I have ten minutes to write this post. Here goes:
Today I am heading down in the general direction of Starkville to catch the Cats tomorrow night. This year's road trip features my football fanatic son, 7 year old Ethan and my fun loving Uncle Scott, who just decided to come with us a couple of days ago.
We are 6.5 point dogs in this game. This seemed high until I saw a pretty harrowing stat this week. We have given up 26 touchdowns this year. Mississippi State has given up 6. Kentucky's opponents are basically playing on an 80 yard field as we have essentially no red zone stops all year.
That said, I think we have a fighting chance in this game if the D can hold its ground just a few times. The Dawgs barely beat UAB last week, so it isn't as if they are infallible. Also, with King, Matthews and Cobb all ready to go, I just don't see them holding us down completely. The Cats will get to the mid-twenties at least. Where it goes from there is anyone's guess.
Tonight we are staying in Birmingham, AL so that I can drive through Tuscaloosa tomorrow on my way to Starkville. Though I spent parts of my childhood in Kentucky and most of it in San Diego, I lived in Tuscaloosa for four or five years while my Dad was at the University of Alabama. It was a good time in my football fan development as he took me to the games in the 1979 championship year, and I can also remember Alabama's shared national championship year in 1978.
So even though we aren't playing Alabama tomorrow, I am going to replicate our walks to the game with my son, snap a picture at Denny Chimes, drive by my old house and get on the road to Starkville.
When I asked my friend this week what there was to do in Starkville he replied, "Watch Football". I am not sure what we'll do when we get there but we'll have fun doing it.
After the game Saturday we'll make a tired hour long trek to Tupelo where there is a musty Howard Johnson's bed waiting for me.
*Anyone think you'd ever hear a radio show talking about Mike Hartline's draft status? I did today. What a great story Hartline has been.
*The bowl picture in the SEC is going to get a lot clearer after tomorrow. This is probably the Cats' last chance to rise above the Tennesse bowl scene. Also, the World's Largest Cocktail party will be huge for the winner, who'll have an inside track at a New Year's Day Bowl despite the fact that neither team has had much of a year.
*I am putting Auburn on upset alert. Even setting aside that the #1 has lost three weeks in a row, the Tigers trip to Oxford has all the trappings of a spit the bit game. If Auburn loses, there is a creeper of a chance that the SEC will not get two BCS bids. That would be bad for other SEC teams, espectially one that might only get to 6-6.
Friday, October 29, 2010
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Where we are
First off, I am taking my son down to Starkville this weekend for the game. I'm very excited about this and the trip will get its own separate post this week and hopefully a wrapup post next week. We are going to make our own fun. My friend Chuck put it best when I asked him what there was to do in Starkville, "Watch football." Still, I'll end up breaking it all down before and after.
With that said, it does appear that UK Football Fan is on its last legs. While I really appreciate the people who are still reading, I've lost some interest in the project somewhere along the way. It has nothing to do with the team or this season, it is more the writing aspect that has me. I'm not happy with the product and just don't think it is fresh or interesting. I'm so passionate and nerdily well informed about the topic that the writing is dry. Also, the site is never going to reach a wide audience if it isn't updated regularly, which is not something I don't have the time or inclination to do.
My failure to post anything about the South Carolina win was the deathknell. That was a #1 or #2 moment in Commonwealth for me. Right up there with Louisville 07. If not for a time like that, there isn't any point in having a fan site.
I will continue to post content occasionally, particularly as it relates to the SEC bowl picture, always my favorite line of discussion. But we are certainly running out of steam. Again, thanks for reading.
With that said, it does appear that UK Football Fan is on its last legs. While I really appreciate the people who are still reading, I've lost some interest in the project somewhere along the way. It has nothing to do with the team or this season, it is more the writing aspect that has me. I'm not happy with the product and just don't think it is fresh or interesting. I'm so passionate and nerdily well informed about the topic that the writing is dry. Also, the site is never going to reach a wide audience if it isn't updated regularly, which is not something I don't have the time or inclination to do.
My failure to post anything about the South Carolina win was the deathknell. That was a #1 or #2 moment in Commonwealth for me. Right up there with Louisville 07. If not for a time like that, there isn't any point in having a fan site.
I will continue to post content occasionally, particularly as it relates to the SEC bowl picture, always my favorite line of discussion. But we are certainly running out of steam. Again, thanks for reading.
Friday, October 15, 2010
UK-USC video post
Here is the video referred to in the above post in case you missed it last weekend. In Garcia's defense, he did beat the #1 team in the country that day
Good Karma Friday
This post started as a comment to a post made by Bryan the Intern on Kentucky Sports Radio where he chronicalled the admittedly staggering number of heartbreaking losses the Wildcats have sustained over the last 8 years. My point is that in the new Kentucky era 2006-present, we have had just as many wins where we got the good bounces or made out own luck in the end. Because I put some time into researching it, I reprint it here. Here are some good moments to think about to psyche yourself up for tomorrow's game:
2009
1. UK scores 14 points off of 4 second half Ga. turnovers to win 34-27
2. UK beats Auburn 21-14 on 2 fourth quarter TDs after trailing almost entire game
3. Beat Vandy 24-13 after trailing at halftime
2008
4. Win Liberty bowl 25-19 with Ventrell Jenkins scoring the game winner on a fumble recovery
5. Miracle 21-20 win over Arkansas with two TDs in final minutes
6. Shoestring tackle by backup DB preserves win against Middle Tennessee
7. Block extra point and watch opposing field goal kicker miss 27 yarder, both in the 4Q to win 14-13 at Miss St.
2007
8. Triple overtime win over then #1 LSU
9. Trailing 29-21 with 11:40 left, Cats score final 21 points of game to beat Arkansas
10. Stevie gets looooose!
2006
11. Avoided disaster by stuffing 2 point conversion with a minute left that would have tied game with Louisianna-Monroe at 42 all.
12. Beat Georgia on a go ahead TD by Tony Dixon with 1:21 left. We trailed 14-3 in this game at one point.
2009
1. UK scores 14 points off of 4 second half Ga. turnovers to win 34-27
2. UK beats Auburn 21-14 on 2 fourth quarter TDs after trailing almost entire game
3. Beat Vandy 24-13 after trailing at halftime
2008
4. Win Liberty bowl 25-19 with Ventrell Jenkins scoring the game winner on a fumble recovery
5. Miracle 21-20 win over Arkansas with two TDs in final minutes
6. Shoestring tackle by backup DB preserves win against Middle Tennessee
7. Block extra point and watch opposing field goal kicker miss 27 yarder, both in the 4Q to win 14-13 at Miss St.
2007
8. Triple overtime win over then #1 LSU
9. Trailing 29-21 with 11:40 left, Cats score final 21 points of game to beat Arkansas
10. Stevie gets looooose!
2006
11. Avoided disaster by stuffing 2 point conversion with a minute left that would have tied game with Louisianna-Monroe at 42 all.
12. Beat Georgia on a go ahead TD by Tony Dixon with 1:21 left. We trailed 14-3 in this game at one point.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Defensive woes continue
UK Football Fan was on hiatus last week as the Floridays Resort in Orlando, for all of its virtues, did not have wifi in the room. I generally haven't summarized games this year but must say this one really hurt. We haven't had too many chances to beat top 10 teams here recently, especially at a time when our program so desperately needed a win. Auburn's final drive had an air of inevitability about it that made it particularly hard to watch. Once Newton completed that miracle pass on 3rd and 9 early in the drive, you and I both knew that the Tigers were going to methodically march down the field and score with little or no time left on the clock. The Cats sit at 3-3, which is exactly where I predicted they'd be at this point. So why does it feel like such a letdown? Several reasons.
I had Ole Miss pegged as a decent team, which it is not. A good football team should not have lost to them on October 2. Second, I wasn't expecting Mike Hartline to play as well as he has. To put it in perspective, his 143.5 QB rating is ahead of any full season rating Jared Lorenzen ever had here and within one point of the Andre Woodson's 2007 rating. If you'd told me Hartline would throw for at least 200 yards in every game, with only one non-Florida interception to this point, I would have thought the Cats were on their way to a nine win season.
But the biggest reason I feel let down with 3-3 is the realization that our defense is pretty bad, and it is bad in ways that aren't likely to be fixed before the end of the year. Steve Brown is taking a lot of criticism this week, and some of it is warranted. After all the defenses Cameron Newton has torched this year, Kentucky had to game plan to stop him. Clearly it didn't. The Cats seemed unaware that he would keep the ball on the majority of plays. If you've watched film, how could you not know that. Also, allowing Trey Burton to score 6 TDs for Florida, 4 of which were out of the same play, is inexcusable. That isn't good preparation.
But it is also poor tackling. Unlike in the Mumme era, I think these players do practice tackling. Unfortunately, most of them aren't "SEC starter" good at it. Danny Trevathan has been a 5 star beast. It is hard to imagine how bad our defense would be without him. But, and I hate to say this in this forum, that is kind of where the party ends right now.
The Cats next three best players on D were supposed to be DeQuin Evans, Winston Guy and Rickey Lumpkin, in that order. Evans has fallen into a wormhole, with only one sack, averaging a tackle a game, and committing numerous stupid penalties. Guy has been solid, if decidedly unspectacular. He did make a key play with an interception against Auburn, the first of his career. For a kid with that kind of talent, that play needs to be the rule and not the exception. Lumpkin has been outperformed by Mark Crawford and Luke McDermott, who wasn't even supposed to be a contributor on this year's team.
The secondary play has been fair, with Martavious Neloms, Anthony Mosely and Mychal Bailey stepping up as contributors. But the front seven outside of Travathan has been woefully unproductive. That is what happens when the teams loses the likes of Corey Peters, Micah Johnson and Sam Maxwell and guys like Mister Cobble and Matt Lentz (who would have started at OLB or safty) aren't able to play for various reasons. Throw in the loss of Paul Warford, and the ranks are just a little thin. Brown can only play the hand he is dealt.
I hope for improvement, because some of our talented guys aren't really producing, but I also know things don't get any easier this week. For Steve Brown and his defense, it will continue to be a wild ride.
I had Ole Miss pegged as a decent team, which it is not. A good football team should not have lost to them on October 2. Second, I wasn't expecting Mike Hartline to play as well as he has. To put it in perspective, his 143.5 QB rating is ahead of any full season rating Jared Lorenzen ever had here and within one point of the Andre Woodson's 2007 rating. If you'd told me Hartline would throw for at least 200 yards in every game, with only one non-Florida interception to this point, I would have thought the Cats were on their way to a nine win season.
But the biggest reason I feel let down with 3-3 is the realization that our defense is pretty bad, and it is bad in ways that aren't likely to be fixed before the end of the year. Steve Brown is taking a lot of criticism this week, and some of it is warranted. After all the defenses Cameron Newton has torched this year, Kentucky had to game plan to stop him. Clearly it didn't. The Cats seemed unaware that he would keep the ball on the majority of plays. If you've watched film, how could you not know that. Also, allowing Trey Burton to score 6 TDs for Florida, 4 of which were out of the same play, is inexcusable. That isn't good preparation.
But it is also poor tackling. Unlike in the Mumme era, I think these players do practice tackling. Unfortunately, most of them aren't "SEC starter" good at it. Danny Trevathan has been a 5 star beast. It is hard to imagine how bad our defense would be without him. But, and I hate to say this in this forum, that is kind of where the party ends right now.
The Cats next three best players on D were supposed to be DeQuin Evans, Winston Guy and Rickey Lumpkin, in that order. Evans has fallen into a wormhole, with only one sack, averaging a tackle a game, and committing numerous stupid penalties. Guy has been solid, if decidedly unspectacular. He did make a key play with an interception against Auburn, the first of his career. For a kid with that kind of talent, that play needs to be the rule and not the exception. Lumpkin has been outperformed by Mark Crawford and Luke McDermott, who wasn't even supposed to be a contributor on this year's team.
The secondary play has been fair, with Martavious Neloms, Anthony Mosely and Mychal Bailey stepping up as contributors. But the front seven outside of Travathan has been woefully unproductive. That is what happens when the teams loses the likes of Corey Peters, Micah Johnson and Sam Maxwell and guys like Mister Cobble and Matt Lentz (who would have started at OLB or safty) aren't able to play for various reasons. Throw in the loss of Paul Warford, and the ranks are just a little thin. Brown can only play the hand he is dealt.
I hope for improvement, because some of our talented guys aren't really producing, but I also know things don't get any easier this week. For Steve Brown and his defense, it will continue to be a wild ride.
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Friday, October 1, 2010
Look at the week after Florida 2006-2009
Yesterday I alluded to a hypothesis about our annual beatdown by Florida. My feeling is that the game generally has little to do with what happens the rest of the season. The possible reasons for this are hard to swallow, it is either about an ever present and insurmountable talent gap or that this is the one game, year in and year out, that the Cats don't believe they can win. Whatever the reason, I thought it might be interesting to test the hypothesis by looking at the week after Florida in the New Kentucky (2006-present) era.
September 23, 2006
Lost at Florida 26-7 to fall to 2-2. Cats played okay against eventual national champs. Were winning the game 7-6 with a minute left in the first half.
Following Week
UK defeats Dan LeFevour led Central Michigan 45-36. After a weak game against the Gators, Andre Woodson and the UK offense came alive with four TDs through the air.
Rest of the story
UK would sustain a 24-17 home loss to USC the next week, then suffer a now well chronicled 49-0 beat down at LSU before going on a streak that would usher in a series of four straight bowl trips.
October 20, 2007
In one of the most electric games in Commonwealth Stadium history, then #7 (but 7pt. underdog) Cats lose 45-37 to eventual Heisman trophy winner Tim Tebow and a Gator team that would finish the season 9-4. This was the week after the epic LSU win with the Gameday crew in tow. Cats fall to 6-2 and drop to #15 or thereabouts the following week.
Following Week
UK crapped the bed with a 31-14 home loss to Mississippi State, arguably ruining what could have been a pretty special season.
Rest of the story
Cats limped home the rest of the way (1- 2 with Vandy the lone victory) before scoring an anticlimactic MCB win over depleted Florida State.
October 25, 2008
Cats fall 63-5 at the Swamp in the most embarrassing loss of the Cats' four year bowl run. If you don't remember this game, here are three words for you, "blocked punt orgy". We were riding pretty high coming into this game, having just scored our fifth win with an improbable comeback against Arkansas.
Following week
UK wins 14-13 uglyfest at Mississippi State. Get bowl eligible at 6-3.
Rest of the story
Regular season falls apart when Cats let one get away against Georgia then play abysmally against the Tennessee schools. Fun comeback win against East Carolina in Liberty ends season on a high note.
October 26, 2009
Cats look like crap again in a 41-7 home loss. Sole highlight of the game comes when Tim Tebow gets absolutely laid out by Taylor Windham, but even that moment is ruined by the aftermath when the icon remained motionless for what seemed like an hour. Moment redeemed somewhat by him barfing in a bag.
Following week
Crappy scheduling, Cats look better, but still take a beating from eventual national champion Alabama.
Rest of the story
Switch gets flipped the following week when Hartline goes out for the season in a tight loss to USC. Cats pull off a couple of sweet road upsets and go 5-2 the rest of the regular season.
Analysis: UK has competed once in this game in four years, and had its worst finish despite having had its best team. Otherwise, we've managed to play pretty well the following week and in 2006 and 2009, we put a crappy game behind us to finish the whole season strong.
Now lets go beat Ole Miss.
September 23, 2006
Lost at Florida 26-7 to fall to 2-2. Cats played okay against eventual national champs. Were winning the game 7-6 with a minute left in the first half.
Following Week
UK defeats Dan LeFevour led Central Michigan 45-36. After a weak game against the Gators, Andre Woodson and the UK offense came alive with four TDs through the air.
Rest of the story
UK would sustain a 24-17 home loss to USC the next week, then suffer a now well chronicled 49-0 beat down at LSU before going on a streak that would usher in a series of four straight bowl trips.
October 20, 2007
In one of the most electric games in Commonwealth Stadium history, then #7 (but 7pt. underdog) Cats lose 45-37 to eventual Heisman trophy winner Tim Tebow and a Gator team that would finish the season 9-4. This was the week after the epic LSU win with the Gameday crew in tow. Cats fall to 6-2 and drop to #15 or thereabouts the following week.
Following Week
UK crapped the bed with a 31-14 home loss to Mississippi State, arguably ruining what could have been a pretty special season.
Rest of the story
Cats limped home the rest of the way (1- 2 with Vandy the lone victory) before scoring an anticlimactic MCB win over depleted Florida State.
October 25, 2008
Cats fall 63-5 at the Swamp in the most embarrassing loss of the Cats' four year bowl run. If you don't remember this game, here are three words for you, "blocked punt orgy". We were riding pretty high coming into this game, having just scored our fifth win with an improbable comeback against Arkansas.
Following week
UK wins 14-13 uglyfest at Mississippi State. Get bowl eligible at 6-3.
Rest of the story
Regular season falls apart when Cats let one get away against Georgia then play abysmally against the Tennessee schools. Fun comeback win against East Carolina in Liberty ends season on a high note.
October 26, 2009
Cats look like crap again in a 41-7 home loss. Sole highlight of the game comes when Tim Tebow gets absolutely laid out by Taylor Windham, but even that moment is ruined by the aftermath when the icon remained motionless for what seemed like an hour. Moment redeemed somewhat by him barfing in a bag.
Following week
Crappy scheduling, Cats look better, but still take a beating from eventual national champion Alabama.
Rest of the story
Switch gets flipped the following week when Hartline goes out for the season in a tight loss to USC. Cats pull off a couple of sweet road upsets and go 5-2 the rest of the regular season.
Analysis: UK has competed once in this game in four years, and had its worst finish despite having had its best team. Otherwise, we've managed to play pretty well the following week and in 2006 and 2009, we put a crappy game behind us to finish the whole season strong.
Now lets go beat Ole Miss.
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