I'll keep this short and sweet.
Energy. They played with it. Not the look of a team that Stoops has "lost". Guys were having fun on the sidelines and they played hard in all three facets of the game.
Barker. Thought he did some good things. Bad weather conditions and he wasn't asked to do too much. Like his arm. Like his confidence. Like that he didn't throw any interceptions. On his first nine throws he targeted six different receivers. Then got Conrad a little involved. In the "room for growth" category, the yards per attempt/completion have to improve. Take away the 22-yard pass to Boom and there aren't enough yards there. But I think the weather and the fact that he was easing his way into more of a game manager position as a freshman means that you can write that off. All in all a solid performance and he'll be the starter against Louisville I'm sure.
Offensive line. Pass protection was okay but in the run game they were really blowing open holes. Not much more to say there. They dominated and paved the way for one of the best ground games in the history of Kentucky football. All the backs looked good because the line made them look good. Have to hope they can build on that with some more of the same effort against Louisville if you're Stoops' staff and Schlarman in particular.
Defense really wanted the shut out but they played well. Charlotte's offense is very weak but consider this: Shouldn't have given up any touchdowns against Florida, gave up just one touchdown to Missouri, should have had a shutout against Vanderbilt, had only given up 10 points to Lafayette until towards the end of the game, really played good enough against Georgia to win -- they've had their downs, they're not a great defense. But they have had some promising moments. I thought Meant, Middleton, West, Edwards, etc., (e.g. younger guys) stepped into more prominent roles tonight. Good experience at the very least for a defense that will lose a lot next year.
Solid special teams performance with the backup kicker showing well, with big plays, etc.
In short they dominated all around like you'd hope. Best sign is they came in with the right attitude, energy and focus, and Barker showed he can play a full game without making glaring mistakes.
Energy. They played with it. Not the look of a team that Stoops has "lost". Guys were having fun on the sidelines and they played hard in all three facets of the game.
Barker. Thought he did some good things. Bad weather conditions and he wasn't asked to do too much. Like his arm. Like his confidence. Like that he didn't throw any interceptions. On his first nine throws he targeted six different receivers. Then got Conrad a little involved. In the "room for growth" category, the yards per attempt/completion have to improve. Take away the 22-yard pass to Boom and there aren't enough yards there. But I think the weather and the fact that he was easing his way into more of a game manager position as a freshman means that you can write that off. All in all a solid performance and he'll be the starter against Louisville I'm sure.
Offensive line. Pass protection was okay but in the run game they were really blowing open holes. Not much more to say there. They dominated and paved the way for one of the best ground games in the history of Kentucky football. All the backs looked good because the line made them look good. Have to hope they can build on that with some more of the same effort against Louisville if you're Stoops' staff and Schlarman in particular.
Defense really wanted the shut out but they played well. Charlotte's offense is very weak but consider this: Shouldn't have given up any touchdowns against Florida, gave up just one touchdown to Missouri, should have had a shutout against Vanderbilt, had only given up 10 points to Lafayette until towards the end of the game, really played good enough against Georgia to win -- they've had their downs, they're not a great defense. But they have had some promising moments. I thought Meant, Middleton, West, Edwards, etc., (e.g. younger guys) stepped into more prominent roles tonight. Good experience at the very least for a defense that will lose a lot next year.
Solid special teams performance with the backup kicker showing well, with big plays, etc.
In short they dominated all around like you'd hope. Best sign is they came in with the right attitude, energy and focus, and Barker showed he can play a full game without making glaring mistakes.
