As it has been talked about lately, Coach Cal wasn’t much on going to Maui. He was worried about his team being young and having the tough competition so early in the season. It looks like he has changed his tune a little bit, and of course it is because of the fans. Dave Odom, the director of the Maui Classic talked about how Coach Cal has changed his tune a little bit.
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“Everyting is situational. Remember, John has gone on the record as saying, ‘Come with me, play with one year and you can leave if you want and I’ll get somebody just as good.’ That’s basically the way he’s recruited. That’s his public approach to things. When he said that about a month ago, he didn’t know much about his team, and he was a little nervous about it.
“There are a lot of questions. He doesn’t have a veteran team. You have freshmen who are going to have to travel all the way to Maui. How are they going to stand up to the travel, the fatigue, the trip itself? Will they get caught up in the ambiance of the island and not be focused? It is a very strong field and whatever, whatever, wheataver. I had a lot of people call me right after that and they said, ‘Are you worried about John or are you mad at him? Absolutely not. Every coach has a right to coach his own team the way he sees fit. It’s my hope – and I talked to John after that – that once the tournament is complete and his team plays well … he’ll be on the flight home and he’ll be fine with Maui, and four years from now – remember this, and you people in Connecticut can understand this — this tournament is not only about the universities and their teams, it’s also about their fans, and there are no more ardant fans in this country and the UK fans. … Four years from now, their fans are going to want to come back out here. John’s first obligation is to his team and university, but he also understands he has an obligation to the fans. … We’ll get him back.”
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Kentucky fans love to travel, and I am sure every 4 years the Cats will be making the trip to Maui. I think this will be a great test for our young team, and a great time to bond and get closer as a group. Heck, I’m just excited to watch it on television.
