The anatomy of a turnaround: John Cohen & his success as UK’s baseball coach
April 27, 2008
Story by Jonathan Smith | Staff
When John Cohen got to UK in 2003, he inherited a recruiting class that had two players. That wasn’t the program’s only problem, though. It also had the Southeastern Conference’s most antiquated facilities and most apathetic fans. Yet Cohen managed to overcome all of that and orchestrate a major turnaround of the UK baseball program.
John Shelby was lost.
The freshman - half na’ve, half nervous - was on his way to the UK baseball offices to meet his new coach, John Cohen.
Even though he was new to the campus, he thought he was going in the right direction.
He arrived at the baseball offices. He found Cohen. He even shook his hand. But he was still going in the wrong direction.
“Hey man, I’d really appreciate it if you just turned your hat around,” Cohen said to Shelby. “That’s something that’s going to be important to us.”
Shelby complied.
“The bill of your cap represents the direction in life you’re going,” Shelby recalls Cohen saying. “You can either go forward or backward.”
From that point on, Shelby wore his hat forward. And from that point on, the UK baseball program only went forward.
The turnaround was beginning.
Photo illustration by Ed Matthews | Staff
Getting FreeKY downtown
April 27, 2008
Story by Juliann Vachon | Staff
The crowd at WRFL’s FreeKY Fest on Saturday was as eclectic as the music the station broadcasts every day - some were children; others had grey hair and wrinkles. Some came dressed in tie-dyed shirts; others wore Polos and khakis. Some were pierced and tattooed; others had hair as colorful as the decorations hung around the concert venue.
“We had all the different shades of Lexington here,” said Chuck Clenney, WRFL’s general manager. “Everyone from the kids to the Indian community to the people who love crazy loud music came out. That’s just what WRFL is about, offering something for everyone and bringing people together.”
UK Students confront their country’s darker history
April 25, 2008
Also see:
Signs of war persist for Vietnamese man
UK Scholars filling void in Vietnamese history
Bridging past and present
Story by Sean Rose | Staff
Photos by Kasha Stevenson | Staff
There were many days in Vietnam when students on the trip laughed as they toured old palaces, swam in a sea still warm in December and explored city street life. But their main purpose was to learn about Vietnam’s and America’s shared past in warfare.
Walking through the American War Remnants Museum in Ho Chi Minh City, looking past pictures of dying civilians, visiting sites of battle and massacre forced internal reflection among the group. The students each reacted differently, but everyone - whether they were a graduate student studying the Vietnam War, an American who had never been out of the country or a veteran of Iraq - returned to the United States deeply moved.
UK students Amanda Tate, left, Jeff Keith and Kelly Arnett read log books at a museum in My Lai, Vietnam, where in 1968 U.S. soldiers killed more than 500 civilians in four hours.
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Cliff Hagan bullpen is the throne for redshirts
April 25, 2008
Story by Matthew George | Staff
A group of jersey-clad teammates huddles outside the waist-high brick wall that separates the playing field from the rest of Cliff Hagan Stadium.
The group chews and spits, devouring handfuls at a time of baseball’s miniature delicacies while engaging in their best “Seinfeld” dialogue.
“You know David’s sunflower seeds are the best,” one said.
“Whatever, man. I still prefer Spitz,” another argued. “I like them because they are bigger. Plus, I think they taste better.”
Suddenly, a lanky figure emerges from the home dugout, lumbering toward them, followed in tow by a boulder garbed in blue sweats with his cap drawn low, shielding his face.
“Let’s get Aaron ready!” shouts the boulder, who as he draws nearer is identified as assistant strength coach Mike Brown.
Redshirt catcher T.J. Daugherty, left, chats during UK’s game against Florida on Saturday. Photo by Britney McIntosh | Staff
Tables have turned: WRFL celebrates 20th anniversary with FreeKY Fest
April 25, 2008
Dave Condra, host of “The Belfry” on 88.1 WRFL-FM from 4 to 6 p.m. on Thursdays, laughs with WRFL faculty adviser John Clark, yesterday afternoon. Photo by Ed Matthews | Staff
Story by Juliann Vachon | Staff
It started in 1985 with a column and mail-in survey asking students if they were ready for a new kind of radio at UK.
“Are you tired of hearing Top 40 ground out till the needle falls through the other side? Would you just rather hear Red Hot Chili Peppers instead of Ravel? (Or Red Hot Chili Peppers and Ravel?) Are you hungry for tunes a College Radio station would spin? Give us your tired, your poor, your raging opinions. The Kentucky Kernel may not be able to generate music, but it can play your thoughts and maybe enough of them will make a loud noise.”
Dave Condra, host of “The Belfry” on 88.1 WRFL-FM from 4 to 6 p.m. on Thursdays, laughs with WRFL faculty adviser John Clark, yesterday afternoon. Photo by Ed Matthews | Staff
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Recent Posts
- The anatomy of a turnaround: John Cohen & his success as UK’s baseball coach
- Getting FreeKY downtown
- UK Students confront their country’s darker history
- Cliff Hagan bullpen is the throne for redshirts
- Tables have turned: WRFL celebrates 20th anniversary with FreeKY Fest
- UK scholars filling void in Vietnamese history
- Bridging past and present
- Signs of war persist for Vietnamese man
- Seniors relish final games as Cats
- Football dominates UK’s 6th-annual CATSPY Awards
