ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – The 39th annual Run for the Zoo is coming May 3, from 7 a.m. – 12 p.m. The event is open to all ages and fitness levels. Run for the Zoo has events including a half marathon, 10K timed run, 5K timed run, 5K fitness run, and a one mile fun run/walk. […]
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39th annual Run for the Zoo is just a month away
How a No. 1 Hit With Kenny Chesney Changed Uncle Kracker’s Career
Kenny Chesney is well-known for his laid-back beach songs, and he crossed genre lines when he teamed with Uncle Kracker for “When the Sun Goes Down.”
Who Is Uncle Kracker?
Uncle Kracker’s real name is Matthew Shafer, and he got his start in music as a deejay for Kid Rock, serving as a turntablist in his fellow Michigan native’s backing group, Twisted Brown Trucker.
What Was Uncle Kracker’s First Country Hit?
He joined Chesney on “When the Sun Goes Down” in 2004, and scored his first-ever country hit when the title song and second single from Chesney’s album of the same name reached No. 1 on Billboard‘s Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart on April 3 of that year.
Though Uncle Kracker saw success in country music with his first outing, he admits the genre was a stretch for him initially.
“I had always thought about country, but it’s a very tricky thing,” he tells the Boot.
“I remember entertaining the idea of dabbling around with the country stuff after the Chesney thing, and I thought, you know what, I’ve seen so many guys come through and try to do country records and just jump on the country bandwagon without giving it the respect it deserves.
“And I said to myself, if I ever did something like that, you always have to pay respect to the people you need to pay respect to, not just in country music but in life. And I’ve always been a firm believer that with just the right idea, maybe further down the road I’ll get there the right way.”
What Are Some of Uncle Kracker’s Hits?
After scoring a No. 1 hit with Chesney on “When the Sun Goes Down,” Uncle Kracker would go on to release “Smile,” from his Happy Hour album, in 2009.
READ MORE: Kenny Chesney Is STILL Mad That This Song Got Away From Him
The song became a multi-platinum hit and reached the Top 10 on both the country and pop charts.
Uncle Kracker followed that single with a duet with Kid Rock, “Good to Be Me,” which reached the Top 30 in both genres.
In 2024, Uncle Kracker joined Zac Brown Band and Megan Moroney on the road with Chesney to open his 2024 Sun Goes Down Tour.
25 Best Kenny Chesney Songs That Prove He’s Country Music Hall of Fame Worthy
Kenny Chesney‘s best songs come from three distinct eras of his career. There are early career singles like “How Forever Feels” and mid-2000s hits like “When the Sun Goes Down,” “Summertime” and “Anything But Mine.”
What truly separates Chesney — a 2025 Country Music Hall of Fame inductee — from other artists is his third act. Six of the 25 songs on this list of Kenny Chesney’s best were released after 2010. It’s there he took some of his biggest risks, rewarding fans with some of the greatest lyrical moments and sounds of the 21st century.
We ranked the Top 25 Kenny Chesney songs using chart data, streaming and airplay numbers and staff/reader opinion. The year listed alongside the title is the year it was released as a radio single. The No. 1 song on this list exemplifies the best of what the Tennessee native is capable of.
Gallery Credit: Billy Dukes
PICTURES: See Inside Kenny Chesney’s Spectacular $11.5 Million Tennessee Estate
Kenny Chesney has sold his 4-bedroom, 9-bathroom, 12,599-square-foot hilltop estate in Tennessee for $11.5 million, and pictures show an opulent Mediterranean villa that is lavish even by the standards of other celebrity mansions.
Gallery Credit: Sterling Whitaker
A Grubhub Founder Wants to Change Your Flat Tire Now
Two roadside-assistance platforms merged last month and will be led by a group of former Grubhub executives.
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Deontay Wilder vs. Derek Chisora odds, predictions: Fight picks for April 4 from proven boxing expert
Former WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder returns to the ring to face Derek Chisora in a scheduled 12-round boxing main event on Saturday. Wilder is coming off a TKO win over Tyrrell Anthony Herndon on June 27, 2025, while Chisora is on a three-bout winning streak. He defeated Otto Wallin by unanimous decision on Feb. 8, 2025, in Manchester, England. The main card is set for 2 p.m. ET from 02 Arena in London and will be broadcast on DAZN.
Chisora is a -215 favorite (wager $215 to win $100), while Wilder comes back at +165 (wager $100 to win $165). The over/under for total rounds completed is 7.5. Before locking in your Deontay Wilder vs. Derek Chisora picks, make sure you see the boxing predictions and betting advice from SportsLine combat expert Josh Nagel.
Nagel, who is the combat sports editor for SportsLine, is an experienced and successful boxing analyst. He previously served as SportsLine’s main boxing analyst and covered the sport for multiple outlets for more than 20 years. He has recently returned to his role as SportsLine’s top boxing analyst and had a massively profitable 2025 campaign. Perhaps his biggest winner was calling Terence Crawford (+140) against Canelo Alvarez in their September mega fight, while also correctly advising SportsLine members to take Crawford specifically by decision (+220).
His other notable 2025 winners include calling Dimitry Bivol (+110) to pull the slight upset of Artur Beterbiev in their February rematch. In April, he correctly called Jarron Ennis to beat Eimantas Stanionis by KO (+155) while also correctly predicting the Under 10.5 rounds (+165). He also correctly predicted Jake Paul by decision (-110) against Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in June. He kept his hot streak going by recommending Katie Taylor (+170) against Amanda Serrano in their trilogy showdown in July. Anyone who has followed Nagel’s boxing picks this year could already be up more than $2,500.
Now, with the Wilder vs. Chisora fight card approaching, Nagel has studied the matchup from every angle and revealed his top betting picks and best bets. Head to SportsLine to see them.
Bet Wilder vs. Chisora with the latest FanDuel promo code.
Wilder vs. Chisora preview
Wilder, 40, is nicknamed Dr. Sleep. In 49 career bouts, he has gone 44-4, with 43 of those wins by knockout. He has also fought to one draw. The native of Alabama was a bronze medalist at heavyweight at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. He was a heavyweight champion at the 2007 Chattanooga Golden Gloves as well as the heavyweight champion at the 2007 National Championships at Colorado Springs, Colo.
He began his professional career in November 2008 with a second-round knockout of Ethan Cox. He would later go on to win the vacant WBC Continental Americas heavyweight championship in December 2012. He twice successfully defended that title, before defeating Bermane Stiverne for the WBC heavyweight crown in January 2015. He successfully defended that title 10 times before suffering his first loss to Tyson Fury in February 2020. Check out SportsLine to see Nagel’s picks and analysis.
Chisora, 42, has challenged twice for the WBC heavyweight title in 2012 and 2022. He has held multiple heavyweight championships at the regional level, including the British and Commonwealth crowns from 2010 to 2011. He also held the European championship from 2013 to 2014. His knockout-to-win percentage is 65%.
He began his professional career in February 2007. In 49 career fights, he has compiled a 36-13 record. Chisora has 23 wins by knockout and 13 by decision. On July 9, 2022, he earned a split decision win over Kubrat Pulev to win the vacant WBA International heavyweight championship. He is 3-1 since that fight. You can only see Nagel’s picks and analysis at SportsLine.
New to sports betting? Visit our DraftKings promo code review to see their latest offers and get started.
Deontay Wilder vs. Derek Chisora prop bets
One of of Nagel’s picks: He likes the fight to go Over 7.5 rounds. Both fighters are nearing the end of their careers and have much to prove. For Chisora, this is seen by many as a send-off bout into retirement. For Wilder, a win could put him back in the title picture.
Chisora has gone at least 10 rounds in each of his last eight fights, dating back to 2020. Wilder, meanwhile, has gone seven rounds or more in two of his last three fights, which includes a knockout win and knockout loss. He went the distance in a unanimous decision loss to Joseph Parker in December 2023. See Nagel’s other picks at SportsLine.
How to make Deontay Wilder vs. Derek Chisora picks
Nagel has locked in two other best bets, including a strong money-line play, and a plus-money method of victory bet He’s sharing them only at SportsLine.
Who wins Chisora vs. Wilder, and which method of victory prop presents massive value? Visit SportsLine now to see Josh Nagel’s best bets for the Saturday, April 4, heavyweight bout, all from the combat sports specialist who has covered the sport for more than 20 years, and find out.
Exclusive: Orbán challenger Magyar says election is a ‘referendum’ on Hungary’s place in the world
KISKUNHALAS, Hungary — Hungarian opposition leader Péter Magyar says a crucial election next week where he’s facing pro-Russian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán will be a “referendum” on whether Hungary continues on its drift toward Eastern autocracies, or can retake its place among the democratic societies of Europe.
Magyar, once an Orbán ally, poses the most serious threat to the nationalist prime minister’s hold on power since he took office in 2010.
In an exclusive interview with The Associated Press, Magyar said the European Union’s longest-serving leader has led the country on a “180-degree turn” in recent years, endangering its Western orientation while cozying up to Moscow.
Yet despite that drift, “Hungarians still see that Hungary’s peace and development are guaranteed by membership of the European Union and NATO,” Magyar said. “I think this really will be a referendum on our country’s place in the world.”
Magyar spoke to the AP on Thursday following an election rally by his center-right Tisza party in Kiskunhalas, a small city of around 25,000 on Hungary’s southern great plain. It was one of hundreds of rallies he’s held in settlements big and small across the country, a campaign blitz that has him visiting up to six towns a day ahead of the April 12 election.
Orbán has gained a reputation as an inveterate disruptor within the EU for his frequent vetoes of important decisions. He has campaigned by sounding the alarm on a myriad of external dangers he says are threatening Hungarians — the war in Ukraine, a cabal of EU bureaucrats and financial elites aligned against Hungary, and an immigration crisis ever on the horizon.
Magyar, who is leading in most polls, has focused on issues that affect voters’ everyday lives, like Hungary’s faltering state health care and public transportation sectors and what he describes as rampant government corruption.
At each of his rallies, he charges Orbán and his nationalist-populist Fidesz party with making Hungary the “poorest and most corrupt” country in the EU — and depicts a “peaceful, humane and functioning” country that is within reach.
Yet alongside that domestic message, Magyar has increasingly portrayed Orbán’s brinksmanship with the EU, and his drift toward Russia, as matters of critical importance for the country’s future.
“I think that Tisza will have an overwhelming electoral victory, because even Fidesz voters do not want our country to be a Russian puppet state, a colony, an assembly plant, instead of belonging to Europe,” he said.
Magyar and his party’s meteoric rise caught many Hungarians by surprise. For nearly a decade and a half, a broad slate of fractured opposition parties had tried and failed to mount a serious threat to Orbán’s hold on power.
While opposition politicians often slammed Orbán during debates in parliament, they rarely made efforts to win over his base of support in the rural countryside. Frustrated after a string of bitter losses, many opposition voters descended into political apathy.
Magyar, a 45-year-old lawyer and former Fidesz insider, was previously married to an Orbán ally who served as Hungary’s justice minister. After working for several years as a diplomat in Brussels, he returned to Hungary and took positions in state institutions, gaining familiarity with the workings of Orbán’s system.
But then, in the wake of a political scandal in 2024 involving a presidential pardon to an accomplice in a child sexual abuse case, Magyar publicly broke with Orbán’s party, accusing it of overseeing entrenched corruption and capturing Hungary’s institutions.
He quickly founded the center-right Tisza party — named for Hungary’s second-largest river — which, only four months after Magyar’s break into electoral politics, won 30% of the vote in European Parliament elections.
As Tisza’s popularity grew, a chant heard at its rallies became a motto for its rise: “The Tisza is flooding.”
While Magyar has cast his task in the election as dismantling Orbán’s autocratic system, he has promised to keep some of the prime minister’s policies he views as positive, such as a fence along the southern border to keep out migrants, and a popular utility reduction program.
Still, his party — a member of the European Parliament’s largest, center-right group — diverges from the constellation of far-right political movements in Europe and beyond that view Orbán as a shining example of nationalist populism in action.
In a sign of U.S. President Donald Trump and his MAGA movement’s admiration for Orbán, Vice President JD Vance is set to visit Budapest on Tuesday in support of his reelection.
Many EU leaders are watching Hungary’s election in the hopes that Orbán will be defeated.
His frequent vetoes — which most recently included blocking a major, 90-bill euro ($104-billion) EU loan for Ukraine — have often been to please his euroskeptic base, Magyar said, “vetoing just to veto so he can say at home that he is vetoing.”
The prime minister’s conduct has led to renewed calls within the EU to reform the bloc’s foundational treaties by reducing the number of decisions that require unanimity — a way to buttress against the paralysis that can be caused by intransigent member states.
Magyar said that under a Tisza government, European leaders can expect a “constructive position,” but one that is “critical and willing to debate. We want to be there at the table.”
Despite Orbán’s exploitation of the EU’s unanimity rules, the ability to veto important decisions is a “valid option,” he continued, adding: “I think the European leaders have no problem with this, they have a problem with the unnecessary troublemaker role.”
“The task of a Hungarian prime minister at any given time is to represent Hungarian interests, and if necessary, to represent them forcefully,” he said. “Whatever it costs.”
Orbán has confounded, and even angered, nearly every other EU leader with his conciliatory approach to Russia and closeness to President Vladimir Putin. Some EU officials, and many of his opponents at home, have accused him of forsaking his commitments to the bloc on Moscow’s behalf.
As nearly every EU country cut off supplies of Russian fossil fuels following the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Hungary, along with Slovakia, maintained and even increased supplies — drawing ire from many countries who accused them of helping finance the war.
While Magyar has condemned Hungary’s drift toward Moscow, as well as reports that Russian secret services are meddling in the election to tip it in Orbán’s favor, he said his future government will pursue a “pragmatic” approach toward Russia.
“Pragmatism means that we have no say in Russia’s internal affairs, and they don’t have any say in our affairs,” he said. “We are both sovereign countries, and we respect each other, but we don’t have to like each other.”
Magyar has criticized Orbán’s government for failing to diversify its energy mix, and advocated for reaching new agreements and constructing new infrastructure to bring oil and gas from other sources into landlocked Hungary.
Still, he said, “this does not mean that we must stop using Russian oil tomorrow. It means that the European Union’s resources must be used well.”
Humans journey to the moon for first time in over 50 years
Humans will travel to the moon’s orbit for the first time in more than 50 years as early as this week.Artemis II is a 10-day crewed test mission for NASA’s program to test the Orion spacecraft, establish a presence on the moon and begin further exploration to Mars. “Before Apollo, people only dreamed of what it would be like to go to the moon,” said Kevin Coggins, Deputy Associate Administrator for Space Communications and Navigation at NASA. “Now we’re going to go to the moon to stay and now we’re dreaming about what it’s going to be like to send humans and step foot on Mars.”Countdown to Artemis II launchThe Artemis II mission took off Wednesday evening from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida during the first availability window for April.If the launch didn’t occur in that time frame lasting until April 6, the next window wasn’t until April 30.The conditions for launch included various weather requirements for temperature, precipitation, lightning, clouds, wind and solar activity.The mission’s pathThe trajectory of the mission begins in an elliptical orbit around Earth, where systems will be checked and tests will be performed for future missions, including the manual piloting of the spacecraft Orion. After a series of burns, which are maneuvers to change the direction of a spacecraft, the crew will complete what is called the translunar injection burn to set Orion on course for the moon and into a free return trajectory. A free return trajectory uses the orbit of the moon and Earth to bring the spacecraft back around to Earth after taking a lap.The new Orion spacecraft The four-person crew embarking on the Artemis II mission will test run NASA’s new Orion spacecraft for deep space missions. The crew will test life support systems, propulsion, controls and more. The testing will help for future missions, which will land on the lunar surface. Orion is the spacecraft part of NASA’s new rocket called the Space Launch System (SLS). The system will power the Orion spacecraft to reach a speed of about 24,500 mph.The SLS was first tested in the non-crewed mission Artemis I in 2022, where the spacecraft went to the moon and back.The Orion crew module is 16.5 feet in diameter and can fit a crew of 4. The Apollo crew module could only fit three crew members and was 12.8 feet in diameter. The crewA possible space travel recordThe mission may also break the record for the farthest distances humans have traveled in space. The Apollo 13 mission, which was intended to be a lunar landing, ended up becoming the farthest distance for humans to travel in space at 248,655 miles away from Earth — or 158 miles above the lunar surface.Artemis II is expected to orbit above the far side of the moon from 4,000 to 6,000 miles away from the lunar surface.
WASHINGTON —
Humans will travel to the moon’s orbit for the first time in more than 50 years as early as this week.
Artemis II is a 10-day crewed test mission for NASA’s program to test the Orion spacecraft, establish a presence on the moon and begin further exploration to Mars.
“Before Apollo, people only dreamed of what it would be like to go to the moon,” said Kevin Coggins, Deputy Associate Administrator for Space Communications and Navigation at NASA. “Now we’re going to go to the moon to stay and now we’re dreaming about what it’s going to be like to send humans and step foot on Mars.”
Countdown to Artemis II launch
The Artemis II mission took off Wednesday evening from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida during the first availability window for April.
If the launch didn’t occur in that time frame lasting until April 6, the next window wasn’t until April 30.
The conditions for launch included various weather requirements for temperature, precipitation, lightning, clouds, wind and solar activity.
The mission’s path
The trajectory of the mission begins in an elliptical orbit around Earth, where systems will be checked and tests will be performed for future missions, including the manual piloting of the spacecraft Orion.
After a series of burns, which are maneuvers to change the direction of a spacecraft, the crew will complete what is called the translunar injection burn to set Orion on course for the moon and into a free return trajectory.
A free return trajectory uses the orbit of the moon and Earth to bring the spacecraft back around to Earth after taking a lap.
The new Orion spacecraft
The four-person crew embarking on the Artemis II mission will test run NASA’s new Orion spacecraft for deep space missions.
The crew will test life support systems, propulsion, controls and more. The testing will help for future missions, which will land on the lunar surface.
Orion is the spacecraft part of NASA’s new rocket called the Space Launch System (SLS). The system will power the Orion spacecraft to reach a speed of about 24,500 mph.
The SLS was first tested in the non-crewed mission Artemis I in 2022, where the spacecraft went to the moon and back.
The Orion crew module is 16.5 feet in diameter and can fit a crew of 4. The Apollo crew module could only fit three crew members and was 12.8 feet in diameter.
The crew
A possible space travel record
The mission may also break the record for the farthest distances humans have traveled in space.
The Apollo 13 mission, which was intended to be a lunar landing, ended up becoming the farthest distance for humans to travel in space at 248,655 miles away from Earth — or 158 miles above the lunar surface.
Artemis II is expected to orbit above the far side of the moon from 4,000 to 6,000 miles away from the lunar surface.
Taylor Swift + Travis Kelce’s Updated Wedding Plans: What We Know
We do know that Taylor Swift‘s fiancé, Travis Kelce, will be playing another year in the NFL. But what we don’t know for certain yet is whether he’ll be playing with a ring on his ring finger.
As of late, there have been some developments in the unfolding wedding plans for the two lovebirds, and we’re here to break it all down.
Everything We Know About Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s Wedding
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce might be getting married by the end of summer 2026. One reason: Kelce is playing another year of football, which could rule out a fall wedding since he’ll be fully in season.
That would suggest a timeline anywhere between now and the start of football season on Sept. 9 — putting a wedding near the end of summer. Of course, they could enjoy a longer engagement.
In a January 2025 episode of New Heights — months before he and Swift got engaged — Kelce shared his thoughts on fall weddings, noting how they conflict with football season.
“I actually don’t know people who have gotten married in the fall. All the weddings I’ve been to — all my friends do it in the summer.”
Read More: 13 Country Artists Who Should Totally Play at Taylor Swift’s Wedding
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce Will Most Likely Not Have a Wedding DJ
Let’s just say — sorry in advance to any local wedding DJs hoping for the gig of a lifetime — but the couple has already hinted they’re leaning toward live music.
Back in 2025, Kelce told Jimmy Fallon, when asked about having a DJ, “Yeah, I think we’re live music kind of people, you know?”
According to Billboard, in an October interview, Swift alluded to the idea that her close friend and collaborator Ed Sheeran could take the stage during the wedding festivities.
“It’s like, ‘Ed, if there’s a stage, you know that you’ll be on it,'” Swift said. “He knows what people want, and he wants to give people what they want.”
Their Guest List Will Be Quite Long
On the Graham Norton Show, after Swift jokingly invited Norton himself, she admitted that one of the most stressful parts of wedding planning is whittling down the guest list — though that might not be an issue for her.
Swift said she’ll be inviting “anyone I’ve ever talked to.”
Swift and Kelce most recently made their award show debut as a couple at the iHeartRadio Awards in March, reminding everyone they’re still a power couple — just one that hasn’t tied the knot yet.
That naturally sparked more questions — even for Kelce’s mom, who was recently hounded at LAX about the couple’s wedding plans.
Kelce’s mother, Donna Kelce, declined to share any details about her potential involvement in the planning when approached by a photographer.
“I’m just happy,” she said. “I’m so happy for them.”
13 Artists We’d Love to See Play Taylor Swift’s Wedding
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are getting married! Although details about the wedding have yet to be revealed, we think there will be plenty of musical talent in the reception ballroom. So, we compiled a list of country artists we believe would be perfect to perform at what many are calling “America’s Royal Wedding.”
Gallery Credit: Jess Rose
Taylor Swift’s Best Pictures From Travis Kelce’s Super Bowl Season
Taylor Swift‘s love of the Kansas City Chiefs seems to mirror her love of boyfriend Travis Kelce. At first, she was a little awkward, but by the end of the season, she’d grown passionate for both.
Here are 29 of the best pictures of Swift and her posse from this NFL season and playoffs. There is one more game to go, but it’s not clear if she’ll make it to the Super Bowl since she has a concert in Tokyo the night before. Either way, watch as her fandom gains confidence and friends.
Gallery Credit: Billy Dukes
Opinion | The Blue State Exodus Enriches Red States
Between 2012 and 2023, high-tax states lost a massive amount of taxable income to low-tax states.
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UNC not in men’s Final Four but still looms large
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Dan Wetzel
Multiple Authors
It’s been over a week since North Carolina fired basketball coach Hubert Davis. Since then, there have been few updates on the Tar Heels’ coaching search.
The silence is deafening, so deafening that despite a dynamic men’s Final Four in Indianapolis this weekend — UConn vs. Illinois, Arizona vs. Michigan — UNC will be a primary topic of discussion, from power broker-filled downtown bars to news conferences in Lucas Oil Stadium, with up to three potential targets involved among the four head coaches.
“People are going to speculate all they want,” Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd said Tuesday. “This team has my full focus. Nothing, nothing, I promise you — nothing — is knocking me off that path.”
There is no doubt Lloyd is all about leading the Wildcats to a national title. What he said also wasn’t a denial of interest in the job.
And it is just the start, not just for Lloyd, but Michigan’s Dusty May and even, perhaps, Connecticut’s Dan Hurley. (Illinois’ Brad Underwood is not believed to be on the radar).
The belief is UNC is willing to go “outside the family” — i.e., a non-alumni or former assistant — for the first time since 1952, when it hired St. John’s coach Frank McGuire.
If it wanted anyone else outside the Final Four teams, then this would likely be over. Yet, sources across the sport say Carolina has done little to no outreach to perceived second-tier candidates, suggesting that barring a surprise, they are waiting to talk to their top choice(s).
Meanwhile, there is the transfer portal, which is how rosters are increasingly built. It opens Tuesday. If someone isn’t in place by then — much of the work is actually already being done — then the prospects for next season are already troubling. So what else would explain the delay?
Someone among Lloyd, May and/or Hurley must be the target.
Chicago Bulls coach Billy Donovan’s name has been floated, but even if he wanted to leave the NBA, there is little chance he would do so before the end of the season on April 12. That makes his timing, portal-wise at least, even worse.
No fan wants to hear their coach linked to an opening. However, in an era where rosters are increasingly year-to-year deals, the impact of such talk is less likely to rattle a locker room.
Maybe the better question is whether any of them would actually go, rather than using the one-sided interest to garner a raise?
UNC remains a special place, and again can be a great program, but this isn’t 10 years ago, let alone 25.
The parts that made it elite — tradition, the ACC, the Duke rivalry, television exposure, fan attention, shoe company alignment, etc. — matter less. Money for players, style of play and personality of the coach matter more.
That certainly doesn’t make every job even — it’s still Carolina — but the gap likely isn’t as wide.
In the extreme, consider Hurley, who can win his third title in four years, which would be more than the two that Smith won across 36 seasons in Chapel Hill. It also would be UConn’s seventh national championship since 1999, or one more than UNC has ever won.
How isn’t UConn the best program in the country, especially for Hurley, whose general demeanor could be described as outraged New York City taxi driver?
That works in the Northeast. Maybe not elsewhere.
As for Lloyd and May, why leave places that have already proved capable of providing the resources and support to construct powerhouse teams? These aren’t upstart clubs on unexpected, underdog Final Four runs. They’ve been dominant all season.
What resources can UNC provide that they don’t currently enjoy? How much better can they get? And on the flip side, what hidden hurdles await in Chapel Hill, political or otherwise?
There is the matter of money. Lloyd (about $5.2 million annually) and May ($5.1 million) have room to climb before hitting the level of Hurley ($7.7 million) or industry leader Bill Self of Kansas ($8.8 million).
However, Arizona AD Desiree Reed-Francois and Michigan AD Warde Manuel have been public about their willingness to rework contracts.
Manuel, whose department is in the middle of an independent review of its practices following a series of mostly football scandals, would seem particularly averse to seeing a bright, popular young coach leave on his watch.
Looming over everything is the opening of the portal just minutes after the conclusion of Monday’s national title game. Not only does Carolina need a coach ASAP but if one of the coaches mentioned were to leave, their old spot would have to scramble. The calendar is chaotic.
So here come the whispers and speculation and news conference questions — a Carolina blue backdrop to the Final Four.
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