I've been talking to people with knowledge of the program and one theme has emerged. I'm not talking about internal dissent or anything like that. There have been issues but I'm not going to sensationalize them. I think for the most part Stoops is right in that it's nothing that's uncommon especially when things go south.
What I have gathered is that there is some frustration regarding the reaction (from some vocal fans) and some media in the 2014 = 2015 story line.
People are acknowledging that the wheels came off in the second half against MSU and Tennessee. I'm hearing some humility in acknowledging the need to find answers. But I'm also sensing some frustration from folks who believe people don't realize the gap between Mississippi State, Tennessee and Georgia talent-wise and a lot of UK's earlier opponents.
They're not saying that UK played as well against Georgia as they did against Auburn, Florida or Missouri. But one person that's close to the program told me that Tennessee's just got freakish talent and while they expected to be competitive and wanted to win, and played to win, they presented far more match up problems across the board than a lot of other teams.
That's in the context of confidence that I'm hearing from some regarding the last three games. i.e. In the context of, "These last three opponents have been super talented when they put it all together," is the follow-up, "People are writing us off way too quickly and making too many generalizations about the team." Vandy, Charlotte and UL are all seen as a far cry from the match up problems previous opponents have created.
I"m not saying this is my opinion, I'm saying this is a prevalent opinion. Coaches can't say Opponent A's way better than Opponent B in public, but that's the feeling. It was a great quarterback, Dak Prescott, that really caused the wheels to come off. The hope/expectation is that playing some teams with glaring weaknesses will balance the scales.
Conflict between coaches and media -- i.e. their perception of reporting/tone/impact, etc. -- is inevitable when the team is struggling. Sometimes it gets too negative and I think in this case it's not too negative, it's just loud and inevitable until they change the story.
SECONDLY, UK is involved with a couple of big-time Rivals250 types (2016) that I can't mention right now. One's a bigger guy (i.e. size) and one's a smaller guy. Cannot mention, cannot hint beyond that. Just know that the pool of guys they're talking to is large and they're still getting a hearing from some impressive talents.
What I have gathered is that there is some frustration regarding the reaction (from some vocal fans) and some media in the 2014 = 2015 story line.
People are acknowledging that the wheels came off in the second half against MSU and Tennessee. I'm hearing some humility in acknowledging the need to find answers. But I'm also sensing some frustration from folks who believe people don't realize the gap between Mississippi State, Tennessee and Georgia talent-wise and a lot of UK's earlier opponents.
They're not saying that UK played as well against Georgia as they did against Auburn, Florida or Missouri. But one person that's close to the program told me that Tennessee's just got freakish talent and while they expected to be competitive and wanted to win, and played to win, they presented far more match up problems across the board than a lot of other teams.
That's in the context of confidence that I'm hearing from some regarding the last three games. i.e. In the context of, "These last three opponents have been super talented when they put it all together," is the follow-up, "People are writing us off way too quickly and making too many generalizations about the team." Vandy, Charlotte and UL are all seen as a far cry from the match up problems previous opponents have created.
I"m not saying this is my opinion, I'm saying this is a prevalent opinion. Coaches can't say Opponent A's way better than Opponent B in public, but that's the feeling. It was a great quarterback, Dak Prescott, that really caused the wheels to come off. The hope/expectation is that playing some teams with glaring weaknesses will balance the scales.
Conflict between coaches and media -- i.e. their perception of reporting/tone/impact, etc. -- is inevitable when the team is struggling. Sometimes it gets too negative and I think in this case it's not too negative, it's just loud and inevitable until they change the story.
SECONDLY, UK is involved with a couple of big-time Rivals250 types (2016) that I can't mention right now. One's a bigger guy (i.e. size) and one's a smaller guy. Cannot mention, cannot hint beyond that. Just know that the pool of guys they're talking to is large and they're still getting a hearing from some impressive talents.
