Big Blue Madness: Year-By-Year Review Since 2009

In celebration of Kentucky Basketball and tonight’s Big Blue Madness event at Rupp Arena, Kentucky Sports Radio looks back at the history of Madness under John Calipari in Lexington. Beginning with the unforgettable ’09 edition through whatever happens tonight, the Kentucky Wildcats and the Big Blue Nation have had a lot of fun at the ceremonial first practice of the season.

Enjoy a rundown of some of the top Big Blue Madness moments of the last fourteen years.

2009: The John Wall Dance was born

Legend has it that DeMarcus Cousins planned to do the dance first, but Cousins did not enjoy being elevated on the platform and wouldn’t let go of the handrails, thus paving the way for John Wall to steal the show.

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2009: John Calipari addressed the Big Blue Nation for the first time

Also from that memorable first Big Blue Madness with John Calipari: Calipari’s first grand speech to the fan base. Among his many encouraging words, he famously declared, “My friends, we have an enormous mountain to climb. Tonight, we are at the base of that mountain. Other programs begin this pre-season returning the same coach, the same players, the same offense… they are miles ahead of us and halfway up the mountain.

“Our team, on the other hand, has a new system, a new style, new players, new coaches… almost everything is foreign and unknown. But what we do have is a wealth of skill, energy and determination. if I have my choice between experience and talent, I’m taking talent every time.”

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2010: The UnderKanter

While awaiting NCAA eligibility that never came, Enes Kanter, an Undertaker fan, made an electric, wrestling-themed entrance into Rupp Arena in 2011.

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2011: John Calipari’s first Final Four banner was raised

The program celebrated its first Final Four in 13 years at Big Blue Madness 2011, while introducing new players with names like Anthony Davis and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist.

It was Calipari’s first of four Final Fours in five years at UK. He won his first national championship that 2011-12 season.

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2012: Rupp Arena floor transformed into a projection screen

Kentucky Basketball’s first practice began with an innovative new way to show video when the arena’s floor became a 92-foot projection screen, displaying a highlight reel video from the program’s past through the present.

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2013: Wham City Lights got the crowd involved

Fans used their phones to illuminate Big Blue Madness 2013 via an app that synchronized a pre-programmed cell phone light show with the arena’s music.

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2014: Drake’s Airball

The internet will never forget this moment.

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2014: Mic Drop

Before his team won 38 consecutive games in 2014-15, Calipari dropped the mic at Big Blue Madness. “Enough talk. Let’s ball,” he said.

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2015: The video floor returned

The Rupp Arena floor transformed into a projection screen once again in 2015 with a little help from Drake and a glass of wine.

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2016: Matthew Mitchell and the UK women’s team stole the show

What’s a “Best of Big Blue Madness” without Coach Mitchell? His intro in 2016 took some serious choreography.

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2017: Kentucky Dad

Drake came back for another Big Blue Madness in 2017 and singlehandedly increased sales of the “Kentucky Dad” hoodie by a million percent.

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2018: Dunk and 3-Point Contests Debut

Kentucky Basketball mixed up the format in 2018, adding a 3-point contest and a dunk contest to re-energize the festivities. Tyler Herro brought out the King Rex jersey for help.

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2019: Matthew Mitchell’s Last Ride

We didn’t know it at the time, but Matthew Mitchell’s “Old Town Road,” which some say was his best, was Mitchell’s last Big Blue Madness dance before retirement.

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2019: Bruce Buffer’s Introductions

Famous ring announcer Bruce Buffer introduced the Wildcats in 2019 for the first time.

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2020: Virtual Madness

2020 was a weird time. The team still held a Big Blue Madness while social-distancing, but it was pre-taped in an empty Memorial Coliseum.

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2021: Terrence Clarke honored

Still masked up in 2021, the dunk contest was one of the highlights of the night with highlights from Jacob Toppin, Daimion Collins, and even Kareem Watkins.

The team honored Terrence Clarke, too. Clarke’s family was recognized and presented with custom Terrence Clarke sneakers during Calipari’s annual speech.

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2022: Alumni Reunion Teased New Uniforms

During an alumni celebration that included Tyler Ulis, Kevin Knox, Hamidou Diallo, Nick Richards, Bam Adebayo and video messages from Immanuel Quickley, Tyrese Maxey, Malik Monk, and Anthony Davis, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist revealed Kentucky’s new uniform.

The biggest takeaway for me from watching BBM is that we possibly caught a glimpse of an alternate jersey. pic.twitter.com/qqcHozD9oc

— Owen (@75toRupp) October 15, 2022

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2022: Aaron Bradshaw’s Commitment

Last year’s Big Blue Madness began with a surprise commitment from Aaron Bradshaw, a five-star big man who announced his decision moments before the Madness broadcast.

Bradshaw will be introduced as a Wildcat at tonight’s Madness.

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2023: What’s Next?