The 137th running of the Kentucky Derby will take place this Saturday. We won't know the draw until Wednesday but we do know who the horses will be.
Since there's no horse named Dougmarronesthighs, Sal Teen War Eor or anything so perfect, it's hard for Syracuse fans to know which horse is the right horse to put down their hard-earned money on to win. Let's see if we can narrow things down.
If You're Choosing Based On Name...
You have to go with Shackleford. Perhaps the horse isn't named for former Syracuse basketball player Dale Shackleford, but we'd like to think so. Dale averaged 14 PPG for the Orangemen his junior and senior seasons, though he was overshadowed by the Louie & Bouie Show. Consider this Shackies Revenge.
Some other options include, Master of Hounds, which is what we'd like Syracuse to be when they play UConn (and I'm pretty sure that's what Mookie Jones calls himself in his head), or if you're feeling whistful, go with Watch Me Go and shed a tear for all the former Orange greats you've watched move on to the next level...where their careers falls short and they eventually head to someplace like Laos so they can win some basketball games.
If You're Choosing Based On Colors...
You have no choice but to root for Uncle Mo. Sorry, he's not sharing his family feedbag, but he will rep the Cuse proud in his orange & blue colors.
Another option, if you're feeling old school, is Midnight Interlude. 'Lude will be sporting pea green and pink, which were the original colors of Syracuse University. If you're looking for a color-based Exacta, you just found it.
If You're Choosing Based On Jockey Name...
Pickings are slim. There's no obvious tie-ins. About the best I can do is suggest Archarcharch, whose jockey is Jon Court. You see, Syracuse plays basketball on a court, so...ugh, you know what, forget this one.
Of course, I suppose you could make educated decisions based on record, age and other practical insights, but, where's the fun in that?
Spencer Hall is getting to know every horse over at the Mothership. Meanwhile keep an eye on the SB Nation Kentucky Derby stream all week and visit our horse racing blog, And Down The Stretch They Come.