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Its a Dawg morning, as we get ready to face the Georgia Bulldogs tomorrow for homecoming. I sure wish we could pick more vulnerable opponents than that for our homecoming game, but that's just life in the SEC.
Tweet of the Morning:
@boundiali I love Calipari's whole - "Whatever you think I am, I agree. Now let me go coach my team," attitude.
— Megan Whitmer (@MeganWhitmer) October 19, 2012
You can bet that "Coach Your Team" will become a byword around here.
Your Quickies
Friday Morning Dawg Bites: Who has the "easy schedule" now? Edition // Dawg Sports
Some tips for the Kentucky game for Georgia fans.
Morning Five: 10.19.12 EditionRush The Court // Rush The Court
Krzyzewski goes on to say that he prefers the preps-to-pros route with the caveat that if players choose to come to college, they must stay in school for at least two years. It’s not an uncommon position for head coaches weary of investing so much energy in recruiting the services of players for a single season on campus, but as we’ve written in this space before, coaches like him don’t seem to remember or realize how important it is for the greater good of the sport to have marketable players such as Anthony Davis, Kevin Durant, and Kyrie Irving representing the NCAA side of the equation.
I'm not surprised that Krzyzewski prefers players going straight to the NBA, since these are not players he prefers to recruit, anyway, and it would put him on a more even footing with Calipari, although perhaps only marginally so.
Of the two main positions -- either direct to the league or a 2-year college stay -- the former would seem to be more useful to Duke, but that's just my perception.
Jarrod Polson on playing time, Julius Mays, Willlie Cauley-Stein, hometown fans // vaughtsviews
Question: Would Mays be able to outshoot Doron Lamb, UK’s two guard the last two years?
Polson: "I think so. He actually kind of reminds me of Lamb. He is shorter than Doron, but he plays scarily similar to Doron. He just knows how to play the game and get his shots and when he gets his shots, they are going in. He is definitely a good player for us."
Wow, that's an amazing thought. If he can even shoot as well as Lamb, never mind better, I like our chances even more than I did.
Pitino Says He'd Rather Not Recruit Like Kentucky // Lexington, Kentucky
"I'd much rather have players like this," Pitino said at Wednesday's Big East media day, pointing to Siva and Dieng. "A four-year player and a three-year player. If I could do what (Kentucky) could do, I certainly would want the talent they have. But I can't do it. It's not my makeup."
Okay, well, let's see if you can get that job done on the fourth try. As an aside, do you think Louisville Cardinal fans will be satisfied with 1 out of 4? Because after this year, it's back to beat-downs, even if the Cards are able to pull this one off.
Boeheim, Pitino Both Say the Other Is ‘Full Of S***t // ZagsBlog.com
For the record, I think they're both right.
Kentucky's 2013 football schedule includes attractive home slate // Kentucky.com
Honestly, this is about as good as it gets in the SEC. After this year, I'd say we deserve a break no matter who ends up coaching the team. This schedule has been the most murderous I can ever remember.
Georgia star LB might miss game with Kentucky football // The Courier-Journal
Even if he’s out, Cats coach Joker Phillips is hardly feeling lucky. Counting Jones, Georgia has four players projected as first-round picks in the next draft by ESPN, including three in the top-15 selections.
That's life in the SEC.
Tim Couch weighs in on state of UK football // Kentucky.com
Q: You've been around a lot of programs and called a lot of games, can you ever remember a string of injuries like Kentucky has had this season?
A: "I've been thinking about that since last week, and I don't think I've ever seen it quite as bad, especially at one particular position, like that safety position, which has just been decimated. ... It's just been an unfortunate string of bad luck for them. I've never seen anything like it really."
Wost I can remember.
The Morning Mix // CollegeBasketballTalk
- Georgia? Relevant in basketball? I’ll have to see it to believe it. Gary Parrish believes it could happen
Believe it. Mark Fox is doing good work down there. I'm sure all 100 Georgia basketball fans will be glad to hear this. Just kidding, Dawg.
Jimmy Dykes Compares Archie Goodwin to Michael Kidd-Gilchrist // Everything Kentucky Online
I don't really think anybody is like MKG -- in a way, he is as rare a player as Anthony Davis.
Marcus Lee Wants to Break the Kentucky Shot Blocking Record // Everything Kentucky Online
If you're going to set goals, you should set them high, but ...
The Edge: Cats prepare for dogging // The Kentucky Kernel
Sigh. Tough to read, but hard to dispute.
Georgia Sports Blog // 3 Questions: Kentucky
Can we hold Kentucky scoreless? Dude, we need an overwhelming effort defensively. Not just a good game. A pure ass whipping. I know it is Kentucky. I know they are an awful offensive team. I know. We need this.
When teams are asking this, you know the offense is pretty bad. But on the bright side, Georgia has found Kentucky more challenging at home than most of the top of the SEC.
First thoughts on Georgia – Kentucky // Get The Picture
Whatever happens in this game, it has to be taken through the backdrop that this year’s Kentucky squad isn’t very good. How ungood is it? Well, by my count, the SEC tracks 33 separate team statistical categories. Kentucky is in the bottom three in eighteen of them and eleventh in four more.
Heavy sigh. I hate statistics. Except in basketball. I really like them in basketball.
Steele picks: Georgia – Kentucky // Get The Picture
Two things worth taking away from that are that UK’s quarterback situation is pretty dire (I didn’t realize that Newton had played; his passer rating of 75.3 was a huge step up from the 24 he garnered against Florida, but still…) and that last year’s game is a stark reminder of Georgia’s endearing habit of playing down to its opposition. In the case of this year’s Kentucky team, that’s pretty far down. If that’s all we get, expect an ugly week heading into Jacksonville.
Yep, well, it is what it is.
Bobby Petrino’s Potential Next Job(s) // intellectualgridiron
Offered without comment, as a public service.
Report: Ohio State AD miffed after Vanderbilt cancels game via letter // SI Tracking Blog
Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith isn’t happy with how he was notified of Vanderbilt’s decision to back out of their season-opener scheduled for Aug. 31, 2013, according to The Cleveland Plain Dealer. Smith said Vanderbilt sent Ohio State a form letter announcing its plans with less than 11 months notice.
Apparently, the new SEC schedule forced this change, unless Vandy was planning on the first double-header in modern college football history. Come to think of it, how cool would that be? Okay, yeah, it's a stupid idea.
Kentucky Sports Report // Evan Daniels on Marcus Lee, Bruce Pearl on Calipari
Pearl says he has seen Calipari "evolve" into a truly elite coach in recent years.
"I see John Calipari running better stuff and he’s much tougher to coach against now than he was when he first started coaching at Memphis," Pearl said. "They did a little bit of everything then, but they don’t do as much now. However, what they do, they do very, very well. They do fewer things and do them so well that’s why everybody wants to play for him."
I get it. Pearl is lobbying to be Calipari's successor at UK. If I ignored past history, I might be forced to reluctantly admit that he is the only guy out there with a similar skillset when it comes to promoting a program. Not sure the rest stacks up, though.
Anthony Davis shows skills in Hornets loss // John Clay's Sidelines
"He (Davis) played OK and hit some shots and was active," New Orleans coach Monty Williams said afterward. "Anthony needs help getting into his sets, we’re not getting a lot of execution offensively. This is a man’s game and our young guys are starting to realize that men are playing it."
Not exactly high praise, but let's face it -- he's right. The NBA is a man's game, and Davis has been a man for all of about 2 years.
Via John Clay: