Hello HOB. Good afternoon to you guys. Today's practice report will be a little different than what you've been used to during the season. Thanks to Thanksgiving (rimshot) today will be the last day of media interviews with the Cats prior to the Governor's Cup game at Louisville. We'll have both OC Liam Coen and DC Brad White on with us today, as well as a few select players. We should be getting started at approx 5:15 ET, but Tuesday is always a long practice so it could run a bit more. Stay tuned...
OC LIAM COEN Q&A:
* On whether Louisville defense reminds him of anyone they've faced this year... Coen says it's actually similar to UK's approach. Rarely line up in a 4-man front. Safeties come down near box for extra run support. Usually an extra man around the line. A challenge in the run game. Typically a man free, and there's not a lot you can do about it. The RBs have to know who the "free-hitter" is and account for him. It does open opportunities for passing game.
* Asked if he's been able to get an idea of what the UK-UofL rivalry means, Coen noticed "hands down" the best energy they've had in practice this season. Speaks for itself. Reminded him of being with the Rams and going to play the Cowboys in the first playoff game. The level of energy and attention in practice was so much different.
* Asked about having a QB like Will Levis and his personality/intensity going into a rivalry game... Something they have to keep an eye on. Don't want him "over-hyped" when the game starts.
* On the O-Line being a Joe Moore Award semifinalist again this season... Coen says they take a lot of pride in the legacy that Coach Schlarman and the players that came before them established. "This will be a huge week for us to exert our physicality," he added, noting that the Cats have to show what it means to be a physical, SEC team. "It's a huge week for them. They will play their tails off." ... "I just felt a different vibe from these guys today."
* Levis has improved quite a bit over the last few weeks. Coen thinks the MSU game was the outlier if you look at the last 5-6 weeks. He's been really good ever since. "You feel good about the trajectory, but he'll be the first to tell you he's not looking at it that way... He doesn't think he has all the answers yet. Knows he needs to keep improving on a day to day basis."
* Asked if you stress turnovers going into this game, Coen says there's not much more that can be said about it at this point. They know what they have to do. "At this point in the season, there's not a whole lot more ball security drills you can do at this point.
* Asked about Louisville guys that jump out on film... 22 (Yasir Abdullah) 9 (CJ Avery) ... Good players
... Collectively, as a unit, they play better than they look from a size standpoint. Most OCs would rather face a 4-man front than the 3-man front with guys coming free from different spots like Louisville will do.
DC BRAD WHITE Q&A:
* On Malik Cunningham... He's a special talent, White says. There's been a pretty marked jump since the last time they saw him in 2019. His command of the offense and confidence level is a lot higher. Arguably the most talented offensive weapon we've seen all season.
* On the sack and pressure production picking up lately and how it relates to Cunningham this week... White says a dual-threat guy as electric and elusive as Malik can "take your stinger out" a little bit. In some ways, that's good because it forces you to be more under control and being aware of your assignment. The teams that have had success against him have been able to make their fair share of one-on-one plays against him. When he does make the one guy miss, you need three or four others rallying to the spot to make sure it's not a huge play.
* Louisville WRs are a challenge, White says. They can take the top off. They have a lot of long plays on their stat sheet. The secondary will be challenged. He likes how they've competed of late. Still need to get better on balls in the air, making that play on the ball. They've been trying to rebuild confidence on the back end. Crucial to have that ultimate belief back there. Guys like Echols and Joseph, even if they got beat earlier in a game, had the ultimate belief they were going to make the next play.
QB WILL LEVIS Q&A:
* On having fun with the rivalry on social media and "Ls down" ... Great rivalry that he's excited to be part of. Says a lot of people seemed to take it a lot more seriously than he intended it. Just having fun with it.
* Levis says he didn't think Penn State had a "true rival" during his time there, but Ohio State probably brought out the energy and intensity like UK has this week for Louisville.
* Levis says Coach Stoops did a good job of introducing the players to what the rivalry means when they started meetings on Monday.
* Levis says his comfort level as a quarterback has progressed every day since Day 1. Feeling really good, really confident right now. Wants to keep that trend going in the right direction on Saturday.
* On why there's so much Malik Cunningham talk this week and not much about Will Levis... Gives credit to Cunningham, "a great player." Feels like the hype is deserved, but is looking forward to battling him on Saturday.
DL JOSH PASCHAL:
* Have to be sure your rush lanes are proper and be disciplined against a QB who will run as much as Malik Cunningham, Paschal said.
* On telling younger players and newcomers about the rivalry... Coach Stoops has done a great job of that, Paschal said. They've shown some clips from the past to let them know what a dogfight they're getting into.
* Asked about Liam Coen's comment about the energy in practice... Paschal said it was the same on defense. High energy, flying around. Just what you want to see when you're facing a rival.
OC LIAM COEN Q&A:
* On whether Louisville defense reminds him of anyone they've faced this year... Coen says it's actually similar to UK's approach. Rarely line up in a 4-man front. Safeties come down near box for extra run support. Usually an extra man around the line. A challenge in the run game. Typically a man free, and there's not a lot you can do about it. The RBs have to know who the "free-hitter" is and account for him. It does open opportunities for passing game.
* Asked if he's been able to get an idea of what the UK-UofL rivalry means, Coen noticed "hands down" the best energy they've had in practice this season. Speaks for itself. Reminded him of being with the Rams and going to play the Cowboys in the first playoff game. The level of energy and attention in practice was so much different.
* Asked about having a QB like Will Levis and his personality/intensity going into a rivalry game... Something they have to keep an eye on. Don't want him "over-hyped" when the game starts.
* On the O-Line being a Joe Moore Award semifinalist again this season... Coen says they take a lot of pride in the legacy that Coach Schlarman and the players that came before them established. "This will be a huge week for us to exert our physicality," he added, noting that the Cats have to show what it means to be a physical, SEC team. "It's a huge week for them. They will play their tails off." ... "I just felt a different vibe from these guys today."
* Levis has improved quite a bit over the last few weeks. Coen thinks the MSU game was the outlier if you look at the last 5-6 weeks. He's been really good ever since. "You feel good about the trajectory, but he'll be the first to tell you he's not looking at it that way... He doesn't think he has all the answers yet. Knows he needs to keep improving on a day to day basis."
* Asked if you stress turnovers going into this game, Coen says there's not much more that can be said about it at this point. They know what they have to do. "At this point in the season, there's not a whole lot more ball security drills you can do at this point.
* Asked about Louisville guys that jump out on film... 22 (Yasir Abdullah) 9 (CJ Avery) ... Good players
... Collectively, as a unit, they play better than they look from a size standpoint. Most OCs would rather face a 4-man front than the 3-man front with guys coming free from different spots like Louisville will do.
DC BRAD WHITE Q&A:
* On Malik Cunningham... He's a special talent, White says. There's been a pretty marked jump since the last time they saw him in 2019. His command of the offense and confidence level is a lot higher. Arguably the most talented offensive weapon we've seen all season.
* On the sack and pressure production picking up lately and how it relates to Cunningham this week... White says a dual-threat guy as electric and elusive as Malik can "take your stinger out" a little bit. In some ways, that's good because it forces you to be more under control and being aware of your assignment. The teams that have had success against him have been able to make their fair share of one-on-one plays against him. When he does make the one guy miss, you need three or four others rallying to the spot to make sure it's not a huge play.
* Louisville WRs are a challenge, White says. They can take the top off. They have a lot of long plays on their stat sheet. The secondary will be challenged. He likes how they've competed of late. Still need to get better on balls in the air, making that play on the ball. They've been trying to rebuild confidence on the back end. Crucial to have that ultimate belief back there. Guys like Echols and Joseph, even if they got beat earlier in a game, had the ultimate belief they were going to make the next play.
QB WILL LEVIS Q&A:
* On having fun with the rivalry on social media and "Ls down" ... Great rivalry that he's excited to be part of. Says a lot of people seemed to take it a lot more seriously than he intended it. Just having fun with it.
* Levis says he didn't think Penn State had a "true rival" during his time there, but Ohio State probably brought out the energy and intensity like UK has this week for Louisville.
* Levis says Coach Stoops did a good job of introducing the players to what the rivalry means when they started meetings on Monday.
* Levis says his comfort level as a quarterback has progressed every day since Day 1. Feeling really good, really confident right now. Wants to keep that trend going in the right direction on Saturday.
* On why there's so much Malik Cunningham talk this week and not much about Will Levis... Gives credit to Cunningham, "a great player." Feels like the hype is deserved, but is looking forward to battling him on Saturday.
DL JOSH PASCHAL:
* Have to be sure your rush lanes are proper and be disciplined against a QB who will run as much as Malik Cunningham, Paschal said.
* On telling younger players and newcomers about the rivalry... Coach Stoops has done a great job of that, Paschal said. They've shown some clips from the past to let them know what a dogfight they're getting into.
* Asked about Liam Coen's comment about the energy in practice... Paschal said it was the same on defense. High energy, flying around. Just what you want to see when you're facing a rival.
