Kentucky 2018 Preview: Will the Wildcats stay middling?

Mark Stoops is under pressure, but a different kind of pressure. Kentucky Football hasn’t had a coach with a winning percentage since Blanton Collier’s seven-year period between 1954 and 1961, but Stoops has led the program to back-to-back winning seasons – the first time that has happened since Rich Brooks had four straight (2006-2009). Now, with the coaching situation in Lexington more settled than most of his competition in the conference, Stoops is expected to step up a little. During SEC Media Days questions were asked about beating Florida – a team that it hasn’t beaten in 31 years, as well as the potential of pressing on from back-to-back 7-6 years. OUTLOOK There’s a lot of love for RB Benny

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SEC Media Day quotes: Texas A&M, LSU, Kentucky

It was the first day of SEC Media Days on Tuesday, and there were a couple of changes: Firstly, the crazy train rolled up to Atlanta rather than Hoover, Alabama, and second, there seem to be 401 new head coaches. Thankfully, they are all used to crazy people, so walking in the first shouldn’t have been too much of a problem. On the first day of FinebaumStock, Texas A&M’s head coach Jimbo Fisher, LSU’s Ed Orgeron and Kentucky’s Mark Stoops took the stage to face off against such questions as: “Do you feel good about your team this year?” and “What’s it like coming to the SEC?” and “How much pressure is there to beat Alabama win the SEC West?”. Anyway,

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SEC teams getting upset: The most stunning since 2012

We were thinking about doing an article in the shower about the best records in the SEC over the last five years, but they’ve already been nicely covered by everyone from Gridiron Now to Saturday Down South. You’ll be astonished to hear that Alabama’s got the best home record in the last five years, and the crappiest home record is Kentucky’s. It shouldn’t be much of a surprise to you to find out that after the 2016 season happened, every single SEC team in the last 5 years has winning records in the comfort of their own homes (Kentucky was the last to get to black but did so after going 5-2 last year). Last year’s two worst home records

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After Week 2: Auburn and Arkansas fall in SEC rankings

If you are an Auburn and Arkansas fan, you had an intensely forgettable Saturday. Of course, Auburn survived mighty Jacksonville State — in overtime — with the rest of the SEC cheering on the Tigers to fall, while Arkansas comedically fell at ‘home’ to Toledo (2014 record: 9-4, 7-1 MAC). Elsewhere, Missouri and Florida struggled with Arkansas State and East Carolina respectively, Tennessee gave up a 17-0 lead to Oklahoma in the best atmosphere of the day in Neyland, and Les Miles was Les Miles (and LSU won despite it). Otherwise, Alabama, Georgia and Texas A&M pretty much cruised. Anyway, here’s your SEC rankings after Week 2. Alabama (Previous Ranking: 1) — Resounding win over Middle Tennessee State despite starting slowly. Derrick

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Stoops: I’m glad the first two years didn’t kill me

Mark Stoops, the Kentucky head coach, spoke at SEC Media Days. Here are some of the best quotes. ON THE EARLY YEARS “Really glad the first two years trying to build this program didn’t kill me.” AND NOW? “And as we move forward, we’ve worked extremely hard to make Kentucky relevant in the SEC East. As we move into this third year, we really feel like we put ourselves in a position to do just that.” ON EXPECTATIONS “We embrace the expectations. I think most of our fan base knows where we had to come from. They expect to see a blue collar, hard working, fun football team out there. That’s what we intend to deliver. As I said earlier,

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Kentucky player charged with rape

Kentucky freshman DE Lloyd Tubman has been suspended by the Wildcats after he was charged for first-degree rape, multiple reports have said. Kentucky.com reported that the alleged rape was reported at 11.45am Thursday “by a female student”, and that it was reported in a residence hall, and that “UK Police Chief Joe Monroe said it involved two students, but he declined to comment further“. Wildcats coach Mark Stoops said in a statement: “Obviously, I’m very concerned about the allegations and all parties involved. We’re working extremely hard to develop quality young men on and off the field. We will continue to cooperate with the local and campus authorities while the process takes its course.” Tubman, from Louisville, was ranked the 12th-best weakside

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SEC Preview 14: Can it get any worse for Kentucky?

With a SEC losing streak that stands at 16, it’s difficult not to feel sorry for Kentucky Football fans. While their basketball players are playing like gods and pulling off last-minute victories, Kentucky football players simply find ways to lose. Sometimes heartbreakingly. Will 2014 be any different for Mark Stoops and his team?  LAST SEASON The Wildcats finished 2-10 (0-8 SEC), including losses to Western Kentucky and hated Louisville. Victories included (wait for it) Miami (Ohio) and (drumroll) Alabama State. The closest losses were by a touchdown to South Carolina and by 6 to Mississippi State, and by 9 to WKU. The rest were blow-outs. OFF-SEASON WR DeMarco Robinson was arrested for disorderly conduct, where he apparently “disorderly conduct, violation

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Kentucky Derby: Wildcats Post Strong National Signing Day

When people talk to you about the Kentucky Wildcats, the thing they bring up most often is the fact that the program’s a basketball program which happens to play a bit of football. And with former Jared Lorenzen suddenly in the news for, er, eating Jared Lorenzen, the school’s football program’s been a source of laughter for many. But with former Kentucky defensive star Danny Trevathan helping to take the Denver Broncos to the Super Bowl, ‘Big Blue’ winning  a basketball game comfortably and Mark Stoops having a solid National Signing Day, things might be changing in Lexington with this good few weeks. Kentucky got into the news a few days ago when fDT Matt Elam decided he wasn’t going to

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SEC Season Preview: Can The Joker take Kentucky from the SEC basement?

Joker Phillips’ job at Kentucky can’t be easy. After all, they seem to always live in the shadow of their band of basketball brothers, and never seem to come out. Even when they posted relatively successful numbers in 2006 – 2009, no-one particularly appreciated them, and even now it’s as though Randall Cobb went straight from high school to Green Bay without playing for Big Blue in between. Well, Joker wants to make right on all of that, and have a team that can not only own hated rival Louisville, but do some damage in the SEC East. Can this be his year? LAST SEASON Last season the Kentucky Wildcats were pretty awful, finishing the year 5-7. That might not

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Maxwell Smith named as Kentucky’s starting quarterback

Joker Phillips has made Maxwell Smith his starting quarterback for the 2012 season. Smith, who threw for 819 yards and 4 TDs (and 4 INTs) for the Wildcats last year, was named earlier this week. The new QB told the Courier-Journal: “I heard about it this morning. Coach Joker and Coach Sanders were together and they called me in, and that’s when I found out. I felt good, felt great. That’s what I’ve been working for since I was a little kid, to get a job to start on an SEC team. It might not have been SEC at the time; you know I’m a West Coast guy. It might’ve been Pac-10 at the time, but I’m glad to be

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