Kentucky Wildcats Afternoon Quickies: Jeff Sheppard Edition

Jeff Sheppard has had a busy 24 hours, and he gets a lot of representation in the Quickies today.

Tweet of the Morning:

Mark Stoops said it's going to be key for young players to step in and help at receiver. Getting JUCO signee Javess Blue on campus is a must

— ESPN_SEC (@ESPN_SEC) July 23, 2013

This is absolutely right.

Your Quickies:

Kentucky football

• Mark Stoops will spend Tuesday in Bristol, Connecticut with ESPN conducting a series of interviews as part of ESPN's "Car Wash" with SEC football coaches.
• Nations Elite released their list of the Top 20 DTs. #3 Thomas Holley, #4 Matt Elam, #8 Elisha Shaw, #9 Anthony Moten, #15 Cory Johnson, #16 Abu Lamin all have offers from UK. Moten just de-commited from Florida. [Hank]
• Kentucky recruit Marcus Mosely is the #2 TE in Florida, according to the Florida HS Football (FHSF) website which is a Varsity Preps partner. [Hank]
• Remember DeMoreo Ford? Read WBN's interview with DeMoreo and see what he's up to, how he feels about Rich Brooks, Mitch Barnhart and the current staff.
• For Whom The Cowbell Tolls lists the top SEC running backs for every team, and mentions Raymond Sanders and Jonathan George, although it looks like they are ranked #13 out of 14 teams. Frankly, I think this is the year we see the emergence of Dyshawn Mobley.
• Will Kentucky get another 2014 Yahtzee! next week?
• At least one Ohio high school football coach is really impressed with what he has seen out of the new Kentucky staff.
• It's all Jeff Sheppard, all the time; this time Jeff weighs in on Kyle Wiltjer's decision to transfer.
• Nooga.com looks ahead to Kentucky from a Tennessee perspective. Naturally, they don't think Kentucky will win.

Kentucky basketball

• Fran Fraschilla talks to Andy Glockner about college basketball, and Kentucky figures prominently in that conversation. I really liked this comment:

  I’ve learned that if you can be constructively critical without being gratuitously negative, that coaches and players will be more apt to appreciate what you say [even though] they disagree with you. I feel that if you choose to play at Kansas and Kentucky, and not Colorado State or Montana, you’re not only going to be open to great praise when you play well, but hand in hand to that is you also get more criticism because you chose to play on the biggest stage.

  So in certain cases, I feel sorry for a young player who makes a mistake and I have to criticize a 19-year-old for making that mistake, you have to realize you chose that limelight. You choose to be at a program that will be scrutinized night in and night out because it’s the best team, the best programs, the best players. And as long as my opinions are based in part on how I truly believe with how much I study the game, I’m OK with being critical.

  This is exactly what John Calipari means when he says that Kentucky isn't for everyone.

• I have no issue at all accepting Jeff Sheppard's comments on the "one-and-done" rule. It's that whole thing about preferring Louisville that bugged me a little. But I'm over it.

• Dakari Johnson, a mountain of a man.
• Jeff Sheppard talking about Julius Randle. I agree with Jeff, for DeMarcus Cousins to say he's a top-five draft pick right now is impressive.
• Well, we don't know yet what Jeff Sheppard would think of this. Just kidding, Jeff. I can't wait to read the whole thing.

Links posts

• The Leach Report -- Tuesday Wildcat Links

College football

• While this article is touting Florida teams, you will note that Ft. Thomas Highlands is also getting national exposure from ESPN. Louisville's Trinity will also play on ESPN national television the same weekend.
• Miami coach Al Golden is hoping for some finality to the NCAA investigation that's been hovering over his program.
• How valuable are bye weeks? Not as valuable as many of us seem to think, unless you're Florida, Georgia, or South Carolina. Ole Miss is 1-10 off bye weeks in the last 10 years. Even Alabama is only 7-3.

• Consider:

  The player stipend debate has been disaster and perhaps the last straw for the BCS schools. Northern Iowa has almost nothing in common with Texas but has the ability to vote down a stipend because it can't afford it. What the BCS commissioners are saying: Why is Northern Iowa voting on the issue in the first place?

  Tough question, n'est ce pas? John Clay has more..

• And The Valley Shook is displeased with LSU's scheduling, and wonders why they should have to bear the brunt of retaining conference rivalries. Fair point. Unfortunately, they look outvoted to me.

• I'm trying to decide if this is actually an honor, or an indictment? What say you?
• Is Ohio St. beginning to look ever so slightly like Florida in terms of Fulmer Cup points? I haven't seen a Cupdate in a while, but ...
• Heh.

College basketball

• Myron Metcalf lists the "indispensable" players for next year. There are no UK players on the list, which I think is a really good thing.
• So P.J. Hairston has all charges against him dropped. Naturally, non-North Carolina fans are looking askance at this news.

• The think is, timing matters in the case of UTEP not allowing Isaac Hamilton out of is LOI. According to this report, he wants to transfer to USC to be near his ailing grandmother, but that makes you wonder if she was ill when he signed, or what changed?

  I suspect the NCAA appeals committee will look into this, but I'm also wondering how valuable it is to have a talented, but angry player on your roster? Tim Floyd might want to rethink this.

• I thought we all agreed that the Wiltjer/Olynyk comparison was not a good one? Apparently, Andy Katz didn't get the memo.

• Did North Carolina cheat on their report to the NCAA? Well it wouldn't surprise me.

Other sports news

• Bright Side of the Sun talks about Archie Goodwin:

  Archie Goodwin was all over the court, looking so fluid and natural that you could tell the game comes totally easy to him. At 18, he's a boy among men who won't even be able to drink when/if he plays his THIRD Summer League season. But in terms of talent he's head and shoulders above anyone else on that court today.

  And this is without Goodwin really knowing how to play basketball yet. He is just playing instinctively, moving without the ball, defending his man and running out on the break with ease.

  Just in case you thought that Goodwin didn't have what it takes, it looks right now as if he does. He's got a long way to go, but I think a lot of folks are surprised.

• The best is yet to come for DeMarcus Cousins, but only if he learns to control his emotions. For him, that has been a real challenge. Team USA is hoping that he can find his grove, and Cousins seems genuinely thankful for the opportunity.
• John Wall doesn't much care if you don't like his tattoos.

• Blog A Bull is encouraged by the play of Marquis Teague in the NBA summer league:

  Teague was the Bulls' second leading scorer by averaging 18.3 points per game. He finished fifth in Vegas in assists at 4.8. The 3.5 turnovers per game Teague averaged was unacceptable and something that will definitely need to be curtailed for him to earn minutes, but overall I thought he was impressive.

  Turnovers have always been an issue for Marquis, apparently as much now as his first few months at Kentucky. But he will get better.

• Some interesting analysis on the complexities of communicating advanced statistical metrics to NBA players.