My opinion on the team, and the fans on this board.

[Rhavicc]

Some people here have been crying about 100 different things for 21 hours straight. I have to sit and wonder, do some of you ever get tired of doing nothing but crying for the entire day? And for the sake of those who are tired of hearing it, do you plan on doing this all week? All season even?

Some of you ignore facts, and base your whining on negative beliefs. Some people here feel like this is a 4 win team or something because they didn't put UL-Laf on blast last night. Disregard the first half completely, where UK completely dominated, we're crying about the results of the game because UK played a bad half, with several redshirt/true freshmen playing, and missing a lot of our starting defense on the interior.

Kentucky gave up big yards in this game. Nobody considers that 220 odd yards that UL-Laf picked up last night were in their last 3 possessions of the game. They run in two 2-point conversions off of a sweep to McGuire, and you can visibly see how worn down our linebackers are at that point.
They were tired, and the tired linebackers that were chasing were mostly 2nd string linebackers, and on occasion, the 3rd string linebackers.

So what would make a difference? Having Flannigan back, that would have made a big difference. Against Florida, having Hatcher back, that will make an enormous difference. They're our starters, they're our veterans, and they are a huge piece of our depth.
Last night, we went against a team who runs, it's what they do, it's what they've always done. Running makes defenses tired, and when you're missing depth in your interior defense (CJ Johnson, Ryan Flannigan, Jason Hatcher, Kobie Walker). It'll be game 3 before we get all of them back (assuming Walker gets back into action in game 3), and game 2 before we get 2 very important interior defensive players back (Johnson and Flannigan).

I think next week, we're going to see tremendous improvement just because of the presence of Flannigan and Johnson, on top of some of our young guys getting some grind in. Our big fellas will be able to catch more of a break this week, and we'll have players in the interior who will be quicker to react to plays because of them playing through a season in the SEC already.
I think in week 3, we're going to see a remarkable improvement because of finally having the luxury of having a complete defense (barring setbacks).

Some of you all need to step back from the ledge. You're grossly overreacting to one half of bad football. For every negative we seen last night, there was a positive to match it in that game. Nobody here needs to pretend that several good football programs, several nationally ranked football programs, didn't play close games to inferior competition to the team that UK played last night. Plenty of them did, and I doubt their fans are leaping from ledges, because they know that this was just the first game of the season.

You guys need to relax, trust the staff, trust our team. Support our team, don't bash it. These kids choose to come to UK to try to rebuild the program, be grateful, not entitled.

 

[sistersville]

Amen brother. Kentucky is locked and loaded. Time to be excited.

 

[JumperJack]

Absolutely. No more entitled group than UK football fans.

 

[screwduke]

If I were a UK fan that wasn't able to watch the game than visited this board without seeing the score yet I would have assumed we lost just by all the thread titles. Then I would have checked the score and see that we won and wonder why everybody is whining.

 

[Rhavicc]

If I were a UK fan that wasn't able to watch the game than visited this board without seeing the score yet I would have assumed we lost just by all the thread titles. Then I would have checked the score and see that we won and wonder why everybody is whining.

Exactly. You'd think that we were never up by 21 points by halftime, let alone win the game.

 

[dvillecatfan]

think many feel they were sold a bill of goods. myself, im not gonna get in an uproar over the first game of the season. sure, i was disappointed in some aspects. however, this is a young team that imo, let off the gas. still have 12 games left, no need in losing it in week 1.

 

[BBBLazing]

I hope you are right. However, as frustrated as you may be over hyper critical fans, some get equally frustrated by the cool aid drinking fans. While some of us may not put as much stock in the first half as you, some of you are not putting enough stock in the second half of last night's game, the second half of last season, hell the second half of our program's existence. I'm not on the ledge, I just believe that a discussion board is for open discussion, not just a ra ra forum where you have to say everything is fine or you are not a real fan.

 

[Rhavicc]

I hope you are right. However, as frustrated as you may be over hyper critical fans, some get equally frustrated by the cool aid drinking fans. While some of us may not put as much stock in the first half as you, some of you are not putting enough stock in the second half of last night's game, the second half of last season, hell the second half of our program's existence. I'm not on the ledge, I just believe that a discussion board is for open discussion, not just a ra ra forum where you have to say everything is fine or you are not a real fan.

It's easy to put stock into the bad, we're used to the bad, so some people expect the bad, almost to the point that it seems like they want it to stay terrible to have something to cry about. Keep in mind though, it's a helluva lot harder to play outstanding football than it is to play s**tty football, and in the first half, they played outstanding football. Other than a couple of misfires by Towles in the first half, the passing game was damn well near flawless, and the running game was outstanding. Defense was sharp, but when you have the bulk of your interior out for the game, your guys are going to get tired quick, going against a running team like that.

I think you're one of the people here trying too hard to read into the bad, and pull something out of it. If you're going to do that to Kentucky, go watch the Michigan State game, the Nebraska game, the Stanford game, the Auburn game, the Arizona game, the Oregon game (ya know, just to name a few), and tell us all about how their seasons are doomed to fail because they played football for at least one half of a game. I can see how it may negatively effect Nebraska or Stanford at some point, because they actually lost, but by no means does it mean that they're doomed for the season because they got played hard by teams that they're vastly more talented than.

 

[BBBLazing]

It's easy to put stock into the bad, we're used to the bad, so some people expect the bad, almost to the point that it seems like they want it to stay terrible to have something to cry about. Keep in mind though, it's a helluva lot harder to play outstanding football than it is to play s**tty football, and in the first half, they played outstanding football. Other than a couple of misfires by Towles in the first half, the passing game was damn well near flawless, and the running game was outstanding. Defense was sharp, but when you have the bulk of your interior out for the game, your guys are going to get tired quick, going against a running team like that.

I think you're one of the people here trying too hard to read into the bad, and pull something out of it. If you're going to do that to Kentucky, go watch the Michigan State game, the Nebraska game, the Stanford game, the Auburn game, the Arizona game, the Oregon game (ya know, just to name a few), and tell us all about how their seasons are doomed to fail because they played football for at least one half of a game. I can see how it may negatively effect Nebraska or Stanford at some point, because they actually lost, but by no means does it mean that they're doomed for the season because they got played hard by teams that they're vastly more talented than.

If our history was anything like any of these teams, I would definitely have a different take here.

 

[Bank Cat]

I walked out of the stadium frustrated and underwhelmed. Then I realized that we did win and we get USC next week.

Based against my own admittedly over optimistic expectations, it wasn't what I hoped. But I believe in the staff. I believe our inexperienced freshen who had never played have a world of talent. I believe Towles is a winner. I think we man up and beat USC on Saturday.

If we get rolled, maybe I will hop off the wagon. Right now-we are 1-0 and have a huge game on Saturday.

 

[Rhavicc]

If our history was anything like any of these teams, I would definitely have a different take here.

So you're admitting that your basing your pessimism of this year's team on the history of UK's football program? That's irrational, especially with the changes that UK has made in recruiting, funding, renovating, fan support, etc.
Those teams aren't worrying after game one against inferior competition, neither should we.

 

[ukalumni00]

Only thing I will say is that Kobie Walker has never played a down in college and has had injury issues his entire time at UK. I would leave him off the list of significant contributors until proven other wise. Agree with everything else the OP said.

 

[Rhavicc]

Only thing I will say is that Kobie Walker has never played a down in college and has had injury issues his entire time at UK. I would leave him off the list of significant contributors until proven other wise. Agree with everything else the OP said.

The staff is, and always has been adamant that Kobie Walker is a key player for our linebacking corps. I take their word for it. They have the keys to this thing.

 

[CrustyCat]

I think UK football fans need to learn and internalize the phrase, "cautiously optimistic." That would save a lot of heartache. Also, don't get caught up in predictions from people throwing out 8-4 or 9-3. We're improving overall, but we still have much work to do before you can talk seriously about 8-4 or 9-3.

 

[bigbluedon]

UK football has some of the worst fans I have ever seen, both in the stadium and especially on this board. Really ought to be ashamed. Don't know why they go to games or watch on tv..Just looking for something to complain about.

 

[ukfan03]

People were expecting a better performance. UK had one of the worst defenses in college football last season. What did you see from the ULL game that makes you think it's not going to be the same?

I don't have any complaints on the offense except for Towles inability to hit open receivers. He has to improve and I think he will. This team needs him to perform better. The defense is frustrating to me. I understand UK had key players out but they weren't playing against Alabama.

 

[How Blue Can You Get?]

Some people here have been crying about 100 different things for 21 hours straight. I have to sit and wonder, do some of you ever get tired of doing nothing but crying for the entire day? And for the sake of those who are tired of hearing it, do you plan on doing this all week? All season even?

Some of you ignore facts, and base your whining on negative beliefs. Some people here feel like this is a 4 win team or something because they didn't put UL-Laf on blast last night. Disregard the first half completely, where UK completely dominated, we're crying about the results of the game because UK played a bad half, with several redshirt/true freshmen playing, and missing a lot of our starting defense on the interior.

Kentucky gave up big yards in this game. Nobody considers that 220 odd yards that UL-Laf picked up last night were in their last 3 possessions of the game. They run in two 2-point conversions off of a sweep to McGuire, and you can visibly see how worn down our linebackers are at that point.
They were tired, and the tired linebackers that were chasing were mostly 2nd string linebackers, and on occasion, the 3rd string linebackers.

So what would make a difference? Having Flannigan back, that would have made a big difference. Against Florida, having Hatcher back, that will make an enormous difference. They're our starters, they're our veterans, and they are a huge piece of our depth.
Last night, we went against a team who runs, it's what they do, it's what they've always done. Running makes defenses tired, and when you're missing depth in your interior defense (CJ Johnson, Ryan Flannigan, Jason Hatcher, Kobie Walker). It'll be game 3 before we get all of them back (assuming Walker gets back into action in game 3), and game 2 before we get 2 very important interior defensive players back (Johnson and Flannigan).

I think next week, we're going to see tremendous improvement just because of the presence of Flannigan and Johnson, on top of some of our young guys getting some grind in. Our big fellas will be able to catch more of a break this week, and we'll have players in the interior who will be quicker to react to plays because of them playing through a season in the SEC already.
I think in week 3, we're going to see a remarkable improvement because of finally having the luxury of having a complete defense (barring setbacks).

Some of you all need to step back from the ledge. You're grossly overreacting to one half of bad football. For every negative we seen last night, there was a positive to match it in that game. Nobody here needs to pretend that several good football programs, several nationally ranked football programs, didn't play close games to inferior competition to the team that UK played last night. Plenty of them did, and I doubt their fans are leaping from ledges, because they know that this was just the first game of the season.

You guys need to relax, trust the staff, trust our team. Support our team, don't bash it. These kids choose to come to UK to try to rebuild the program, be grateful, not entitled.

If you understand football, even at the most basic level, you understand that line play is everything. Getting manhandled by ULM's line on both sides of the ball should tell you all you need to know. Even when we were scoring, they were getting pressure on Towles. I'm tired of all the ra ra bs, from fans who don't want to face reality. We are not SEC calibre. If you can't see that, you don't know football. We won't be favored against any SEC team other than Vandy. Think about that! I'm as true blue a UK fan as anybody, but I don't live in denial. Do yourself a favor, lower expectations, and maybe, just maybe, you'll be satisfied with the progress we make when we get to a lower tier bowl with 6 wins.

 

[Rhavicc]

If you understand football, even at the most basic level, you understand that line play is everything. Getting manhandled by ULM's line on both sides of the ball should tell you all you need to know. Even when we were scoring, they were getting pressure on Towles. I'm tired of all the ra ra bs, from fans who don't want to face reality. We are not SEC calibre. If you can't see that, you don't know football. We won't be favored against any SEC team other than Vandy. Think about that! I'm as true blue a UK fan as anybody, but I don't live in denial. Do yourself a favor, lower expectations, and maybe, just maybe, you'll be satisfied with the progress we make when we get to a lower tier bowl with 6 wins.

You're gonna preach your BS to me, and tell me that I'll be satisfied? I am satisfied. I can visibly see that UK is much more talented than they were 2 years ago. And they hardly got "man-handled". There were several plays where Lafayette got blew off the ball as well. Teams that get dominated on the offensive line don't pick up 435 yards and 5 touchdowns. Teams that get "man-handled" at the line don't score in 15 of their last 16 red zone possessions, and teams that get "man-handled" at the line don't have a running back that has ran 261 yards in the last 2 games (with one of those coming against a top 5 defense nationally).
Apparently, you weren't paying much attention. Georgia played ULM, Kentucky played ULL.
You can cry a river of tears if you want, but down try to drown those of us who don't want s*** to do with your whining. I'm still pointing to those programs I listed above, and until you can tell me how their poor performances (like the one you seen from Kentucky in the 2nd half) will cause a negative impact on their season, or make less of their team, don't cry to me about anybody being SEC caliber (because I'm an American).

 

[BBBLazing]

UK football has some of the worst fans I have ever seen, both in the stadium and especially on this board. Really ought to be ashamed. Don't know why they go to games or watch on tv..Just looking for something to complain about.

Don, UK has the best fans in the world. That is why we are talking about UK football on this board and UK football is not that good. There is not another team in the country on the level of UK football that has people talking about them like we do. If you are ashamed, move on. I'm embarrassed by fans that say we are better than we are. I go to games and watch on TV because I love UK sports. I don't do it because I blindly lie about them being better than they are.

 

[Gary4UK]

Absolutely. No more entitled group than UK football fans.

same garbage that you hear every year....

 

[Levibooty]

I reject the notion our OL got manhandled. If Towles had not missed so many receivers he would have thrown for 70% or more, he had plenty of time to throw.

 

[Robcatt24]

UK football has some of the worst fans I have ever seen, both in the stadium and especially on this board. Really ought to be ashamed. Don't know why they go to games or watch on tv..Just looking for something to complain about.

This has to be one of the stupidest assed comments I've ever read on this board.

UK football is lucky beyond anything it deserves to have the fan support it has.

Football attendance has consistently been in the top 25 for years and years. All while having a bottom 100 product on the field.

With all the bull sh!t UK football fans have put up with over the years, the administration and coaches should stand in front of CWS and kiss every fan's ass that walks through the turnstiles.

UK football needs to prove itself worthy of the fans, not the other way around.

 

[shutzhund]

People were expecting a better performance. UK had one of the worst defenses in college football last season. What did you see from the ULL game that makes you think it's not going to be the same?

I don't have any complaints on the offense except for Towles inability to hit open receivers. He has to improve and I think he will. This team needs him to perform better. The defense is frustrating to me. I understand UK had key players out but they weren't playing against Alabama.

Towles is in his fourth year at UK. He isn't going to get more accurate. I guess the others are just the same and Towles gets the nod because of experience. I understand.

But, we're attempting to run a pass happy offense with an unreliable arm. Keep Towles as the starter but have him hand the ball off most of the plays. Don't let him over rule the sideline calls. That is what it seems he does much of the time. Hard to tell about that though.

 

[BoulderCat]

As I said in another thread I'm not giving up on this team on the basis of one bad half. It does seem though like there is an element in the fan base who's almost hoping UK football will fail, and waiting anxiously for the first opportunity to declare it as such. I really don't get that.

 

[Levibooty]

As I said in another thread I'm not giving up on this team on the basis of one bad half. It does seem though like there is an element in the fan base who's almost hoping UK football will fail, and waiting anxiously for the first opportunity to declare it as such. I really don't get that.

I think a lot of this is the expectation for Towles to have improved his game more than he showed. The off-season a lot of our fans spent their time dissing Neal Brown and praising Shannon Dawson, meanwhile Towles first game with Dawson doesn't look much more promising. Last year our opening day score was 59-14.

A lot rides on this next game at Columbia and our first performance did not instill any confidence we can come out of there with a win. Win in Columbia and everybody's attitude will significantly brighten.

 

[ekywildcat]

I think UK has great fans. When fans quit talking, good or bad, then you'll know it's over.

We went out to eat, so when I get back in the car and turn on the radio, man Towles was playing great. I couldn't wait to get a hold of Florida. Well, we get home for the second half, turn on the TV, I couldn't believe it was the same team. I thought about going back to the radio.

I love Towles, but I agree with the poster who said his accuracy won't improve. I believe you're born with the hand and eye coordination it requires. At some point when Towles screws up, I think you have to give Barker a shot.

 

[Blueaz]

Absolutely. No more entitled group than UK football fans.

 

[How Blue Can You Get?]

You're gonna preach your BS to me, and tell me that I'll be satisfied? I am satisfied. I can visibly see that UK is much more talented than they were 2 years ago. And they hardly got "man-handled". There were several plays where Lafayette got blew off the ball as well. Teams that get dominated on the offensive line don't pick up 435 yards and 5 touchdowns. Teams that get "man-handled" at the line don't score in 15 of their last 16 red zone possessions, and teams that get "man-handled" at the line don't have a running back that has ran 261 yards in the last 2 games (with one of those coming against a top 5 defense nationally).
Apparently, you weren't paying much attention. Georgia played ULM, Kentucky played ULL.
You can cry a river of tears if you want, but down try to drown those of us who don't want s*** to do with your whining. I'm still pointing to those programs I listed above, and until you can tell me how their poor performances (like the one you seen from Kentucky in the 2nd half) will cause a negative impact on their season, or make less of their team, don't cry to me about anybody being SEC caliber (because I'm an American).

I've watched football for 30 years and I have never seen teams of that calibre blow any SEC teams off the line except for UK and Vandy...and it didn't just happen in the 2nd half. They were getting way to much pressure on Towles ALL NIGHT LONG! I dare you to go back and watch the game again, focusing only on line play and then come back and tell me how we'll fair against league play. The fact that we occasionally won at the line of scrimmage against a crappy team does not provide me with any solace. and you are the only one who seems to be whining. I'm pointing out facts about what actually happened. You are the one getting your panties in a wad because you don't want to face reality. I really hope we completely turn it around and go on a tear through the league, but I promise, if our line plays like that, Vandy is the only in conference opponent we will beat.

 

[gsayers]

Some people here have been crying about 100 different things for 21 hours straight. I have to sit and wonder, do some of you ever get tired of doing nothing but crying for the entire day? And for the sake of those who are tired of hearing it, do you plan on doing this all week? All season even?

Some of you ignore facts, and base your whining on negative beliefs. Some people here feel like this is a 4 win team or something because they didn't put UL-Laf on blast last night. Disregard the first half completely, where UK completely dominated, we're crying about the results of the game because UK played a bad half, with several redshirt/true freshmen playing, and missing a lot of our starting defense on the interior.

Kentucky gave up big yards in this game. Nobody considers that 220 odd yards that UL-Laf picked up last night were in their last 3 possessions of the game. They run in two 2-point conversions off of a sweep to McGuire, and you can visibly see how worn down our linebackers are at that point.
They were tired, and the tired linebackers that were chasing were mostly 2nd string linebackers, and on occasion, the 3rd string linebackers.

So what would make a difference? Having Flannigan back, that would have made a big difference. Against Florida, having Hatcher back, that will make an enormous difference. They're our starters, they're our veterans, and they are a huge piece of our depth.
Last night, we went against a team who runs, it's what they do, it's what they've always done. Running makes defenses tired, and when you're missing depth in your interior defense (CJ Johnson, Ryan Flannigan, Jason Hatcher, Kobie Walker). It'll be game 3 before we get all of them back (assuming Walker gets back into action in game 3), and game 2 before we get 2 very important interior defensive players back (Johnson and Flannigan).

I think next week, we're going to see tremendous improvement just because of the presence of Flannigan and Johnson, on top of some of our young guys getting some grind in. Our big fellas will be able to catch more of a break this week, and we'll have players in the interior who will be quicker to react to plays because of them playing through a season in the SEC already.
I think in week 3, we're going to see a remarkable improvement because of finally having the luxury of having a complete defense (barring setbacks).

Some of you all need to step back from the ledge. You're grossly overreacting to one half of bad football. For every negative we seen last night, there was a positive to match it in that game. Nobody here needs to pretend that several good football programs, several nationally ranked football programs, didn't play close games to inferior competition to the team that UK played last night. Plenty of them did, and I doubt their fans are leaping from ledges, because they know that this was just the first game of the season.

You guys need to relax, trust the staff, trust our team. Support our team, don't bash it. These kids choose to come to UK to try to rebuild the program, be grateful, not entitled.

Excellent post. I'll tell you this with all sincerity. The team we played Saturday night is better than South Carolina.

 

[UKat1]

Fans I don't believe for the most part are standing at the ledge....it's that the knowledgeable fans can see that even though we've improved the talent level, we still have a long way to go as that talent has to be developed. Any one watching the game same that our DL did get manhandled in the second half....anytime you give up 479 yds of offense to a Sun Belt team, there are some issues to be concerned about.

This was a good non power 5 team, but also a ULL team that has never beaten a power 5 team and got manhandled by Ole Miss last season 56-14. I also don't believe we are going to see Patrick Towles get better as the season progresses.....he had an entire season last year to gain experience the this entire off season (spring/ fall ball) to improve. He still doesn't see the entire field and locks on to his target....many times missing wide open WR's for big gains. His accuracy hasn't improved either. I noticed he also held the ball far to long with pressure coming and took sacks instead of throwing the ball away. It is fool hardy to believe he is going to get better as UK starts getting into the meat of the conference schedule....it's hard for any QB to improve when he will be encountering the defensive pressure that exists within conference play.

And for those that think that Vandy is an automatic 'W'.....you need to take off the blue blinders, Vandy will be a tough out for UK, they have a better defensive team than UK does as we speak and played WKU far better than we have in the past 3 years (Vandy will be a very tough game). If our QB play doesn't improve immensely and also on the defensive side of the ball, UK could be lucky to win 5 games. The talent on the offensive side of the football is there, especially if the QB can be an efficient passer and game manager, but Defense wins in this conference....always has and always will. This team can't score enough points to offset the imbalance that exists between the lines.

Lastly.....for all the kool aide drinkers that think we're going to put Florida away this year, please, please rethink things...yes, I pray we can win against UF in a couple of weeks, but no matter how bad UF has been, they still have a loaded roster compared to us and also seem to be responding to their new head coach and his philosophy. They have always had a winning mindset unlike UK....both team and fan base wise.

 

[UKat1]

If we play like we did against ULL, we may not beat Vandy.......their 'D' is better than ULL's.

 

[aikenite4uk]

Fans I don't believe for the most part are standing at the ledge....it's that the knowledgeable fans can see that even though we've improved the talent level, we still have a long way to go as that talent has to be developed. Any one watching the game same that our DL did get manhandled in the second half....anytime you give up 479 yds of offense to a Sun Belt team, there are some issues to be concerned about.

This was a good non power 5 team, but also a ULL team that has never beaten a power 5 team and got manhandled by Ole Miss last season 56-14. I also don't believe we are going to see Patrick Towles get better as the season progresses.....he had an entire season last year to gain experience the this entire off season (spring/ fall ball) to improve. He still doesn't see the entire field and locks on to his target....many times missing wide open WR's for big gains. His accuracy hasn't improved either. I noticed he also held the ball far to long with pressure coming and took sacks instead of throwing the ball away. It is fool hardy to believe he is going to get better as UK starts getting into the meat of the conference schedule....it's hard for any QB to improve when he will be encountering the defensive pressure that exists within conference play.

And for those that think that Vandy is an automatic 'W'.....you need to take off the blue blinders, Vandy will be a tough out for UK, they have a better defensive team than UK does as we speak and played WKU far better than we have in the past 3 years (Vandy will be a very tough game). If our QB play doesn't improve immensely and also on the defensive side of the ball, UK could be lucky to win 5 games. The talent on the offensive side of the football is there, especially if the QB can be an efficient passer and game manager, but Defense wins in this conference....always has and always will. This team can't score enough points to offset the imbalance that exists between the lines.

Lastly.....for all the kool aide drinkers that think we're going to put Florida away this year, please, please rethink things...yes, I pray we can win against UF in a couple of weeks, but no matter how bad UF has been, they still have a loaded roster compared to us and also seem to be responding to their new head coach and his philosophy. They have always had a winning mindset unlike UK....both team and fan base wise.

Here we have the quintessential UL troll, masquerading as a UK fan. 8 messages since 2008 tells you all you need to know.

 

[CHAMPCAT11]

Excellent post. I'll tell you this with all sincerity. The team we played Saturday night is better than South Carolina.

No they're not. Not even remotely close. I'm optimistic that we'll beat SC but SC would roll ULL.

 

[Bigbluediddy63]

Some people here have been crying about 100 different things for 21 hours straight. I have to sit and wonder, do some of you ever get tired of doing nothing but crying for the entire day? And for the sake of those who are tired of hearing it, do you plan on doing this all week? All season even?

Some of you ignore facts, and base your whining on negative beliefs. Some people here feel like this is a 4 win team or something because they didn't put UL-Laf on blast last night. Disregard the first half completely, where UK completely dominated, we're crying about the results of the game because UK played a bad half, with several redshirt/true freshmen playing, and missing a lot of our starting defense on the interior.

Kentucky gave up big yards in this game. Nobody considers that 220 odd yards that UL-Laf picked up last night were in their last 3 possessions of the game. They run in two 2-point conversions off of a sweep to McGuire, and you can visibly see how worn down our linebackers are at that point.
They were tired, and the tired linebackers that were chasing were mostly 2nd string linebackers, and on occasion, the 3rd string linebackers.

So what would make a difference? Having Flannigan back, that would have made a big difference. Against Florida, having Hatcher back, that will make an enormous difference. They're our starters, they're our veterans, and they are a huge piece of our depth.
Last night, we went against a team who runs, it's what they do, it's what they've always done. Running makes defenses tired, and when you're missing depth in your interior defense (CJ Johnson, Ryan Flannigan, Jason Hatcher, Kobie Walker). It'll be game 3 before we get all of them back (assuming Walker gets back into action in game 3), and game 2 before we get 2 very important interior defensive players back (Johnson and Flannigan).

I think next week, we're going to see tremendous improvement just because of the presence of Flannigan and Johnson, on top of some of our young guys getting some grind in. Our big fellas will be able to catch more of a break this week, and we'll have players in the interior who will be quicker to react to plays because of them playing through a season in the SEC already.
I think in week 3, we're going to see a remarkable improvement because of finally having the luxury of having a complete defense (barring setbacks).

Some of you all need to step back from the ledge. You're grossly overreacting to one half of bad football. For every negative we seen last night, there was a positive to match it in that game. Nobody here needs to pretend that several good football programs, several nationally ranked football programs, didn't play close games to inferior competition to the team that UK played last night. Plenty of them did, and I doubt their fans are leaping from ledges, because they know that this was just the first game of the season.

You guys need to relax, trust the staff, trust our team. Support our team, don't bash it. These kids choose to come to UK to try to rebuild the program, be grateful, not entitled.

What type of incessant rambling blurb of excuses and fantasy land drivel will you excrete after we get curb stomped next week? We could be 0-12 and you and your ilk would be content.

 

[Chuckinden]

You cannot judge a team on the first game of the season.

 

[tmuck]

Here we have the quintessential UL troll, masquerading as a UK fan. 8 messages since 2008 tells you all you need to know.

Board is infested with them. homerblue, Bigbluediddy, Rawwwr,dorkmeister, and Ruppsrevenge just to name a few.

 

[Rhavicc]

What type of incessant rambling blurb of excuses and fantasy land drivel will you excrete after we get curb stomped next week? We could be 0-12 and you and your ilk would be content.

How can anybody take anything that you say seriously? Honestly, people have to roll their eyes at your idea that Kentucky will be "curb stomped" against South Carolina, no matter how negative the fans may be.
I would not be content with 0-12 either, but I know football, and I know progress, and there is visible progress, and I am content with progress.

You're one to talk about incessant rambling blurbs of fantasy land drivel. Hell, I've been waiting for a day now for you to justify how one bad half of football determines Kentucky's season, but when any other team in the country has one, it means nothing. They'll just keep on keepin' on. Your ignorance is showing, tool. Go back to your hole over on the Louisville board. You've hardly had a welcoming reception to this board.

 

[UKat1]

Here we have the quintessential UL troll, masquerading as a UK fan. 8 messages since 2008 tells you all you need to know.

Really??? I'm a 57 yr old that has probably been following UK football for longer than you've been alive. Just because I've never registered on this board till now doesn't mean your not a UK fan. If you want to know if I'm a UK fan, go to SECtalk.com...I go by UKat on there and I'm one of the moderators. I've followed football for a long time, I don't know everything, but I sure as heck know when I see a defense that is playing better than another one.

You need to get your panties unwaded and realize that just because someone calls it as he sees it....(reality) then that doesn't mean they aren't a fan. I'm a realist....not a fairy dust unrealistic fan, if you want to believe that ULL has a better defense than Vandy does, then so be it. But I watched both teams play and in my opinion the Vandy defense looked pretty good. Anyone thinking that we are going to go to Nashville and just walk all over Vandy are kidding themselves after the defensive display we just watched Saturday night. Anytime you allow 470 yds of offense to a Sun Belt team and don't put them away offensively, then you have to question if ANY of our conference games are assumed 'W's' as many on this board would like to think.

There are NO gimmes for UK, if you've been following UK football for very long at all, this is a fact that you'd soon realize. I'm not here to get into I'm a bigger fan than you are or the your a trol adolescence. Some y'all need to grow up and quit getting your panties in a wad. It's a UK football board mean for ALL of us UK fans to give our opinions...whether we agree or not.

 

[How Blue Can You Get?]

Here we have the quintessential UL troll, masquerading as a UK fan. 8 messages since 2008 tells you all you need to know.

and your post is the quintessential deny and avoid reality post. Instead of insulting the guy and accusing him of being a UL fan, why don't you debate his points...because you can't. Who cares who he cheers for, it was an honest an accurate assesment...but calling someone a UL fan because you don't like what they said is a stuid and childish way of avoiding reality. My Daddy always taught me, when someone insults you instead of countering your points, you know you have won the argument...because they can't think of anything better to say.


and don't worry Ukat1, there's just too many fans that don't understand football, but like to cross their fingers, sing kumbaya, and wish real hard that UK will be good all of a sudden. It's not really their fault they don't understand the fundamentals of the sport. They mean well. They should just realize they are casual fans of the sport, and be content with cheering for their team without getting upset when others who are more adept make assessments they don't like. There also seems to be a divide between the young and old fan. Anybody under 30/40, just doesn't seem to have the fundamental understanding of sports in general that older fellas grew up with. Too much fantasy football these days... too many rules to enhance offense, and scoring and "entertainment." I mean, half of these guys probably think Labron is the best NBA player ever...take it with a grain of salt!

 

[UKat1]

Hey I want and demand a competitive respectable product from UK on the football field as much as anyone...shoot, if your a UK fan you better feel that way. I love football much more than I do basketball, I as many get tired of the consistent jokes about UK football and our lack of fans or the lack of for a better word....'knowledgeable' fans.

You can only make so many excuses for UK football and our fans, I also admit that after many, many years of disappointment and letdowns that it's really hard to be positive about where the program is from a competitive standpoint. I do believe that we are getting close as far as front line talent goes....we have a way to go for equal talent in the depth dept. but if this coaching staff can change the culture, attitude and win...the recruiting and lack of truly talented depth will take care of itself. It will take a strong continued commitment from the school administration to football and not just the token investment every 20 years.

It takes constantly investing and standing behind a good coaching staff, and a very strong desire to excel playing SEC football. If they will give the program commitment equal to the basketball program we may see great success on the gridiron...I just hope it's in my lifetime.