Apparently, some folks are really excited about the upcoming Kentucky basketball season.
Midnight Madness is a clever marketing gimmick that marks the first day of basketball practice for NCAA schools. Several Division I (and, yes, some II and III) schools start at midnight the first day they can and put on a little show for some hardcore fans.
As you might anticipate, it is a really big deal in basketball-mad places like Lexington, Kentucky, home of the U of Kentucky Wildcats.
Even so, what is happening this week might seem a bit unusual to some folks.
For several days now, hardcore fans have been camping outside Rupp Arena in anticipation of tickets that wil be distributed starting Saturday at 7 a.m. But we’re not talking game tickets here. We’re talking tickets for the team’s first practice at midnight on Friday, October 10. (Tickets also going to be available online.)
"Most people driving by tell us that we’re idiots," said Jason Ryan. "I guess they are right to some extent but it’s a lot of fun and you build a lot of friendships out here. We all share one common thing, Kentucky basketball."
For non-season ticket holders and non-students, this might be the only way to see the team they call Big Blue. The only tickets available for the 20-game UK home schedule are the ones currently reserved for students.
