Position groups most concerned about and least concerned about

[gamecockcat]

Most:
1. Secondary - a lot of talent but they were below average last year and we need a few guys to step up; way too many 3rd down conversions by the opposition
2. Running back - some potentially good backs with a variety of skills, but, imo, not a single player who looks to be the clear #1; need someone to pick up tough 3rd-and-3 yards, someone to pick up blitzes, someone to be a threat to catch a pass out of the backfield, someone to be a big play HR hitter; don't know if that's one player or 3 different ones
3. Pass rushing - whether from OLB or DEs, need someone or more than one player to step up and get pressure on the QB consistently
4. Punter - geez, we were very mediocre punting the ball and, more times than not, would lose significant field position when we'd swap punts with the opponent

Least:
1. DL - a superstar surrounded by quality with quality depth behind the starters
2. TE and WR - multiple targets with experience and skills; should be fun to watch Hamden move pieces around to create matchup problems
3. OL - I'm confident that we have enough physical talent in this group and now we have a proven coach who will get them to be more consistent, communicate better, be a bit nastier and get back close to BBW level
4. QB - BVD was very highly recruited, has all the physical tools, practiced against extremely good defenses at UGa for 2+ years; he may not be a superstar but I believe he'll outperform Leary and bring back the threat of a QB run to keep defenses from teeing off on our OL; I expect good things from him

 

[maroon79]

He will have over 3,000 passing and 30 TDs

 

[trueblujr2]

Not as worried about punting. We picked this guy up in the portal. Led FCS in Yards per Punt, was 9th in Net. Can kick too in a pinch if needed. Consensus FCS all-American.

https://ukathletics.com/sports/football/roster/player/aidan-laros/

 

[YaketySax]

Fun idea!

Most
1. RB room - starters and depth
2. WR room - starters can improve but also depth
3. QB - no track record

Least
1. Front Seven
2. DBs - good transfers and recruiting the last few years
3. OL - I'm feeling pretty optimistic about the starters and depth here...not 2019 quality but the best since 2021

 

[Grumpyolddawg]

He will have over 3,000 passing and 30 TDs

I think he goes over 3k yards by a good bit, but 30 TDs is much tougher to come by especially with a head coach who has always like running it in. Only been 5 qb have thrown for 30+ TDs in last 3 years, 2 won the Heisman and the other 3 were in pass happy offenses. I think CMS is willing to open things up a little, run more plays, but not sure he is wanting to go full blown pass first yet.

 

[Deeeefense]

QB, RB and WR depth. Starters look great but what's behind them is not clear to me.

 

[gamecockcat]

I think he goes over 3k yards by a good bit, but 30 TDs is much tougher to come by especially with a head coach who has always like running it in. Only been 5 qb have thrown for 30+ TDs in last 3 years, 2 won the Heisman and the other 3 were in pass happy offenses. I think CMS is willing to open things up a little, run more plays, but not sure he is wanting to go full blown pass first yet.

He may have meant 30 TDs total, including those made running - I don't know. 30 passing TDs is, for sure, a tall order in our scheme. 30 TDs from the QB, passing AND running, could very well be achievable.

 

[gamecockcat]

Interesting that WR comes up as a concern. Yes, the starters can and need to improve (I think our WR coach is very good, btw, so my expectation is that they all will improve). But, BB and DK will be very solid and we've recruited very well in this area so I'm confident Macklin, Alexander, et al, will step up and provide quality snaps and some big plays throughout the year.

I'm the only one, so far, to mention the TE room as a 'least' concern. Also interesting.

 

[gamecockcat]

Not as worried about punting. We picked this guy up in the portal. Led FCS in Yards per Punt, was 9th in Net. Can kick too in a pinch if needed. Consensus FCS all-American.

https://ukathletics.com/sports/football/roster/player/aidan-laros/

I'd forgotten about him. Hopefully, he's as good as advertised as we were at a distinct disadvantage punting last year.

 

[Grumpyolddawg]

He may have meant 30 TDs total, including those made running - I don't know. 30 passing TDs is, for sure, a tall order in our scheme. 30 TDs from the QB, passing AND running, could very well be achievable.

Now I can see that with the type athlete BV is, 24-25 passing and 5-6 running is very possible

 

[docholiday51]

I think we will have the most complete team we have had in recent years

Most concerned 1. RB- will we have a real threat for opposing defenses to worry about?
2.OL particularly the center position(bad snaps have been a problem in recent years, can
we keep the players healthy and get enough snaps so they mesh as a unit.


Highest expectations:

The defense as a whole, I think the front 7 will be very good with the secondary not
far behind.
WR the most talented group we have had in recent years
TE opposing defenses will have to account for this position

Parting thoughts
QB- Do we have a healthy Levis level guy as a starter? Are we solid in the special teams area?
How will the new OC mesh with the HC?

 

[trueblujr2]

I'd forgotten about him. Hopefully, he's as good as advertised as we were at a distinct disadvantage punting last year.

Probably why they went out and got him. plus, Jackson Smith left for WKU. Will be interesting to see how he does there.

 

[K_TIME]

Most Concerned
1. RB....We've been spoiled with Benny, CRod and Ray Davis was a gem of a find. And if we are hoping to get back to a more run focus system....Traynum with a bunch of unknown rookies and a pass catching only in Demi.....not a great stable to lean on. I just have memories of those first four games of 2022 when CRod was suspended....and that was awful.

2. Oline.....THis group hasn't been very good for 2 years and alot of the same faces are back. (Jager, Cox). I thought our offense was unable to run the ball in SEC play consistently. It was too much of Ray hitting a big play but never sustained drives on the ground. Maybe Yenser gone and Wolford back is part of the question.

And the the end of the day, the offense is a massive question mark compounded with a new OC. The desire is the get back to physical run game and to that end....I have highest faith in Brock Vandergriff and lower for Bush Hamden as OC and a bit lower in the Oline and lowest by far in RB room.

3. Defense...I'm fairly solid with the D. I personally like the CB room with Max at one spot and JQ, Michigan transfer, etc at the other....and Collins has groomed some good CB in his stint at UK. The one spot I'm most iffy is the safety room. Bufano is not the level of coach Collins is at CB...and the thought of Lovett and Zion Childress is a poor plan IMO (Zion especially was a pure disaster back there). I personally thought Ty Bryant was more solid at executing the reads last year and way better tackler than Zion. I am intrigued by the Alabama transfer.....but if there is a spot on defense....the safety room has me wondering.

Least Concerned:
1. DL.....
- NG Silver
DT Walker/Ox
DE Rybka/Sauders

Even with NG depth......(and we pull the NG off the field in pass downs)....we've got NFL talent at some spots and damn good college talent at the rest of the depth starters.

2. LB
- Jack...Jack/Fearby
Sam...Afari
Mike...DJack/Rayner
Will....Dumas Johnson/Rayner

And a bunch of 4 star kids as depth behind them (Javont Robinson, Godfrey, etc).

So good luck running at that front seven....I don't' think we'll get gashed in run game much this year.

3. Place kicker....Alex Raynor was not only money last year....dude wsa not even squeezing them barely inside goal posts. He was down the middle nearly every time. I'm confident within 30 yard line...we're getting at least 3 pts

 

[JRCAT14]

Most Concerned
1. RB....We've been spoiled with Benny, CRod and Ray Davis was a gem of a find. And if we are hoping to get back to a more run focus system....Traynum with a bunch of unknown rookies and a pass catching only in Demi.....not a great stable to lean on. I just have memories of those first four games of 2022 when CRod was suspended....and that was awful.

2. Oline.....THis group hasn't been very good for 2 years and alot of the same faces are back. (Jager, Cox). I thought our offense was unable to run the ball in SEC play consistently. It was too much of Ray hitting a big play but never sustained drives on the ground. Maybe Yenser gone and Wolford back is part of the question.

And the the end of the day, the offense is a massive question mark compounded with a new OC. The desire is the get back to physical run game and to that end....I have highest faith in Brock Vandergriff and lower for Bush Hamden as OC and a bit lower in the Oline and lowest by far in RB room.

3. Defense...I'm fairly solid with the D. I personally like the CB room with Max at one spot and JQ, Michigan transfer, etc at the other....and Collins has groomed some good CB in his stint at UK. The one spot I'm most iffy is the safety room. Bufano is not the level of coach Collins is at CB...and the thought of Lovett and Zion Childress is a poor plan IMO (Zion especially was a pure disaster back there). I personally thought Ty Bryant was more solid at executing the reads last year and way better tackler than Zion. I am intrigued by the Alabama transfer.....but if there is a spot on defense....the safety room has me wondering.

Least Concerned:
1. DL.....
- NG Silver
DT Walker/Ox
DE Rybka/Sauders

Even with NG depth......(and we pull the NG off the field in pass downs)....we've got NFL talent at some spots and damn good college talent at the rest of the depth starters.

2. LB
- Jack...Jack/Fearby
Sam...Afari
Mike...DJack/Rayner
Will....Dumas Johnson/Rayner

And a bunch of 4 star kids as depth behind them (Javont Robinson, Godfrey, etc).

So good luck running at that front seven....I don't' think we'll get gashed in run game much this year.

3. Place kicker....Alex Raynor was not only money last year....dude wsa not even squeezing them barely inside goal posts. He was down the middle nearly every time. I'm confident within 30 yard line...we're getting at least 3 pts

I am with you on the OL. Consistency play after play is important for them. Last year it was frustrating to watch them play well 2 downs and then someone miss an assignment and kill a series.

 

[nickhorvathsuxazz]

The o-line worries me. I don't see a rb on the team who can be a chain mover running behind a mediocre line. Cautiously hopeful that the coaching change results in improvement over what we've seen the last couple of years.

 

[ChaiseyD]

Not as worried about punting. We picked this guy up in the portal. Led FCS in Yards per Punt, was 9th in Net. Can kick too in a pinch if needed. Consensus FCS all-American.

https://ukathletics.com/sports/football/roster/player/aidan-laros/

Our special teams maybe the best in the nation definitely top 10!! Barion returning kickoffs ,raynor pk and this guy punting is phenomenal! Punt return is the only question mark!

 

[ChaiseyD]

Most Concerned
1. RB....We've been spoiled with Benny, CRod and Ray Davis was a gem of a find. And if we are hoping to get back to a more run focus system....Traynum with a bunch of unknown rookies and a pass catching only in Demi.....not a great stable to lean on. I just have memories of those first four games of 2022 when CRod was suspended....and that was awful.

2. Oline.....THis group hasn't been very good for 2 years and alot of the same faces are back. (Jager, Cox). I thought our offense was unable to run the ball in SEC play consistently. It was too much of Ray hitting a big play but never sustained drives on the ground. Maybe Yenser gone and Wolford back is part of the question.

And the the end of the day, the offense is a massive question mark compounded with a new OC. The desire is the get back to physical run game and to that end....I have highest faith in Brock Vandergriff and lower for Bush Hamden as OC and a bit lower in the Oline and lowest by far in RB room.

3. Defense...I'm fairly solid with the D. I personally like the CB room with Max at one spot and JQ, Michigan transfer, etc at the other....and Collins has groomed some good CB in his stint at UK. The one spot I'm most iffy is the safety room. Bufano is not the level of coach Collins is at CB...and the thought of Lovett and Zion Childress is a poor plan IMO (Zion especially was a pure disaster back there). I personally thought Ty Bryant was more solid at executing the reads last year and way better tackler than Zion. I am intrigued by the Alabama transfer.....but if there is a spot on defense....the safety room has me wondering.

Least Concerned:
1. DL.....
- NG Silver
DT Walker/Ox
DE Rybka/Sauders

Even with NG depth......(and we pull the NG off the field in pass downs)....we've got NFL talent at some spots and damn good college talent at the rest of the depth starters.

2. LB
- Jack...Jack/Fearby
Sam...Afari
Mike...DJack/Rayner
Will....Dumas Johnson/Rayner

And a bunch of 4 star kids as depth behind them (Javont Robinson, Godfrey, etc).

So good luck running at that front seven....I don't' think we'll get gashed in run game much this year.

3. Place kicker....Alex Raynor was not only money last year....dude wsa not even squeezing them barely inside goal posts. He was down the middle nearly every time. I'm confident within 30 yard line...we're getting at least 3 pts

Hes highly accurate from 49 or less and hes damn good up to 52yards.

 

[gamecockcat]

While a concern, RB doesn't concern me quite as much as some other posters. My theory is a solid OL can make reasonably talented RBs look pretty good. (I mean, neither Benny nor CRod has made any noise at the next level and they were GREAT for UK - that tells me the outstanding OL we had for several of those years may have been a bigger factor than who was carrying the ball). I'm counting on this year's OL to be solid - maybe top half of the SEC. As stated in my OP, RB is a concern. But, I think, for me, it's more of who does what in what situation and figuring out all the personnel groups vs 'is anyone talented enough to be a weapon?'. When Benny was running the ball, sometimes he had a gap of 2+ yards to run through before anyone put a hand on him. Pretty easy to run through the holes the BBW was punching while he was on the team. Even after CRod returned from suspension, the blocking was very uneven and, if it weren't for his ability to break a lot of tackles, our running game his last year would have sucked really badly.

I also believe that returning to the inside zone will benefit both the OL and the RBs. Too many plays last year, someone on the OL just flat out blew their assignment or just couldn't execute it at all. From what I hear, Hamden is trying to simplify things a bit (taking 20 seconds to call the damn play in the huddle was maddening) and I would think that would allow the OL to just play. Wolford is a pretty big jump in coaching acumen from Yenser so the group will be coached up, imo. With an improved line, we have the RBs to make some plays. But, it's still a concern that we don't know who THE guy will be.

 

[UKSanders]

Concern:
- Pass rush on defense: some above mentioned concern about the secondary, which has merit, but just like a great OL makes a RB look better, same goes for a great pass rush making the secondary. Last year, the defense was in the lower part of the conference in sacks (9th), QB rating (9th), and pass completion (11th at 67%).

So, not only were they not getting sacks, I would think that insanely good pass completion % by opposing QBs suggests those QBs were pretty comfortable back there b/c there often wasn't much pressure on the QB

 

[BlueRaider22]

Less concerned.
-Defense front 7 - ESPN had a SEC primer who stated this....

Lord knows he'll get plenty of disruption from his front seven. Linebackers D'Eryk Jackson and J.J. Weaver combined for 17 TFLs last year, and almost no one has the sheer size Kentucky boasts from its line: Deone Walker, Josaih Hayes and Keeshawn Silver average 6-foot-4, 329 pounds and combined for 16.5 TFLs.
I agree. I think the front 7 is going to take a nice jump forward.

-Defensive secondary - They're nearly all back.....and with a really impressive front 7 stopping the run and putting pressure on the QB.

After ranking 11th or better in defensive SP+ for four of five seasons, UK slipped to 34th last year. The run defense was solid, but the Wildcats were extremely bend-don't-break against the pass. Considering the secondary was almost entirely made of sophomores, that made sense. But now corner Maxwell Hairston (five INTs, seven breakups), nickel Alex Afari Jr. (5.5 TFLs) & Co. are juniors. Might coordinator Brad White be able to ramp up the aggression a bit?

-Kicker - As K-time said, Raynor was on.

-DC - As noted by ESPN above, we've had a pretty solid defense for yrs.....and with the personnel looking good, I'm bullish on the defense this yr.

-On offense, I'm pretty bullish on the receiving corps (WR/TE).......if we can get the ball in their hands.







Most Concern

-OC - He's new.....
-QB - He's talented for sure, but he's not experienced and he's in a brand new system.










I'm not too concerned with the RB position, but not completely bullish. If we can get the ball in the hands of the WR's on a fairly consistent basis, a mostly returning OL, and a stout defense, I think the RB position will take care of itself. What we don't know is if they will be good enough to lean on them if we need to shut a game down?

 

[Deeeefense]

Our special teams maybe the best in the nation definitely top 10!! Barion returning kickoffs ,raynor pk and this guy punting is phenomenal! Punt return is the only question mark!

most punts aren't returned so that would seem to be a minor issue.

 

[gobigbluebell]

WRs

CAN OUR WRS CATCH A DAMN FOOTBALL.

 

[Boz]

Most concerned:

1. RB position- lots of questions. No proven runner with experience.
2. QB- questions? Potential but no game experience.
3. OLB- experience but can anyone step up a produce a consistent pass rush.