Cats Back: Most of the Kentucky football players have returned to Lexington for summer school, summer jobs, and strength and conditioning work. The eight-week summer school session ends August 5.
Booker and Marchman Return; Jones Will Not be Enrolled: Linebacker Brad Booker and wide receiver Maurice Marchman have returned to the Kentucky football team, while cornerback Andre’ Jones will not be enrolled for the fall semester, Coach Rich Brooks has announced.
Booker, a sophomore from Bowling Green, Ky., played in 10 games as a true freshman in the 2003 season. He made five tackles, seeing most of his action on special teams. He sat out the spring semester but has returned and will be eligible to play in the fall.
Marchman, a sophomore from Louisville, Ky., played in all 12 games as a true freshman in 2003. He played wide receiver early in the season and caught one pass for 25 yards. He switched to safety in mid-season and made 15 tackles, mostly on special teams. He sat out the spring semester, but has returned and will be eligible to play in the fall. He plans to play receiver this season.
Jones played in the first three games of the 2003 season, making one tackle, before being sidelined for the remainder of the season with a leg injury. It is not known if Jones will be able to return to UK.
Sweet Pea on Hendricks Award Watch List: Wildcat defensive end Sweet Pea Burns has been named to the preseason watch list for the 2004 Ted Hendricks Defensive End of the Year Award.
Burns, a senior from Lake Park, Ga., led the Southeastern Conference in tackles for loss last season with 18 stops behind the line of scrimmage. He totaled 72 tackles, the most for a Wildcat defensive lineman since Joey Couch in 1991. He was named first-team All-SEC by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Southeastern Football Saturdays, Mobile Press-Register, and CollegeFootballNews.com.
Burns has made a tackle for loss in 19 of his 24 games as a Wildcat and he enters the 2004 season with a streak of five consecutive games with a TFL. He has 32.5 TFL in his two seasons at UK, good for 113 yards of opponent losses.