March 6, 2000

Players Working Out: The players are in the off-season strengthand conditioning program supervised by coach Marc Hill, assistant ScottBrincks, and graduate assistants Keith Comeforo and Jamie Givens.

Coaches in Mix of Activities: The coaching staff is in a mix ofactivities during the next three weeks. The coaches are speaking atclinics, preparing for spring practice, and taking some time off.

Spring Practice Dates Set: Spring practice begins Mon. March 27and ends with the Blue/White Spring Game on Sat. April 22. The time forthe spring game will be 6 p.m. at Commonwealth Stadium. The Wildcatsmay practice 15 days during the spring stint.

Whalen Writing Draft Diary for CNN/SI: Former UK tight end JamesWhalen is writing a draft diary for the CNN/SI website during the weeksleading up to the NFL Draft, which is April 15. The diary is targetedfor publishing on Wednesdays. Look for Whalen’s diary under the profootball section at www.cnnsi.com.

From 1997-99, Whalen went from unknown walk-on to first-teamAll-America. He caught 90 passes for 1,019 yards and 10 touchdowns as asenior, leading the nation’s tight ends in all three categories. He setNCAA records for most receptions in a season by a tight end and mostreceptions per game (8.2) by a tight end. His 90 catches also brokeUK’s single-season record for receptions, eclipsing Craig Yeast’s markof 85 set in 1998.