Mark Stoops says Kentucky is committed to making the passing game work

As Mark Stoops and the Kentucky Wildcats continue their preparation for the Tennessee Volunteers this coming Saturday night, the UK Head Coach is hoping to get his team back on track.

Coming into this week, the Cats are on a two-game losing streak and are trying to find their rhythm to get the momentum back to save the season.

In the past, Coach Stoops would likely turn to the ground-and-pound, ball-control offense that has gotten the Kentucky program to this point, but after a statement during today's press conference, it is obvious Stoops is committed to getting this passing offense to the next level.

“When we’re behind the chains, we are very inefficient,” Stoops stated. “We need to execute better. We need to be able to keep people off balance. We want to grow as a program. You’ve heard me talk about it. We’ve discussed this. We can sit there and second guess ourselves and look at that last time we took the field.”

It’s easy to say Kentucky should just run the ball more with a running back like Ray Davis putting up the kind of numbers he is. But to beat good teams in the SEC and move this program forward, Kentucky needs balance, and Stoops knows this.

“We can sit there and run the ball maybe 20 more times and have a better chance to win the game, but are we really growing as an organization?” Stoops exclaimed. “Are we really winning and becoming the team that we want to become? We’re never going to stop working at that.”

A lot of the talk around the program the last few weeks has been about ‘taking the next step’. If the Cats really want to do that, then getting a consistent passing offense is a must.

Obviously, quarterback recruiting has been the hindrance of the Stoops era. With Cutter Boley and Stone Saunders committed for the classes of 2024 and 25, that narrative appears to have been flipped. Now comes getting the play style translated on the field.

Putting it together this Saturday night would be ideal to get this season back on the right track.