Will Stein offers support for continuation of Louisville series, adds preferred time of year
By Ethan Stone
Published:
Kentucky Wildcats head coach Will Stein would like to see one of college football’s most underrated rivalries continue amid the new wave of power conference programs cancelling non-conference rivalry matchups.
The new head coach told Michael Bennett of Just the Cats on WXVW, a local Kentucky radio show, that he is not only in favor of continuing the series, but would like to see it moved to the beginning of the year as it was played from 1994-2013. Recently, UK vs. U of L has been played during Rivalry Week.
While fans love rivalry matchups and the tradition is what makes college football great, non-conference rivalry games are very much in danger in this day and age. Bedlam is effectively dead. USC vs. Notre Dame is dying (thought talks are resuming to bring the historic rivalry back) and even Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate (GT vs. UGA) is under some pressure.
This is due to a mix of the College Football Playoff and conference realignment. With many conferences adding an extra conference game and the College Football Playoff now offering a clear path to the postseason at 12 teams, the risk in scheduling such a game simply does not outweigh the reward. Why schedule Louisville and risk a loss in a tough game when Kentucky could schedule an easy win against the likes of Western Kentucky or UT Martin?
Obviously, this philosophy is anti-competition and goes against what makes college football great. It’s nice to see that Stein understands this and wants to continue the storied matchup.
Ethan Stone is a Tennessee graduate and loves all things college football and college basketball. Firm believer in fouling while up 3.
