Cawood Ledford’s Memorial Was Delayed After 9/11
By Danielle
It’s hard to focus on sports today of any kind given the tragedy of September 11th, which occurred 12 years ago today.
However, I did learn something today that I had never known. Or if I did, it simply slipped my mind. On Twitter, I learned that Kentucky Wildcats broadcaster Cawood Ledford’s memorial service was originally planned to take place on Thursday, September 13, 2001, at Rupp Arena.
Brooks Downing tweeted this morning:
Most won't recall that we were planning Cawood Ledford's memorial service at Rupp for that Thursday, and postponed it a week due to 9/11.
— Brooks Downing (@BrooksDowning) September 11, 2013
The legendary broadcaster had died on September 5, 2001 at age 75 and no other venue would have been more suitable than the place where he called so many games on the sidelines. The floor at Rupp Arena is named Cawood’s Court for a reason.
I only wish that the final game that he called on the sidelines for the Kentucky Wildcats would have finished with a better result. It was in Philadelphia and has since been referred to as the greatest college basketball game ever played. It was sitting next to Cawood Ledford that Duke Blue Devils coach Mike Krzyzewski offered comments on the Kentucky Wildcats postgame show to console the Kentucky fans that had been listening on the radio.