Offensive weapons for MCB

[gamecockcat]

Obviously, it's Sheron and/or Wade at QB.
McClain, Wright and Beckworth (?, think I have his name right) at RB. No one else will carry the ball, will they?
Bates, Cummings, Kattus, Dingle at TE.
Key, Brown, Crowdus, TRob (?), Harris (?) and who else at WR?
Seem like OL is intact.

Both teams have good defenses. I would expect Iowa to have 9 guys within 5 yards of the LOS pretty much every play. Sheron has more experience than Iowa's QB but he's still very green.

I doubt we'll be able to run straight at them and do much. So, if you're OC, what's the gameplan?

They'll be expecting a ton of bubble screens so I wouldn't do that. I'd let Sheron run a couple of times early so they have to be aware of that throughout the game. Can't rely on the OL to hold blocks for 4 seconds, so I'd throw a lot of quick slants, seams to the TEs, use a lot of misdirection to hold the LBs, roll our QB out to eliminate one side of the rush. Give our QB one or maybe two reads and then tuck it and run or throw it away. The offense that has the fewest 3rd and longs will win. Neither team should expect big offensive production. Keeping down and distance reasonable will at least provide some chance at scoring some points. We have to use our TEs a lot to keep LBs off the LOS.

Barring special teams or defensive TDs, whoever puts 17 points on the board will win, imo.

 

[UKSanders]

Obviously, it's Sheron and/or Wade at QB.
McClain, Wright and Beckworth (?, think I have his name right) at RB. No one else will carry the ball, will they?
Bates, Cummings, Kattus, Dingle at TE.
Key, Brown, Crowdus, TRob (?), Harris (?) and who else at WR?
Seem like OL is intact.

Both teams have good defenses. I would expect Iowa to have 9 guys within 5 yards of the LOS pretty much every play. Sheron has more experience than Iowa's QB but he's still very green.

I doubt we'll be able to run straight at them and do much. So, if you're OC, what's the gameplan?

They'll be expecting a ton of bubble screens so I wouldn't do that. I'd let Sheron run a couple of times early so they have to be aware of that throughout the game. Can't rely on the OL to hold blocks for 4 seconds, so I'd throw a lot of quick slants, seams to the TEs, use a lot of misdirection to hold the LBs, roll our QB out to eliminate one side of the rush. Give our QB one or maybe two reads and then tuck it and run or throw it away. The offense that has the fewest 3rd and longs will win. Neither team should expect big offensive production. Keeping down and distance reasonable will at least provide some chance at scoring some points. We have to use our TEs a lot to keep LBs off the LOS.

Barring special teams or defensive TDs, whoever puts 17 points on the board will win, imo.

• During CRod's suspension to start the season, T-Rob carried the ball some, so they may find creative ways to get him a few carries as well.
• WR Harris is in the portal
• WRs: Key, Brown, Crowdus TRob, FR Jordan Anthony, FR Brandon White; Cummings could flex out to a Slot WR position, too

 

[bigbluedon]

I just hope Stoops lets Wade play.

 

[Tf2217]

Let either QB let it fly.
Actually give them a winning game plan, and see what they have.
No excuses for crap like the USC game. If you’re scared to lose and concede a loss before the games even kicked off might as well have turned down the invite.

 

[fabcat]

The receivers that went into the portal didn’t play anyway. CRod and Levis is really all we’re missing. Albeit 2 Huge players especially Levis. I know CRod is great but Levis still gave us the best chance to win. Will be interesting how we work our QB situation for this game. Gotta believe Wade gets a couple series. I mean what is there to lose?

 

[bigblueinsanity]

We'll almost sure see wade at least at times. We'll see creativity and some new faces get on the field. There is zero pressure whatsoever or expectation of winning.

So for all the bellyaching, I actually think it has potential to be a very fun game

 

[mrschwump]

Lack of P5 quality RBs will be a killer in this game.

 

[K_TIME]

1. I hope to see Wade play…let’s be real Sheron if he ever leaves is for EKU Hogan ain’t leaving..he’s on his second stint
2. The issue is our Oline can’t block much. And Iowa has a good front seven. Maybe we can hit a big play or two passing but that is about all I expect

Maybe Woodyard can call some good schemes.//but don’t expect more then 13pts is my thoughts

 

[Freetaxreturn]

1. I hope to see Wade play…let’s be real Sheron if he ever leaves is for EKU Hogan ain’t leaving..he’s on his second stint
2. The issue is our Oline can’t block much. And Iowa has a good front seven. Maybe we can hit a big play or two passing but that is about all I expect

Maybe Woodyard can call some good schemes.//but don’t expect more then 13pts is my thoughts

Why did Kentucky football sign a kid they have zero confidence in at QB ? 🍺

 

[bballcat4]

Call it the “Leach Bowl” in honor of coach. Make announcement 30 mins before the game. Pass the ball 75% of the time with several quick passes, and take a few deep shots. Go for it on 4th down a couple times.

It would honor Leach.
It would be fun.
It would be good publicity after the bowl.

Just my thoughts.

 

[lamiet]

I hope Deuce Hogan gets to play at least a series against his former team.

 

[aikenite4uk]

1. I hope to see Wade play…let’s be real Sheron if he ever leaves is for EKU Hogan ain’t leaving..he’s on his second stint
2. The issue is our Oline can’t block much. And Iowa has a good front seven. Maybe we can hit a big play or two passing but that is about all I expect

Maybe Woodyard can call some good schemes.//but don’t expect more then 13pts is my thoughts

I don't agree at all about Sheron. How you can make that statement is beyond me. 15/27 2TD/1 INT, 178 yards. First college start amongst the bright lights with the opening play fumble leading to a quick TD. Zero evidence to assume he's not a potential player at the QB position.

 

[Catluv]

1. I hope to see Wade play…let’s be real Sheron if he ever leaves is for EKU Hogan ain’t leaving..he’s on his second stint
2. The issue is our Oline can’t block much. And Iowa has a good front seven. Maybe we can hit a big play or two passing but that is about all I expect

Maybe Woodyard can call some good schemes.//but don’t expect more then 13pts is my thoughts

Scag went super conservative didn’t give Sheron a chance to look good. Put the kid in a hole right from the start. I thought the kid throws a decent ball. Will didn’t look great until he came here.

 

[Catluv]

I don't agree at all about Sheron. How you can make that statement is beyond me. 15/27 2TD/1 INT, 178 yards. First college start amongst the bright lights with the opening play fumble leading to a quick TD. Zero evidence to assume he's not a potential player at the QB position.

Totally agree didn’t see your post. Kid also had like 3-4 balls dropped on him. Let’s open up the playbook and let them audition for next year. Look at Rattler at SC he looked so so early in the year got better about mid season.

 

[K_TIME]

I don't agree at all about Sheron. How you can make that statement is beyond me. 15/27 2TD/1 INT, 178 yards. First college start amongst the bright lights with the opening play fumble leading to a quick TD. Zero evidence to assume he's not a potential player at the QB position.

80 came on last drive when usc gave it up

He was a mess up until that point. Would not stay in pocket the entire game

If Sheron stays he can compete for the job. But I just don’t see a solid Qb in him. Even in HS …he was a line up in shotgun all day and throw short or spread the field more wjtb inferior defense. His feet were never a threat nor does he have big time arm talent

 

[docholiday51]

I took the over(31) for $100 , feel like it will be a better game than most expect

 

[The-Hack]

Why did Kentucky football sign a kid they have zero confidence in at QB ? 🍺

If you are talking Sharon or Wade, or Hogan, you are using a poster’s opinion one, two or three years after the staff expressed a different opinion.

As to Hogan, he is walk-on.

 

[aikenite4uk]

80 came on last drive when usc gave it up

He was a mess up until that point. Would not stay in pocket the entire game

If Sheron stays he can compete for the job. But I just don’t see a solid Qb in him. Even in HS …he was a line up in shotgun all day and throw short or spread the field more wjtb inferior defense. His feet were never a threat nor does he have big time arm talent

The play calling was the "mess" in that game, and alas, many others.

 

[K_TIME]

The play calling was the "mess" in that game, and alas, many others.

Yes...the offense was a mess from soup to nuts and it made Levis look like a lesser QB, etc... I'll give Sheron a new start with Coen....but if the kid was so promising, his third year at UK and we're still desperate for a portal QB. DOn't be shocked if he's another Gunner Hoak is all I'm saying.

 

[aikenite4uk]

Yes...the offense was a mess from soup to nuts and it made Levis look like a lesser QB, etc... I'll give Sheron a new start with Coen....but if the kid was so promising, his third year at UK and we're still desperate for a portal QB. DOn't be shocked if he's another Gunner Hoak is all I'm saying.

How do you know we're desperate? We're thin at QB. It's smart to check out the portal opportunities for all positions. I believe we only have two scholarship QB's (and walk on Hogan)....and one of the guys was recruited as an athlete. He's a redshirt frosh not a third year player. He might be Gunnar Hoak but those facts aren't in evidence after one game.

 

[UKWildcats1987]

Stoops is just gonna run the ball and play ball control and hope we can score on defense and win it 7 to 6.

 

[seccats04]

80 came on last drive when usc gave it up

He was a mess up until that point. Would not stay in pocket the entire game

If Sheron stays he can compete for the job. But I just don’t see a solid Qb in him. Even in HS …he was a line up in shotgun all day and throw short or spread the field more wjtb inferior defense. His feet were never a threat nor does he have big time arm talent

Thank you for pointing out that Sheron had less than 100 yards passing until USCe went prevent at the end of the game. Most fans just see the 178 passing yards and say "see he did good," without realizing the stats were inflated because we HAD to throw the ball at the end and USCe played deep to prevent a big play. I mean we 7 points up until that point too. Sheron was terrible that game and if he has to play any extended time next year we'll be in trouble again.

 

[Catluv]

80 came on last drive when usc gave it up

He was a mess up until that point. Would not stay in pocket the entire game

If Sheron stays he can compete for the job. But I just don’t see a solid Qb in him. Even in HS …he was a line up in shotgun all day and throw short or spread the field more wjtb inferior defense. His feet were never a threat nor does he have big time arm talent

You conveniently don’t mention the 3 or 4 drops in his one game. Don’t know if the receivers were just use to Will’s ball. Might of been different game if those were caught. You guys forget our offensive coordinator has been fired let’s see someone else work with this kid before he is trashed. WILL lost to VANDY with this guy calling plays!!!

 

[mrschwump]

Stoops is just gonna run the ball and play ball control and hope we can score on defense and win it 7 to 6.

As long as it's a W I could care less what the score is.

 

[docholiday51]

I may be completely off base but I think the offense will be better than most here think. Sheron may get the start but it is possible we see something different(Wade in wildcat?) Going forward our next QB probably comes out of the portal many other teams will do the same..

Wade at 6'3" and 220 or so could inject a spark if he has enough wiggle or speed to give the defense something else to look at.

 

[YaketySax]

I took the over(31) for $100 , feel like it will be a better game than most expect

Hard to go broke fading the public longterm. I will definitely live bet the over if it's 0-0 at the end of the first quarter.

 

[cat_in_the_hat]

Thank you for pointing out that Sheron had less than 100 yards passing until USCe went prevent at the end of the game. Most fans just see the 178 passing yards and say "see he did good," without realizing the stats were inflated because we HAD to throw the ball at the end and USCe played deep to prevent a big play. I mean we 7 points up until that point too. Sheron was terrible that game and if he has to play any extended time next year we'll be in trouble again.

Judging a player based on one game is always a mistake. He may not be an SEC level quarterback but it's impossible to tell what he is capable of from a single game. Coaches watch players over several games and film of several more before offering scholarships and they are still wrong many times. If you can tell what he is from one game then you are in the wrong business.

 

[K_TIME]

You conveniently don’t mention the 3 or 4 drops in his one game. Don’t know if the receivers were just use to Will’s ball. Might have been different game if those were caught. You guys forget our offensive coordinator has been fired let’s see someone else work with this kid before he is trashed. WILL lost to VANDY with this guy calling plays!!!

I vaguely remember one drop from Barion on a crossing route.

I’ve seen Sheron in HS never really wowed me then but he has a chance to compete

As far as desperate portal Qb stuff. If Sheron was the man…we’d not be blocking him wjtb Leary or mertz…because the risk is a Qb will leave once you do this ….hence beau Allen

 

[gamecockcat]

Thank you for pointing out that Sheron had less than 100 yards passing until USCe went prevent at the end of the game. Most fans just see the 178 passing yards and say "see he did good," without realizing the stats were inflated because we HAD to throw the ball at the end and USCe played deep to prevent a big play. I mean we 7 points up until that point too. Sheron was terrible that game and if he has to play any extended time next year we'll be in trouble again.

Don't think the gameplan helped Sheron at all that game. Yes, he made some bad plays, especially when under pressure he tended to roll into the pressure rather than away from it. He did throw a few really good balls that were flat out dropped that may have changed our perception of his performance. I mean, it was truly his first start with basically no 'live' snaps against real competition with an OC/gameplan that was, aside from the first asinine play, very vanilla and very much designed to lessen the possibility of a huge turnover (i.e., didn't throw the ball past the LOS for 3-1/2 quarters). He didn't look ready and the gameplan was not designed to 'win' the game, rather it was to prevent losing the game. Now that he's presumably taking many of the QB1 snaps (I, too, hope to see Wade in the game and allowed to actually run the offense not just a wildcat play), perhaps he'll be better than we expect. We're gonna need a crisp, short passing game to loosen up Iowa's D or we'll punt 10 times at the MCB.

 

[docholiday51]

Don't think the gameplan helped Sheron at all that game. Yes, he made some bad plays, especially when under pressure he tended to roll into the pressure rather than away from it. He did throw a few really good balls that were flat out dropped that may have changed our perception of his performance. I mean, it was truly his first start with basically no 'live' snaps against real competition with an OC/gameplan that was, aside from the first asinine play, very vanilla and very much designed to lessen the possibility of a huge turnover (i.e., didn't throw the ball past the LOS for 3-1/2 quarters). He didn't look ready and the gameplan was not designed to 'win' the game, rather it was to prevent losing the game. Now that he's presumably taking many of the QB1 snaps (I, too, hope to see Wade in the game and allowed to actually run the offense not just a wildcat play), perhaps he'll be better than we expect. We're gonna need a crisp, short passing game to loosen up Iowa's D or we'll punt 10 times at the MCB.

If we don't run that goofy first play maybe we are in that game a little longer with a real chance to win

 

[SECCountry75]

As long as it's a W I could care less what the score is.

You might think that point be clear to everyone, but it isn't for some reason.

 

[YaketySax]

Devin Leary is starting

 

[katwest]

Maybe our back up can play like everybody else's does against us.

 

[BlueRaider22]

First off, Iowa's ability to score should not scare us. They'll be without their top 2 QB's, top RB, etc......and they struggled all year on offense. Couple this with us not having our starting QB......and I think you'll see a lot of rushing the ball......which according to the personnel is what should happen. And given that we have young, inexperienced QB's but still have good young receiving talent, we need to get them the ball in safe, quick, and accurate manners.

1st - a lot of McClain and Wright rushing.

2nd - Having threats at WR and a decent TE, McClain would be prime for a Texas route. It's an easy read and pass for the QB.

3rd - Lots of stick, comeback, or out routes. These also can help set up double moves for later in the game. And in a game where 1 or 2 big plays could mean the difference between winning and losing, this is crucial.

4th - Mix a lot of above with QUICK play-action. PA plays often can take too long and Iowa has a decent defense, we have a poor OL, we have green QB's, etc. They have to be quick routes.

5th - Now that we've established the foundation above in #1-4, now we have a few things that should be considered. We must get Brown touches.......shallow crosses, sweeps, quick comebacks, slants, bubbles, etc. We all know that he can break something at any time, but I think that even if he has ~10 catches, but <80 yrs he would open up their defense.

Also, I think that if you need to, you can take some chances. For example, if you are out of FG range, but might be rethinking punting.....you could go for it because you would like the match up with our defense vs their offense. But it's not like you would want to do this much, but it is in the back of the mind. Another example of this is if you throw a jump ball to Key in the EZ. Normally you wouldn't want to risk a TO, but if you aren't very scared with Iowa scoring it might be worth the risk.

 

[BlueRaider22]

Lol. Watch all of us jinx the team to the tune of Iowa putting up 35 pts.......lol...

 

[secrules3]

I don't agree at all about Sheron. How you can make that statement is beyond me. 15/27 2TD/1 INT, 178 yards. First college start amongst the bright lights with the opening play fumble leading to a quick TD. Zero evidence to assume he's not a potential player at the QB position.

This^^^. The kid had to make his first start against a very good defense that had just started to hit there peak. He also did quite well IMO with all the pressure of the season and a must win. I put a LOT of his struggles on the Oline and the terrible OC.

Thank you for pointing out that Sheron had less than 100 yards passing until USCe went prevent at the end of the game. Most fans just see the 178 passing yards and say "see he did good," without realizing the stats were inflated because we HAD to throw the ball at the end and USCe played deep to prevent a big play. I mean we 7 points up until that point too. Sheron was terrible that game and if he has to play any extended time next year we'll be in trouble again.

I don't care how many yards he had on the last drive as he was still getting pressured, still had to read the defensive plays and still had to make the throws. Just because they were more relaxed doesn't mean that they were letting us drive down the field.

80 came on last drive when usc gave it up

He was a mess up until that point. Would not stay in pocket the entire game

If Sheron stays he can compete for the job. But I just don’t see a solid Qb in him. Even in HS …he was a line up in shotgun all day and throw short or spread the field more wjtb inferior defense. His feet were never a threat nor does he have big time arm talent

Same as my above post. Didn't mean to include this one...

Judging a player based on one game is always a mistake. He may not be an SEC level quarterback but it's impossible to tell what he is capable of from a single game. Coaches watch players over several games and film of several more before offering scholarships and they are still wrong many times. If you can tell what he is from one game then you are in the wrong business.

This^^^. I'm sure that he had very little practice reps until he had to play and that was a tough defense to deal with.

I'd say that he did just fine with everything he had to deal with. Bad Oline, horrible OC, good defense, lots of pressure and his first start against a rival he'll bent on beating us.

I think he should be given every opportunity to play the majority if not all of the game and show if he has progressed.