The number 23 has special significance in our great game of basketball – think of Michael before and LeBron now. So it’s quite fitting that we launch CoachCal.com today, July 23, 2009. My hope is that this website will have special significance for you, the loyal and dedicated UK basketball fan.

First, please understand we are launching the site in the BETA – or testing – phase. There will still be some kinks to work out and enhancements to introduce, but for now we are counting on you to help us work through some of the early hiccups any new website encounters. If you find something not working right, misplaced items or any kind of snafu, please let me know by emailing me at: coach@coachcal.com. Together, we will build a better site.

As with my Twittering, where we have already broken all kinds of new ground, there will be a learning curve with this website and I need each of you to help to educate one another so we can build this site – and this program – into the envy of college basketball fans everywhere.

Second, you need to know that this site is completely independent from UK Athletics. While we are certainly working with UKAA and the University in a cooperative manner to ensure we don’t duplicate any of the outstanding work they do. Mitch Barnhart’s support and that of his staff and the staff of IMG has been instrumental in bringing us to this special date. However, CoachCal.com is an entity owned entirely by me and run by Nashville-based Digome (pronounced ‘dee-goh-may’).

As you can imagine, there are substantial costs associated with development of the website, the website’s hosting, the bandwidth for video viewing, video production itself, content capture and management and many other facets of running a top-rate website. This is why we have created what we believe to be affordable and comprehensive membership levels to help you have a unique user experience with each and every visit to CoachCal.com. (Please remember my current, 450,000-plus Twitter followers get a LIMITED TIME 15% discount on the yearly membership categories as well as pre-orders on signed copies of “Bounce Back,” which releases on September 1.)

We think we’re creating something special with CoachCal.com and we know you will agree. As our virtual community builds and evolves, we will re-define the way in which true fans are able to interact with their team and their coach. We want you to have an unobstructed view into UK Basketball, but in order for that to happen, you have to respect what we are doing and how we do it so we can protect the best interests of our student-athletes, our University and the Commonwealth. I urge you to keep that in mind as the season evolves.

I’ve been saying it all summer long, wherever I go and I’ll say it again now: I am honored and humbled to be your basketball coach and I take the position and all its responsibilities very seriously. This website is a key component in allowing us all to share in the proud tradition and the fabulous future of UK Basketball.

Go Big Blue!