Big Blue Madness the Official Intro for Freshmen, New UK Team
The eight members of Kentucky’s freshman class are facing the annual dilemma with Big Blue Madness set for 7 p.m. on Friday in Rupp Arena.
To dance or not to dance?
Jemarl Baker has his mind made up, and he’s going the conservative route.
“I’m just going to go out there and wave,” Baker said.
Quade Green, meanwhile, will make a game-time decision.
“I might dance,” Green said. “In the game I’ll put on a show, but I don’t know yet on the stage.”
One veteran, however, has big plans for his moment. He’s not willing to give away the extent of his plans though.
“I have a little bit of a secret planned,” Tai Wynyard said. “I have a video that’s been planned by my uncle, so it should be pretty cool. It has something to do with my family and culture definitely. It’s more of a war dance, so it’s pretty cool. There’s a lot of weapon use in the video so it should be pretty cool. I’ll let you all wait and see what it is.”
While Wynyard plans to put on a show in his second Madness appearance, fellow sophomore Wenyen Gabriel will be sitting back. His main interest is making sure his younger teammates enjoy themselves in their first go-round.
“I head in this year more as a fan, kind of,” Gabriel said. “I’m going in to have fun, but it’s really about the freshmen here. It’s their first impression to the fans out here. It’s mostly—I want them to be themselves and encourage them to have fun.”
It’s unlikely Gabriel has much to worry about on that front. Most of UK’s newcomers have experienced Madness as recruits already.
“There wasn’t (anything) like it,” Green said. “Big Blue was probably the best midnight madness I’ve ever been to.”
And though Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was a fifth grader back in 2009, he remembers that year’s Madness well.
“Probably John Wall on stage dancing at Big Blue Madness,” Gilgeous-Alexander said, asked about his first memory of Kentucky basketball.
So, these freshmen have a good idea already what Madness is all about, but there’s nothing quite like being on the inside. Now is when the significance of playing at UK really becomes clear.
“I think the new people will realize what it means after Madness, because they will be able to see,” Jonny David said. “They’ve been in Rupp a few times now, but they haven’t seen Rupp in that kind of environment. I think when they see that, and they see how all the fans treat them during campout and stuff. But I think when they see that, they’ll see what it means to wear Kentucky across their chest.”
