-26
- Thread starter vhcat70
- Start date
I guess it's as a good a number as any other.
Disagree. Never particularly liked it myself.
Seems a good spread because this could go either way. If Stoops recognizes new OC/QB need lots of reps and a jolt of confidence he lets them run it up and we win by 35ish or they come out clicking fairly well and Stoops has seen enough of the first string when we are up by 24-28 pts and he pulls most of the ones and has his eye on building depth and keeping the stars fresh. If the latter, the 26 is a good line because I can see that as a 24-28 pt win.
I don’t like taking such a large spread, but of the two scenarios you’ve outlined here, I’d put my money on the former.
Well it's not as good as 27 and it's not as bad as 25.
Stoops does not embarrass mid-western G5 opponents.
If we cover this spread, I’ll be surprised.
About the only teams we’ve beaten by 25+ in Stoop’s tenure are U of L and FCS teams.
If we cover this spread, I’ll be surprised.
About the only teams we’ve beaten by 25+ in Stoop’s tenure are U of L and FCS teams.
With a spread like this and Stoops' MO of not embarrassing lesser opponents, this game seems ripe for a late, meaningless TD to bone whoever gave the points and took UK. Had this happen to me too many times.
These games are always a who cares spread to me. Unless uk completely craps the bed they win by 20 to 30 probably. It's hard to predict if backups will come in or team will get comfy up big and let up late.
As long as the team wins and gets good reps and stays healthy that's all I care about these first 3 cupcake games. Real season starts at vandy game 4.
As long as the team wins and gets good reps and stays healthy that's all I care about these first 3 cupcake games. Real season starts at vandy game 4.
Seems a bit high based on the fact we have a tendency to look sloppy in our first game. We were only up 3 at the half in last years first game and trailed during a lot of that half. Two big plays in the third are what gave us our separation from them.
That was with the worst Oline in a generation and we still won by 24. 2021 we won 45-10.
Thoughts. It's an opener. Everyone is undefeated now. I count at least four UK starters, and more than that many key reserves, plus a new placekicker and new long snapper who weren't even enrolled at UK a year ago.
Ball State went 5-7 in 2022. They have an experienced defense with juniors and senior starters. Their offense is less experienced but their OL has good size and is supposedly a team strength. But the Cardinals will get into trouble in this game because their DL and DBs just aren't big enough to handle our offensive athletes.
I have no doubt UK's size, athleticism, and depth are too much for the Cardinals. I also know Mark Stoops typically uses openers to get good looks at a lot of young, inexperienced players. For SEC teams, openers are like glorified scrimmages. That sometimes tends to keep these opening games a little more competitive than they probably ought to be. I haven't checked to see how Stoops' teams historically do against the spread in openers, but we are always a better team after a few weeks. My guess would be that Devin Leary will want to light this game up, Ray Davis is on a mission, and UK's OL will have boulders on their shoulders because of 2022. So the 26 point spread is probably about right. I am not a betting man, But if I was, this would probably not be the game to bet on.
Take UK and give the points against FL in Lexington in a couple of weeks. I might consider taking UK and giving the points against Vandy in Nashville, where Ray Davis is going to turn it up like Charles Jefferson in Fast Times at Ridgmont High.
Last edited:
Get Leary some good work, grab a win and try to keep everyone healthy. 26 seems about right to me.
Similar threads
