Kentucky
‘The vibe has been great’: TaxSlayer Gator Bowl brings Clemson, Kentucky fans together for thrilling game
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The energy at EverBank Stadium was high on Friday afternoon.
Everywhere you looked, Kentucky and Clemson fans were celebrating their favorite teams. Even though Clemson took home the Taxslayer Gator Bowl victory in thrilling fashion, fans on both sides celebrated the joy of college football and camaraderie.
Kendall Hardwick made the trip from South Carolina and was a cheerleader for years at Clemson. Even after graduation, she never stopped cheering for her alma mater.
“Jacksonville is great. Beautiful city, beautiful town,” Hardwick said. “We have great friends hosting us here in town, so we couldn’t miss it.”
Adam Stigall is a University of Kentucky alumnus. He said the normally 11-hour drive took much longer due to so many others making the same trip. But he said wouldn’t have missed the game for the world.
“Don’t miss a game. We go to every bowl game, every home game,” Stigall said. “Always a good time, the vibe has been great.”
With low temperatures and bright skies, fans were bundled up for good reason. Extra patrols from the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office were out working to make sure people stayed safe while enjoying the atmosphere.
Teresa Morgan attended the game for a very special reason. The First Coast High School digital information teacher was honored at halftime as an MVT, which stands for Most Valuable Teacher. She was overjoyed when she learned her students had nominated her for the honor.
“There’s not a word that could describe how I felt when they announced it,” Morgan said. “I love my kids. My kids are like my own children. So, this is a blessing.”
Let’s not forget the ultimate fan, Clemson University alumnus and Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback, Trevor Lawrence.
“He is our guy. We love our number 16,” Hardwick said with a smile. “He’s always a Clemson Tiger.”
Speaking of the Clemson Tigers, you may or may not have noticed some $2 bills with orange pawprints stamped on the front while out and about Friday. Clemson fans told News4JAX, some of them were paying for items while shopping in the city leading up to the game. They said the $2 bills were used as a way to leave their mark on Jacksonville.
Roy Franklin and Brad Hatton aren’t fans of either school who competed in the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl. They simply came to the game to have a good time and support the community. They’re originally from up north but have lived in Jacksonville for years.
“It’s beautiful, it’s wonderful. We’ve got everything from the beaches to downtown. We cover everything, it’s a great little city,” Franklin said.
“You’re not going to tell everybody about this, are you?” Hatton responded with a chuckle. “We want to keep this a secret. It’s getting a little out of hand down here. But no, come on down. It’s beautiful, love it.”
Morgan couldn’t agree more.
“Look, they don’t know what they’re missing until they get here to Jacksonville,” Morgan said. “That’s why they say DUUUUUVAL!”
Bringing people together in the River City, one bowl game at a time.
Copyright 2023 by WJXT News4JAX – All rights reserved.
A winter storm watch is in effect south of Louisville as National Weather Service forecasters anticipate more snow for Kentucky Friday, with higher amounts expected in the southern half of the state.
The watch, active until late Friday night, extends as far north as Hardin County and stretches into parts of southeastern and southwestern Kentucky. The weather service stated early Wednesday morning it expects to see 4-5 inches of snowfall Friday for counties in the watch area, with locally higher amounts possible.
In the Louisville metro area, 2-3 inches of new snowfall is possible. Current estimates show a 90% chance for at least inch of snow in Louisville Friday and a 10% chance for at least 4 inches. Evan Webb, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service, said 4 inches of snow looks like the “worst case scenario” for the city.
At least 4 inches of snow in the forecast is typically needed for the weather service to issue a winter storm watch or warning, Webb said, adding it appears to be “relatively likely” a winter storm warning will eventually be in effect for the area currently under the watch.
“If the trends in the data change, we could expand the winter storm watch a little further north if we need to,” Webb said.
Wednesday night and Thursday morning will be very cold in Louisville and there is a chance wind chills could plummet below zero, Webb said. However, cloud cover could serve as an “insulating blanket,” keeping the air temperature a little higher than it would be if it was a clear night.
If wind chills were to fall to -5 degrees or below, the NWS would issue a cold weather advisory.
“Prepare for round two, unfortunately,” Webb said. “It looks like the snow amounts will be quite a bit less than what we saw with the last storm. Certainly with some additional snow accumulations, it’s always good to be prepared.”
Wednesday
Chance of flurries. Mostly cloudy and cold, with a high near 25. Calm winds from the west around 6 mph in the afternoon.
Wednesday Night
Mostly cloudy, with a low around 4. West winds of 5 mph become calm.
Thursday
Sunny and cold, with a high near 28.
Thursday Night
Partly cloudy, with a low around 14 and calm winds.
Friday
A 90% chance of snow showers, mainly after 1 p.m. A high near 29 with south winds of around 5 mph Friday afternoon. New snowfall amounts of between 1-2 inches is possible.
Friday Night
A 70% chance of snow showers, mainly before 1 a.m. Cloudy, with a low around 23.
Saturday
Mostly cloudy, with a high near 31.
Saturday Night
Mostly cloudy, with a low near 15.
Sunday
Partly sunny, with a high near 35.
Sunday Night
A 20% chance of snow showers after 1 a.m. Mostly cloudy, with a low near 27.
Reporter Marina Johnson contributed.
Reach reporter Leo Bertucci at lbertucci@gannett.com or @leober2chee on X, formerly known as Twitter
Life comes at you fast in the SEC.
One game, you look like a Final Four team. The next game, you look like a team that’s going to go 15 rounds in a second-round game.
Tuesday night, the Kentucky Wildcats went down to Georgia and got stomped, 82-69. This Bulldogs team is good, and they very well could wind up in the NCAA Tournament, but Kentucky was outplayed physically and lacked the toughness to overcome a 13-point halftime deficit.
After the game, senior forward Andrew Carr said Kentucky needs to be more physical, even downright nasty.
Andrew Carr: “We gotta get more tough, more physical, more nasty when we’re playing.”
Says tonight, they were trying to be physical without fouling.
— Wyatt Huff (@Wildcat_wave) January 8, 2025
Georgia out-rebounded Kentucky 41-34, including 13-1 on the offensive glass. Yikes.
Kentucky was held to 37.5% shooting from the field, including 6-25 from three-point range. The Wildcats tried multiple times in the second half to mount a comeback, but they just could not get over the hump Georgia presented.
This is the SEC this year. For every game, you had better be ready to go 15 rounds and physically go toe-to-toe. Otherwise, nights like tonight at Georgia are going to happen more often than you’d like them to.
Kentucky is back in action Saturday night at No. 14 Mississippi State. Tipoff is at 8:30 PM ET on the SEC Network.
The Kentucky Wildcats are set for a road matchup with the Georgia Bulldogs. Game time is set for 7 PM ET on the SEC Network. You can watch the game online using ESPN+ or tune in via radio stream through the UK Sports Network.
Fresh off another top-10 win over Florida, Kentucky now heads into its first road game of the SEC season, which is also another Quad I opportunity vs. a solid Georgia team that’s 12-2 with wins over Notre Dame (home), St. John’s (neutral), and Georgia Tech (away).
Kentucky technically has a road win over Gonzaga, but that’s considered to be a semi-away game (at least via KenPom), so this is a chance for the Cats to notch their first true road win of the season.
Koby Brea was initially listed as questionable to play tonight, but it looks like he’ll give it a go in Athens.
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Let’s Go CATS!
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