Kentucky vs Georgia Tech Game Thread. Taxslayer Bowl.

[BJD]

Stoops can't coach. The sooner people realize that the sooner we can get a coach in here for football. The deer in the headlights look is not new. He never makes adjustments at halftime. We have the same penalties week after week. The same poor clock management. And this is his high water mark. This was a weak as the SEC will ever be and we were 4-4. And he tried to blow one of those win with poor clock management and the players wouldn't let it happen. he can recruit. This is the most SEC caliber talent I can remember.

There's a reason he never got a head coaching job before this one. But we might as well keep him as long as Barney is the AD. No telling who he would hire next.

But the real problem with UK football is that the fans will accept this as improvement and will be happy about it. Until the UK fans demand excellence this will be the top of the food chain.

Look at Brooks. He had a losing record overall. he never had a winning record in the SEC but UK football fans want to re name the field in his honor or put a statue up for him. As long as UK fans hold that up as our standard that will be our halcyon days.

I'll admit to not knowing a lot about football. I went to a small high school that wasn't big enough to have a football team. So I never played. But I can watch UK football and know what we are going to do. If I know, with my limited knowledge, then the opponents have to know.

Want an example? 3rd down and 8. We will run a 5 yard out. Everytime. We will usually complete it since the defense will give us that.

The team plays once Stoops realizes the game is out of reach and stops coaching. So we look good catching up.

[KevinHall]

Not the way you would want to end a season. The game turned on two fourth down plays. One UK did not convert and the other Ga Tech did convert. I haven't read the entire thread but I thought going for it on that 4th down was a good move just the wrong runner for the play. Snell should have been in there for that try.
In the end there was improvement this season. 7-6 is a good accomplishment for this team. Especially considering how they started the season. Hopefully Stoops can build on this and be able to win 7 or more again next season.

[teamchemistry15]

Stoops can't coach. The sooner people realize that the sooner we can get a coach in here for football. The deer in the headlights look is not new. He never makes adjustments at halftime. We have the same penalties week after week. The same poor clock management. And this is his high water mark. This was a weak as the SEC will ever be and we were 4-4. And he tried to blow one of those win with poor clock management and the players wouldn't let it happen. he can recruit. This is the most SEC caliber talent I can remember.

There's a reason he never got a head coaching job before this one. But we might as well keep him as long as Barney is the AD. No telling who he would hire next.

But the real problem with UK football is that the fans will accept this as improvement and will be happy about it. Until the UK fans demand excellence this will be the top of the food chain.

Look at Brooks. He had a losing record overall. he never had a winning record in the SEC but UK football fans want to re name the field in his honor or put a statue up for him. As long as UK fans hold that up as our standard that will be our halcyon days.

I'll admit to not knowing a lot about football. I went to a small high school that wasn't big enough to have a football team. So I never played. But I can watch UK football and know what we are going to do. If I know, with my limited knowledge, then the opponents have to know.

Want an example? 3rd down and 8. We will run a 5 yard out. Everytime. We will usually complete it since the defense will give us that.

The team plays once Stoops realizes the game is out of reach and stops coaching. So we look good catching up.

So, if we the fans demand excellence the university will be able to hire a guy like Meyer, Saban, or one of the other very very select few coaches in the country that could have the team at 9 or 10 wins right now instead of 7? Stoops came in and the cupboard wasn't just bare, it was darn near empty. He has brought in consistently solid classes, has a pretty good staff in place, and has a roster with arguably more talent than we've ever had. At least that I can remember. He took us to our first bowl in six years, we didn't have a losing record in the SEC for the first time in light years, and that 7 win season could've very easily been 9 with Southern Miss and Georgia. It's not about fans accepting where we are, it's about accepting reality. We are in a very good spot as a program right now. It simply isn't as easy as demanding a proven coach who can win gets hired. In basketball after Cal leaves? Yeah, we'll be able to do that. In football? A 2 win team with the roster Joker left couldn't. Imagine calling Urban Meyer, Les Miles, or any other top 20 coach in the country when we hired Stoops. "Hey, our fans are demanding we hire you, so, uhh, you start tomorrow." That's probably the most unrealistic pipe dream I've ever heard about a Kentucky football coach.

[teamchemistry15]

Stoops can't coach. The sooner people realize that the sooner we can get a coach in here for football. The deer in the headlights look is not new. He never makes adjustments at halftime. We have the same penalties week after week. The same poor clock management. And this is his high water mark. This was a weak as the SEC will ever be and we were 4-4. And he tried to blow one of those win with poor clock management and the players wouldn't let it happen. he can recruit. This is the most SEC caliber talent I can remember.

There's a reason he never got a head coaching job before this one. But we might as well keep him as long as Barney is the AD. No telling who he would hire next.

But the real problem with UK football is that the fans will accept this as improvement and will be happy about it. Until the UK fans demand excellence this will be the top of the food chain.

Do you not consider it an improvement? If I remember just four years ago we won two games. Two. Can you explain how seven wins this year isn't an improvement?

[Katmendo]

I've lamented coaching before, but I give credit where it's due. Stoops is building a program, and is building it on rock, not sand. He's done the best job that's been done here, with regard to recruiting. And, it just is more about Jimmies and Joes than X's and O's.

That being said, his team didn't look prepared today on either side of the ball. I got the distinct feeling that UK took the ball to start for two reasons; 1: To try and score first and play defense by staying ahead of the pressure, and 2: I don't think the coaching staff had ANY belief (Justified, too, fair to say) that they could stop that running attack with any degree of success,should they get behind. Both proved to be accurate assessments.

I felt like they wanted to make it a race to the last possession, and when that failed, they were just praying for turnovers,... just like we were.

UK needs to spend all its time recruiting Defensive lineman, and ends (assuming it has an accurate passer in development). There is just no way to minimize what the recruitment and underdevelopment of Matt Elam did to the program, to say nothing of losing Meant.

Getting back to QB, I do not in ANY way want to appear to pile this on Stephen Johnson. He does what he can, and it's been more than what this program has gotten for a while. The strengths of his game are just not as beneficial to an offense, as the limits of his game are detrimental. We can hike the ball to a running back, if we need a runner. We need him, or the guy after him, to be able to throw the ball better, if for no other reason than preventing the opponent for loading the box on us. If Johnson puts in some good off season work on his underneath throws, and I'm not implying being the next Tom Brady, just reasonably dangerous, then this team will be ready for the big step next season.

[Lighthouse]

I remember the lackadazical effort we got from Jokers teams, and even though CS didn't win many his first couple years, we saw improvement in the effort immediately. He's hit the ground running up the recruiting trail since the day he was hired. I am a KENTUCKY FOOTBALL FAN, and I'm not satisfied, but I do see improvement.

[teamchemistry15]

I remember the lackadazical effort we got from Jokers teams, and even though CS didn't win many his first couple years, we saw improvement in the effort immediately. He's hit the ground running up the recruiting trail since the day he was hired. I am a KENTUCKY FOOTBALL FAN, and I'm not satisfied, but I do see improvement.

The last sentence hits the nail on the head. I think people confuse fans being happy with the current situation with complete satisfaction. I'm satisfied for where we are at the current time, but I know better is to come. There's no reason this program with this staff can't compete to win the east year after year. I don't expect them to become Bama, but realistically Stoops can get us to a ten win team. There's definitely been improvement which I'm satisfied with, but I'm not settling for where we are.

[Matt Dillon]

Well said Lighthouse and teamchemistry15. I agree 100%.

[Wonderstruck]

Stoops can't coach.

To play off of this, just because you say he can't coach, doesn't mean he can't "learn to coach." I'm not a big fan of Stoops, but the proof is there that there has been improvement every year. I would say that Stoops is a better coach now than he was four years ago. So who's to say he can't be a better coach in two years than he was this season?

He is allowed to improve over the course of time.

[Joneslab]

It was interesting that we were so concerned with being cut up on the edges and it was that dive play that killed us.

Don't agree with the point that Stoops "can't coach." There's a ceiling with Kentucky football and if you put that ceiling at "excellence," you're always going to be disappointed. This year had some great moments and some setbacks and one incredible game, but I thought the personnel--especially on defense--wasn't quite on the level with the 7 wins we ended up getting. I think the coaching staff overachieved given the fact that we lost virtually all our defensive playmakers from 2015. This team was scary on paper on the defensive side of the ball back in the off-season. Stoops and the staff did a lot of this with smoke and mirrors.

This team had a lot of young players. When I first got a look at the defensive depth chart I thought 4 wins was possible. When I first saw the defense back in September I thought 2 was possible.

I'm looking forward to next year and for me that's the point of UK football. Excitement and hope.