Leftover Kentucky Football Thoughts on a Sunday
by Alex Scutchfield on Sep 11, 2011 12:04 PM EDT
in Kentucky Wildcats Football
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After Pigskinapalooza 2011, I've been laying low this week. But as "the football guy" I did take some notes during yesterday's game and thought today might be a good time to share some leftover thoughts about not only the Kentucky Wildcats-Central Michigan Chippewas, but the season so far as a whole.
1) Morgan Newton is going to be erratic throwing the football. He is like the guy you play pickup hoops with who nails some threes then mixes in a brick of two. It doesn't mean he can't be an effective QB, but if you are expecting pinpoint precision on every pass, he isn't your guy. Newton's inconsistency is odd because he is much better about throwing the deep ball than underneath routes. That is the exact opposite of most mediocre QB's. In my opinion, it is an easier fix, but Newton is running out of time.
2) Matt Roark has lost his place in the WR pecking order. DeMarco Robinson, Aaron Boyd and E.J. Fields all saw snaps after his drop. Newton's (perfect) pass to him seemed like it took forever. I saw the route, saw the ball in the air and thought, "Well, this will tell the tale for Roark". Sports can be harsh, especially at a high level. Good teams have to have receivers who catch the ball. Being tall, athletic and understanding your responsibilities are great things, but in the end, you gotta catch the ball.
3) The Cats seem to have found their tailback in Clemons. He finished with 126 yards on 14 carries. I think Raymond Sanders is a good running back, and he'll get snaps in this system. I wonder if Joker isn't trying to fit a square peg into a round hole by running Sanders between the tackles so much. I see Clemons as out every down guy and Sanders being a change of pace/third down back.
4) The offensive line eventually wore CMU down, but they were not particularly impressive. It will be interesting to see what happens when Matt Smith and Billy Joe Murphy come back. One would be tempted to think that the line will improve. O-line play is so much about teamwork, though, that it is going to be harder to reincorporate them into the group than you might think. This is especially true of Smith, as the center generally has the role of calling out assignments. Jake Lanefski has now been doing that all season.
5) Martavious Neloms left the game twice. I assumed he has suffered a concussion early on, as he laid on the ground for several minutes, then got up and ran off as if he was fine physically. Surprisingly, he was back in shortly, only to limp off the field for good in the second half. True freshman Ashley Lowery played in his place and made a couple of nice plays. Word is that Neloms has a stinger.
6) Kentucky's offense spent the first six and a half quarters of the season searching for an identity. What is it that we do well, and how are we going to exploit that to open up other opportunities? I think that we have found it now. Kentucky is a run first team that can change pace by having its quarterback carry it himself. For Newton's faults, he can also keep a defense honest by throwing the deep ball. Hopefully teams will hesitate to load up the box because the bomb is always a threat.
7) For the second game in a row, UK did not complete a pass to a Tight End. The deepest unit on the Cats' team isn't seeing much action. Likewise, Kentucky running backs have only one catch for zero yards. Granted, 16 completions is a pretty small sample size, but this is a pretty good indication that the offense is limited in what it can do.
8) It bears a mention. Danny Trevathan is very good at football. We can't take the kid for granted. He will go down as one of the best ever to play here. Listening to him on the radio after reminded me, he is also a great guy. Truly, he has been everything Randall Cobb was for this program, except that he happens to play defense.
9) Winston Guy, Jr. had a very good game, but allowed CMU to extend a drive when he let an old habit creep back up on him. Winston wants to "stick" people and make them fall down without wrapping up. It is a macho thing that most elite players get over in college.
10) Verdict on new Commonwealth AV. Video screens-meh, ribbon boards-awesome, sound-unreal.
11) I still think this team can play in a bowl by beating U of L, Jacksonville State and Vandy, then finding one more win, but I'm not sure it can do much more. Based on what I've seen so far, a bowl would be a major accomplishment.
12) Yesterday was a great day of college football. If you missed Notre Dame-Michigan, you can probably see it on ESPN Classic soon.
13) This may be the least anticipated UK-U of L game in years. Something tells me that the Cats and the Cards will surprise everyone and put together an exciting (if not particularly well played) contest.
14) Never forget.
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All great points Alex
I agree with them ALL.
The ND/Michigan game was totally awesome!
Blue... there is no other color to Bleed !!!
After some sleep and re-winding the DVR a couple of times...
I think we’ve got a coaching problem here… Let me explain.
We’ve got a big, reasonably mobile QB in Morgan. True, as BCinVA said in the game thread yesterday, he’s no gazelle but he can run. I’m beginning to think that stuffing him into a pro-style offense is a mistake! His skills should be showcased in a Cam Netwon/Auburn style of offense and play calling. As Alex notes above, he’s a bit erratic with his passes, but I’ll certainly agree with what 7 said yesterday, “It’s easier to throw a long ball because the receiver can run to it while it’s in the air”.
So we got a reasonably decent running QB, he’s got the air to throw the long ball but ain’t the most accurate guy on the planet. Why the pro set?? I think it’s a given that Morg is our QB for this year, and next, barring injury, so why not tweak the offense to take advantage of his skill set?? We did it for Randall, why not him??
If your wings don't sweep....
It will be interesting to see
I think you are half right. One, your suggestion is on the money. But second, I think the coaching staff will adapt and is adapting. We ran some zone read yesterday with Robinson playing the Locke role and Newton basically in the Wildcat. If we are going to win SEC games, I think we’ll have to do more. After completing 16 total passes against two of the weakest teams on our schedule, I think the staff can see we can’t stick with a conventional, pro style offense. Unlike the early Brooks years, I think Joker knows he doesn’t have the luxury of time. He is going to do what works now.
Let’s hope, anyway.
ALS
by Alex Scutchfield on Sep 11, 2011 1:07 PM EDT up reply actions
Coach in waiting,
we’re still waiting for the coaching.
I woke up feeling BLUE this morning. It's gonna be a great day.
I am going to reserve judgment about the staff.
We are 2-0, and we got caught with our pants down a little with Cobb turning pro and neither Newton nor Mossakowski developing like we’d hoped.
ALS
by Alex Scutchfield on Sep 11, 2011 3:41 PM EDT up reply actions
you're are exactly right
I’ve been wanting to post that since last nite, figured it might upset some folks
And now we have legions of
“Fans in waiting”. ;-)
Don't take life too seriously; no one gets out alive.
Then you should have.
First season I thought we should have laid off a bit. And I haven’t said one thing to anyone in his defense this season, have I? Maybe let’s wait a little bit to see. I’m not even sure I said that.
He can take the heat, and if he can’t he needs to get out of the kitchen. Me? I am holding off for a bit more. I think I should do that. If we see “Rise[ing]”, we will probably be okay.
I was worried in the first half but once I was reminded to get my lucky earrings on, things looked better. ’-)
Blue... there is no other color to Bleed !!!
AGREED...
If you have a lemon… make lemonade… Use his talents the best you can… But, never forget… Ryan Moose a cow ski is a way better qb and passer than this guy will ever be!!!
He seems to be doing okay at Northwest College (MS)
I hope he doesn’t catch the world on fire there and come back into the SEC playing for Ole Miss or Mississippi State. You can check out his stats for this year – here.
Don't take life too seriously; no one gets out alive.
I can't look 'boat...
I was really rooting for this kid to get a chance. Sigh…
If your wings don't sweep....
Me, too.
Friends in Texas saw him play in high school before his injury and came away very impressed with his strength and accuracy. I think he would have made a great quarterback for us, more in the mold of Andre Woodson.
Don't take life too seriously; no one gets out alive.
Good points.
“Morgan is erratic” – You’re being kind. “..Roark has lost his place..” – I’m just surprised he was given another chance with the depth being explore and his performance last week. Its ironic he’ll likely still be on the “good hands” special teams.
“Clemons” – the real deal (for now) but I’d like to see a bit more of Coshiek and others down the depth chart. I watched a lot of football yesterday and am still jealous of teams that have bigger, more powerful or flat out burners for tailbacks – Lattimore, Richardson, Dyer, Bolden, Ballard, Crowell – and that’s just in the SEC. Maybe I’m just assuming Clemons isn’t in this class since he plays for us and my negativity is frustrating my judgement.
“O-line play” – the jury is still out on that one. I don’t know that we know anymore now than we did before the first game. Hope #1 for our offense lies with these horses.
“Identity” – I don’t feel that one drive is a light at the end of the tunnel and I put this on the coaching staff. (This goes back to the blind squirrel analogy.) As Eagle says above “we’ve got a coaching problem”. I’m not saying its terminal and Joker has made great strides in improving the staff and continues to evolve his style. My problem (same as eagle’s) is forcing a certain style regardless of your offensive skill set. I hope to see more roll-out pockets, passes to tight ends(!), motion and short passes. Right now we are still predictable. Defense Kentucky’s dive and blast plays and prevent the deep ball. And please, please, please, don’t throw 10 yards passes on third and fourteen. Our receivers are having enough problems catching the ball, don’t rely on yards after catch.
“tight ends” – this can’t be repeated enough. We’ve got some talent at tight end. At some point they will have to be sent down the field and not held in to help with protection. Our offense is compounding our problems by keeping them in for blocking. The defense can send more pressure if the the offensive scheme renders the ends impotent. Historically we’ve had great offensive success by integrating them into the attack, let’s do it some more. I also agree with your point, Alex, on the running backs needing some catches. This should come as the offense matures, Clemons is just now working on running and needs to work on his blocking, particularly on blitzes.
“Trevathan and Guy” – both good points, Trevathan is a beast and Guy needs control on his tackling. As a side note, I was very impressed with Dupree; he has the best tackling form I’ve ever seen in a Cat.
“Video screens, ribbon boards, etc.” – I only wish I knew. (sigh) Hope to get there sometime to see a game. Those of you that have a chance to go to a game and don’t, shame on you.
“..play in a bowl” – I think we still have a good shot. I’ll go out on a limb and say the win over Tennessee will get us into a bowl. If we also beat Ole Miss, it might be one we can wear a tee shirt to. Warning: If we don’t get to a bowl this year, the pressure will really be on. The impending growth of the conference could mean more competition for the SEC guaranteed spots. Unless there is a matching bowl realignment it will be either get better fast or stay home.
“Notre Dame/Michigan game” – Wow. Simply WOW. Great game.
Don't take life too seriously; no one gets out alive.
Good points
I said aloud as I watched Roark enter the game, “I thought he wasn’t playing this week”. What happened next was sadly predictable.
Dupree is playing a lot on obvious passing downs as the hybrid DE/LB. If nothing else, we have a lot of exciting true freshmen, the most I can ever remember.
ALS
by Alex Scutchfield on Sep 11, 2011 1:59 PM EDT reply actions
Best Saturday Ever?
Well that might be a bit over the top — my best friend once said If I didn’t use superlatives I couldn’t couldn’t converse — but seriously I can’t recall a regular season Saturday with more great games: ND-Michigan was the cherry on top of the nuts on top of the whipped cream on top of the bananas: delicious and I ate it up from morning til night: AU-MSU, Iowa-ISU, UGA-USC, BYU-UTA and more. A UK win, no matter how unimpressive, was, at least, a non-downer.
"Statistics are no substitute for judgment" — Henry Clay (my namesake)
I liked that and
“ND-Michigan was the cherry on top of the nuts on top of the whipped cream on top of the bananas: delicious” too.
Blue... there is no other color to Bleed !!!
Lot's of good stuff here Alex
I think I must be on the optimistic side of the spectrum when it comes to Cat fans this season. While I do not think this team is the bees knees or anything, I do believe they will be better than what they have appeared this season. I’m also inclined to be more patient when it comes to team development – that goes for both coaches and players alike. So the offensive struggles don’t bother me much.
In the postmortem comments I mentioned to hoboat that I believed it was easier to put together a solid offense than a solid defense. That belief has been based on Kentucky football these last dozen+ seasons. Despite a talent disparity, UK has put together some very fine SEC offenses in that time. Not every year of course, but they’ve certainly been better at offense than defense. That leads me to think that they will get the offense going and that with a few breaks here and there they will have the capability to surprise some teams. We’re starting to see that already with Clemons and the 2nd half rushing attack which you mention. If the Cats continue to progress in that direction against Louisville next week then I think we can safely say that they will have found the primary means by which they will score points this season.
Good comments about Trevathan. His name makes me think “Leviathan” every time I see it. As fans we definitely need to show him the same love as Cobb. Both are well deserving of it.
Age is always advancing. And I believe it's up to no good. - Harry Dresden
You're right, we have slapped together some good offenses.
Maybe last year was simply due to having some experienced playmakers in Joker’s first season to get us to that point. Years prior to that might be attributed to Papa Brooks years of coaching and with experience maybe Coach Phillips can be a little quicker on suiting his offense to his players; after all, he was an offensive coordinator for a while.
Don't take life too seriously; no one gets out alive.
DR Wins Bronze
Congratulations to Fightin’ Caliparis 103-89 victory over Puerto Rico. Al Horford 25 and 12.
"Statistics are no substitute for judgment" — Henry Clay (my namesake)
Matt Roark
ugh…you can be the best route runner, but if you can’t catch the damn ball then you can’t play.
Dayman, Fighter of the Nightman, Champion of the Sun
What about the D-line?
At least in the first half, we seemed to get no push out of our front 4 (3?). It concerns me that we let QBs stand back there all day – an SEC QB will pick us apart.
I
think the video boards needed much less ads and much more going on. Perhaps as time goes on they will fill them out better with appropriate content .
I was disappointed
with the lack of replays, though it seemed to get better as the game went on.
ALS
by Alex Scutchfield on Sep 12, 2011 2:39 PM EDT up reply actions
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