Damned If You Do, Damned If You Don't

James Paxton, a UK baseball player, filed suit against UK for demanding that he "answer questions" from the NCAA or face possible expulsion from the team -- without allowing Paxton to know why or what the NCAA was looking for. " 'University officials allegedly have threatened to remove Paxton's eligibility if he continues to decline NCAA interviews, and such a threat violates the UK code of student conduct,' Paxton's attorneys say."

Yes, well, UK would never let a little thing like the UK Code of Student Conduct bother them, would they?

Our favorite part is Paxton's allegation that UK compliance director Sandy Bell told him "not to tell anyone — including his parents or his attorney — about the interview or (UK's) instruction to participate."

Fortunately Paxton wasn't quite the stooge UK Athletics assumed. He filed suit against UK, resulting in a nice article on the front page of the Herald-Leader. He talked.

Later this evening Kentucky.com reported that Paxton will be allowed to stay on the team and receive his scholarship "without the threat that it will change."

James Paxton, we applaud you and wish you great success in your pursuit of justice for student athletics.

UK says "Fair and final!"

Nice to know UK insults everyone's intelligence equally.

http://www.kentucky.com/818/story/979051.html?storylink=omni_popular

Priorities

Healthcare workers at the Medical Center are routinely offered flu shots about this time of year. This is common practice throughout the US since these types of employees are more exposed to flu than members of the general public.

This year, however, the UK football team got their flu shots before anyone in the Medical Center.

Just goes to show UK's priorities.

UK Produces Most Rhodes Scholars in World

Wouldn't that be a great headline? Wouldn't it be wonderful for UK to be known as an intellectual center, a great place of learning and achievement?

We already know how good it feels to be famous for our basketball program and history. How much better would it be if students from all over the world were clamoring for a chance to attend one of many superb academic programs?

Why don't we put as much energy into our academic programs as we do athletics?

Is it a lack of funding? Poor teaching? Timid advertising? Administrative indifference? Rock-bottom admission requirements?

What would it take to make that title a reality, just one of many prestigious awards we could all be proud of?

News Flash

Rick Pitino, former UK basketball coach, reveals he is not perfect. It is unknown at this time how earth-shattering this will turn out to be for the state or even the nation.

What implications do you think this will have on Pitino's career?

Sports or Academics?

Today's news informed us that UK athletes senior Jorge Gonzalez and sophomore Aaron Boyd were suspended for violating team rules. Gonzalez will miss one game. We imagine there will be much gnashing of teeth over this as well as a lot of angry comments and discussions. Or maybe it's too early in the season for fans to worry.

During the uproar about UK letting Gillispie go and hiring Calipari a few months ago there were a few letters to the editor reminding readers that UK is also about academics, or that at least it should be.

It's a bit hard to believe that UK values higher education if you consider the money that gets funneled into athletics over academics, despite UK administration's protestations that it's separate money and that athletics help support academics.

What do you think? Does UK value athletics over academics? Do you think the distribution of money at UK is fairly distributed? Do you think there's a better way?