Nov. 3, 2010
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Saturday’s football game between the University of Kentucky and Charleston Southern University will be the annual Military Appreciation Day at Commonwealth Stadium. Kickoff is set for 12:30 p.m. ET.
Here are some features of Military Appreciation Day:
• During the pregame show, the 101st Airborne Division will conduct a parachute demonstration. The team is stationed at Fort Campbell, KY.
• At the end of the national anthem there will be an F-15E Strike Eagle flyover, conducted by the United States Air Force’s 391st Fighter Squadron from Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho.
• A giant United States flag, which covers the football field, will be unfurled by the UK Army and Air Force ROTC cadets.
• Personnel from the Kentucky National Guard, led by Adjutant General Edward W. Tonini will be present. Tonini will also take part in the pregame coin toss.
• Military personnel from the Veterans Hospital also will be in attendance.
One change for this year is that the primary military representatives will be from the Kentucky National Guard and the Veterans Hospital. In prior years, trainees from Fort Knox have been prominent in the stands but the trainees are not at Fort Knox this year.
Locke “Looked Really Good” to Phillips in Full Practice Wednesday: Kentucky football head coach Joker Phillips told reporters after practice Wednesday that senior tailback Derrick Locke, who has missed the past three games because of injury, continues to make progress.
“He (Derrick Locke) looked really good (today),” Phillips said. “He looked good in the drills that I saw him in. … Now, he didn’t get hit. We didn’t touch him. He had a red jersey on. But he was really fast and his legs are not hurting him, we know that.”
Phillips told reporters after practice that they will not hold out Locke if he is ready to play Saturday.
“If he can play, we have to play Derrick Locke,” Phillips said. “What do we have to save him for? There is no need to save him. You all heard what Coach (David) Turner said the other day. This is a game that we have to win. We have to use everybody that is available to win this football game.”
Phillips said that Locke went the entire practice and even caught some balls out the backfield. The head coach said that Locke has been cleared by team doctors, however the question now is if he has his strength back enough to “protect himself” and be able to take hits.
The Wildcats will return to the Tim Couch Practice Fields on Thursday for the final on-field preparation for the Charleston Southern game.
Saturday is National College Football Day: Nearly 100 spectators gathered around a field in New Brunswick, N.J., on Nov. 6, 1869 to witness a game unlike anything seen before. On that day, Rutgers defeated Princeton, 6-4, but more importantly, the players left a lasting legacy that would evolve into the great spectacle of intercollegiate football. To honor the birth of an American institution, the AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic created a holiday to be held annually on the first Saturday in November.
In 2006, the holiday took on added significance when the Classic teamed up with the V Foundation for Cancer Research to raise funds and increase awareness in the fight against cancer. This year, the American Football Coaches Association, the National Association of Collegiate Football Officials, the Football Writers Association of America, the College Sports Information Directors of America and the Athletic Equipment Managers Association have given their support to this great cause.
Celebrate the seventh-annual National College Football Day on Nov. 6 and consider making a donation to the V Foundation. For more information, visit www.nationalcollegefootballday.com.
