Big Blue Nation Linkapalooza: Catchup Edition

I didn't get around to a linkapalooza yesterday, so tonight's post will be quite lengthy.  So let's get right to it, shall we?

• Off the field woes for some SEC foes.

• Wide receiver Gene McCaskill is Kentucky's Mr. Reliable -- The Courier-Journal

  "He’s been there and done it," receivers coach Tee Martin said. "Coming back to a young offense … he’s one of those guys you can count on being there when you need him."

• Danny Trevathan uses yoga to get strong.

  "When we started doing it, we saw our maxes going up," Williams said. "The coaches were like, ‘What are you all doing?’"

  Maybe I should start doing yoga.

• Calipari's Dominican team 0-2

  Looking for its first win at the Jenaro "Tuto" Marchand Cup in Brazil, the Dominican Republic National Team, which is led by Kentucky coach John Calipari, fell to Brazil on Thursday night, 70-64.

• Trevor Lacey is eligible for Alabama.

• Bruce Pearl: "I accept responsibility for what I did and the resulting consequences but I’m disappointed with length of show-cause penalty."

  Very interesting comments from Pearl.  He denies trying to convince Aaron Craft's father to help him with his deception, as the NCAA suggested.  He thinks his penalty is too long (I think it's just right), but other than that I found little objectionable in there.
  
  This was interesting:

  I accept responsibility for what I did and all the resulting consequences but I’m disappointed with the length of the show-cause penalty. I thought it was longer than I was anticipating or thought it could be but these are the times and I’m gonna serve as a good example of what can happen when you make these mistakes."

  I hope so, Bruce.  You are a good coach.  People do recover from bad mistakes, and I hope you do.

• Louisville freshman basketball player Kevin Ware's academic status in doubt | The Courier-Journal | courier-journal.com

  Pitino said it’s an academic issue and not related to the NCAA’s investigation of Central Florida’s recruiting. The 6-foot-4 Ware, from Rockdale County High School in Georgia, signed with Tennessee before coach Bruce Pearl was fired, then got his release and commited to UCF. After a New York Times report linked his UCF recruitment to a possible street agent, Ware backed out. In June he announced he would attend U of L.

  Good to know.

• Can Ukwu be great?

  When fall camp got difficult, when the drills got monotonous, when the heat got to be too much, Collins Ukwu never flinched.

  That's one thing it takes to be great -- a great attitude that rejects conditions you can't control and focuses on those you can.

• UK men's basketball notes: Kentucky-Kansas game chosen for ESPN Tip-Off Marathon - LHL

• Mark Story on Morgan Newton:

  I'm not sure I've ever seen one player more important to a head coach's ultimate destiny than Kentucky quarterback Morgan Newton is to Joker Phillips. The junior from Carmel, Ind., is the only scholarship QB on the UK roster who has ever dressed for a college football game. In nine career starts, Newton has not yet performed close to the level suggested by the rampant recruiting hype he brought to Lexington but, as a third-year junior, he's still got time to develop. If he doesn't, UK and Phillips are in trouble.

  Wow, strong words from Story.  I do think he has a point, though, although Phillips is probably not in trouble unless the wheels just fall off Newton, or the team rips itself apart.  Even though I think Story waxes a bit hyperbolic here, his main point is pretty much spot on.

• NCAAFootball.com previews my alma mater, Western Kentucky.

  WKU opens with a neutral-site game at Nashville and gets three straight homes games against Navy, Indiana State and Arkansas State. Two of those games are winnable, and with the exception of a November trip to LSU, the Hilltoppers should remain relevant and competitive throughout the league slate. WKU isn't expected to make a bowl run, but should be able to win at least four games and revel in the fact that the program is headed in the right direction.

  Willie Taggart gets a lot of experience back, and the Hilltoppers should be much better this year than last.  Kentucky could wind up with a bit of a challenge next Thursday.

• Positional Preview: Special Teams
  Via KSR.

• Ask the experts: Breaking down the rankings
  Jerry Meyer and Eric Bossi of Rivals debate the 2012 class.

• Kids and Twitter don't mix.

• Player has to give up scholly for Drummond - College Basketball Nation Blog - ESPN

  So for now, all the Huskies need to know is whether Bradley will agree to go off scholarship to ensure Drummond is on the roster and starting school this week. Barring a major hiccup, this will occur (if it hasn't already), allowing UConn to add a gigantic piece to its Final Four puzzle in late August -- something that is almost unheard of in the history of the game.

  I expected this would be resolved, and it looks like it will.

• Texas A&M headed out the door of the Big 12, according to a source.

  "No major surprises," said the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the talks. "A&M didn't say they were leaving, but certainly gave every indication that's what they plan on doing."

• Chuck Hayes is king of the "over your head" division.
  Via KSR.

• Some good football news.
• "Bourbon shots?" You had me at "Bourbon shots."