Oct. 6, 2008
Head Coach Rich Brooks
Opening Statement…
“A while ago we got word on Stuart Hines’ MRI. He does have a tear of lateralcartilage and he will be operated tomorrow morning. We still don’t have the resultsof Jess Beets’ MRI, but we should get that later today. Obviously, losing twoguys at this point at the same position makes it more difficult on a group thathas struggled with continuity on the offensive line. We will have to make someadjustments at that position as we make our way through practice in the nextthree days. DeMoreo Ford looks to be doubtful for this week, he has a strainedsternal-clavicular joint. He got injured on the touchdown in the closing secondsof the game. Two of the high ankle sprain guys are going to practice, Ricky Lumpkinand Randall Cobb. We will look at Micah Johnson tomorrow and see if we thinkhe will have a chance to play. I would say he is questionable at best for thisgame. The other two I think will be able to play. Do I think they will be 100percent? No I don’t, but they should be able to play. T.C. Drake’s ankle andMatt Lentz’s ankle is better.
“Unfortunately for us, we are looking at a South Carolina team that looks like they got their act together last week (vs. Ole Miss). I thought that (Chris) Smelley had a very good game. Offensively, I think that they had their best game of the year on the road against a team that had just beaten Florida the week before. They got some things going and have (Kenny) McKinley back from a hamstring problem He didn’t look like he was quite full speed last week but I’m sure another week of healing will have him at the top of his game when he steps into Commonwealth Stadium. This is a huge game for us if we want to be a factor in the SEC race. We just need to step up and with the help of our fans hopefully we can get back on track and play better. We did not play well last week and we need to get better.”
On if he feels the Cats should run the ball more…
“We had 62 snaps and were down 14-0. There are not a lot of chances when yourun and get no gain or two yards. Do you run and get two yards and two yardsand then punt or do you try to throw? I would like to run more too, but we alreadydiscussed earlier this year that there are fewer plays in college football. Certainly,when your opponent is running the football and running the clock it makes itdifficult to have a lot of snaps. I think that I would like to be 50/50 but weweren’t in that position because we were not moving the ball on the ground.”
On if he thought they would run the ball better this year…
“Absolutely, I did. Some of that was predicated on the fact that I thought ourquarterback would be a bigger factor in the run game as well and that reallyhasn’t transpired. We really have not thrown the ball well enough to eliminatethe heat on the numbers in the box if you will. People have been packing it inon us all year. Combined with the different rotations in the offensive line,the continuity really hasn’t come yet.”
On if South Carolina ‘s pass defense will force the Cats to run more…
“They lead our league in defense. Yes, they are good against the pass but theyare good against the run as well. You don’t lead the league in total defenseunless you are good against both. They defensively do as many different playsas anybody we will line up against this year. They play the bear front, the 3-4,a 4-3, and they move (Eric) Norwood from defensive tackle to defensive end toinside linebacker to outside linebacker. They just give you a hodge-podge ofdifferent defensive looks, fronts, stunts, pressures and blitz. It will be areal challenge for our offense to make sure we are correct assignment-wise, letalone win some physical battles as we go through this game.”
On how to prepare for a defense like South Carolina ‘s…
“You have to be assignment-sound. You have to communicate those things at theline of scrimmage because the blocking assignment is going to change dependingon the front. So if you’re not prepared against that front, then you aren’t goingto be able to block that front. Yeah, it’s a problem.”
On potential replacements at right guard…
“We got three guys that have worked some at guard with Jake Lanefski, (Marcus)Davis and (Michael) Williams. Then we can work (Billy Joe) Murphy in there. BillyJoe struggled on the edge in pass blocking and (Brad) Durham went in and dida much better job pass blocking against Alabama with 21 snaps in the second half.We will start Brad ( Durham ) at the right tackle which could free us up to givesome snaps to Billy Joe inside at guard as well. He has not taken any snaps thereand won’t until tomorrow. We will just rotate those guys in there and figureit out. Some guys work at left and right guard and some at center. Out of thatcombination we will come up with someone we feel good about in the next threedays and start them in all probability on Saturday.”
On the comparisons between Alabama ‘s and South Carolina ‘s defense…
” South Carolina does a lot of confusing things and also has a lot of physicaltalent. The combination of those two things is difficult. One advantage is thatwe are playing at home and our offense won’t have to deal with as much noiseand the communication problems that existed this past week.”
On how good defensively the SEC is…
“They are all very good. I have said that ever since I have been here and that’swhat separates this league from every other league in the country. Every leaguehas good teams, but the depth of the defensive talent in the SEC is outstanding.I think this year you couple that with inexperience and new quarterbacks andthe defenses are having their way this year with the inexperienced offensivesides.”
On the influence of losing DeMoreo Ford…
“He has been a good player for us in a lot of ways. It will obviously hurt losinghim this weekend. He was just getting his leg back under him from the surgeryhe had last spring as was witnessed by the catch he had Saturday. He is our bestwide receiver blocker, handles punts and other things in the kicking game forus. So it is a loss, and a loss at a position where he was one of the experiencedguys who knew what he was doing at the receiver position.”
On if Randall Cobb is ready to go at the quarterback and wide receiver position…
“I would say that he probably will be, but again let’s say that he will probablynot be 100 percent.”
On how confident he is that the guys on offense will be able to handle South Carolina ‘s defense…
“We have guys on scholarship just like everybody else so we expect to be ableto do the job. It is becoming more difficult because you lose Garry Williamsand Justin Jeffries and now you lose Stuart Hines for sure for a couple of gamesand probably Jess Beets as well. All of a sudden you have a bunch of differentproblems that you are looking at. We just have got to go out there and do it,that’s all.”
On how important it is for the defense to have three-and-outs with the new clock rules…
“It is important. I think that we are second (in the SEC) in third-down defenseand if you remember the last couple of years we were awful at that. The problemis that South Carolina is first (in the SEC) at third-down offensive conversions.That will be a real test for us as well as getting off the field and making surethey don’t keep drives alive. The bottom line is that they are moving the ballon everybody they have played, including the better defenses.”
On getting Derrick Locke more involved in the passing game…
“It was a combination of not protecting our quarterback like we should have.Some of the plays were check downs and others were screen passes. He has proventhat he is a very good receiver. Again that is something that we have used inour offense in the last three years and we will continue to do that.”
On if he was happy with the pass rush of his defense…
“I think that pass rush has been, other than the Middle Tennessee game, reallygood with our four down guys. We occasionally mix that up and bring in pressurebut I am pleased with our pass rush. It’s not all about sacks, it is about disruptingthe flow of the quarterback by pressuring and hurrying his decision making. Thatis critically important this week.”
Junior Tight End T.C. Drake
On losing at Alabama …
“Coming off this loss, everyone needs to come out and get back being the teamwe know we can be. We just need to keep working hard to get better.”
On Kentucky ‘s offense…
“It’s frustrating because we aren’t doing everything we know we can. We are inpractice working hard everyday, but we still need to go out and do everythingright on the field.”
On entering conference play…
“Every game is a big game because we are in conference play. We need to comeout and play our hardest every game because our goal is to be SEC and nationalchamps. In order to accomplish that, we need to win every game we play.”
Junior Defensive End Jeremy Jarmon
On getting over the loss to Alabama …
“We have to put that behind us and take the lessons from it to get ready forthis weekend. It’s tough getting over a loss but we have to move on. I thinkit will be easier once we get back in the pads tomorrow.”
On hearing that Kentucky has never beaten a Steve Spurrier-coached team…
“That doesn’t mean anything to me. The one thing I do care about is that we beatthis team this weekend despite who the coach is.”
On the outcome of games in the past…
“It’s frustrating, we’ve had chances the past couple years to beat South Carolina,and something has happened… fumbles, missed tackles, things like that. We’regoing to try to learn from these mistakes this year.”
On the goals of this season and the importance of this game…
“This is a must-win game, in my opinion. We lost the Alabama game, but they areon the west side. We can still make it to the SEC championship, it’s wide open.Any team can take the East this year, it’s going to be interesting.”
On the game being important because it is against an SEC East opponent…
“It is a bigger game, but also because we just lost a game. It’s crucial thatwe don’t get on a losing streak. We’ve lost one; we don’t need to lose two. It’sa must-win game and is the biggest game of our year so far. It’s a crucial, must-wingame if we’re going to get where we want to be.”
Senior Linebacker Braxton Kelley
On the defensive performance against Alabama …
“We made a lot of mistakes here and there, and we need to get better as a defense.Our mistakes were small and if we can correct them, we have the chance to bea better team.”
On losing to Alabama 17-14…
“At Alabama we showed that we can play with anybody, but we want to beat everybody,not just play with them. I’m not a person that believes in moral victories, Iwant to win each and every game. If I lose a game, I don’t dwell on the factthat it was close, I still lost. This is my senior season and I don’t want tolose another game.”
On playing South Carolina …
“Steve Spurrier is a good coach who loves to throw the ball. During this gamewe will have to be prepared to put pressure on the quarterback.”
Sophomore Tailback Derrick Locke
On last year’s game against South Carolina …
“We turned the ball over a lot, we had a couple of fumbles and interceptions.South Carolina ‘s defensive line scored on us twice. If we could have eliminatedturnovers, it could have been a different game.”
On coach Steve Spurrier never losing to a Kentucky team…
“Those were previous years, this is a different year. I’m not saying we’re goingto beat them, but you can’t go off the past. They still have to show up to playjust as we have to show up and play. Hopefully we can change that. It’s not goingto be handed to us, we have to go out there and work for it.”
On the loss to Alabama …
“It’s going to be tough knowing that there could have been a different outcometo the game. It’s in the past now. There are things that we need to work on.It’s something we can feed off of and get better. We played a tough team, realclose, and we had some mistakes.”
On the importance of this game…
“We have to get this win. We’re trying to make the race for the SEC East. Theschedule isn’t going to get any easier, so we have to pull out this win. We definitelydon’t want to go 0-2 in the SEC.”
