Kentucky-Florida Postgame Quotes
Mark Stoops, Kentucky Head Coach
Opening statement…
“Just really proud of our football team. Proud of our coaches, the preparation, the improvement that we made between week one and week two. We knew we had a good football team. We knew we had to play good in all three phases. We played solid in all three. The special teams miscues are, as you can tell, pretty easily fixable. We haven’t had any snap problems in a long time. So, we got to get that fixed… I felt like our coaches had a great game plan on both sides. We still can improve, and will improve on the offensive side of the ball, especially with the running game and being balanced. But that commitment to the running game opened up a lot of play passes, and they were there. And then defensively, what more can I say? Defensively, really impressed with the game plan. Coach White and the coaches, and the players how hard they played. Great team win. You got to be a tough son of a bee to come into this environment and win. And we all understand that. And we know this team is built that way. We’ve shown it through the years. That’s who we are. We’re gonna be a tough, hardnosed football team and win tough games, no matter what they look like. And we may win and may we may lose. But by God, we’re gonna be tough. And we showed that tonight.”
On getting Jordan Wright back…
“Yeah, I mean, he’s a player for us. And I don’t think there’s any question. You know that, you’ve seen him play for a while. He’s not only a good football player, but he brings good energy… One of those guys who’s a strong leader and his presence, he has that energy. That’s a bit contagious.”
On how the attitude of the team changed in the second half…
“We weren’t going to change, you know. The team, the defense, wouldn’t have changed all night, no matter what. It’s not their mentality. We always have a belief in the trust. And we talked about that all week. That trust that we will make the plays and we will do what’s necessary to win. And I firmly believe that defense knew that. I think the pick at the end of the first half was very big, big play.”
On his team’s discipline…
“Yeah, I mean, they’re hardnosed, tough guys. You know, they play hard. And they’re very coachable. They’re very selfless. And, you know, it’s credit to our coaching staff.”
On what clicked for the offensive line in the second half…
“With being able to be balanced like that, we were able to lean on him a bit. And I know we weren’t just gutting them or anything like that. But just those yards, controlling the clock, moving the football, being able to run the ball for the tough four or five, six yards, maybe 10 here and there. That kept them more off balance. And, you know, had the game not played out like that we maybe had some of our play passes still there because they were committing so hard to the run game. That’s what opened some of that stuff up. You do got to protect the edges on the boots and things, and you could tell, you know, we had to get one or two of those cleaned up after the first half.”
On breaking Bear Bryant’s wins record…
“Yeah, I’m glad it’s here. I’d like to be at home with my fans and family and friends and all that, but that’s okay, there’s time for that. And we needed this one. And I’m just appreciative of, you know, that, as I said on the field, when they asked me that, just appreciative to get this opportunity. The great coaches that have been here, way back starting in 2013, that commitment from Mitch, Mark, Dr. Capilouto the people, you know, it’s been a group effort. You can’t do this and win that many games or stay in this conference that long without a lot of people doing a lot of good things and committed to what we’re trying to achieve. And just really greatly appreciate all the past coaches from the dog days, you know, early on ‘til now, because there’s been a bunch of really good people, and great players. Such appreciation for the players all the way back to 2013, ‘til now. I love each and every one of them. And it’s really fun.”
On the benefit of having linebackers who have logged so many games…
“They’re very steady and they see a lot of things. So, if they get them once or twice, you know, they can get it corrected. They understand. They understand the situational football. And our young guys looked to them, because they knew they had a lot of snaps under their belt.”
Kentucky Student-Athletes
#0 Kavosiey Smoke, Senior, Running Back
On how hard the team worked to finish the win…
“All the hard straining, and we had to strain there, and then to come down and finish it, fourth quarter we had to finish it. That’s our quarter, the fourth quarter.”
On the team being called “soft” this past week…
“We don’t listen to the outside world, man. They can say what they want to say. We know what we are. Soft, ask them what we are now. Ask them what makes us soft.”
On the rivalry with Florida…
“I feel like every team we play, we have the same intensity. Florida is just an SEC team. Our first SEC game, we just wanted it more.”
On rebounding after a lackluster run game in the first half…
“I mean, that’s what you’re going to get in any game. A little frustration, but it’s how you respond. We just found the will, and came out with a victory.”
#7 Will Levis, Senior, Quarterback
On how it feels to get the win…
“Yeah, feels awesome. I mean, that was the number one goal, regardless of how it happened. We could have done a lot of things a lot better, but let’s just celebrate a great win right now.”
On what changed with the running game in the second half…
“I think we saw kind of a few concepts that we were just one block away or just one shoestring tackle away where we were close to it hitting. I think we had zero rushing yards going into the half. And I was so proud of our O-line for just staying determined, trusting in their keys and our backs were running hard, hitting their holes, making their reads correctly. And took a lot of time off with the run. Got down there into field goal range a couple times, but really proud of how they performed in the second half.”
On what he saw on the touchdown to Dane Key…
“So, we had a kind of street concept with a high cross and really built for two high, but that single high safety cut the high cross so it was just one on one, Dane with the corner. So, as soon as I saw the safety cut down, I stepped up threw it over the top. It’s a ball that we haven’t completed in a long time, even in practice, so pretty cool for that to happen.”
On what this rivalry means…
“It’s fun. I mean, that’s what college football is all about. I mean, whatever gets the fans excited, whatever gives us a little extra motivation. Just looking back to where the program was when Stoops first got here, that’s a little thing we talked about after the game compared to now. I mean, beating them two years in a row is crazy. And that’s kind of what’s expected now for us. And to do it here in The Swamp… Beat them the last couple times. I know how much it means to our fans, especially after just not being able to beat them for so long. So, it’s just really cool.”
