Football

College Football Insider Suggests “Assistant Coach Reckoning” Is Coming to SEC, Kentucky Included

Published

7 months ago

November 18, 2022

UK Athletics

Prior to the 2021 season, Mark Stoops made the decision to change his offensive philosophy and modernize the offense. That is exactly, what he did.

First, Stoops went and hired Liam Coen, then the quarterbacks coach for the Los Angeles Rams, in December 2020. Which was followed by getting Will Levis and Wan’Dale Robinson from the transfer portal.

With a new-look, pro-style offense, the Kentucky Wildcats jumped from 11th in scoring in 2020 (21.8 ppg), to 5th in 2021 (32.3 ppg) and finished with a 10-3 record.

Following the season, the Wildcats lost Coen, Robinson, and several offensive linemen to the NFL. Yet, by retaining Will Levis and Chris Rodriguez, and pairing them with some talented receivers, the outlook and expectations entering 2022 were as high as ever.

Through the first four games, they passed the eye test. Kentucky was 4-0, ranked top 10 in the country, and had passed for over 300 yards in three of those games. However, the team hasn’t looked the same since, especially offensively.

In the six games since, the Wildcats are just 2-4 and have not passed for more than 239 yards. If it wasn’t for a top-three SEC defense, things could look a lot worse.

The amount of talent on the Kentucky Wildcat football team is far better than what their 6-4 record indicates, including losses to South Carolina and Vanderbilt. While injuries and a poor offensive line can be part of the blame, a big portion of the blame has to go on the staff, and a “reckoning” could be coming.

Steven Godfrey of the Split Zone Duo Podcast reports information within the coaching carousel, and he expects to see a lot of coaching turnover in the SEC, including Lexington this offseason.

“One thing that I can tell you is gonna happen is what has been described to me as an ‘assistant coach reckoning’ in Tuscaloosa, College Station, and Lexington”.

Outside of Mark Stoops, Vince Marrow, and Brad White, one cannot say any of their jobs are safe. With several contracts expiring and tension rising, an assistant overhaul may be just what UK needs heading into the 2023 season to bring some life back to the program after the inexcusable loss this past Saturday.

You can check out the full coaching carousel update from Godfrey on Split Zone Duo here.

FB Recruiting

Kentucky Football Receiver and Track Star Jordan Anthony Enters Transfer Portal

Published

4 days ago

June 2, 2023

Chris Beasmore

Kentucky football has crushed the transfer portal for the most part, bringing in high-level transfers like Devin Leary (NC State) and Ray Davis (Vanderbilt) this year alone, but on Tuesday they lost a piece they hoped to be a playmaker in the near future, Jordan Anthony as he announced on social media.

Thank you BBN🫶🏽. pic.twitter.com/nuI9aUuaXx— Flash ⚡️ (@Jordananthony_6) May 30, 2023

A four-star wide receiver coming out of high school last year, Anthony only appeared in just two games his freshman season. While he did not make many headlines on the football field, he did make a lot while running track. That was highlighted by breaking a 50+ year-old freshman record (1967) at Kentucky in the 60 m, running the event in 6.55 seconds, which is also the second-best in program history.

This is a loss that the football program did not want to see as they were excited about his potential in a Liam Coen-led offense. However, Kentucky has one of the most talented receiving cores they have had in the Mark Stoops era, led by Barion Brown and Dane Key.

Playing under three games this season, Anthony will be able to use a redshirt and transfer with four seasons of eligibility remaining. There will be no shortage of suitors for the speedster, as Anthony already holds offers from other programs such as Mississippi St, Tennessee, and Texas A&M among others.

FB Recruiting

Top 10 In-State Prospect Willie Rodriguez to Take Official Visit to Kentucky

Published

2 weeks ago

May 26, 2023

Chris Beasmore

Twitter/Willie Rodriguez

With Cutter Boley recently committing to Kentucky and reclassifying, the next domino to fall could potentially be class of 2024 Covington Catholic Tight End Willie Rodriguez.

Rodriguez has told KY Insider that he is going to take an official visit at Kentucky on June 9 with Boley and another commit from Kentucky offensive line Aba Selm. Rodriguez says he is excited to see Boley and Selm.

“I can’t wait to meet to everyone on the official [visit],” says Rodriguez.

Rodriguez also adding since Boley has committed to Kentucky, that they have been communicating together.

“For sure,” Rodriguez says. “[I] have already talked to him, it’s definitely very intriguing and very cool.”

During his visit, there are certain goals that he has in mind that he wants to accomplish when visiting the team.

“[I] definitely want to check out everything and see really how I will fit in the offense and how I will be used,” Rodriguez tells A Sea Of Blue. “I am very excited for the visit.”

As for other official visits he has planned, he tells KY Insider that he will also be visiting Virginia Tech and he is still scheduling two other official visits with Ole Miss and Purdue, but at this time they have not been scheduled.

Rodriguez also tells us he plans to commit to a school during the summer, but once he is done with all of his official visits. Once we learn more details on his upcoming visit we will keep you all informed.

Football

Kentucky Football Ranked 28th is ESPN’s FPI, Finalizes Wildcats’ Projected Wins

Published

3 weeks ago

May 19, 2023

Holden Kettenring

UK Athletics

It has been an exciting offseason for the Kentucky Football team. Bringing back offensive coordinator Liam Coen has been huge in regard to recruiting and landing some of the country’s top transfers. Top Transfer QB Devin Leary headlines what 247Sports has as the 17th-best transfer class coming into next fall.

With that being said, where does ESPN’s FPI project the Cats to stand come the 2023 College Football Season?

The Wildcats come in ranked 28th in ESPN’s FPI, and are projected to win seven games at the most (7.2-4.9). While that isn’t super promising, Kentucky’s strength of schedule needs to be considered. According to ESPN, Kentucky has the thirteenth toughest schedule for the 2023 season, ahead of any program that has won a national title in the College Football Playoff era: Alabama (18th), Ohio State (23rd), Georgia (31st), and Clemson (59th)

ESPN’s FPI does give Kentucky an 88.7 percent chance to win six games and be bowl eligible. In comparison, the Florida Gators are ranked 18th compared to the Cats’ ranking of 28th, and were given only an 82.2 percent chance to win six games.

The Wildcats are used to being underdogs and being slept on. In 2021, Kentucky was ranked 30th in ESPN’s FPI and finished the year with ten wins, a Citrus Bowl victory, and a final ranking of 18th in the final ESPN rankings. This year’s team will aspire to surpass expectations.