Holy cow, what a weekend!

The past holiday weekend left fans of the University of Louisville and the University of Kentucky with extra reasons to feel thankful.  When all was said and done, both UK and U of L had extinguished odious football losing streaks, their basketball teams had delivered a fistful of victories, and for the second year in a row, the U of L men's soccer team stood one win away from the NCAA Final Four.

And oh, by the way, Kentucky stood poised to move atop both men's basketball polls, thanks to UNLV's thumping of No. 1 North Carolina in the Las Vegas Invitational championship game.

The thrill ride began last Friday morning.  Not only had Louisville never beaten South Florida in Tampa, the games generally hadn't been close -- after the first, a 34-31 double-OT thriller, USF had won by double digits three straight times, the average margin reaching three touchdowns.  When the Bulls built a 17-3 lead late in the second quarter, I for one thought, "Here we go again."

But Senorise Perry returned a pooch kickoff 54 yards to the USF 25, and the Cards capitalized on the short field with the first of Teddy Bridgewater's three TD passes, an 18-yarder to DeVaunte Parker, pulling U of L within 17-10 at halftime.  U of L dominated the second half, outscoring USF 24-7 to clinch a share of its second Big East Conference championship.  For his efforts, Bridgewater earned Big East Offensive Player of the Week honors.

That evening, the U of L men's basketball team stopped Ohio University 59-54 to remain unbeaten.

Saturday afternoon, UK hosted Tennessee in its annual season-closing game, one it had lost 26 consecutive times.  With quarterbacks Morgan Newton and Maxwell Smith both banged up, the Cats turned to senior reserve wide receiver Matt Roark, an option QB in high school, to run their offense.  Roark managed only 15 passing yards, but ran for 124, leading UK to the 10-7 upset.

The last time UK beat the Vols, current head coach Joker Phillips was a senior wide receiver for the Wildcats and receivers coach Tee Martin (later a quarterback at UT) was a first-grader in Mobile, Ala.  Ronald Reagan had just been reelected President, and Google and Facebook still were years in the future.  Roark and his classmates halted a run of 22 Wildcat senior classes who left UK without a win over Tennessee.

UK still owns the nation's longest string of consecutive losses to one opponent (25 to Florida), but thankfully can no longer claim the top two.

And as a capper on the weekend, the 12th-seeded Cardinal men's soccer team scored a 4-2 upset win at No. 5 Maryland, reaching the Elite Eight for the second consecutive year.  Only a rematch with 13th seed UCLA stands between U of L and back-to-back Final Fours.  While I think it's too soon to anoint U of L a a soccer powerhouse, Ken Lolla's program appears headed in that direction.

By the way, kudos to the Big East for placing three teams in the Elite Eight: No. 3 seed UConn, U of L, and No. 7 USF.

Cleaning out the dust and cobwebs....

Six months since last post -- how'd that happen??

Before I get into my usual ranting and raving, a personal note -- my mom, Helene Zukof, passed away Oct. 13 at the age of 78.  She was a rabid Cardinal fan, of both the St. Louis and University of Louisville variety.  Wherever she was, I'm sure she enjoyed her Cards' triumph in the World Series, especially in that epic Game Six.

And how insane was that game?  I've been watching major league baseball as a serious fan since 1964, and I can't remember anything as exciting -- the ugly defense notwithstanding.  I may have seen a game before in which the teams combined for five errors, but I don't recall one -- excluding a certain slow-pitch softball league that shall remain unnamed here.  But to win that game after having twice stood one strike from elimination, the Cardinals earned my admiration.

No wonder Tony LaRussa retired -- after this World Championship, anything else would seem anticlimactic.

* * * * * * * * *

Mom also would have enjoyed U of L's 27-10 pasting of Syracuse last Saturday -- in no small part because Dad was a Syracuse grad.  But he also earned his M.D. from Louisville, so no matter what happened, his alma mater was going to win -- but as he often said, "The right one won."

Three weeks ago, I thought the season might be headed down the dumper.  U of L's offense looked toothless, due mostly to poor line play.  Freshman quarterback Teddy Bridgewater seemed confused, even when he wasn't running for his life, and the Cards couldn't generate enough of a running game to frighten a high-school team.

The last two games?  Different story.

Against then-Big East leader Rutgers, Louisville generated 187 yards on the ground, led by Jeremy Wright's 108 -- the first 100-yard effort by a Cardinal ball carrier in 2011.  They followed that with another solid rushing effort against the 'Cuse, highlighted by Victor Anderson's 61-yard run with a perfectly executed option toss from Bridgewater -- further evidence the O-line is getting the concept of playing together.

* * * * * * * * *

Speaking of Bridgewater, it appears to me U of L has itself a quarterback.

Like most passers, Bridgewater throws more accurately and makes better decisions when his protection allows him to stay upright.  He also has shown great progress in reading defenses and recognizing opportunities; he audibled into the option play that gave Anderson his 61-yard score.

And just think, Planet Red -- as long as he stays healthy, he'll only get better.