Thursday Quickies: SEC Chaos Edition

The SEC has a weird amount of parity this year, and that was on display again last night, as Florida, the team that just beat Kentucky and jumped to No. 20 in the nation, fell to South Carolina. The Gamecocks are now 4-4 in the conference with some weird wins. There are three teams with a .500 record in conference, the top five teams in the conference are separated by just 1 ¹⁄₂ games, and the Auburn Tigers are at the top of the table...yeah, AUBURN.

It’s been a weird year.

Tweets of the day

A story told in two tweets:

Your quickies

John Calipari redefining assist statistic | Courier-Journal
John Calipari’s new directive to his players is pass, pass and pass some more. He is changing the assist rule to credit players for creating shots for teammates regardless of whether the basket is converted.

Kentucky football: 3 things to know about wide receivers coach Michael Smith - SEC Country
Michael Smith, a former Arkansas assistant under Bret Bielema, will be hired as Kentucky's wide receivers coach. Here are three things to know about Mark Stoops' newest staff member.

Calipari goes simple on 2018 tweaks — pass and play the best guys - SEC Country
TWEAK 2018: John Calipari has dug deep into his bag of tricks to reboot his struggling young Kentucky basketball team. He's reinvented assist statistics to reward simply making a pass of any kind — and instituted a new rotation.

Kentucky coach John Calipari on game at West Virginia: “Hatfields and McCoys. It’s a neat one for both programs.” - Cats' Pause
Beware Kentucky, Saturday's game against West Virginia in Morgantown is 'Devil Anse' Hatfield inviting 'Ole Ran'l' McCoy to supper.

How Jarred Vanderbilt has impacted Kentucky so far - Cats' Pause
Kentucky freshman Jarred Vanderbilt has shown his talent through three games so far.

Killeya-Jones has answered Calipari's call off the bench | Kentucky Sports Radio
This past offseason, all signs pointed toward Sacha Killeya-Jones transferring. Now, he has been a key role player for Kentucky off the bench.

UK Front Seven's Tackles for Loss and QB Sacks | Kentucky Sports Radio
Is there a direct correlation between accumulated tackles for loss and wins? How about QB sacks? Kentucky finished 12th in the SEC with 63 tackles for loss which is six lower than its 2016 total (69). Noticeably, the Cats increased its QB sack total from 21 in 2016 to 30 in 2017. This post will address the front seven.

The new SLAM Magazine cover is incredible | Kentucky Sports Radio
Anthony Davis and DeMarcus Cousins pay homage to No Limit Records.

Kentucky Shortstop Katie Reed Named Preseason All-SEC | University of Kentucky | Official Athletic Site
Kentucky junior shortstop Katie Reed was named to the 2018 Southeastern Conference Preseason Team, it was announced on Wednesday morning. The honor is voted upon by the 13 head coaches in the SEC.

Baseball Hall of Fame: Chipper Jones, Jim Thome, Vladimir Guerrero, Trevor Hoffman elected - USA Today
For the fourth time since 2014, at least three new members were elected to the Hall of Fame.

NBA Rising Stars game rosters announced | SI.com
The Sixers, Lakers, Celtics, Bulls and Kings all have multiple players competing in the Rising Stars game.

Elway, Broncos work through “process” of evaluating Baker Mayfield, Josh Allen – ProFootballTalk
The Broncos need a franchise quarterback. They know it, everyone knows it. And their primary options include: (1) hoping that Paxton Lynch can become a franchise quarterback; (2) signing or trading for a veteran; and (3) drafting a rookie.

Hue Jackson: No one told me to hire an offensive coordinator – ProFootballTalk
Browns coach Hue Jackson insisted it was his decision to hire Todd Haley and relinquish play-calling duties to the new offensive coordinator. "No, let me say this and let me go on record and you guys can write this: No one ever told me I needed to hire an offensive coordinator,'' Jackson said, vi...

Fantasy basketball -- Which players will shine after being snubbed for the All-Star game? - ESPN
All-Star snubs often motivate players to bring their A-games to the hardwood. Who will make some box score noise in fantasy soon after missing out?

NFL’s Cam Newton Concussion Ruling Features Not-So-Subtle Dig At Media | NFL | NESN.com
The NFL wants you to know it cares about player safety, and it won't hear otherwise. The league released a statement Tuesday concluding the Panthers did not violate concussion protocol when evaluating quarterback Cam Newton for a possible head injury after taking a big hit in Carolina's NFC Divis...

Super Bowl 2018: If Nick Foles wins it all, what happens at QB for the Eagles? - CBSSports.com
The list of what-ifs runs long: Will anyone overpay for him? Will Eagles refuse to trade him?