Micah Jones, Brad Booker Expected to Make First Starts: True freshman offensive lineman Micah Jones and sophomore linebacker Brad Booker are expected to make their first collegiate starts on Saturday against Alabama, Coach Rich Brooks has announced.
Jones is slated to open at right guard. He has played in all four games as a reserve at right guard and right tackle. Booker has played in all four games as a reserve at inside linebacker. He has made three tackles, including a stop on fourth-and-goal at the one-yard line in the season opener at Louisville.
More Than Dewalt and Fontaine: Lonnell Dewalt and Raymond Fontaine have gotten plenty of attention for their four blocked placekicks this season, as Dewalt has blocked field goals against Louisville, Florida, and Ohio, while Fontaine rejected an Indiana extra point.
Coach Rich Brooks has noted that credit also needs to be given to the big men in front of the leapers ? Jason Leger, Sweet Pea Burns, Ricky Abren, and Trey Mielsch. After the snap, those four players provide the initial push to drive back the opponent line, enabling Dewalt and Fontaine to get close enough to block the kicks.
?We ask them (Leger, Burns, Abren, and Mielsch) to capture one yard on the other side of the line of scrimmage and they?ve absolutely destroyed some offensive lines,? Brooks said.
Abren, Woodyard Earn Game Captain Roles: Redshirt freshman nose tackle Ricky Abren and freshman linebacker Wesley Woodyard are the game captains for this week?s contest vs. Alabama, Coach Rich Brooks has announced.
Game captains are selected each week based on their performance in the previous week?s game and usually includes one representative from special teams. Abren had a career-high six tackles, including 4.5 tackles for loss, two quarterback sacks, and one fumble caused. Woodyard had a pair of tackles on kick coverage. It is Woodyard?s second selection this season, as he also was game captain for the Indiana game.
Abren and Woodyard will join permanent captains Sweet Pea Burns and Shane Boyd at the coin toss.
Tickets Available: Tickets for the Alabama at Kentucky game are available at a cost of $40 each. Tickets may be purchased at the Commonwealth Stadium ticket office beginning at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday.
Game Day Honorees and Activities for the Alabama Game:
Fans are encouraged to welcome the team during the “Cat Walk” outside Gate 1 of the stadium. The team will arrive at approximately 10:15 a.m.
The “Rally in the Alley” is a tailgate area for students, located between Commonwealth Stadium and Nutter Field House at gates 14 and 15. The “Rally in the Alley” begins two hours before the game (10:30 a.m. for the Alabama game). Radio station 104.5 The Cat will be providing the music.
The UK Marching Band will parade around the stadium, beginning at approximately one hour prior to kickoff. The band parade will begin at Gate 4 and end at Gate 9.
The honorary captain for the Alabama game is former Wildcat All-America quarterback Vito “Babe” Parilli. From 11:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m., Parilli will sign autographs in the Wildcat Refuge, which is located outside Gate 9 of Commonwealth Stadium.
The ESPN/Suzuki Heisman Trophy Tour has a traveling exhibit which will be located in the Wildcat Refuge. The display includes the Heisman Trophy and fans may take photos with the trophy, some of which are posted on internet site Heisman.com. There will be giveaway items in addition to the display.
The Alltel “Freedom Rig,” an interactive exhibit, will be located in the Wildcat Refuge.
The Char-Broil Grilling Team will be located in the Wildcat Refuge. Char-Broil will have souvenir giveaways and grill samples available.
UK President Lee T. Todd Jr. will honor the first graduating class of the Robinson Scholars program at the end of the first quarter of play. The Robinson Scholars Program serves first generation college-bound and college students who have demonstrated the potential to succeed but who might encounter economic, cultural, or institutional impediments to their completion of four-year college degrees. In 1996, the University approved a working plan for the Robinson Scholars Program, and the first class of Scholars was selected in the spring of 1997. Since then, the Program has named 452 students as Robinson Scholars. The students being honored tonight are members of the 1997 class.
Get in “The Zone”: Looking for a way to entertain business clients, reward employees, or just get your tailgating group together for a good time? Then get in “The Zone,” Kentucky football’s newest entertainment center.
“The Zone” will be located outside Gate 9 of Commonwealth Stadium and will feature music from Kenny Owens, food, and Wildcat fun. “The Zone” will open two hours before each home game and all tickets must be purchased in advance. For more information and to reserve your spot in “The Zone,” call Host Communications at 859-226-4328.
UK Team Shop: The UK Team Shop, featuring officially licensed Wildcat apparel and merchandise, will be open outside the stadium prior to the game and will be located near the ticket booth between the Red and Green lots. Additional UK Team Shops will be located inside the stadium gates.
Throwback Uniforms are Being Auctioned for Benefit of the Trent DiGiuro Memorial Scholarship: The uniforms (jerseys and pants) worn by the Wildcats in last Saturday’s “Throwback Game” vs. Ohio are being auctioned to benefit the Trent DiGiuro Memorial Scholarship.
The auction is being held on and will continue through Wednesday, Oct. 13, at 8 p.m. Minimum bids for a set of jersey and pants are $100. Helmets are not included.
Proceeds from the auction will go to the Trent DiGiuro Memorial Scholarship. The scholarship fund was established by family and friends of former UK offensive guard Trent DiGiuro, who died on July 17, 1994. Trents parents, Mike and Ann DiGiuro, officially established the fund on Oct. 24, 1994.
The fund provides one or more scholarships each year to students who:
1) are walk-on (non-scholarship) football players at UK;
2) have played on the football team at least two years;
3) have maintained a cumulative grade-point average of at least 2.5; and
4) best exemplify the dedication, determination, hard work, and leadership typified by Trent DiGiuro.
If no walk-on player meets the above criteria, or if the team has reached its scholarship limits, the scholarship is awarded to a team manager or athletic trainer who has completed two years of service, maintained a cumulative GPA of at least 2.5, and has exemplified the dedication, determination, hard work, and leadership typified by DiGiuro.
DiGiuro was from Goshen, Ky., and earned all-district honors at South Oldham High School. He came to UK as a walk-on offensive lineman in 1991. Through hard work and perseverance, he began earning playing time in 1993 as the Wildcats advanced to the Peach Bowl. In the off-season, he posted the best bench press on the team and he finished 1994 spring practice as the starting right guard. Trent also made steady progress in his academic work and earned a place on the 1993 Southeastern Conference Academic Honor Roll.
The first DiGiuro Scholarship was given in 1995 to placekicker Brent Claiborne. Subsequent scholarships have been awarded to manager Andrew Cline (1996), athletic trainer Patrick Sininger (1997), linebacker Stephan Walters (1998), tight end Cheddi Acham (1999), wide receiver Alex Herman (2000), wide receiver Corry Doyle (2001), athletic trainer Matthew Summers (2002), manager Samantha Bell (2003), and kicker Justin Hutton (2004).
