Cats Excited to Begin Spring Football Practice Tuesday
Spring is in the air and with that comes the beginning of Kentucky’s spring football practice. The Cats will take the field on Tuesday for the first of 15 practices over the next few weeks.
Kentucky finished last season by beating N.C. State in the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl to complete a 5-6 season. That win was something that UK head coach Mark Stoops thought was a big boost to his team.
“I think it was very important. As we talked about, leading up to that game and the decision, the invite and all those things, it was really important,” Stoops said. “I was very proud of our players for the investment they made to go to the bowl game, to practice, to compete in that game and to win. We came away with a victory. It definitely helped us.”
After the offseason, Stoops has been pleased with how his team has prepared itself for spring practice.
“They’ve had a really good winter, hit the weight room really hard,” Stoops said. “The guys really look good and they’re excited to get going.”
Stoops also likes his numbers as spring ball starts.
“This spring, we’re so much deeper than we’ve ever been and I think that has a lot to do with the six guys coming back for their sixth year,” Stoops said. “And then, the addition of 11 newcomers. So, that really puts us at a pretty full roster for the spring. So, we feel like we’re pretty deep.”
As Stoops and his team begin their spring drills, there are some significant changes on the team. Namely, new offensive coordinator Liam Cohen will begin to implement his offense, which will be totally new to the Cats.
“There’s so much to install,” Stoops said. “Obviously, we’ve had the opportunity to meet with our players and have walk-throughs and so we’ve already implemented some things for them. But there’s a great deal to go through. Everything is going to be new. The terminology, the formations, to the operation, from getting under center, different tempos, different cadences. There’s a lot to go into it so we really have to use these practices wisely.”
Stoops likes that the Cats will have a long period of time to work through the installation, due to the way spring practice is structured.
“The nice thing with the way our schedule is, it’s taxing on our players and our coaches, but we go for five weeks so we have a long time,” Stoops said. “We spread it out, take our time, have quality meetings between our practices. We have five weeks to get a lot better. We really have to be dialed in and more skilled overall.”
Much of the focus from the fan base will be on the quarterback position. Last year’s starter, Terry Wilson, has departed, creating an opening behind center. Stoops will give several players a look at quarterback during the spring, including Joey Gatewood, Beau Allen, Kaiya Sheron and Nik Scalzo.
“We’re looking forward to those guys getting better, just like all of the other guys,” Stoops said of the quarterbacks. “I’m not going to get into that, tip my hand and do all of those things. It’s a competition, just like every position out there.”
As far as which positions might be points of emphasis this spring, Stoops identified a couple.
“I think it’s fair to say that the wide receiver position is a position that we feel like have to continue to grow,” Stoops said. “Obviously, the quarterback position is always important. Defensive side of the ball, we’re thin at linebacker and I feel like we need to take another step on the defensive line as well.”
What does Stoops hope to get accomplished over 15 practices?
“Just getting better,” Stoops said. “There’s no magic formula, there’s no magic wand. It takes a plan but it also takes dedication on a lot of people’s part. We all have to do our part and just get better day-by-day. I feel really good about where we’re at but we have to put in the time, we have to put in the work and it’s day-by-day. You can’t get out ahead of yourself.”
That work begins with Tuesday morning’s first spring practice session.
