Seriously...Can The Issues Be Fixed?

[sluggercatfan]

Unless injuries wreck the defense, we are set there, but offensive line and ST are a serious problem!
OL is weak from tackle to tackle. Can't believe that guys like Goodwin & Young can't beat out these guys. Don't know if it's Jimmys & Joe's or coaching, but this bunch just looks slow and not very strong getting constantly manhandled. This must change in the next couple weeks because we aren't scoring close to what we'll need to.
Our return game is very good, but the kicking is as bad as it's been since Stoops has been here and we may need to be going more on 4th and short than I know Stoops would like to because he can't trust the snapper, holder and Poore is not so W getting it done alone with the line is terrible allowing penatration. Wonder why Jackson Smith hasn't been given a shot?
These are all major areas of concern. We have plenty of studs to feed the ball to on offense, so WL needs to be put in a position to get the ball in these guys hands. Since this OL is so weak seems like the OC would be scheming fewer steps for WL and cut down of the longer developing long shots . Just my uneducated points. Any thoughts from some "experts" here?

 

[HerrosHeroes]

Ole Miss is ranked #9 now, the game was in Oxford, they run a very difficult to defend no huddle O, UK spotted them 2 TDs and after all that UK was in position to win the game at the Ole Miss 5 yd line 1st and 10 down 3 w/1:00 to play.

We could very well run the damn table.

I hope this answers your concerns.

 

[EliteBlue]

A lot of the special teams problems are long snapper driven. Even in the NIU game almost every FG was a low snap that had to be saved by Poore.

It being a Coin flip of the snap gets back and down clean creates hesitation in the kicker where now he’s thinking about other things other than the kick. Kicking is majority mental and the slightest misstep on the plant foot can cause feet of lateral difference.

Add to that the fact a half second delay to start moving towards the kick often is the difference between a blocked kick and getting it off. A perfect world the foot is coming through half second to a second after the ball is placed. We’ve almost been waiting until we see Poore has the ball to even start toward the kick.

ands that to the poor snaps on punts as well and it’s a wonder we haven’t been blocked there too

 

[sluggercatfan]

Ole Miss is ranked #9 now, the game was in Oxford, they run a very difficult to defend no huddle O, UK spotted them 2 TDs and after all that UK was in position to win the game at the Ole Miss 5 yd line 1st and 10 down 3 w/1:00 to play.

We could very well run the damn table.

I hope this answers your concerns.

OM scored 3 pts second half. Defense isn't the problem. Comments about our issues?

 

[HerrosHeroes]

I say yes because I could get out there and long snap at 56 yrs old. Ruffalo has been solid this yr for the most part. He is allowed a bad game. ST also includes punters and returns. Goodfellow and Brown are both damn good.
The O line, though struggling will look tons better now that CRod is back. Hopefully Flax is not seriously injured and if so give the 6’8 5 star a go!
Also you say we may not be able to score enough but you also commented on holding Ole Miss to a FG in 2nd half. Which is it?

 

[bigblueinsanity]

OL isn't nearly the issue people think. They can play much better but the QB always has enough time to deliver the ball. That last fumble is a perfect example. If he steps up, he avoids the rush and might even run for a score. At worst he has two receivers open.

That's just a microcosm of the season. Will has shown he struggles with the blitz. Thats why we keep seeing it and will keep seeing it

 

[docholiday51]

Issues? We got beat and we are 4-1 if we were 1-4 (like old days) we would have issues. 2 winnable home games coming up get back to me on issues

 

[Bluegrass79]

You could run the pony like the Packers are doing this year.
Running back on each side of the quarterback. Plus a tight end on one end.
YOU have all kinds of blockers if they can block.
They keep Rodgers clean most times.

 

[sluggercatfan]

I say yes because I could get out there and long snap at 56 yrs old. Ruffalo has been solid this yr for the most part. He is allowed a bad game. ST also includes punters and returns. Goodfellow and Brown are both damn good.
The O line, though struggling will look tons better now that CRod is back. Hopefully Flax is not seriously injured and if so give the 6’8 5 star a go!
Also you say we may not be able to score enough but you also commented on holding Ole Miss to a FG in 2nd half. Which is it?

Simple...we hold them to 3 and still lose. I'm a 30+ppg guy if you want to be a serious contender. We have an excellent defense. The offense needs to step up and do its share.

 

[sluggercatfan]

Issues? We got beat and we are 4-1 if we were 1-4 (like old days) we would have issues. 2 winnable home games coming up get back to me on issues

Expect to win next two. Thought we would win Sat , also. So you don't have any concerns or issues with the offense/ST /kicking game at this point after 5 games?

 

[sieken]

Expect to win next two. Thought we would win Sat , also. So you don't have any concerns or issues with the offense/ST /kicking game at this point after 5 games?

Stoops mentioned the Long Snapper has been banged up. I would think that has been the issue with the snaps, not sure why else he would bring it up.

 

[sluggercatfan]

Stoops mentioned the Long Snapper has been banged up. I would think that has been the issue with the snaps, not sure why else he would bring it up.

Just hoping the oline and kicking issues can be resolved because I truly think we have enough elite talent offensively to be very dangerous.

 

[coachcombs57]

I say yes because I could get out there and long snap at 56 yrs old. Ruffalo has been solid this yr for the most part. He is allowed a bad game. ST also includes punters and returns. Goodfellow and Brown are both damn good.
The O line, though struggling will look tons better now that CRod is back. Hopefully Flax is not seriously injured and if so give the 6’8 5 star a go!
Also you say we may not be able to score enough but you also commented on holding Ole Miss to a FG in 2nd half. Which is it?

I can guarantee you can't get out there and long snap to a d1 college level

 

[BigBlueManSouthCentralKY]

Wish Rodriguez's attitude and drive could rub off on them.

 

[docholiday51]

Expect to win next two. Thought we would win Sat , also. So you don't have any concerns or issues with the offense/ST /kicking game at this point after 5 games?

The O-line hasn't been as good as we thought, special teams had a bad day stuff happens. Bama lucked out at Texas, we didn't at Ole Miss. We played poorly but
had a chance to win(really 2 chances) This isn't your father's UK football team ,9 or 10 wins are still on the table. I was pissed that we lost but on to the next game and see where we go from here. We will see if this bunch has some mental toughness.

 

[YaketySax]

The issues will continue until moral improves

 

[Deeeefense]

When teams constantly bring more than 4 on the pass rush and creating a lot of pressure, you normally counter that with draws, screens and the short passing game. I'm not sure why we don't see more of the short passing game to the TEs like we did against Florida, that actually worked.

 

[BigBlueManSouthCentralKY]

Really irritating seeing team after team pack the box like they do. Have to with CR, would like to see the passing floodgates open for us just to see what happens. Set up the run with pass instead of vice versa.

 

[sieken]

When teams constantly bring more than 4 on the pass rush and creating a lot of pressure, you normally counter that with draws, screens and the short passing game. I'm not sure why we don't see more of the short passing game to the TEs like we did against Florida, that actually worked.

I look for Levis to start using his check downs more. Probably starting with this game. There usually is a secondary option like that just think Will has had to adjust to it being his Primary read, based on what he is seeing pre snap. Last year we did a lot of PA shots, seems Will is still looking at those first to see if it's going to be open, then looking back closer to the LOS, with the OLine leaking, if it was open, it's scramble time at that point. I still think it will get there, just going to take some adjustment by Will and the OLine getting him a second or two longer.

 

[Deeeefense]

I look for Levis to start using his check downs more.

The problem is he isn't getting time to go through his progression.

 

[HerrosHeroes]

I can guarantee you can't get out there and long snap to a d1 college level

Dude seriously? Where is your sense of humor? Or would you like a one-way ticket to Ignore-land as well? I don't have to put up with this rubbish.

 

[bigblueinsanity]

Stoops mentioned the Long Snapper has been banged up. I would think that has been the issue with the snaps, not sure why else he would bring it up.

Banged up or not it shouldn't effect his snapping. Effect his ability to get down and cover punts? Sure but not the snap.

When teams constantly bring more than 4 on the pass rush and creating a lot of pressure, you normally counter that with draws, screens and the short passing game. I'm not sure why we don't see more of the short passing game to the TEs like we did against Florida, that actually worked.

We're calling the same routes. QB is just inconsistent about when he throws them. At times he turns it loose and everything looks great. Unfortunately much of the time he holds it and either eats or unnecessarily tries to escape rather than stepping up. Such routes were there on both the safety and the late fumble. He just didn't throw them.

The play calling is consistent. The QB execution is not. He's very coachable and came a long way from last year. He'll improve more still but he's best football is in the years to come.

 

[FltDoc]

The problem is he isn't getting time to go through his progression.

Agree with folks who say we're 4-1, enjoy it...

Doesn't mean we don't have issues that everyone can see.

And as you stated, we have poor QB protection that prevents him from being comfortable in the pocket, and with the idea that he shouldn't run as much to preserve health (minus the blindsided tackling dummy hits).

Plus the poor run blocking >> more throwing >> more sacks

I say might as well let him run because he is pretty tuned up this year with hits!

Go CATS!

 

[sluggercatfan]

The O-line hasn't been as good as we thought, special teams had a bad day stuff happens. Bama lucked out at Texas, we didn't at Ole Miss. We played poorly but
had a chance to win(really 2 chances) This isn't your father's UK football team ,9 or 10 wins are still on the table. I was pissed that we lost but on to the next game and see where we go from here. We will see if this bunch has some mental toughness.

5 chances if you count fg and 2 extra pts. and safety

 

[sluggercatfan]

Banged up or not it shouldn't effect his snapping. Effect his ability to get down and cover punts? Sure but not the snap.



We're calling the same routes. QB is just inconsistent about when he throws them. At times he turns it loose and everything looks great. Unfortunately much of the time he holds it and either eats or unnecessarily tries to escape rather than stepping up. Such routes were there on both the safety and the late fumble. He just didn't throw them.

The play calling is consistent. The QB execution is not. He's very coachable and came a long way from last year. He'll improve more still but he's best football is in the years to come.

We have weeks , not years!

 

[fabcat]

The Oline has had issues, but they were not the reason we left 21 pts on the field.

Dropped Screen pass that prob goes for 6
Brown Not getting set
Tripping Brown on Return that goes to the house
That’s 18 plus the xtra point tries, can't count those as automatic anymore

Missed field goal and 2 xtra points botched.
Levis fumble after getting first down.

Damn typing this has me depressed again. No way we should have lost that game.

 

[bigblueinsanity]

We have weeks , not years!

I agree but depends on how you look at it. Levis shooting up the draft boards especially to top pick definitely benefits UK in the long run. That's the entire reason we don't run him this year even though it would really benefit the team

 

[HerrosHeroes]

The Oline has had issues, but they were not the reason we left 21 pts on the field.

Dropped Screen pass that prob goes for 6
Brown Not getting set
Tripping Brown on Return that goes to the house
That’s 18 plus the xtra point tries, can't count those as automatic anymore

Missed field goal and 2 xtra points botched.
Levis fumble after getting first down.

Damn typing this has me depressed again. No way we should have lost that game.

No way? Meh we caught some breaks too.

 

[BigBlueManSouthCentralKY]

Read an article from Gamecock Nation or something like that about our OL. It said our guards and center may be the worst in the conference. Always getting beat and messing up their blocks. It said SC should dominate our line, especially in the interior. Talked about a great DT SC has that will cause us problems. If that is already the word around the league expect more than normal constant pressure up front all season.

 

[sieken]

The problem is he isn't getting time to go through his progression.

Agree, my thinking is he will start using the hot routes as his primary read. Several replays, Van Hiles break downs, just watching, his first read is a deeper route. Until we can establish better protection, IMO, his first read needs to be the quick hitters.

We didn't use the quick hitters last year as the primary throwing routes. I think that is part of what Levis is having to adjust to, you can see it on the replays, Scang is giving him those routes as an option, just think Will is having to re-train the brain a bit.

 

[sieken]

Banged up or not it shouldn't effect his snapping. Effect his ability to get down and cover punts? Sure but not the snap.

That's a little too absolute to me without knowing exactly what banged up means.

 

[sieken]

Read an article from Gamecock Nation or something like that about our OL. It said our guards and center may be the worst in the conference. Always getting beat and messing up their blocks. It said SC should dominate our line, especially in the interior. Talked about a great DT SC has that will cause us problems. If that is already the word around the league expect more than normal constant pressure up front all season.

It's like the old saying, run it until they stop you. Same applies here, until the Offensive Unit gets better at protecting against pressure, teams are going to keep on doing it.

 

[Kampus Korner]

I will be quite surprised, (and I hope I am wrong.), if the offensive line demonstrates significant improvement. The competition is now much stiffer than it was against Northern Illinois, Miami and Youngstown State, all teams we struggled to block. I didn’t see any improvement against Ole Miss. There doesn’t appear to be any factual performance based basis to believe the o line will suddenly get better. I think Levis will be pressured even more so to get his passes off the rest of the year. Again, I hope I’m wrong, I simply see a troublesome road ahead for this team.

 

[sluggercatfan]

I agree but depends on how you look at it. Levis shooting up the draft boards especially to top pick definitely benefits UK in the long run. That's the entire reason we don't run him this year even though it would really benefit the team

Is this the basketball board? Sounds like CCC.

 

[bigblueinsanity]

Is this the basketball board? Sounds like CCC.

Everyone loves Levis and his potential. Fact is currently he's an inconsistent college QB. In many ways, he's the perfect QB for UK fans. Charismatic with a rocket arm that keeps fans distracted from the deficiencies.

That's a little too absolute to me without knowing exactly what banged up means.

Well ya. If his arm is hanging off his shoulder it's an issue. Otherwise he or someone else is good enough to get the snap back there

 

[sieken]

Everyone loves Levis and his potential. Fact is currently he's an inconsistent college QB. In many ways, he's the perfect QB for UK fans. Charismatic with a rocket arm that keeps fans distracted from the deficiencies.



Well ya. If his arm is hanging off his shoulder it's an issue. Otherwise he or someone else is good enough to get the snap back there

LOL! Yeah, Stoops didn't elaborate, must be an arm hanging off.

 

[Soupbean]

Unless injuries wreck the defense, we are set there, but offensive line and ST are a serious problem!
OL is weak from tackle to tackle. Can't believe that guys like Goodwin & Young can't beat out these guys. Don't know if it's Jimmys & Joe's or coaching, but this bunch just looks slow and not very strong getting constantly manhandled. This must change in the next couple weeks because we aren't scoring close to what we'll need to.
Our return game is very good, but the kicking is as bad as it's been since Stoops has been here and we may need to be going more on 4th and short than I know Stoops would like to because he can't trust the snapper, holder and Poore is not so W getting it done alone with the line is terrible allowing penatration. Wonder why Jackson Smith hasn't been given a shot?
These are all major areas of concern. We have plenty of studs to feed the ball to on offense, so WL needs to be put in a position to get the ball in these guys hands. Since this OL is so weak seems like the OC would be scheming fewer steps for WL and cut down of the longer developing long shots . Just my uneducated points. Any thoughts from some "experts" here?

My answer is yes Slugger. Hard to see sometimes in the moment but things rarely stay the same as they are. Remember a few years back when we were struggling up front like this and they moved some things aroun and Drake Jackson finally got to play. But when he got in he struggled in the beginning both blocking and snapping but slowly after some time you could see him and then later the entire group start to come around. They turned into the big blue wall.

So I'm not giving up on this group even this year, but I agree they are the key to weather we're going to get better as a team or not and we need them to hurry up and do so. Not sure what we can do to speed that up other than just start with building a more aggresive attitude to start. It takes time to learn techniques and schemes and adjustments but you can learn to play harder and with more attitude anytime you decide to. And that can start paying dividends in the run game while they're still figuring out the pass protection things. May need to bring Logan Stenberg in and smack some guys around.

But I also agree Scangarello has to kee scheming around it for now and work the short stuff on first down and go to your dump downs quicker and more often to support the run game, then take your shots off those two things.

 

[trueblujr2]

Ole Miss is ranked #9 now, the game was in Oxford, they run a very difficult to defend no huddle O, UK spotted them 2 TDs and after all that UK was in position to win the game at the Ole Miss 5 yd line 1st and 10 down 3 w/1:00 to play.

We could very well run the damn table.

I hope this answers your concerns.

We could, but as you saw. Mistakes beat us. Mistakes have been a running theme in our games. We overcame them in that game because Florida isn’t that good. We damn near let NIU back in that game. Kicking cost us a game. It’s a running theme that needs to be resolved.
No, the season is far from over and yeah there are folks giving up WAY too early. Win out until the UGA game and we’re still playing them for the East, but mistakes have to be corrected and something done to mitigate the damage the OL is inflicting on Levis.