Mark Stoops with D’Eryk Jackson, Deone Walker and Marques Cox at SEC Media Days. (UK Athletics Photo)
If some thought Kentucky coach Mark Stoops was sending a message by bringing a defensive lineman, linebacker and offensive lineman to Southeastern Conference Media Days, they were right.
Stoops, the longest tenured SEC coach, wants to emphasize that Kentucky is going to be a physical team.
“This is who I want to be, and that was part of it (bringing the players he did),” Stoops said during an interview on Sirius Radio at SEC Media Days last week. “Everybody comes in here and we are optimistic. We’re excited, and I am as well, but part of that message is to get back to our players that we need to be better in certain areas.
“It starts personally, every day I am personally responsible to get better and then I think we’re better together. Everybody here in some form or fashion talks about your culture. You are wondering about who you are, but for us we better damn sure be who we are and that starts with being physical and being good on both sides of scrimmage. We haven’t met that standard all the time the past couple of years.”
The Kentucky coach was also asked about having his brother, Mike, on his staff as a linebacker coach under defensive coordinator Brad White.
“We have some experience with that because Mike worked with (brother) Bob (Stoops). Then I worked with Mike when he was the head coach of Arizona, and now he’s working with me,” Mark Stoops said. “I think we’ve slowed down as we’ve gotten older.
“It’s great having Mike. When I worked for Mike and vice versa, he never had to worry about our feelings or anything like that. It’s good that way and he has great experience. He loves the role that he’s in because Brad White is a tremendous defensive coordinator. He likes to support them and help them.”
9 Responses
Tell ya one thing – our men look like they just stepped out of an edition of GQ ! Conservative, well tailored suits. Proud of them !
I hope this year that they play football and shut their mouths!!
Very little discipline last year.
I’m super excited about this year’s team. I think we are deep and experienced at every position. Last year the offensive line was terrible at run blocking. Ray Davis was an incredible running back. Chip is better than Ray Davis at running between the tackles. With an improved offensive line I can see Chip eclipsing the 1,000 yard mark unless the running backs share the load.
Also are secondary kept the defense from getting off the field on 3rd downs. To much soft zone. From what I seen it was a personel issue. Getting Story from Alabama and Waller from Michigan is exactly what the doctor ordered. We do a great job addressing what problems we have and jumping into the portal to take care of those problems. We finally have experience that we have developed instead of having a team full of transfers like Louisville, we have the right mix of returnees and transfers. This is the year that it finally pays off. Remember I said we would go 11-3.
I think 4 or 5 teams from the SEC make the playoff. I think Kentucky finishes tied for 3rd or 4th in the SEC and we squeeze into the playoffs. We win the first game and lose the second game respectfully.
A couple of giants beside Stoops and those 2 are vital for UK to have success on both sides of the line. The OL must be a whole new machine this season. It has been too costly the past 2 seasons.
This season needs to be the season UK FB rises into the elite level and anchors the position so we can stay there.
Another 7 win season & the message will be that UK is content to be in the middle of the pack nationwide, just scraping above 500.
I think this is the season that we finally take off. If Stoops can’t do it with this team then I doubt it ever happens. It’s now or never. No more excuses. The only way we have another 7 win team is we have a ton of injuries. With the depth we have we should be able to get the defense more rest. 2 positions that will kill us if we have injuries is the offensive line and running back. Chip is much better than Sumo and after Sumo is a true freshman. So we have to stay healthy at them 2 positions. Our starters on the offensive line should be one of the best lines in the SEC this year. We have a couple of good sub situations too but I think Farmer takes Rays starting spot. Which is good because Ray can slide in at guard or tackle. I’m anxious to see how Ben Christman comes back from his injury.
A 6 win season may be more realistic, but anything short of an 8 win season shows that we aren’t SEC competitive. Our defense should keep us in every game. Can the offense step up and give us more Ws than Ls? Our receiver corps and the O line are major question marks. Leary was a big disappointment last year. Vandagriff’s success will hinge on the play of the O line and receiver group. If the O line can hold up we will need more aggressive play calling. We can’t afford to play not to lose; we need to take the fight to the defense. This will be the year for Stoops to earn his $9+ million salary.
The BBN won’t have to wait until after a string of super soft cupcake opponents before getting a picture of 2024 UK FB. Southern Miss & SC will be warmups before facing UGA. That UGA game will find out if there is any substance behind the words of UK staff & players,
I sure hope UK wins by double digits over UGA, will be delighted if it’s a 1 point squeaker with lucky breaks, because that game will reveal what the BBN should realistically expect in 2024.