Kentucky fans were disappointed with UK's play against South Carolina and linebacker J.J. Weaver said there was "no energy" on the sideline. (Vicky Graff Photo)
Kentucky’s defense allowed only 90 yards and one touchdown — and that came after South Carolina recovered a fumble at the UK 3-yard line on the game-s first play — but then imploded in the second half.
South Carolina had 266 yards in the second half, scored 17 points and easily beat host UK 24-14 for its first Southeastern Conference win of the season.
So what happened to a defense in the second half that did not allow a touchdown to SEC opponents Florida and Mississippi in the second half of those games?
“Our energy was down. We’ve just got to bring the energy all game – nobody had no juice to them,” linebacker J.J. Weaver said.
No juice? Playing at home in front of a sellout crowd knowing the defense needed to be strong with starting quarterback Will Levis out with an injury? How can that be?
“Nobody had no energy on the sideline, and everybody was laid back and stuff like that. I don’t like that,” Weaver said.
Neither did coach Mark Stoops or Kentucky fans. Stoops has prided himself on having teams that compete hard but the Cats did not do that against South Carolina in the second half.
Did Weaver as a veteran player do anything to try and get the fire back going during the game?
Weaver said he told players to “keep y’all head” and just play the next play once South Carolina was gaining yards.
“They’re gonna obviously get good shots, they’re gonna run the ball hard, it’s the SEC,” Weaver said. “You just gotta bring the energy.”
Sounds like it should be so simple, especially knowing UK felt this could be a special season, but Stoops made it clear the “energy” was clearly missing and it was easy for Kentucky fans to see the same thing.
2 Responses
I don’t get it, and it is not just the defense. The defense has been the only real bright spot for this team at the midway point of the season. The offensive woes have been discussed to the point of making everyone sick. Early this season the conversation about the offense should have focused on one thing, and one thing only, a weak offensive line, but when that subject came up it seemed like someone wanted to divert the conversation and give those guys an excuse for their poor play. Now Levis is injured due to getting hit so often, the offense is down to the QB2 who is a redshirt freshman.
Then there are special teams. Poor snaps, missed field goals and extra points, blocked punts, a punt snap over the punter’s head, and so it has gone.
Am I to believe that this team does not need a special teams’ coach?
Why would that be?
I am to understand that a statistician, working for free, can suffice as a special teams coach?
Coach Stoops is ultimately responsible as the head guy, and I appreciate him falling on his own sword after losing so pitifully to South Carolina on the heels of giving the Ole Miss game away last week. The special teams coaching is clearly on his ledger. However, the O Line coaching the past 2 years has been a major downward shift from the days of Coach Schlarmann, and I have not been impressed with this new offensive coordinator who has shown so little offensively from a team that has more talent in the skill positions than I can recall a UK football team ever having, e.g. Levis, Rodriguez, a great group of tight ends, and 3 wideouts that can not only go get the ball, but do something with it once they do get it. Yet, after gaining over 90 yards in the first half on Saturday, Rodriguez only touched the ball 5 times in the second half? How on this good earth could that ever happen?
Just 2 weeks ago, everyone was excited about a 4-0 start and anticipated being 6-0 today, and if not 6-0, no worse than 5-1. But, at 4-2 with Mississippi State and Tennessee next up, this team could easily find itselft 4-4 going into November, with a trip to Missouri up next. Missouri gave UGA all it wanted, remember? Vandy ran out of gas, and probably players after putting Ole Miss on the ground in Nashville on Saturday, and then there is Georgia coming to town.
What happened the past 2 weeks smacks of a lack of respect for the opponent, and that is ridiculous on its face for any UK football team to dismiss any SEC opponents. Continue in that vein in the coming weeks, and this team will have to have a win over UL on Thanksgiving to back their way into the Music City Bowl at 6-6.
It turns my stomach to just fathom the possibility.
The Cats just were just not hungry going into the game. Show up like that, you’re going to get beat in the SEC (even Alabama).