JoJo Kemp - The Forgotten Man

[FtWorthCat]

I don't think Jojo is getting the respect he deserves from our fan base right now. Boom is a terrific talent, no doubt about that. But while Boom was serving a one game suspension for acting like an immature freshman, Jojo was leading us to our biggest win of the last few years against South Carolina last year. I just watched that game again last night, and Jojo's performance was one of the most heroic performances by a UK football player that I can remember.

Jojo had 17 carries for 131 yards and 3 TDs, almost exclusively out of the wildcat formation. On the game tying drive late in the fourth, he was spent and needed to come out. But Boom was suspended and Heard was cramping up. So they left Jojo out there and he ripped off a 40 yard run that set us up first and goal, and he collapsed on the sideline after the play. The crowd was chanting "Jojo, Jojo" the whole time he was down trying to catch his breath. Terrific moment for UK football.

Horton played well that night too, but the wildcat was what was killing SC and we had to stick with it. They tried running Horton out of the wildcat a few times, but he wasn't as effective running it as Jojo was. If we can keep those three healthy, we're going to be good at the RB position. I hope Jojo has worked hard over the off-season, and comes out with maybe a little chip on his shoulder this year.

Jojo! Jojo!

 

[wildcatbd21]

No doubt JoJo is a great running back. I feel we have 3 experience backs that we could turn and give the ball to and feel confident in their abilities. I just think Boom has the little bit extra to be the feature back. Boom and Jojo will both get their fair share of carries though. May be good to have Jojo be forgotten. Just hope the opposing coaches forget about him to. lol

 

[Hawkfather47]

I hope JoJo has made significant strides in his maturation process; both Scott and Brown described his horrible practice habits several times last season whenever the topic of JoJo not playing came up and how JoJo can be his own worst enemy when he goes out and tries to do his own thing.

 

[mrschwump]

As thin as UK is at RB Kemp better come in ready to play.

 

[FtWorthCat]

Anyone know if the wildcat formation is part of the package in the new offense? Jojo ran it about as well as it can be run against SC that night. Of course the O-line is primarily responsible for the success of that package. Certainly we should be better this year on the O-line than last year, and we should just keep getting better up front in the years to come with the guys we have coming up in the program.

 

[wildcatbd21]

Anyone know if the wildcat formation is part of the package in the new offense? Jojo ran it about as well as it can be run against SC that night. Of course the O-line is primarily responsible for the success of that package. Certainly we should be better this year on the O-line than last year, and we should just keep getting better up front in the years to come with the guys we have coming up in the program.

Coach Dawson has said he does not use the Wildcat formation. Don;t know if Stoops will tell him to implement it or not. But, my guess is if it is Dawsons call, he won;t use it.

 

[FtWorthCat]

Bummer, we scored all five offensive TDs against SC out of that formation. I am confident our offense will improve under Coach Dawson though. We never really got the passing game going under Brown like I thought we should have.

 

[mrschwump]

Coach Dawson has said he does not use the Wildcat formation. Don;t know if Stoops will tell him to implement it or not. But, my guess is if it is Dawsons call, he won;t use it.

It was largely ineffective after SC anyway.

 

[matt_man]

If he can't feel the fire under his butt now, he never will. The guy has RB talent that we typically only get every 4 yrs, to go along with RB talent that we only get everything 10 yrs (Horton), and talent we only get... well, we never get the talent Boom has. 20-30 yrs?

 

[FtWorthCat]

If he can't feel the fire under his butt now, he never will. The guy has RB talent that we typically only get every 4 yrs, to go along with RB talent that we only get everything 10 yrs (Horton), and talent we only get... well, we never get the talent Boom has. 20-30 yrs?

Boom is the most talented RB we've had since Little. Not ready to say he's better than Little yet, but he is probably capable of being better. Boom isn't a 30 carry per game guy though, so we really need Jojo and Horton to be major contributors if we're going to have the kind of season we are capable of having. UK's best teams have almost always had at least three good RBs to share the load.

 

[CatDaddy4daWin]

My guess is you'll see some situational wildcat from Dawson. I mean as an offensive coordinator, why would you exclude something that has had success for these guys.

Man that game was soo awesome! It is the first time I saw play on the field that made me believe we are turning this thing around. From the flea flicker to the wildcat to great plays on defense, solid all around game from us. I had end zone seats last year so saw the Dupree interception up close. Haven't seen the crowd go that crazy since 07.

 

[FtWorthCat]

My guess is you'll see some situational wildcat from Dawson. I mean as an offensive coordinator, why would you exclude something that has had success for these guys.

Man that game was soo awesome! It is the first time I saw play on the field that made me believe we are turning this thing around. From the flea flicker to the wildcat to great plays on defense, solid all around game from us. I had end zone seats last year so saw the Dupree interception up close. Haven't seen the crowd go that crazy since 07.

What a great win that was. Came from 14 down in the fourth to stun Spurrier. Glad you got to experience it up close. We really seemed to be turning the corner that night. Then two weeks later LSU kicked our ass, and we never really recovered. At least we ended the season with a spirited performance against UofL. That video got me fired up. I'm freakin' ready. August is going to be a long month.

 

[Deeeefense]

Bummer, we scored all five offensive TDs against SC out of that formation. I am confident our offense will improve under Coach Dawson though. We never really got the passing game going under Brown like I thought we should have.

But we tried it against other teams with better defenses and it was unsuccessful. USC had a porous defense last year - I believe they changed coordinators this year.

The Wildcat is basically a change up/short yardage formation that you can throw in for a few plays a game to get what you need but it isn't something you can lean on to win a game. The USC game last year was sort of an anomaly.

 

[FtWorthCat]

Yeah, it was unbelievable that they couldn't stop it. That is about as basic as you can get in football, take a direct snap and run with it. Although we did have some nice variations out of it, like the pitch back to Towles and pass to Timmons play. We had a lot of success with it when Cobb was at UK too. But Cobb was obviously a rare athlete.

 

[Get Bucket$]

But we tried it against other teams with better defenses and it was unsuccessful. USC had a porous defense last year - I believe they changed coordinators this year.

The Wildcat is basically a change up/short yardage formation that you can throw in for a few plays a game to get what you need but it isn't something you can lean on to win a game. The USC game last year was sort of an anomaly.

Correct. It was highly ineffective the rest of the year. Success that game had a lot to do with the element of surprise.

 

[UKWinsAgainYep]

If he can't feel the fire under his butt now, he never will. The guy has RB talent that we typically only get every 4 yrs, to go along with RB talent that we only get everything 10 yrs (Horton), and talent we only get... well, we never get the talent Boom has. 20-30 yrs?

JoJo is not the talent of Little or Locke.

 

[FtWorthCat]

When we had Little and Locke, we also had Tony Dixon who was a productive back for us. JoJo is every bit as talented as Dixon was. Brooks really put Locke in a good position to succeed that year, usually bringing Locke in fresh in the second half of games after he used Little and Dixon to wear on the defense a little. Horton also adds a dimension that we have rarely had, being more of a physical bruiser. We need all those guys to stay healthy and be productive. It would have been nice to have Heard back, but it is what it is as they say. I seriously doubt Sihiem King will be ready to contribute this year, and will probably need a redshirt season.

 

[mrschwump]

When we had Little and Locke, we also had Tony Dixon who was a productive back for us. JoJo is every bit as talented as Dixon was. Brooks really put Locke in a good position to succeed that year, usually bringing Locke in fresh in the second half of games after he used Little and Dixon to wear on the defense a little. Horton also adds a dimension that we have rarely had, being more of a physical bruiser. We need all those guys to stay healthy and be productive. It would have been nice to have Heard back, but it is what it is as they say. I seriously doubt Sihiem King will be ready to contribute this year, and will probably need a redshirt season.

Agree on RS for King but unfortunately he'll have to play this year. No way, absolutely no way, can a team make it thru a SEC schedule with only 3 RBs. Don't forget Boom missed time with an injury last year, Kemp was dinged from time to time, even Horton twisted an ankle. Relief comes in '16 with Rose and Snell.

You touched on Heard...fans may forget he was the primary starter last year. He's going to be missed more than people realize.

 

[OFortuna]

Would love to see us run a little wildcat against S.C., if only to mess with Spurrier. For whatever reason, his defenses have had a hard time with our version of it.

 

[Blue Decade]

I don't think Jojo is getting the respect he deserves from our fan base right now.

Not true. As far as I can see, there hasn't been a single thread or even a single post to support that impression. Everyone here knows we only have 3 running backs with any playing experience, and we want all 3 of them to do well.

 

[FtWorthCat]

Work with me man, work with me. I was kind of hoping Jojo might read this thread, and know that we haven't forgotten about him, and that we're all still pulling for him. It seems like we're all so infatuated with "Boom" right now (and rightfully so), that Jojo isn't getting any love. I'm sure he understands we still need him and are depending on him to step up. That was a hellacious performance he had against SC last year.

 

[How Blue Can You Get?]

JO Jo was one of the most mysterious situations I've ever seen. Personally, I was convinced he must have had some sort of nagging injury, or something extracurricular that was keeping him off the field, and I don't buy that he was just not working hard enough in practice.. You don't go from the performance in the SC game to riding the pine without something major going on. Whatever the case, I hope he is back in good graces and ready to play as the rest of you have stated. Never seen anyone give so much in a game...that USC performance was comparable to Cobb against Tenn...fortunately, Coach gave JOJO the ball again, instead of resting him on that drive.

 

[screwduke]

He hasn't been forgotten but outside of the USC game last year he didn't exactly set the world on fire.

I hope he has a much better year coming up.

 

[UKWinsAgainYep]

Agree on RS for King but unfortunately he'll have to play this year. No way, absolutely no way, can a team make it thru a SEC schedule with only 3 RBs. Don't forget Boom missed time with an injury last year, Kemp was dinged from time to time, even Horton twisted an ankle. Relief comes in '16 with Rose and Snell.

You touched on Heard...fans may forget he was the primary starter last year. He's going to be missed more than people realize.

True, Heard was better than most fans realize. and Yes, 3 RBs is not enough for the SEC. I'm not sure why some UK fans keep saying we are so "deep" and "talented" at the RB spot. Besides Boom, there isn't really a proven elite SEC type RB at UK. Most teams in the SEC are just as talented and as deep as we are at the RB spot. Boom is the most talented RB we've had in years, but he is not in a class of his own in the SEC.

I really want to see Horton after he's gained some weight. I can't remember the last time we've had a bruising type RB to punish an opposing defense. Maybe Pinner?

 

[BlueRaider22]

I think Towles will be good enough.....and has enough mobility.......that a Wildcat formation isn't something that will be called upon much next yr, if at all.

However, I think you are right with Kemp. I think next yr's going to have a large carry-share between Kemp/Boom......with Horton getting the 3rd number of carries (which will still be a substantial number of carries).

 

[Poetax]

Being in the SEC, we will need every RB that we have on the roster to finish the season.

 

[jauk11]

True, Heard was better than most fans realize. and Yes, 3 RBs is not enough for the SEC. I'm not sure why some UK fans keep saying we are so "deep" and "talented" at the RB spot. Besides Boom, there isn't really a proven elite SEC type RB at UK. Most teams in the SEC are just as talented and as deep as we are at the RB spot. Boom is the most talented RB we've had in years, but he is not in a class of his own in the SEC.

I really want to see Horton after he's gained some weight. I can't remember the last time we've had a bruising type RB to punish an opposing defense. Maybe Pinner?

Uh, you may have to wait a while to see Horton after he has gained some weight, according to what I have read he has lost some (still a big back) and seems to be better for it.

 

[UKWinsAgainYep]

Uh, you may have to wait a while to see Horton after he has gained some weight, according to what I have read he has lost some (still a big back) and seems to be better for it.

Oh, I thought he had gained weight, I guess I'm thinking of another player.

 

[Bigblueforever]

Would love to see us run a little wildcat against S.C., if only to mess with Spurrier. For whatever reason, his defenses have had a hard time with our version of it.

I can't think any win bigger that beating big mouth Spurrier.

 

[shutzhund]

Shouldn't be putting down Spurrier. He's just a football guy and doesn't hide his feelings about schools who don't take it as seriously as he does.

Maybe soon we can have the same attitude toward other programs.

 

[Bigbluediddy63]

Seems to me he has been in Stoop's dog house after seeing his lack of carries towards the end of the season last year. Let's see if he can get out. I think he is definitely our second best running back.

 

[BlueRattie]

JoJo will get his carries this year; he almost has to with the lack of depth at the position. His lack of playing time comes down to two factors, I believe:

1. The roster is more talented now than when he arrived. As a freshman and sophomore, we pretty much had to lean heavy on JoJo because there wasn't a ton of talent at the RB position. He was clearly better than the other RB's on the roster. This may have led to. . .
2. JoJo, evidently, doesn't take practice very seriously. Perhaps this habit was formed early in his career, when he could sleepwalk through practice and still be better than the other RB's on the roster. He certainly can't do that now because he has real competition (one might even say superior competition), and Stoops has shown that he is unwilling to foster a lackadaisical practice attitude with game reps. I can totally see Stoops point of view. I'm a coach myself and when I see a kid dog it in practice, there's no way I'm giving him playing time. Playing him would send a message to the rest of the kids that bad habits will be rewarded. You don't want that kind of attitude infecting your team. JoJo either needs to step up and take practice seriously or get used to fewer and fewer reps.

 

[fvanhoose]

Coach Dawson has said he does not use the Wildcat formation. Don;t know if Stoops will tell him to implement it or not. But, my guess is if it is Dawsons call, he won;t use it.

If I recall that interview correctly what coach Dawson said was he had never run a down of the Wildcat. I don't recall him saying he would not use it. Personally, I believe it will be a part of the package and he might even find someone who is real threat to throw the ball to run it with.

Coach Dawson seems to believe in taking whatever the defense gives him and I don't see him just throwing a useful tool out the window.

 

[StubbornPenny]

That game was hilarious... the flea flicker had them totally spooked, and from there SC was incapable of defending the most basic play in football. Jojo will always have a place in my UK footblal heart for his gutsy performance. I hope he gets focused and comes out all world this year!

 

[fanofsports47]

He isn't getting a lot of hype around here, but I think he will have a major impact this year.

 

[C1180]

I think from the remarks of the coaches that the major drawback for Kemp is that he is not a good pass receiver out of the backfield.