Before conducting a post game autopsy...

[WildCard]

with my friends on CardinalSports.com I thought I would stop by here and offer a hearty and well deserved CONGRATULATIONS. Stoops finally got that big win and it is a win the fans will enjoy for a number of reasons (which I will not list here). [roll]

FWIW, after that loss to Clemson in week 5 I have been concerned about the Cards play more often than not; they have been flirting with disaster. Still I did not expect a KY win in this one. It started off right for the Cards with that quick opening drive but started going wrong on UK's first play of the game.

It will take me a while to watch a replay (I'll bet some of you guys have already watched a replay, maybe twice [laughing]) but the two game long "trends" that really linger in my mind are:

UofL TOs The Cards continued their careless ways with 4 TOs. Of course one was a meaningless end of game pick but 2 came in the UK Red Zone. Jackson's fumble on the 9 yard line late set the stage for UK's winning FG. Run something "safe", burn clock, take whatever points you get and leave UK with (very) short clock.

No Pass Rush The Cards never got to Johnson and he seemingly had all the time in the world to drop those 3 long bombs. The 2 times I remember him seeing any real pressure resulted in a roughing the passer penalty and "completion to himself". That one sorta convinced me it wasn't going to be the Cards day.

Congrats

Peace

 

[paul.ksr]

We have lost a lot of tough games. This is yours. Peace

 

[UKvisitor_rivals101449]

If you are wondering if the BBN liked this especially? Yes we do. For reasons I won't say here in this thread.

TY for coming here. MAY your stay be enjoyable. (that's my attempt at PC)

 

[Beatle Bum]

I have watched the replay once!

UL TOs were key, but UK went at UL's defense and moved the ball as well as we have all year. I thought UK got a bit conservative with the lead and had it kept the offense open, I think UK would have eclipsed 650 yards.

 

[jc2010]

Thanks WC, class

 

[K_TIME]

An evenly matched game that UK pulled out by a hair at the end is what I saw.

1. Sometimes Petrino is impatient with his offense and forces the passing game. But UL ran more than they passed...it simpy came down to Lamar fumbling at end of game with UL in position to kick a FG or TD. (I'd argue UK was equally as unlucky on Snell's fumble right before Jackson's fumble).
2. Lamar got UL behind in possesion's with his first Int...no need to throw that ball on 1st down and it wasn't there for a play.
3. Matchup of the game was UK's O-tackles pitching a shutout on UL's edge rushers in Fields/Hearns. On the other end, UL front 7 pretty much handled UK's rushing attack as good as anyone not named UF/Bama did all year long.

Final note... the announcers, from a UK fan perspective, we're straight abysmal. I don't think they got any UK players named correctly, Quick is now from Lexington, UK/UL are crosstown rivals (I always thought Lexington was not in same city as Louisville). The non stop talk of Jackson's Heisman chances in 3rd qtr was ridiculous...there was a game to be played moreos than an individual trophy. Finally, begging to have Jackson's fumble overturned, non call UK penalties, etc.. was a bit much. I can't wait to see ESPN go to the wayside...can't happen soon enough.

 

[RackOps]

Eddie Gran vs Todd Grantham :joy:

 

[Ukbrassowtipin]

The difference was Steven Johnson had the best game against the cards than any other qb all year, even Clemsons...

That and UK converted on 3rd down, at a better percentage than any uofl opponent all year.

 

[irishcat1965]

After all the UL talk all year of playoffs, deserving to be in the top 5, their heisman QB, their glorious run etc., UK proved it is the better team today. UL fans wrap your minds around that fact as you chug your Crown Royal.

 

[Mikey Likes It]

Im sure the self completion was tough to swallow. Thats the kind of play that normally doesn't go Kentuckys way.

 

[Mikey Likes It]

Eddie Gran vs Todd Grantham :joy:

Third and Grantham was glorious today. I think we were near or just above 70% on third down conversions in the second half.

 

[Soupbean]

An evenly matched game that UK pulled out by a hair at the end is what I saw.

1. Sometimes Petrino is impatient with his offense and forces the passing game. But UL ran more than they passed...it simpy came down to Lamar fumbling at end of game with UL in position to kick a FG or TD. (I'd argue UK was equally as unlucky on Snell's fumble right before Jackson's fumble).
2. Lamar got UL behind in possesion's with his first Int...no need to throw that ball on 1st down and it wasn't there for a play.
3. Matchup of the game was UK's O-tackles pitching a shutout on UL's edge rushers in Fields/Hearns. On the other end, UL front 7 pretty much handled UK's rushing attack as good as anyone not named UF/Bama did all year long.

Final note... the announcers, from a UK fan perspective, we're straight abysmal. I don't think they got any UK players named correctly, Quick is now from Lexington, UK/UL are crosstown rivals (I always thought Lexington was not in same city as Louisville). The non stop talk of Jackson's Heisman chances in 3rd qtr was ridiculous...there was a game to be played moreos than an individual trophy. Finally, begging to have Jackson's fumble overturned, non call UK penalties, etc.. was a bit much. I can't wait to see ESPN go to the wayside...can't happen soon enough.

Good breakdown. Very surprised UL didn't get to Johnson more and create some turnovers off that. Our secondary played very soft and too much zone (have I mentioned how much I hate stand still zones). But came up with turnovers when needed. Thought we got careful when we had the lead and the ball instead of keeping Johnson behind center and mixing it up.

UL's a good team, but not what I thought they could be early on.

 

[ORCAT]

I'm impressed. A couple of very classy UL fans have dropped by and posted in a very civil and mannerly fashion. I applaud you and the other UL poster I read earlier. Now, back to reality for me.

 

[WildCard]

An evenly matched game that UK pulled out by a hair at the end is what I saw.

1. Sometimes Petrino is impatient with his offense and forces the passing game. But UL ran more than they passed...it simpy came down to Lamar fumbling at end of game with UL in position to kick a FG or TD. (I'd argue UK was equally as unlucky on Snell's fumble right before Jackson's fumble).
2. Lamar got UL behind in possesion's with his first Int...no need to throw that ball on 1st down and it wasn't there for a play.
3. Matchup of the game was UK's O-tackles pitching a shutout on UL's edge rushers in Fields/Hearns. On the other end, UL front 7 pretty much handled UK's rushing attack as good as anyone not named UF/Bama did all year long.

Final note... the announcers, from a UK fan perspective, we're straight abysmal. I don't think they got any UK players named correctly, Quick is now from Lexington, UK/UL are crosstown rivals (I always thought Lexington was not in same city as Louisville). The non stop talk of Jackson's Heisman chances in 3rd qtr was ridiculous...there was a game to be played moreos than an individual trophy. Finally, begging to have Jackson's fumble overturned, non call UK penalties, etc.. was a bit much. I can't wait to see ESPN go to the wayside...can't happen soon enough.

Don't know about the announcers but that is darn good description of the way things went. Snell's fumble appeared to be more of a purse snatching thing than a "fumble". And that is more unusual than a drop or strip.

Totally agree about CBP "forcing" a passing game (especially on 1st down) and that is something I have been complaining about for several weeks now. They worked very hard in the spring to make Jackson stay in the pocket and, I suppose to his credit, Jackson has worked very hard, perhaps too hard, to do so. I can think of at least 2 plays where he stayed in the pocket and threw under pressure when a very wide running lane was available. In trying to make him a better pocket passer they may have given something up in his unique ability to simply take off.

Peace

 

[bigbluehomer]

Somebody should ask Bobby about Lamar about staying in the pocket too long............

 

[Real Deal 2]

Good post OP and you are a knowledgeable guy. I think the fact that UK was as good or better at OL, DB's, kicker, WR's. Your front 7 is better by a small measure but not by a lot. Your TE is going to be a pro. Lamar is that much better than anyone on field. He is built in 20-21 point man.
I think the talent differential is not there like post Joker years and really UK should have won the last 2, these teams are pretty evenly matched. I said the Petrino moniker is to win early at wherever he is at due to previous coaches recruiting to a high level. He did this with John L and Houston Nutt, I think Strong recruited highly and last year with all those draft picks was proof. Think you take Jackson off team and UK is 2 scores better and maybe 17 points better.

 

[KWilt43atbuzz]

Louisville DBs got burned for big play after big play alllll day long.
UKs wide outs and Johnson were the difference.
UKs WRs bested yours.

 

[hmt5000]

_the further that D gets away from charlie... the more ul fans will realize how lucky they were the last few years and it wasn't some kind of magic by the silos that made avg guys play great.

 

[hmt5000]

Bump

 

[The-Hack]

Wildcard, I posted a couple of weeks ago about the almost freakish turnover ratio and how UK was on the wrong end, being like 120th in the FBS at like minus 10 for the season . . . . and speculatling about how a reversed ratio might show UK to be better than they had shown.

I can't remember your exact words, but you responded, generally diminishing the correlation between turnovers and individual games, and season records.

Imagine my slight glee when I saw your original post's emphasis on the turnover ratio . . . .

I think you may (then) have modified your point by noting field position is way important in the conversation.

I literally thought of those posts while we waited for the replay to call the Jackson fumble.

 

[carolinacat]

It was great to see UK open up the playbook and not be afraid to throw deep, particularly on early downs. Of course it helped that the receivers generally held onto the football. Would liked to have seen a little more of this playbook against UGA...ah, water under the bridge. The offensive line has also dramatically improved their pass blocking this year., Petrino was lamenting their inability to pressure Johnson.

 

[supernova0221]

with my friends on CardinalSports.com I thought I would stop by here and offer a hearty and well deserved CONGRATULATIONS. Stoops finally got that big win and it is a win the fans will enjoy for a number of reasons (which I will not list here). [roll]

FWIW, after that loss to Clemson in week 5 I have been concerned about the Cards play more often than not; they have been flirting with disaster. Still I did not expect a KY win in this one. It started off right for the Cards with that quick opening drive but started going wrong on UK's first play of the game.

It will take me a while to watch a replay (I'll bet some of you guys have already watched a replay, maybe twice [laughing]) but the two game long "trends" that really linger in my mind are:

UofL TOs The Cards continued their careless ways with 4 TOs. Of course one was a meaningless end of game pick but 2 came in the UK Red Zone. Jackson's fumble on the 9 yard line late set the stage for UK's winning FG. Run something "safe", burn clock, take whatever points you get and leave UK with (very) short clock.

No Pass Rush The Cards never got to Johnson and he seemingly had all the time in the world to drop those 3 long bombs. The 2 times I remember him seeing any real pressure resulted in a roughing the passer penalty and "completion to himself". That one sorta convinced me it wasn't going to be the Cards day.

Congrats

Peace

Try not to ruin too many of your flat bills or nick that line beard shaving. Shaking after that loss after talking crap for a year must hurt bad.

 

[WildCard]

Wildcard, I posted a couple of weeks ago about the almost freakish turnover ratio and how UK was on the wrong end, being like 120th in the FBS at like minus 10 for the season . . . . and speculatling about how a reversed ratio might show UK to be better than they had shown.

I can't remember your exact words, but you responded, generally diminishing the correlation between turnovers and individual games, and season records.

Imagine my slight glee when I saw your original post's emphasis on the turnover ratio . . . .

I think you may (then) have modified your point by noting field position is way important in the conversation.

I literally thought of those posts while we waited for the replay to call the Jackson fumble.

That is correct. FWIW, I have never put much faith in the TO Margin stat; I look at takeaways and giveaways on their own...takeaways are always good and giveaways are always bad and I see no sense in co-mingling the 2 stats in a single metric.

As I recall my point was not all TOs are created equal and that is a mainly function of field position. A score off a 50 yard drive that began with a fumble recovery at the 50 can hardly be called "points off a turnover". OTHO, a TO in the Red Zone almost always means points given up or points not scored. The Cards made 2 such TOs Saturday resulting in leaving at least 6, if not more, points on the field. Field position of a TO takes on a different significance when there is little time left and the game can be won or lost on a FG rather than a TD.

Overall, TOs have been a problem for the Cards for 2 consecutive years now. Last year the Cards were 116th nationally with 27 TOs and even worse this year ranking 125th with 31 TOs. I have often thought the defense was actually playing against 2 offenses, theirs and ours!

Yesterday the Card simply were not good enough to get away with 2 TOs in the UK red zone.

Peace

 

[Rockford]

Good breakdown. ..... Our secondary played very soft and too much zone (have I mentioned how much I hate stand still zones).

I think we played so much zone Saturday b/c you have to keep your eyes on Jackson at all times.
Playing man-to man, you get your head turned around a lot and if you get your eyes off Jackson and he starts running...... you in deep trouble, Bubba.

 

[OOOOOOO]

[QUOTE=" "completion to himself". That one sorta convinced me it wasn't going to be the Cards day.

Congrats

Peace[/QUOTE]


Have seen many times an opponent make totally crap plays or shots and have thought the same thing, Just not our day.

Good Luck in your Bowl game.

 

[Gene1864]

Turnovers, penalties, coaching...all part of the game. It goes both ways for all teams during the season; may think you lost a game due to turnovers but win another due to a plus ratio.

All that matters is the final score. Simple as that.

 

[Gary4UK]

with my friends on CardinalSports.com I thought I would stop by here and offer a hearty and well deserved CONGRATULATIONS. Stoops finally got that big win and it is a win the fans will enjoy for a number of reasons (which I will not list here). [roll]

FWIW, after that loss to Clemson in week 5 I have been concerned about the Cards play more often than not; they have been flirting with disaster. Still I did not expect a KY win in this one. It started off right for the Cards with that quick opening drive but started going wrong on UK's first play of the game.

It will take me a while to watch a replay (I'll bet some of you guys have already watched a replay, maybe twice [laughing]) but the two game long "trends" that really linger in my mind are:

UofL TOs The Cards continued their careless ways with 4 TOs. Of course one was a meaningless end of game pick but 2 came in the UK Red Zone. Jackson's fumble on the 9 yard line late set the stage for UK's winning FG. Run something "safe", burn clock, take whatever points you get and leave UK with (very) short clock.

No Pass Rush The Cards never got to Johnson and he seemingly had all the time in the world to drop those 3 long bombs. The 2 times I remember him seeing any real pressure resulted in a roughing the passer penalty and "completion to himself". That one sorta convinced me it wasn't going to be the Cards day.

Congrats

Peace

This game might not have taken you by that much of a surprise if you guys weren't so arrogant...

You speak of no pass rush... If you hadn't been so blind, you would have known that Kentucky had one of the best offensive lines in the country... That's why we had two 1000 yard rushers...

First, who have the Cards really beat this year... They beat Florida State in the first game, but I'm sure you guys wouldn't like to play them later in the year... That's it! You lost to Clemson... You lost to Houston... You lost to Kentucky... So the best 4 teams you played this year, you beat one, and when that team wasn't at their best...

Second, you would have known KY was a lot better than you thought, if you didn't listen to the odds makers, who didn't know UK for what they were either... We got some accolades from some of the guys on the SEC channel, but that's about it... Kentucky lost to Alabama, Florida, Georgia and Tennessee... Alabama said Kentucky was a physical as any team they played, and so did Georgia... We were beat by Alabama, but it was respectable... We lost to Georgia on a last second filed goal... We were blown out by Florida, in a game much like you beat Florida State... Our team was in disarray in that game, after we opened so dismal....

Third, Kentucky kept getting better in each game... Our fans seen it, but you guys just thought we were trying to console ourselves... We have a serious coach... We have a serious offense and a serious defense... The weakest part of our game all year, is punting... We had the coverage on kickoffs and punts... We had a great field goal kicker... We had a lot at our skilled positions... Our defense was our weakest spot, but it kept getting better and better... UT beat us, but we were coming back on them and the clock ran out... We ended up tied for second in a much improved SEC east... The east beat a lot of west teams this year and I think next year, the east will be the strength of the SEC... Alabama, Auburn and LSU being their top teams...

Kentucky never got respect from anyone, but our fans knew they were something about this team that made us like them...

BTW, I'm guilty... I have watched the game twice and plan another before long...

 

[mtn cat1]

with my friends on CardinalSports.com I thought I would stop by here and offer a hearty and well deserved CONGRATULATIONS. Stoops finally got that big win and it is a win the fans will enjoy for a number of reasons (which I will not list here). [roll]

FWIW, after that loss to Clemson in week 5 I have been concerned about the Cards play more often than not; they have been flirting with disaster. Still I did not expect a KY win in this one. It started off right for the Cards with that quick opening drive but started going wrong on UK's first play of the game.

It will take me a while to watch a replay (I'll bet some of you guys have already watched a replay, maybe twice [laughing]) but the two game long "trends" that really linger in my mind are:

UofL TOs The Cards continued their careless ways with 4 TOs. Of course one was a meaningless end of game pick but 2 came in the UK Red Zone. Jackson's fumble on the 9 yard line late set the stage for UK's winning FG. Run something "safe", burn clock, take whatever points you get and leave UK with (very) short clock.

No Pass Rush The Cards never got to Johnson and he seemingly had all the time in the world to drop those 3 long bombs. The 2 times I remember him seeing any real pressure resulted in a roughing the passer penalty and "completion to himself". That one sorta convinced me it wasn't going to be the Cards day.

Congrats

Peace

Thanks that big of you!