Happy Tax Day, everybody.
How about some football quotes for the last time this spring:
Mark Stoops
Opening statement:
Good practice today. It was good to wrap up spring. No major injuries. As I told the team afterward, it's definitely the most consistent we've been for 15 practices. We weren't perfect for all 15, but the guys were really out there trying to make a conscious effort to improve on the things we point out in the meetings. We had great energy. Guys were really flying around this morning, having fun, competing, getting better the whole way through. Really pleased with the progress we've made. I feel like we have more depth. We have some good, young talent that we need to continue to work with. Overall very productive, very good spring. We need to keep that momentum, keep that consistency going here with the last two and a half, three weeks of school and have a great summer -- physically and mentally getting tougher, getting stronger, getting bigger. And if we do that, then we'll be excited heading into fall.
On the end of first spring versus this spring:
Well, just like I try to tell the players all the time; I try to be very honest with them and if I'm honest with myself, it can be challenging to say the least. But really you focus on what you can control and that's truly what we did from day one to now: work with what we had, get what we had better, again mentally and physically, and that was the concentration the first spring. It's a challenge when you know you need some sharper arrows.
On if he'd seen videos from Richmond incidents:
Yeah, I saw the videos. I've address that.
On if he'd seen them before their release yesterday:
Not going to comment on that. There was no surprises to me yesterday. I've addressed it with the players and with the team and we've moved on.
On what qualities Jason Hatcher and Melvin Lewis bring to the defense:
Jason's a guy that I'm really excited about, getting some good experience a year ago, getting him out there in a position where he can make some plays. He's very explosive. He's always been a great pass rusher. He's getting more and more comfortable on his feet and more and more versatile. So I like what Jason's doing. Melvin's just been very consistent. He has a chance to be a dominant player, a very good player. So he's got to continue to work and have a good offseason, but we expect an awful lot from him.
On Kengera Daniel:
Very pleased with him. He's going to be a very good football player, for a guy that should be wrapping up high school right now, he really did a good job. It was really beneficial for him to be here and get the 15 practices in and you can see him getting better and better. The weight room is going to really help him as he puts on more weight and more strength.
On if C.J. Johnson has made necessary strides:
Definitely. Definitely. I feel a lot better about him. When he's not thinking as much, you see the talent and you see him making some plays. He's another guy who needs to be more consistent.
On if the move to a 3-4 defense changes recruiting:
It does. It certainly does. No matter what you're playing, 4-3, 3-4, 4-2-5, no matter what you're doing, you know you need players and you need some outside backers and all that, but it does change it a bit for the body type we're looking for.
On if the more hybrid body types are more available:
I think so. I think so. When we were recruiting to the 4-3, the big, strong defensive ends, I think a lot of people search for those guys. And so I think some of the guys who have a little bit more length and some athletic ability, give them a little more time to grow into their bodies, there might be a few more of those guys out there.
On how much better he thinks they are than the end of his first spring practice at UK:
Significantly better right now after the last day of spring here in year three and the last day of spring year one. Significantly better. Yes. I think it's hard to put into words exactly. I just think it starts mentally. They understand what we want from them. They enjoy practice all the way through. Like I said, the 15th day -- all the way through they were enjoying themselves, concentrating on getting better. I think mentally we're much stronger. Definitely feel like we're developing them to be a winning football team.
On if the culture is where he wants it:
I definitely believe we're moving towards the culture we want. Yeah. Definitely making strides in that area. I feel very good about this team. Again, we know where we're deficient and where we need to improve, but I like the attitude and I feel like we have good young talent that's still developing that's going to get better with every opportunity.
On what is most important to get where they want to be in the fall:
That consistency. We can't have the ups and downs. It's a long, tough season, and that's the way it's going to be. And that's not going to change. So we need to continue to develop depth and we need to try to stay healthy, but there's not a lot you can do to control that. I'd just like to see our team continue to improve mentally to be a consistent team, to every time we walk in this meeting room or walk out on the field to improve and get better. You can't do that by just going through the motions. I see us being more consistent. Like I said with the opening statement, I feel like certainly this 15 practices, this spring has been the most consistent we've been.
On if consistency means not having bad days, bad meetings:
Yeah, and one play leading into the next and all those things. Or one day, one period leading into the next. So, I just feel like we're getting good work, and the guys are concentrating and focusing on the things that we're stressing.
On which players took the most dramatic leaps this spring:
I think that both quarterbacks made some big improvement. I really like what they're doing. I think Garrett Johnson really took a big step. Blake Bone really had some big plays. Again today really had some flashes of catching the ball and making some impressive catches today. Josh Forrest I think is a guy that made some big improvement along with Ryan Flannigan. Those are positions that you know you need to improve on. I feel like they have. Again, as I've talked about a few times, I think through the middle of our defense with the nose guard, the backers and up through the nickels dimes and safeties I feel like we're getting better. We need to continue to improve and get some depth outside at corner.
On if there are positions that stood out for needing reinforcements from 2015 class:
I think just like I mentioned, possibly corner would be one. And then give us some depth at some other positions.
On if there are any battles in good-on-good periods he particularly enjoyed watching:
Yeah, quite a few. I really think it's been very competitive most of the spring. That's what I like to see: good competitive plays, instead of one side or the other doing well because the other side was inept. I'm seeing more and more quality football plays. That's when you know you're growing: when a guy may be covered and comes down with a big catch or it looks like he's going to make the catch and we strip it out of there. So, there's been good competitive plays. We've been a cleaner football team.
On what he wants to see from QBs over the summer:
Just continue to do what they're doing. Just continue to be good leaders, continue to improve and really focus. Quarterbacks need to keep everybody accountable in the summer. We're not allowed to spend time with them. Certainly we're not allowed to be around them when they have a football, so they have to do that on their own and the quarterbacks certainly have to take charge of when they're throwing and making sure and keeping accountability and having guys there and making sure we're getting good work in when they're there because they need to improve throughout the summer. the whole team.
On why it's important players are having fun:
Well as you've heard me say many times: the mentality as soon as they walk in the building can be positive or negative. There's no replacing that positive energy and guys believing in what they're doing and having a positive effect on other guys. So when they're out there bouncing around and everybody's enjoying it and competing hard and working extremely hard but getting competitive with each other in a good way, I think it's very important.
On if he'll announce it publicly when he talks to the QBs and names a starter:
I don't know if I said that. Did I say I was going to name a starter? Hmmmm. (Grinning.) I think I did tell Alan that I was going to name one, but I'm going to sit on that. I'll let you know. If I'm ready to go public, we'll call a meeting and call y'all in here and let you know.
On his impressions of new OC Shannon Dawson this spring:
I've been very, very impressed. I was very happy with what Coach Brown, what Neal was doing and where we were going. I knew we would be better this year, for sure, just with the personnel -- and we should be heading into Year 3. So I was very pleased with what we were doing. I really like what we're doing right now. I just think it was exactly what I was looking for and I just feel like we made a lot of strides and I like what we're doing schematically. I think our players are really enjoying it, like I said, and in some ways maybe eliminated a little bit of thinking, a little bit of pressure off certain guys. So overall, I've been very pleased.
On how much Andy Buh coming on and the restructuring of the defensive staff accomplished what he wanted there:
Very important. It was important. I really like the changes that we made defensively, as far as how we're structuring our staff and what we're doing. I definitely feel like that's going to benefit those young outside backers. And we need to get a few guys in here from this class, certainly a couple junior college that will be in the mix as well. With Alvonte (Bell) out there at outside backer, he'll need some individual attention. So really pleased with Coach Buh and the moves that we made and how we set up the staff. Feel very good about it."
How about some football quotes for the last time this spring:
Mark Stoops
Opening statement:
Good practice today. It was good to wrap up spring. No major injuries. As I told the team afterward, it's definitely the most consistent we've been for 15 practices. We weren't perfect for all 15, but the guys were really out there trying to make a conscious effort to improve on the things we point out in the meetings. We had great energy. Guys were really flying around this morning, having fun, competing, getting better the whole way through. Really pleased with the progress we've made. I feel like we have more depth. We have some good, young talent that we need to continue to work with. Overall very productive, very good spring. We need to keep that momentum, keep that consistency going here with the last two and a half, three weeks of school and have a great summer -- physically and mentally getting tougher, getting stronger, getting bigger. And if we do that, then we'll be excited heading into fall.
On the end of first spring versus this spring:
Well, just like I try to tell the players all the time; I try to be very honest with them and if I'm honest with myself, it can be challenging to say the least. But really you focus on what you can control and that's truly what we did from day one to now: work with what we had, get what we had better, again mentally and physically, and that was the concentration the first spring. It's a challenge when you know you need some sharper arrows.
On if he'd seen videos from Richmond incidents:
Yeah, I saw the videos. I've address that.
On if he'd seen them before their release yesterday:
Not going to comment on that. There was no surprises to me yesterday. I've addressed it with the players and with the team and we've moved on.
On what qualities Jason Hatcher and Melvin Lewis bring to the defense:
Jason's a guy that I'm really excited about, getting some good experience a year ago, getting him out there in a position where he can make some plays. He's very explosive. He's always been a great pass rusher. He's getting more and more comfortable on his feet and more and more versatile. So I like what Jason's doing. Melvin's just been very consistent. He has a chance to be a dominant player, a very good player. So he's got to continue to work and have a good offseason, but we expect an awful lot from him.
On Kengera Daniel:
Very pleased with him. He's going to be a very good football player, for a guy that should be wrapping up high school right now, he really did a good job. It was really beneficial for him to be here and get the 15 practices in and you can see him getting better and better. The weight room is going to really help him as he puts on more weight and more strength.
On if C.J. Johnson has made necessary strides:
Definitely. Definitely. I feel a lot better about him. When he's not thinking as much, you see the talent and you see him making some plays. He's another guy who needs to be more consistent.
On if the move to a 3-4 defense changes recruiting:
It does. It certainly does. No matter what you're playing, 4-3, 3-4, 4-2-5, no matter what you're doing, you know you need players and you need some outside backers and all that, but it does change it a bit for the body type we're looking for.
On if the more hybrid body types are more available:
I think so. I think so. When we were recruiting to the 4-3, the big, strong defensive ends, I think a lot of people search for those guys. And so I think some of the guys who have a little bit more length and some athletic ability, give them a little more time to grow into their bodies, there might be a few more of those guys out there.
On how much better he thinks they are than the end of his first spring practice at UK:
Significantly better right now after the last day of spring here in year three and the last day of spring year one. Significantly better. Yes. I think it's hard to put into words exactly. I just think it starts mentally. They understand what we want from them. They enjoy practice all the way through. Like I said, the 15th day -- all the way through they were enjoying themselves, concentrating on getting better. I think mentally we're much stronger. Definitely feel like we're developing them to be a winning football team.
On if the culture is where he wants it:
I definitely believe we're moving towards the culture we want. Yeah. Definitely making strides in that area. I feel very good about this team. Again, we know where we're deficient and where we need to improve, but I like the attitude and I feel like we have good young talent that's still developing that's going to get better with every opportunity.
On what is most important to get where they want to be in the fall:
That consistency. We can't have the ups and downs. It's a long, tough season, and that's the way it's going to be. And that's not going to change. So we need to continue to develop depth and we need to try to stay healthy, but there's not a lot you can do to control that. I'd just like to see our team continue to improve mentally to be a consistent team, to every time we walk in this meeting room or walk out on the field to improve and get better. You can't do that by just going through the motions. I see us being more consistent. Like I said with the opening statement, I feel like certainly this 15 practices, this spring has been the most consistent we've been.
On if consistency means not having bad days, bad meetings:
Yeah, and one play leading into the next and all those things. Or one day, one period leading into the next. So, I just feel like we're getting good work, and the guys are concentrating and focusing on the things that we're stressing.
On which players took the most dramatic leaps this spring:
I think that both quarterbacks made some big improvement. I really like what they're doing. I think Garrett Johnson really took a big step. Blake Bone really had some big plays. Again today really had some flashes of catching the ball and making some impressive catches today. Josh Forrest I think is a guy that made some big improvement along with Ryan Flannigan. Those are positions that you know you need to improve on. I feel like they have. Again, as I've talked about a few times, I think through the middle of our defense with the nose guard, the backers and up through the nickels dimes and safeties I feel like we're getting better. We need to continue to improve and get some depth outside at corner.
On if there are positions that stood out for needing reinforcements from 2015 class:
I think just like I mentioned, possibly corner would be one. And then give us some depth at some other positions.
On if there are any battles in good-on-good periods he particularly enjoyed watching:
Yeah, quite a few. I really think it's been very competitive most of the spring. That's what I like to see: good competitive plays, instead of one side or the other doing well because the other side was inept. I'm seeing more and more quality football plays. That's when you know you're growing: when a guy may be covered and comes down with a big catch or it looks like he's going to make the catch and we strip it out of there. So, there's been good competitive plays. We've been a cleaner football team.
On what he wants to see from QBs over the summer:
Just continue to do what they're doing. Just continue to be good leaders, continue to improve and really focus. Quarterbacks need to keep everybody accountable in the summer. We're not allowed to spend time with them. Certainly we're not allowed to be around them when they have a football, so they have to do that on their own and the quarterbacks certainly have to take charge of when they're throwing and making sure and keeping accountability and having guys there and making sure we're getting good work in when they're there because they need to improve throughout the summer. the whole team.
On why it's important players are having fun:
Well as you've heard me say many times: the mentality as soon as they walk in the building can be positive or negative. There's no replacing that positive energy and guys believing in what they're doing and having a positive effect on other guys. So when they're out there bouncing around and everybody's enjoying it and competing hard and working extremely hard but getting competitive with each other in a good way, I think it's very important.
On if he'll announce it publicly when he talks to the QBs and names a starter:
I don't know if I said that. Did I say I was going to name a starter? Hmmmm. (Grinning.) I think I did tell Alan that I was going to name one, but I'm going to sit on that. I'll let you know. If I'm ready to go public, we'll call a meeting and call y'all in here and let you know.
On his impressions of new OC Shannon Dawson this spring:
I've been very, very impressed. I was very happy with what Coach Brown, what Neal was doing and where we were going. I knew we would be better this year, for sure, just with the personnel -- and we should be heading into Year 3. So I was very pleased with what we were doing. I really like what we're doing right now. I just think it was exactly what I was looking for and I just feel like we made a lot of strides and I like what we're doing schematically. I think our players are really enjoying it, like I said, and in some ways maybe eliminated a little bit of thinking, a little bit of pressure off certain guys. So overall, I've been very pleased.
On how much Andy Buh coming on and the restructuring of the defensive staff accomplished what he wanted there:
Very important. It was important. I really like the changes that we made defensively, as far as how we're structuring our staff and what we're doing. I definitely feel like that's going to benefit those young outside backers. And we need to get a few guys in here from this class, certainly a couple junior college that will be in the mix as well. With Alvonte (Bell) out there at outside backer, he'll need some individual attention. So really pleased with Coach Buh and the moves that we made and how we set up the staff. Feel very good about it."
