DickyLyons Jr.

• SEC Academic Honor Roll (2007)
• UK Most Improved Offensive Player by UK coaches (2006)

Counted on to play a leadership role in the UK offense as a wide receiver and kick returner … Quality all-around receiver, with good hands, speed and ability to gain more yardage after the catch … Has reached the 50-reception mark for two consecutive seasons … Career totals feature 108 receptions with 16 scores … Has three 100-yard games as a Wildcat … Career highs are eight receptions for 124 yards and three touchdowns against Florida in 2007 … His longest play was an 80-yard TD at Louisville as a sophomore … Was the first player in UK history to catch two touchdown passes in three consecutive games, a mark set in 2006 that was tied later that year by Keenan Burton … Appeared in 33 contests, earning 22 starting assignments … His father, Dicky Lyons Sr., has his jersey retired as one of the greatest players in Kentucky football history … Lyons Sr. and Jr. are believed to be the only father-son combination in NCAA history that have each caught a touchdown pass of 80 or more yards.

2007 (Junior): Caught 56 passes for 655 yards and seven touchdowns … Recorded career highs with eight catches for 124 yards and three scores against Florida … Snagged eight passes, including two TDs, against Florida Atlantic … Opened the season with a bang, taking a pass 51 yards for a score on the first play from scrimmage against Eastern Kentucky … Tallied six receptions vs. EKU for his second-career 100-yard receiving game (113) … Became the 17th player in school history to reach the 1,000-yard receiving mark in the Louisville game … Earned a place on the SEC Academic Honor Roll.

2006 (Sophomore): UK’s Most Improved Offensive Player for the 2006 season as selected by UK coaches … Caught 50 passes for 822 yards and nine touchdowns, with a team-high 16.4 yards per reception … Got the season started with a bang … The first player in UK history to catch two touchdowns in three consecutive games (vs. Louisville, Texas State, Ole Miss; ironically, this record was broken later in the season by teammate Keenan Burton) … His 80-yard touchdown reception at Louisville is the longest in his career, good for the eighth-longest TD pass in school history … Had career highs with eight receptions for 117 yards in the win at Mississippi State, including an incredible one-handed touchdown grab in the back of the end zone … In the upset of Clemson in the Music City Bowl, he took a short pass and raced 24 yards for a touchdown.

2005 (Sophomore): Had a series of nagging injuries during the season and ended up with a redshirt year.

2004 (Freshman): Played in seven games … Originally a candidate for a redshirt season, injuries to other players pressed him into service … Returned punts and kickoffs and also got some playing time at wide receiver … Returned five kickoffs for a 29.3-yard average before opponents began kicking away from him … Long return was 41 yards vs. Alabama and also had a 37-yard effort vs. Ohio … Returned 12 punts for a 4.6-average … Would have had a much higher average, but a couple of long runbacks were negated because of penalty … Earned the game-captain role for the South Carolina game.

High School: Four-year letterman and three-year starter at Holy Cross HS in New Orleans, La. … Returned 15 kicks for touchdowns during his career, 11 kickoff-returns TDs and four punt-return TDs … During his senior year, he caught 53 passes for 1,027 yards, a 19.4-yard average, and 16 touchdowns … Returned 21 kickoffs for 884 yards, an amazing 42.1 yards per return, with five touchdowns … Opponents punted away from him as much as possible, but he was able to return 10 punts for a 19.3-yard average … Also served as the team’s punter and averaged 37 yards per punt … First-team all-state by the Louisiana Coaches Association … Had eight kick return scores as a junior, four punts and four kickoffs … Named All-Metro New Orleans and all-district for two seasons … As a junior and senior, he helped his team advance to the state playoffs in Class AAAAA, the largest classification in Louisiana … An All-South Region selection by PrepStar magazine … Coached by Barry Wilson … “Dicky is a rare guy who comes along once in a lifetime,” said Wilson, who played for LSU in the 1960s and played against Dicky’s father at Kentucky. “Dicky is really fast, with great acceleration. When the game is on the line, he wants the ball. The better the competition, the better he played.” … A four-year letterman on the track team, competing in the 100- and 200-meter dashes … Won the 100 in the district meet his junior year … Also a three-year letterman on the golf team who won three tournaments during his career … Honor roll student … Committed to Kentucky in the summer of 2003 and did not seriously consider other schools.

Personal: Born in Metairie, La. … Major is community communications and leadership development … Son of Richard Sr. and Alette Lyons … Dicky Lyons Sr. played at Kentucky from 1966-68 … The elder Lyons was one of the top all-around players in SEC history and is one of UK’s retired jersey honorees … He was first-team All-SEC as a junior and senior and was the first player in league history to accumulate 1,000 rushing yards, 1,000 kickoff return yards, and 1,000 punt return yards … Following his career at Kentucky, he went on to play for the New Orleans Saints.

Community Cats: Participated in service events at Ashland Elementary (2004) and with the Mardi Gras Fundraiser (2005).

Lyons Career Statistics

YearPositionRec.Yds.Avg.TDLongRushYds.Avg. TDLong2004Wide Rec.2115.506177.0072006Wide Rec.5082216.498000--0--2007Wide Rec.5665511.775110000Totals1081,48813.81680273.507YearKORYds.Avg.TDLongPRYds.Avg.TDLong2004514629.204112554.60142006819324.104000--0--20071533222.103024020.0027Totals2867124.004114956.7027

Lyons Game-by-Game Statistics
2006

OpponentRec.YardsTDat Louisville2842Texas State3542Ole Miss4832at Florida7500Central Michigan000South Carolina3791at LSU4570at Mississippi State81171Georgia5480Vanderbilt3610UL-Monroe6790at Tennessee3600vs. Clemson2501Totals508229

2007

OpponentRec.YardsTDEastern Kentucky61131Kent State3210Louisville4330at Arkansas2140Florida Atlantic8762at South Carolina3310LSU6490Florida81243Mississippi State3480at Vanderbilt2140at Georgia2120Tennessee4421vs. Florida State5780Totals566557