Two days removed from a scrimmage he called UK’s best day so far this spring, Mark Stoops was singing much the same tune after a Monday practice moved inside due to rain.The Wildcats, according to Stoops, didn’t let the momentum built on Saturday go to waste.”It was good to get out there today and put another good practice together,” Stoops said. “I thought Saturday, like I said, that was one of our better days. I felt like we backed it up with a pretty good day today. We’re starting to move forward, get a little bit better in each phase of the game.”Stoops didn’t get into details, but his evaluation of the scrimmage was no different after viewing tape.”I just felt like it was just better football,” Stoops said. “As the head coach, you’re not just worried about one side, one position group or anything like that and obviously I just felt like there was more quality football being played.”This time a year ago, it was tape from Kentucky’s annual Blue-White Spring Game Stoops and his staff were watching. Now, UK still has two weeks of spring practice left. That delayed schedule is no accident.”We went into spring ball late so we could really have some to lift and put on some weight and get stronger,” Stoops said. “I feel like that’s paying off.”Benefiting from a long winter in UK’s High Performance program, the Wildcats entered the spring bigger, stronger and faster. Stoops has known that all along, but he got a reminder of his team’s progress from a special practice guest on Monday.Defensive line guru Pete Jenkins — a former assistant with the Philadelphia Eagles, LSU and USC — is continuing an annual spring tradition of observing Stoops’ team and came away impressed by the difference between the team he watched Monday and the one he saw a year ago.”Sometimes when you see it every day you want to make those steps faster, but he noticed it and told me it’s a much different team, better-looking team, looks like we’re more physical and all that,” Stoops said. “So it’s good to hear that from somebody that spends a lot of time going to a lot of spring practices and been around the block.”The positive feedback is nice, but the real reason Jenkins — who also coached UK assistant Jimmy Brumbaugh at Auburn — is spending time in Lexington is to be a resource as Stoops and defensive coordinator D.J. Eliot look to develop the same kind of dominant line play Florida State had.”It’s something we take great pride in,” Stoops said. “It’s something we did at Florida State. The better you play up front, the better you’re going to be. It starts up there. I think Coach Brumbaugh does a great job of developing those guys. We got a long way to go with some young guys, but that’s key for us.”The road may be long, but Stoops believes the Cats are on the right track.”We’re battling,” Stoops said. “We’re getting better. We’ve got a few young guys in there with Regie (Meant) getting better. But Mike Douglas is battling, doing a good job and Melvin’s (Lewis) getting better, so we’re improving.”Of course, the bookends of UK’s defensive line are ends Bud Dupree and Za’Darius Smith. Both continue to draw rave reviews for their play and leadership, but even the two seniors who bypassed the NFL Draft have room for growth.”I think with Bud it’s his versatility, and making sure he’s getting enough quality reps to continue to progress with his hand in the dirt as a great D-linemen, and then being able to get him some snaps on his feet and doing some other things and being versatile with Bud,” Stoops said. “That’s a matter of keep on getting reps there. With Z, you can never get enough reps. You’re always getting better.”