Coen Sees Similarities Between Bowl Prep, Super Bowl Prep
With Kentucky playing in the Vrbo Citrus Bowl on January 1, UK offensive coordinator Liam Coen is getting to experience bowl prep for the first time in his career. But Coen was able to relate what he and his offense are going through right now to an experience has had previously.
“It similar to playing in the Super Bowl, to be honest,” Coen said after practice on Tuesday. “Because where our work needs to be done, and is done, is prior to going down to the site. Third down and red zone tomorrow. Really start to tighten the whole plan up.”
The Cats are in the midst of installing their game play this week as they prepare to face Big Ten runner-up Iowa in Orlando. Coen sees similarity to fall camp as the Cats prepare for their bowl game.
“I think it’s been a little bit of a mix between spring ball, a little bit of training camp, where you do good on good stuff early on, especially when you haven’t started a game plan yet,” Coen said. “So, we got some good work early on in the bowl prep practices. Then once we got into our game planning, it felt like a normal week of preparation.”
Coen and the Cats hope to have everything ready before the team departs for the holidays on Wednesday. That way, when the team arrives in Orlando, they can be ready to go.
“When we get down there, (we will) try to get some good, clean work,” Coen said. “Have fun, let the kids enjoy the situation and the whole experience.”
Bowl prep also brings with it an opportunity for younger players to get additional reps in practice. Coen cited a couple of Cats as those who have stood out as the Cats prepare to depart for the holidays.
“It’s a fine line between the physical aspect but you’re still trying to develop your younger players, get them some reps and some experience in practice but also understand that this is a big game for us and we need to prepare,” Coen said.
While wanting to get the younger players ample reps, the UK staff is also keeping an eye on how much work it gives the veterans on the team during bowl preparations.
“We’re in a little bit of a unique situation because we do have so many leaders and seniors up front, at the receiver position, at the tight end position, at the receiver position and at running back that we need to be careful not to bang too much on those guys,” Coen said. “Because we need them available (for the bowl game).”
Finding the balance between preparing for Iowa and getting younger players involved is a balancing act that Coen is handling for the first time. But it’s not something totally new to him.
