UK-UT Game Discussion Thread

[Joneslab]

The good news is that we played the two best teams on our schedule back to back, and now we're through that gauntlet.

The bad news: they both made us look like a MAC team.

The worst news: Boom? Horton was good, but they'd gone to essentially prevent when he came in. Hard to imagine getting those two wins without Boom, as mediocre as the tail end of our schedule is.

If we lose the rest except Charlotte there are going to be some tough questions for Stoops after the season. These weird October regressions can't keep happening.

[Dwight Schrute]

I dunno, Will, we still have Georgia. I still think we have the opportunity to win 3 of the last 4 and get to 7 wins, but not if this team isn't going to play good football.

[uglyduckling]

You could see the difference in the two teams before the game even started. 35 minutes before the game, I looked where Tennessee was warming up and the entire team was on the field, in full pads, ready to clean our clocks. I look down at Kentucky's end and we were out there in shorts and t-shirts. Tennessee's warm ups had a very military type feel, while ours just seemed too loose for my liking. I know being out there in full pads made absolutely no difference in the score but I feel like the difference in mindset is a big part of it.

Please, please, PLEASE let's end this splitting special teams duties experiment. It is an absolute failure. You can see the lack of devotion that a dedicated special teams coach brings in our game. The coverage was sickening last night. When Kentucky takes a kickoff, there's absolutely ZERO chance to take one to the house. I feel like our returners, King primarily, don't even look for holes. They just run to where the most people are on the field. Foster has been terrible this year. I believe there was a point last night where we had a 25 yard punt. SMH.

The coaching these last couple weeks has been very suspect. Cody Quinn should not be allowed to cover another SEC receiver ever again. On the long TD pass towards the end of the half, the Tennessee receiver is streaking downfield looking back the entire time. Quinn, who at least was in position to attempt to make a play on the ball, didn't even look for it AS THE RECEIVER IS LOOKING BACK THE ENTIRE TIME. 9 penalties for 93 yards is embarrassing. There was one point in the 3rd quarter I believe where KY bounced around on both sides of the 50 for a good 3 minutes due to penalties. On Blake Bone's fumble, he was shuffling the ball between hands as he was about to be tackled. That goes against the fundamentals of football. Shannon Dawson is WAY too streaky. Needs to call a more consistent game. The opening play was an END AROUND. That's gimmick football that does not work against SEC defenses. Down 20 points, SD was still trying to establish a run game. I don't know who to blame for the defense, Stoops or Elliot.

Don't get me started on that hit. That was as clean a hit as there is in football and it was an absolute joke for that boy to be ejected.

I can't wait to hear Jared Lorenzen attempt to defend Towles on this one. Our starting SEC QB threw a pick on a screen play. A SCREEN PLAY. That doesn't happen in Madden. Just goes to show you that his passes are premeditated from the time the play is called in, regardless of coverage or jersey color.

One last thing, unrelated to the game. Is anyone else blown away by the 50 different shades of blue in the stadium? The blue on the field isn't close to matching anything. The chairbacks by the Keeneland lounge are almost purple. The blue benchbacks aren't even the same shade of blue as those chairbacks. Just something that has been bothering me since the renovations were done. Rant over lol

[Matt Dillon]

The good news is that we played the two best teams on our schedule back to back, and now we're through that gauntlet.

The bad news: they both made us look like a MAC team.

The worst news: Boom? Horton was good, but they'd gone to essentially prevent when he came in. Hard to imagine getting those two wins without Boom, as mediocre as the tail end of our schedule is.

If we lose the rest except Charlotte there are going to be some tough questions for Stoops after the season. These weird October regressions can't keep happening.

I wouldn't say we're through the gauntlet just yet, Will. Although they aren't the Dawgs of old, I expect this edition to be more than we can handle, especially down there. I don't know if you saw the first half or not, but Horton got some carries before the game got out of hand. While he's no Boom, I feel he's a more than adequate replacement. Towles, the def. and some of the coaching decisions are more of a concern, to me, than losing Boom.

[Joneslab]

Georgia's scored 9 points since Chubb went down.

If we let them move up and down the field like Tennessee and MSU, we should just go ahead and cancel the season.

[Joneslab]

Oops, make that 12 points.

They'll beat us but they seem to be a shell of what they were.

[Matt Dillon]

Georgia's scored 9 points since Chubb went down.

If we let them move up and down the field like Tennessee and MSU, we should just go ahead and cancel the season.

Like I said previously, they're not the Georgia of old, but I wouldn't put too much stock in what happened yesterday. UF's def. is light years ahead of ours.

[Matt Dillon]

If I'm not mistaken, I read that there was supposed to be over 100 commits/recruits at the game last night. I wonder what they're thinking today?

[TrueblueCATfan]

I was at the game and I did something I said I would never do,,,, I left with 8 minutes left in the 3rd quarter.just could NOT watch anymore

and for those asking about Barker.....the buzz around last night was that he is hurt

[CATHYnKY]

I was at the game and I did something I said I would never do,,,, I left with 8 minutes left in the 3rd quarter.just could NOT watch anymore

and for those asking about Barker.....the buzz around last night was that he is hurt

I left with 8 minutes to go in the 3rd quarter too. Was feeling guilty until we were hardly out of the gate when UT scored again. Could hardly believe it. We didn't even listen to it on the way home. Something has to get better the next 4 games.

[ukwebfan]

Please, please, PLEASE let's end this splitting special teams duties experiment. It is an absolute failure. You can see the lack of devotion that a dedicated special teams coach brings in our game. The coverage was sickening last night. When Kentucky takes a kickoff, there's absolutely ZERO chance to take one to the house. I feel like our returners, King primarily, don't even look for holes. They just run to where the most people are on the field. Foster has been terrible this year. I believe there was a point last night where we had a 25 yard punt. SMH.

I'm skeptical that I'll live long enough to see a single season of excellent special teams. This phase is lost every single year and there's no end in sight.

[johnkyblue]

Special team failures = lack of depth

[Katmendo]

That feeling? That's not disappointment, it's despair.

Complete failure to compete. That was not just a loss, it was a program setback. Not a knockout, but certainly a late round knockdown and a late count.

All we can do is hope that Boom's injury is minor. I warned last week that we were hanging by a thread, and specifically named Boom as the thread.

I also warned back when we were 2-1 and trying to win three that if we only scored below 20 in that game, even if we won, this team would not go bowling. Warned that the reason for that wasn't bowl eligible math, but of a foretelling of offensive inability. I felt like, since we had at least SOME offensive success in that game, perhaps it wasn't as bad as my prediction/fears. I was right in my first estimation... and wrong in my second.
Yea, lo, verily that is exactly the truth.

Do we all now see what I meant when I lamented Dawson? Lack of team identity? Lack of acumen? Do we all see why it was fairly described that we looked able when only a playmaker made a play, but that the design was deficient? Player focus and discipline as poor? Penalties? Catching the ball?

And now, yes we look bad on defense. Some serious fatigue on defense, mostly from an offense that can't stay on the field. Some playcalling miscues by Eliot, as well. And our special teams have been ludicrously average to poor. There's no fixing that till next year, given the disrepair, IMO.

After next week, this team will be 4-5. And, I AGAIN remind you, just as I did a month ago, Going on the road to Vandy, after this 4 game set, is not going to be easy. At best, it's a coin flip. Folks, Vandy has a better defense than you think. Their offense has only scored (and I'll verify this) about 50 points, which is abysmally woeful. But their defense, a defense that is on the field as much more as a 50 point offense would imply that they are, has only allowed 80 points all year. Think about that.
By comparison, our rather inconsistent offense has managed a season total of 120 points!!!!... and our defense has allowed 173.

We are 3 months into practicing and playing football, and we've seen the best this team can do, and the worst. We've seen the best of this staff and it's worst. And, at this point, we have to be honest that the list of what we do poorly either is equal to or exceeds what we do well, in all phases of the game. Sole exception might be the kicking game, as I think that Austin's health might be putting that into the positive.

There's more to say, but I just don't know what good it does to say it. Maybe it's just our own individual therapy sessions. :-)

[Katmendo]

Additionally, let me add, I'm not advocating giving up on this team and season. I'm worried about what's worse than the cheers and moans of fickle fans; I'm worried that the team may give up after that morale crushing loss, on top of, or as a result of, season fatigue and frustration. Which is what happened last year.

[KevinHall]

If I'm not mistaken, I read that there was supposed to be over 100 commits/recruits at the game last night. I wonder what they're thinking today?

Which way is Knoxville?