Wally Watch: April 3, 2008

Wally Watch: Where we read Wally Hall so you don't have to.

April 3, 2008: Domino effect could see Pelphrey in Kentucky

Primary Theme: The forced resignation of Sean Sutton at Oklahoma State could set in motion chain of events that would result in John Pelphrey coaching at Kentucky next year. Nobody likes the sound of that.

We Do, However, Like the Sound of This: "A deadly domino"

Wally Hall Writing Tip #419: To add a little color and familiarity to your writing, refer to sports figures by punny versions of their real names. For example, the "Sean Sudden" reference in this column. (However, there's at least a 10% chance that's a typo.)

Wally Hall Writing Tip #627: To add a little color and familiarity to your writing, refer to sports figures by their first, middle and last names. For example, see the "Billy Clyde Gillispie" and "John Leslie Pelphrey" references in this column.

More Proof that You Never Really Outgrow Junior High: According to Wally, here's how it breaks down: Boone doesn't like Sean (or Eddie). Boone likes Bill, but Bill's not interested. Boone might also like Billy, and if Billy likes Boone then John might leave us for his first love. Got all that?

Our Analysis: One of our biggest complaints about Wally is that his columns are usually about 98% fluff, so to be fair it's nice to see him write about something more meaningful, even if it does come across as a bit rumor-ish.

On one hand, you'd think that the (theoretically) leading sportswriter in the state would have some inside information that makes this a legitimate story. On the other hand, it might just be that Wally hasn't been to any good new Mexican restaurants lately and thus is desperate for something to write about.

In the end, this is definitely a story we'll monitor, but we're having a hard time imagining the Kentucky basketball coach voluntarily leaving after one year in favor of Oklahoma State, no matter how annoying the UK fans are. We'll probably have to deal with these rumors every offseason until Pelphrey actually does leave for Kentucky, but the guess here is that for now he sticks around.

Special Non-Wally Addendum: Here are a couple of other links dealing with the Gillispie-to-OSU rumors:

* Could Gillispie be tempted away to Stillwater?

* Big Oil, Oklahoma State Targeting Gillispie