Kentucky Sports Radio
[Moderated by Matt Jones, Drew Franklin and Tyler Thompson]
[Moderated by Matt Jones, Drew Franklin and Tyler Thompson]
Bad. Dog.
Let’s dive in to a few points about the gut-wrenching loss to Georgia:
–Obviously the story of the game was the early turnovers. Three first half fumbles led to two Georgia touchdowns, and Kentucky never recovered from being down 28-3 after they were finished putting the ball on the ground. Unfortunately the stretch was painfully reminiscent of Kentucky’s recent first-half woes, only this time there was to be no big second-half rally to go along with it. You’re not going to win many SEC games by repeatedly turning the ball over in your own territory and giving up special teams touchdowns, a fact that was all too apparent tonight.
–The turnovers were particularly tough to stomach because the team’s offensive weapons had pretty good games. Mike Hartline was 27-of-43 for 353 yards and 4 touchdowns, with one pick that was more poorly timed than an awful throw, although it hurt badly either way. La’Rod King and Chris Matthews continued the strong play of the receiving corps, as both went for over 80 yards and King snagged two great touchdown catches before leaving with an injury. Randall Cobb had seven catches, although the lack of touches for Cobb, especially in key short-yardage situations, will no doubt be a talking point going forward. Raymond Sanders was also a bright spot, as he put up over 150 total yards with a receiving touchdown, although there’s still no question we need Derrick Locke back in a bad way.
–As impressive as some of the offensive playmakers were for the Cats, the defense was equally underwhelming. Although the O continually put the defense in terrible holes, it’s tough to try and paint a rosy picture when a guy ties the single-game rushing touchdown record for his school on your field. The defense isn’t entirely responsible for the 44 points, but they did little to slow down the Dogs regardless.
–Following along a little with that theme, the lines on both sides of the ball were less than impressive. The offensive unit managed a 2.3 yard-per-carry average and Mike Hartline was under pressure for the whole game, getting sacked four times. Conversely, UK’s defensive line got no pressure and no sacks of Aaron Murray and allowed 4.5 yards-per-carry themselves, losing the battle of the trenches by such a margin that there was almost no hope of overcoming it.
–In what comes along with any loss, there will be plenty of questions about many of the coaching decisions from the loss. Especially in some short-yardage situations, the playcalling left a little to be desired. After a miscommunication that led to a broken play, Joker’s decision to go for a 4th-and-1 inside UK’s own 40, down 14-3 in the first quarter was questionable in and of itself. The playcall of a Mike Hartline sneak was something more than questionable, given how automatic Randall Cobb usually is in those situations, and the reverse pass on a later 3rd and 2 also raised some eyebrows. That’s not to mention the consistency with which the Cats ended up in 3rd and long, and altogether the role that the playcalling played in the loss will be fodder for discussion in the week ahead.
–While the loss stings, it doesn’t necessarily spell the end of the season for the Cats as they can still make a step forward in terms of bowl prestige despite the 1-4 SEC start. However, next week’s game against Mississippi State takes on a whole new significance. If the Cats win and take care of Charleston Southern and Vandy before travelling to Knoxville, eight wins is in play and so is a non-Tennessee bowl trip. If they lose, the rest of the games become absolute must-wins and the season risks shifting from disappointing to depressing.
So turnovers and mental lapses undo the Cats, meaning it’s one step forward and two steps back after last week’s huge win over South Carolina. Visions of competing in the Eastern division race have danced away, replaced by an added pressure for the rest of the year to make this season the and step forward we’re all hoping for. Come back tomorrow as BTI takes you through your Sunday. Stay tuned.
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Bill Keightley Report : Never to be forgotten.
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October 24th, 2010 at 1:12 am
1st
October 24th, 2010 at 1:24 am
Randall Cobb was right, why on earth would we be leaving early?
October 24th, 2010 at 1:25 am
Since I already stated my comments about the game in the previous blog post….umm, kinda cool to see their mascot UGA make the trip from Athens. just sayin’
October 24th, 2010 at 1:26 am
Oh…and hell yeah, free enes.
October 24th, 2010 at 1:35 am
too much second guessing down 14-3 4th and one nothing wrong with going for that.And the miscommunication mightve had more to do with locke being hurt and having to start a freshman running back.Many reasons we lost this one turnovers being the biggest but i actually liked the playcalling and dont see how we can pin this one on ol joker
October 24th, 2010 at 1:56 am
8 days to basketball!!!!
October 24th, 2010 at 2:09 am
funny how everyone griped for games and games about how Joker’s play calling was too conservative, and now everyone’s griping because he is changing things up. i had no problem with the play calling and hope to see more of it going forward.
October 24th, 2010 at 2:21 am
UK football will always be UK football.
October 24th, 2010 at 2:49 am
^agreed
October 24th, 2010 at 4:01 am
Play calling was fine for everything I watched (had a friends birthday party to go get drunk at and that seemed like a better thing to do than watch the last 10 minutes). I like the aggressiveness even though it didn’t pay off. The problem obviously was turnovers and absolutely horrible run defense which I’ve been saying is a problem for the last 3 years. It’s awful. We can’t stop any running back… at all…. one bit. It’s depressing, it really is. I mean seriously, Washaun Ealey? Dude won’t be a 4th round draft pick and we give him 5 rushing TDs or whatever? Come on.
October 24th, 2010 at 5:01 am
#6 Oh Yeaha!!!!!!
October 24th, 2010 at 5:12 am
I agree with the list of bad calls, none worse in my opinion than the onside in the 3rd quarter after we cut the score to 34-17. The team fumbled the ball 4 times and the coaching staff had their fair share of fumbling calls.
Music City here we come!
October 24th, 2010 at 7:07 am
One step forward… Two steps back… We come together cuz’ opposites attract…
Remember when Paula Abdul was hot? Yea… Me neither.
October 24th, 2010 at 7:09 am
The man, the urban legend, the practice legend, Matt Pilgrim has been suspended by Travis Ford. This guy is an enigma. I am not even sure he really exists.
http://www.kfsm.com/news/sns-ap-bkc–oklahomast-pilgrimsuspended,0,6738111.story
October 24th, 2010 at 7:15 am
UK is nothing more and will never be nothing more than a 6 and 6 or 7 and 5 football team… That is our history and that is our future…
October 24th, 2010 at 7:27 am
FREE the Four Hoursemen
FREE ENES
October 24th, 2010 at 7:31 am
I liked the play calling. We’ve talked about them playing not to lose instead of playing to win- so there you go. Joker was going for the W. Poor execution and mistakes were the problem. Here’s the thing, Georgia was better than us- they pushed our O line around all night, harassed Hartline all night and we never ever did the same to them. Yet, take away two or three of the turnovers- take away that stupid kick off return and we may have won the game. We did beat SC AND We _almost_ beat Auburn. In some strange way, at some timess, but unfortunately not all the time, this team can hang sort of hang with the big dogs. That’s better than it used to be and we all know it.
Cobb’s frustration last week at the fans was understandable, and unfortunately, he can’t play every position simultaneously, so cut him some slack when other folks play less than stellar. He’s not perfect- no one is, but he’s been a spark and a highlight during his time here, so leave the dude alone.
How many head coaches have really good first years? Probably not many and next year we’ll have a new QB to raise so we’ll be back to starting from ground up again. It’ll all come together someday. Maybe.
October 24th, 2010 at 7:42 am
Kentucky is and never will be better than an average football team… That is their history and their future…
October 24th, 2010 at 7:48 am
I told all you fans, forget about good defense while Im here.
October 24th, 2010 at 7:57 am
OK I have said it before and I will say it again–We need to make our offensive and defensive schemes fit the type of players that are on our roster. We have talent, but not the kind that can stand with traditional type SEC schemes. For instance we have some team speed and it shows but we are still hanging onto those two three and sometimes four star recruits–thus we may out run you but we will not run over you too often. Boise state has had only 2 count them 2 4**** recruits since 2000 and they are rolling… Not at all saying they would be nundefeated in the SEC but they would compete ate a greater level I think. They run a scheme that fits their roster. We should too!!! Time to think outside the box. Just a thought but I say Cobb at QB with matthews, king, roark at WR and locke in the backfield would be unbelievable!!! Mix-up Defensive looks on EVERY play blitz from all different spots and run 3-4-6 and even old school five man front looks to make it impossible to read and do flip to alignments if needed to keep everyone off balance. YES WE WILL GET BURNT some doing this but man it would be FUN to watch. More fun than 7-15 play drives eating the clock watching the other team run it down our throats. Utah and boise state are year in and year out ranked way worse than we are but always somehow end up in BCS bowls and you know what they even win them most of the time!!! Where was it that that guy in florida that has been stomping us over the last few years was from OH YEAH UTAH! Time to think outside the box! Could we call mike leach or chris peterson anyone maybe please ask for a hint or just a little help?
October 24th, 2010 at 7:58 am
^^^ and then when you win in the SEC then the recruits will flood in-thas how it works if you win they will come!!!
October 24th, 2010 at 8:00 am
Can someone please clear up for me why Randall Cobb only got the ball in the wild cobb formation 2 or 3 times the whole game? and he had 0 rushes? I dont get why in the hell Joker goes away from his best player when they are consistenly down by a big margin, give the ball to your superstar and let him go to work!?
October 24th, 2010 at 8:03 am
How does the prospect of 7 wins make this season depressing? What kind of talent do you people think we have? We schedule the non-conference cupcakes that we do so we can try to get bowl eligible. We have one of the lowest ranked recruiting classes in the SEC each year. Despite that reality, we are expecting 8 or 9 wins now? Really? Winning 7 games at Kentucky is never depressing. Look at our historic record, seven wins (even acknowledging the increased number of games) is an above average to great season for us.
If this team can win 7 games and finally beat UT, I will take it.
October 24th, 2010 at 8:24 am
Let’s be real. We suck as a football team. We come into SEC play every year with an unblemished record because we play cupcakes and try to convince ourselves that Louisville is good.
We are a bball school and need to quit letting this football nonsense mess w/us. We’re fighting an uphill battle and will continue to do so. Heck…do you see Duke trying to make excuses for their football team? Nope. Because they know they suck. Blue/White Scrimmage is the next bit of excitement or frustration I will endure. And I don’t tell a Lie.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6IJ3DIXADM
October 24th, 2010 at 8:51 am
#23 There is no way we win 7 games and maybe not even 6 so get your head out of the clouds. This team has no defense simple as that and when the offense gives up the ball like last night this team is just simply terrible. Poor coaching plain and simple.
October 24th, 2010 at 8:56 am
I agree with the 4th and 1 call. We should be able to gain a few inches, no matter where the ball is. Put this loss on the o-line. While they have been very good most of the season, the past 2 games they are getting pushed around, especially getting beat on the ends by speed rushers.
October 24th, 2010 at 8:58 am
..again! UK players can talk crap to their fans when they win 3 SEC east games in a season……But hay! We got another 3 star recruit this week…………same old same old
October 24th, 2010 at 9:02 am
I feel bad for Cobb. I know how he feels today. Like..Dang.. maybe the fans got a reason to be so pissed off if this is how it’s been the last 20 years…..
I’m not mad today though. Saw it coming. KNEW it was coming. Hey, It’s UK football. Big win then 3 let downs……
October 24th, 2010 at 9:05 am
i agree 26 or honest abe. we suck and if we ever get 8 wins it will be a miracle. sec east is down this year and we cant even get a sniff. red lobster lady was right. sorry randall. and i would not want to play louisville right now. i think we would get beat. the years when we lost to them were before kragthorpe and thank god he was at ul for our sake or we would even be having tougher recent years
October 24th, 2010 at 9:07 am
waited til id slept to post. anyone notice we always tackle the opposing running back from behind, pushing and riding him forward for an additional 5-7 yards ? who runs at the opposing player and turns at the last minute launching their back into him, with your arms no where near him in an attempt to tackle ? that said, the first half was an offensive disaster. watched this same garbage for about 32 years now, and i dont need a college kid telling me i need to support the team. how about they actually go to practice and maybe absorb something.
October 24th, 2010 at 9:07 am
Free Enes!!
October 24th, 2010 at 9:09 am
The bottom line is that good defenses don’t let one guy from every team you play set theirmschool record for touchdowns.
October 24th, 2010 at 9:15 am
heard that 32. school records being broke on us left and right. we have not beat georgia 2 yrs in a row EVER. just another great streak we keep alive in football
October 24th, 2010 at 9:22 am
Dennis, Tamme…when we DO win these follow up games at UT, Vandy, State – are you going to come back and claim you were wrong?
October 24th, 2010 at 9:26 am
Honest Abe, the same goes for you – will you admit anything if we turn it around? When we win 8 games this year, beat Spurrier, TN, Louisville…I’ll see you back here – and we’ll see your thoughts then. I for one haven’t given up (and i never will). State is a VERY WINNABLE game, as is VANDY. We go to TN 7-4 – and this could be a GREAT YEAR. We could easily go to Peach/Outback with that record, and while that may not get you hyped – that gets me hyped.
See you in a month, and we’ll trade notes then.
October 24th, 2010 at 9:27 am
Play calling is just not about what play is called on a 4th and 1 it is about who gets the ball during the play. I agree go for it on 4th and 1 just get the ball in the hands of a player who can execute that play ( Cobb ). If you are not putting the ball in the hands of our best players then it dosn’t matter what type of offenseive set you call its a bad play.
October 24th, 2010 at 9:32 am
SCCat we lose again next week you wait and see, this team is down with no defense and now 3 games just given away. Hartline is the man and I feel sorry that his senior year is such a downer. We may as well go to the Mummie game plan and just try to outscore the other team and onside kick every time.
October 24th, 2010 at 9:40 am
I know my opinion is like wet toilet paper. but turnovers killed us last night. 4 in the 1st half???? well, as much as the defense gets ripped. we aren’t going to win many games turning the ball over like that.
October 24th, 2010 at 9:43 am
A lot of negativity on here. Some of us will never learn to avoid following UK football and the certain headache that comes with it. I still haven’t learned my lesson yet either. Keep saying enough is enough yet keep coming back for more.
October 24th, 2010 at 9:44 am
I mean, did anybody actually remember more than 3 of Georgia’s drives?? I still don’t know how good Georgia’s offense is, because hell, most of Georgia’s drives started inside UK’s 40. seemed like it anyway.
October 24th, 2010 at 9:46 am
38) With you, it depends on WHAT the toilet paper is wet with. LOL
October 24th, 2010 at 9:48 am
41- usually pee in my case.
October 24th, 2010 at 10:01 am
All BS set aside, how many of you all remember when we couldn’t even beat East Michigan? And that was just 10 years ago, you crawl before you walk. Fumbles, cost us the game, plain and simple….nothing more, without those two deep in our own territory we win….GO CATS!!!!!!!!!FREE ENES!!!!!!!!
October 24th, 2010 at 10:33 am
2 main notes:
1. Anyone on here who thinks a QB sneak is a bad call on 4th and 6 inches is an idiot. 1 out of 50 times maybe teams dont pickup the yard. Hartline slipped could not get any push, but perfectly fine decision.
2. I dont know if you guys checked the stats, but why would cobb have played @ QB yesterday, when hartline was nails. 350 4 TD’s 1 pick that is plenty. Go look at every other game yesterday, bet any team with QB with those stats won.
Our defensive players try to hit RB’s up high all night long. The only player I saw go at RB’s legs was of course Danny T the beast, but tackling techniques maybe equals coaching. Maybe #22 should coach defensive drills instead of Stevie B.
Our offense players in general need to tuck ball when around a crowd, cobb, king, matthews so loose with ball in traffic. Try to beat one player is fine, but when there is 5 guys around just go down. That 1 yard after already achieving a 1st down is not worth a fumble.
Lastly, after doing a little research i found it hard to believe that UK football still brings in almost 2X as much money as UK basketball, yet they spend more money making basketball a top priority. I understand we a a bball school, but with fball bringing in 2x as much money why cant we spend 4 mil a year on a saban, or somebody of that caliber that is automatic success. I am not gonna dawg joker yet b/c he may pan out, but i just dont understand how the AD does not invest more in fball, when it makes twice as much money.
October 24th, 2010 at 11:04 am
This loss is on the players, not the coaches, playcalling, etc. It’s time some of these guys took a hard look at themselves in the mirror. The 100-yard KO TD was pathetic. The “tackling” again was pathetic. Chris Matthews’ effort was pathetic (he could have easily knocked that pass down and kept it from being an INT). It’s not the fans’ fault. I stayed to the bitter and ugly end and guess what?! We still lost.
October 24th, 2010 at 11:20 am
The tackling is unbelievably poor and they overpursue so much and do not stay in their lanes. Their idea of tackling is to dive towards the player. They never seem to use their feet and run thru the player and wrap up. This is just basic tackling skills. This is a coaching issue. Start benching the players who do not tackle properly. Of course the four turnovers were very disappointing. A “pitch” play on your own 3 yard line is a recipe for diaster.
October 24th, 2010 at 11:57 am
35.) Mark your calendar. I’ll be here with bells and whistles listening to the same ole sob story. Cobb this….Brown that….get outta here. Quit fooling yourself and admit it. Our football program sux
October 24th, 2010 at 12:06 pm
6-6. mark it down. Its between us and Ole Miss to a poor bowl. Ole Miss beat us in the head to to head.
Bad bowl or no bowl.
the good news is that we are currently #31 in the country in recruiting. The bad news 10 SEC schools are a head of us
October 24th, 2010 at 12:46 pm
There is absolutely no reason for fans to be upset with last nights game.It was a case of Kentucky football being Kentucky.The game last night was no different than many of the games UK has played in the past.In fact if UK played any differently,i would have been very surprised.
October 24th, 2010 at 2:44 pm
If (and a BIG if) we go to UT 7-5, we’ll come back 7-6.
It’s been that way for 25 years. I have no reason to expect anything different from the next trip down I-75.
October 24th, 2010 at 4:06 pm
I got cut off the call-in show last night before I was really ever given a chance to make my point. I think I pissed Matt off a bit. Ooops. Just being honest though.
He made an argument that last night’s game was the 10th highest attendance at Commonwealth stadium. That’s true, that’s true indeed.
Lets look at it from another perspective though…
Only since 1999 has Commonwealth Stadium been able to hold that level of capacity. So 10 years, tenth most viewed game from the inside(Not counting the COUNTLESS number of fans I saw outside waving around multiple tickets for sale, that I doubt were sold)… really is it that impressive? It’s kinda’ like finding some screwed up reason in boasting the 2007 SFU Bulls 9-4 the best record in school history… considering the program had only been around ten years at that point.
Here’s the thing, I go to a lot of games, in Commonwealth and Rupp Arena, and the fans are indeed dedicated because they show up. But have you never heard of the saying in sports for fans ‘Be there, Be Proud and Be Loud’? Showing up is only a portion of our responsibility. The fans were never in the game from the start.
I watched the Minnesota Woman’s Volleyball team on T.V. today(I love them in those little shorts) and their fans were more into that then the fans are at Rupp or at Commonwealth…
I’m sure you all will look at my statment with anger and try to find contradictions to blurt out at me, but the simple fact is this…
Kentucky fans need to be PROUD and be LOUD! I played at Sower Field in Frankfort, KY for 3 years in HighSchool and one thing remains to be most certain from that experience, when our fans were cheering for us, we played inspired and we played good, and when it was deafening loud out(Like it normally was) then the opposing offenses always struggled.
Football players feed off of the fans!
October 24th, 2010 at 4:35 pm
Free Enes. Free my last post.
Ok, I’ll paraphrase it. No matter how many losses we take to UT, we’ll come home with one more.
It’s been that way for 25 years and there is no reason to think this trip down I-75 will be any different.
October 24th, 2010 at 4:52 pm
Except for the Florida game we score enough points to beat anybody…but geez guys!?!? lets work on stopping the other team..that has to happen or ….get this….we get outscored?
October 24th, 2010 at 7:21 pm
1. You little baby basketball fans should just stay out of Commonwealth Stadium and continue to worship your little semi-pro team that has 0 chance of winning the NCAA championship because of the sickening and embarassing one and done recruiting.
2. UK’s players beat themselves. It’s that simple. The three fumbles were killers. In fairness, Hartline was creamed by a great defensive player when he fumbled and Cobb fumbled trying to be superman. Receivers need to go down at some point rather than standing up and letting another defensive back come in and pull the ball out of their hands. The goal line fumble was terrible. No excuses.
3. UK’s run defense is one of the worst I ever have seen. Every team’s back has a career game against UK. Record setting yardage and touchdowns. This is a talent issue. We just don’t have it this year (with a few exceptions). Weak, weak, weak.
4. I don’t see us beating either MSU or UT. I think we will beat Vandy and Charleston Southern. 6-6. Puke.
October 24th, 2010 at 9:09 pm
Hermes needs a stout shot of Ky whiskey to calm the nerves. Dude sitting behind me at the game sounded just like that only he had taken too many shots.
October 24th, 2010 at 9:19 pm
are football team will never win the sec why play in it iv ben a fan for 47 yrs it will never change yes we might upset a team ever now and than we should be in a weaker confrence at least we would be talking how good of a team we got.
October 24th, 2010 at 11:15 pm
Yes it was a poor showing but we are riding a wave of success by our standards over the last 4 years.Nothing is taken for granted but we should beat Vandy and Charleston and could upset Mis St. or the Vols.6 wins is a bowl season.Do people realize how many good players we have lost the last few years that are now playing in the pros or semi-pros?And for a program that does not have Mr. all purpose yardage Derrick Locke the last 2 games,Warford & Cobble the whole year,Jarmon all of last,Hartline & Lindley part of last which are injuries that would have decimated our seasons in the past.Just sayin…
October 24th, 2010 at 11:23 pm
44–If you only look at ticket sales then mabe the FB team brings in more money but ONLY in ticket sales!!! I will promise you this the “K” fund loves BBall! There is no way that UK football holds the brand power of UK basketball NO WAY NO HOW! (ask yourself if you have seen any UK football jerseys on any famous people on TV) NO? But Lebron loves his “witness” shirt in his commercials and the John Wall dance on cougartown is well known!! Its all about branding and UK BB IS the BIGGEST brand in the sport PERIOD. More UK gear sold through basketball than football hands down! So when take into account more than ticket sales then I think you will find that UK basketball pays its way far and away more than FB! I do agree that we should bring in a Top Gun coach though but I would look at a Chris Peterson type guy who can win with assortment of talent that UK can currently recruit. I think he may leave Boise State for an SEC job (think Urban Meyer from Utah to florida kinda thing). Mike leach could be another guy with proven “winability” (he may lock some guys in the shed but hey that may be what some of our guys need with the kind of tackling goin on).
October 25th, 2010 at 11:04 am
56-I heard a quote attributed to Jack Welch, “Never look at a pie chart that shows you with more than 10% of the market share.” Same thing goes for sports, you shouldn’t lower your standards, drop down in conference, just so you can say your team is relatively good.