8/8 KENTUCKY WILDCATS (5-0, 1-0 SEC)
vs. #11/18 SOUTH CAROLINA GAMECOCKS (4-1, 2-1 SEC)
Thursday, Oct. 4 – 7:30 p.m. EDT
Columbia, S.C. – (80,250)
TV: ESPN
|
Boasting a 5-0 record for the first time since the 1984 campaign, the Kentucky football team heads to Columbia, S.C., to square off with South Carolina for the Cats? first Thursday night contest since 2003. Kick-off is set for 7:30 p.m. EDT and the game will be carried live on ESPN.
The Wildcats are coming off a 45-17 win against Florida Atlantic at home last Saturday. Quarterback Andr? Woodson threw a career-high five touchdown passes, finding four different receivers for scores in the win. Kentucky has now scored 40 or more points in five consecutive games for the first time in school history and is the first SEC school to accomplish that feat since Florida did it in 2001.
Including last season, the Wildcats have won 10 of their last 11 games, marking the school?s best 11-game stretch since the 1977 season. Kentucky has recorded more than 150 yards rushing and 200 yards passing in each of its five games this year.
No. 11/18 South Carolina is 4-1 overall and 2-1 in the Southeastern Conference. The Gamecocks are coming off a 38-21 victory vs. Mississippi State at home last Saturday.
QUICK NOTES
Kentucky is No. 8 in The Associated Press poll and No. 8 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches poll. It is the first time since the 1977 season-ending poll (No. 6) that the Wildcats have been in the Top-10 rankings. UK?s No. 8 ranking in the USA Today poll is the highest in school history. Kentucky?s 5-0 start is its best since the 1984 squad began at 5-0. Including last season, Kentucky has won 10 of its last 11 games. That is the best 11-game stretch since the 1977 team had a season record of 10-1. Kentucky?s offense ranks fifth in the nation and leads the SEC in scoring offense, averaging 46.6 points per game. UK has scored 40 or more points in five consecutive games for the first time in school history. UK is the first SEC school to accomplish that feat since Florida did it in 2001. Quarterback Andr? Woodson?s NCAA record streak of 325 pass attempts without an interception was snapped on the first drive of the second half vs. Florida Atlantic. Linebacker Wesley Woodyard leads the SEC and currently ranks 11th nationally in tackles, averaging 11.6 per game. He has a streak of 29 consecutive games with at least four tackles and also has 313 tackles in his career, becoming the first Wildcat since Marty Moore (1990-93) to reach 300 stops. With 100 receiving yards vs. Florida Atlantic, wide receiver Keenan Burton became just the third Wildcat in school history to reach 2,000 career receiving yards, joining Craig Yeast and Derek Abney. The Cats are 23-for-24 in the red zone this season including 20 TDs and three FGs. UK had its first stop from within the 20-yard line vs. Florida Atlantic on Saturday. Kentucky ranks in the top two of 10 SEC statistical categories, leading the league in scoring offense (46.6), first downs (133), and third-down conversions (53.7 percent). The Cats rank second in rushing offense (223.6), pass offense (268.6), total offense (492.2), pass efficiency (158.6), turnover margin (+1.4 per game), kickoff coverage (44.2), and red zone offense (95.8 percent). Kentucky?s rushing offense has made drastic improvements from last season. UK currently has 14 rushing TDs. UK charted just 12 rushing TDs in all of the 2006 season. UK also ranked 11th in the league in rushing last season, averaging 98.6 yards per game. After five games this season, the Wildcats rank second in the SEC and 15th nationally in rushing offense, averaging 223.6 yards per game. Kentucky has racked up over 400 yards of offense in nine consecutive games, dating back to last season. UK also has surpassed the 500-yard mark twice this season (EKU and FAU), marking the first time the Wildcats had two games in the same season with over 500 yards of total offense since 2002. UK?s defense ranks 16th nationally in pass efficiency defense (99.83) and is fourth in the SEC in pass defense, allowing just 181.6 yards per game. UK?s defense has forced its opponent into at least one interception in six consecutive games, dating back to last year?s Music City Bowl game vs. Clemson. Kentucky ranks ninth nationally and second in the league in turnover margin at +1.40. The Wildcats have recovered five fumbles and picked off nine passes this season. UK?s defense has scored in two straight games.
PRESS CONFERENCE QUOTES – OCT. 1
Head Coach Rich Brooks
Opening Statement?
?Just a quick injury update; we have a few players still nursing some injuries. Johnny Williams could not practice today; he?s got plantar fascitis in his foot. Rafael Little and Tony Dixon did not practice today. Rafael re-aggravated that thigh bruise and Tony has a hip flexor strain. The good news is E.J. Adams is back practicing and will be available for action this week and Alfonso Smith, hopefully, will be able to do something tomorrow, so we?ll determine something on him probably after tomorrow?s practice. Obviously this is a big game coming up. We?re in a very good position, but the difficulty is going on the road against a ranked opponent and playing in a very hostile environment. South Carolina is fifth in the nation in third-down defense. They are one of the top teams, I think first or second in the nation in pass defense. They are also one of the top teams in scoring defense. They?re a balanced offense, running the ball very well with Boyd and Davis. Smelley did a very good job in this last game in just his second start as a redshirt freshman. He?s very active, and he can hurt you with his feet as well. He can pull it down and run, so we have to pay attention to our pass-rush lanes. McKinley is an extremely dangerous receiver, so they have weapons, and are also very good in the kicking game, having blocked a punt last week when Mississippi State was leading late in the third quarter. They scored the very next play to take the lead for good. It?s going to be a tough match-up, particularly because it?s on the road.?
On the effect of the short week?
?Well the short week is the same for both of us, the only difference is that we have to travel and they get to stay at home. My concern is getting the preparation necessary to do a good job defending a very sophisticated passing game and the preparation to block a very complicated defense, because they give so many different looks. It is a concern, but to be honest it?d be a concern even if we had a long week. They have the same amount of preparation time as we do, so we?ll just have to see how it shakes out.?
On the number eight national ranking in both polls?
?I thought it was nice. It really, in my mind, doesn?t mean much. I?d much rather be 2-0 in the SEC than to be ranked in the top-10 at this point in the polls. I think that?s a more significant thing for this program, is to get to 2-0. Being 1-0 is pretty nice, and the good news is, when I look at the loss column, we?re the only (SEC East) team without a loss, even though we?ve only played one game. Our hope at the beginning of the season was to be a factor in the race and it?s still pretty early seeing that we have seven games left, but I?ll just say it again as I did before the season, I?ll be very disappointed if we?re not a major factor in the conference race.?
On if the defense is playing more disciplined against trick plays?
?Well that remains to be seen. You know reverses and trick plays are always going to be a factor that you have to defend, and you never know when they?re coming. Sometimes we do what we?re supposed to, and sometimes we don?t. Hopefully we?ll do what we?re supposed to at the right time if we see a trick play of some kind, and I?m sure we will.?
On Steve Spurrier?s offensive success?
?He?s successful offensively because he has a package of routes in both timing and position. He becomes even more effective once he knows what the coverage is, because he can then match whatever route he wants to against that coverage. It?ll be important for us to disguise our coverages so they can?t get the pre-snap look to change a route. He?s got an outstanding system and when he has the players to fit that system, he?s been extremely successful. Good coaches have systems that when they put good players in position, they can give anybody problems.?
On motivation for the game ?
?I?m not a huge bulletin board guy. I think this game will be played on the merits of South Carolina?s players and our players and going on the road in a tough place to play. Both teams have an awful lot at stake because if South Carolina wins this, they?ll go to 3-1, which is pretty darn good. If we win it, we?ll go to 2-0, which is also pretty darn good. That to me is the motivation for this game.?
On his feelings about the team?s success thus far?
?I can?t be unhappy. Certainly where we are, based on where we had to come from, I feel pretty good about it. To do what we want to do, we?re going to have to continue to get better. I keep approaching that with the team about eliminating stupid penalties, being a better tackling team, cleaning up mistakes in the offense and defense and kicking game. If we don?t get better, then other people will; and all of a sudden we?ll find ourselves on the losing end of a close game or a score because we didn?t get better or correct the things we need to correct.?
On the team reaching five victories so early in the season and the approach going forward?
?You never want to assume anything, but we were pretty confident in getting back to postseason play, but we have bigger and better goals. We?re in the middle of those right now, and we?ve got seven games left. It?s a long haul and a tough haul. You look at the teams we play coming up; with LSU jumping over USC to take over the number one ranking, and it?ll be difficult for us. Even if the teams aren?t ranked in this league, they?re very good and tough to beat.?
On the impact players for South Carolina?
?Well I mentioned McKinley, their outstanding receiver. He?s their Keenan Burton and their go-to guy. And then Smelley, he?s a talented guy and scary because we don?t have a big book on him, so we haven?t seen him play a lot. I always get concerned against rush lanes in getting to the quarterback. One, I want to first get to the quarterback, but if you give this guy a hole in that rush, he can take the ball and run right up the field on you. If you?re playing man-to-man and you?re chasing the receivers around, as happened in the Mississippi State game, where I think he ran about 30 yards on one of them, it?s scary. The two backs, the combination of Boyd and Davis, is a really big concern as well.?
On the effect of linebacker Jasper Brinkley being injured ?
?He?s a really good player, and was their leading tackler, but they seem to have picked up the slack. I thought they did a very good job against Mississippi State. They?re physical, they keep knocking guys out of the game. They knocked their quarterback out of the game.?
Kentucky Players
#76 Justin Jeffries, OT
On UK?s offensive line coming along?
?We are getting better and better every week work together we just get better, we are just going to keep working hard.?
On everyone talking about the receivers but the backfield is producing really well also?
?We worked a lot on that during the summer and fall camp so to see it working well helps our confidence. The running game opens a lot of stuff and creates more options for us.?
On being 5-0 at this point in the season?
?It means a lot (but) Coach Brooks harps on us a lot that it?s a marathon not a sprint, so we want to be talking about this at the end of the season.?
On what concerns you the most about South Carolina?
?They are really fast, the interior line, with speed on the edges. The linebackers fly around, and they will hit you. It?s going to be a test.?
On do you think you would be here 5 weeks ago?
?I think we all knew, deep down inside of us, that we had the opportunity and the chance to do it, so we just have to put everything together and get it done.?
#2 Marcus McClinton, FS
On only having a couple of days to prepare for trick plays?
I believe it?s all experience. A lot of trick plays are successful because guys aren?t reading their keys. We?ve worked on our keys and made a lot of plays this year because of that.?
On the defense reading the keys better?
?I think it?s because we are more mature and experienced. We?re not as excited as we used to be. We know we have to do our responsibility to win the games.?
On how did you hear about the #8 ranking and what was your reaction?
?A friend told me about it and I started calling everybody. It means a lot but right now but we have to beat South Carolina so we can stay there. We don?t want everything good we?ve done to flush down the toilet.?
On showing everyone that Kentucky football is for real, how important is that to you?
?It means the world to me. I want everyone to know that we are a good ball team. It hurts when people don?t take us seriously.?
On this week?s match-up with South Carolina?
?We are playing a great football team. They are a great running team. They are doing good things at South Carolina. I think their quarterback is a good ball player. He has stepped in and done a great job. It is another big opportunity for us to make history here in Lexington. We have been doing a lot of new things around here, so we hopefully can come back, overcoming another obstacle this season.?
On the possibility of being 6-0 this week and bowl eligible?
?I am an optimistic type of guy. I have always been a believer in this program. We as a team had a feeling that things were going to turn and all that it takes is one key victory. At Kentucky we have usually been at the bottom and have had to fight our way up. But this year we are at the top and have to fight to stay there.?
On the progression of the defense this year?
?Well, I think right now we are doing a lot of good things. I think we are doing a good job of getting turnovers and getting our offense on the field. We have a lot of things that we need to fix. We need to read our keys more and react to plays faster.?
On his focus this week?
?I focus on going out and playing a good football game. When we finish I want to look at my grade sheet and see how I was graded. My main focus is being a factor on defense for my team and getting ?A?s and ?B?s every game.?
#20 Dominic Lewis, DE
On the defensive preparation for South Carolina?
?They scored 38 points against a pretty good Mississippi State defense. The new quarterback they brought in has the ability to run a lot better. He manages their offense pretty well, so we will have to adjust to what he is doing. We are going to prepare for him. We are going to be conscious of trick plays this year.?
On difference preparing for a Thursday night game?
?This is a big test week for a lot of guys, so a lot of the studying is thrown into this week. We have already had two practices before our first media day so it is kind of crazy. It is just something that will make the team better. Playing on Thursday is always big. You are going to have a big crowd and everyone is going to see you.?
On being the top team in the SEC Eastern Division?
?We start off every year thinking we can win the SEC championship and that?s our goal. We are one step closer to our goal. It is a big compliment to be number one in the east. Hopefully we can be number one in the SEC.?
On the progression of the defense this year?
?Guys want to get better every week. Every week we are trying to top what we did last week. I think that aspect of it is helping us play better every week. The seniors meet all of the time. We try to lead the younger guys to play up to the level we are playing. We talk about our intensity and how we practice a lot.?
On how it feels to be a part of the turnaround in Kentucky football as a senior this year?
?It feels good. Most of the senior class has been here since 2003, so we have seen some lows in our ups and downs here. To be on the rise, we just want to keep it going.?
#18 Jacob Tamme, TE
On playing as a top 10 team this week?
?You saw what happened to a lot of top 10 teams last week, one loss and you are out. So we have to keep getting better to stay where we are at. We have to take it one game at a time. If you don?t that?s when a point in the schedule like this will get you. That?s why we have had success. We have been prepared week in and week out. We just have to take our best shots to the field and get ready for Thursday.?
On Coach Brooks? message to the team Sunday?
?Basically he told us to be very prepared. It?s a big preparation week because it is short. Normally, you have days at the end of the week when you can watch a lot of film, but this week you don?t have those days at all. So we just have to get it all in now, soak it all in and get ready.?
On this week?s match-up with South Carolina?
?Well, a win would be another first for our program. It is not something we really talk about. The thing we talk about is that no one on this team has beaten South Carolina since we have been here. It is a big SEC game for us. It would put us in the driver?s seat at the beginning of the year in the SEC East. ?
On playing on the road Thursday night in the SEC?
?We need to improve from our only road test so far, so this is a good test. At Arkansas, it was a loud crowd and different environment than anything we had seen. We made a few mistakes there that we can?t make this Thursday. We need to clean some of that up and be ready.?
