

Just for fun... and to make the "confused" even more confused.

To be fair, it's sometimes tough to be a UK football fan and also be realistic and not come off like an LOD'er.

I guess I'd also like to know what an "LOD'er" really is, by definition. I mean, is any negativity at all considered LOD material?

To me, it's the people who find a way to post negative stuff no matter what is going on in a particular thread. An example would be a thread started about the overall improvement of our athletics as a whole (2nd in capital one cup), and Mitch's 15 by 15 plan. The LOD will use this as an opportunity to trash Mitch and Joker as it pertains to football when that isn't even being discussed. Simply having a negative outlook or opinion on a particular issue or person isn't what I am talking about. I am talking about the people who find a way to steer anything they can into a "Joker sucks we need a real coach and our AD doesn't care about football as much as woman's volleyball" type of thread. That happens almost daily here and it's usually the same small group of people. You never see the polar opposite of it though, yet somehow this "Sunshine pumpers" came about anyway.

Also, if you spend more of your time looking for and commenting on what UL is doing to try and put UK down....you may be a LOD.

The people that are continually bashing Barnhart really drive me bonkers.