BTI's Rants and Ramblings: 4 Goals For UK Football To Shoot For

Life is all about goals, right?  If you haven’t set any goals for yourself, what’s the point?  Well, the UK football team has hit that point in its evolution where the goals need to be aggressive and inability to meet those goals should not be met with excuses.  If we are legitimately believing we can be a serious contender in the SEC, then no excuses can be made anymore.  Injuries happen.  Tough schedules happen.  Top programs overcome.  The others make excuses.

I tried to think a little outside the box for 4 goals that I think the UK football team could try and achieve this season.  Which of these goals is the most achievable and which ones are a bigger stretch?  And how high should we set the goals for 2021?

#1: Win 6 Straight Games
Do you realize that since 1980, Kentucky has only won 6 straight games ONE TIME.  That spanned the 2006 and 2007 seasons when they beat Clemson in 2006 Music City Bowl and then started 2007 5-0.  That’s it.  42 seasons of football.  One 6-game winning streak.  They haven’t won 6 straight games during a singular season since 1977.  Hell, they’ve only won 5 straight games THREE times since 1980: 2018-19 MTSU to Eastern Michigan; 2018 Central Michigan to South Carolina; and 1984 Kent State-Mississippi State.  With all of this big talk about 9 and 10 win possibilities, how about we just shoot for 6 in a row.  In 2021, the most likely scenario to win 6 games in a row would be the first 6 games of the season, which include 5 homes games, the only road game being at South Carolina.  In theory, rebuilding Florida and LSU.  And 2 dumpy teams.

#2: 60 Receptions from a Receiver
In the last decade of Kentucky football, only 1 receiver has caught 60 passes in a season: Lynn Bowden in 2018, who caught 67.  That is a serious lack of production from the wideouts.  60 receptions comes out to just 5 a game.  In an era of college football where the short pass is in and letting playmakers do their thing, it would be nice for a guy like Wandale Robinson to emerge as somebody who gets the 5-7 receptions a game to make things happen.  In the 10 years before 2012, we had Randall Cobb, Chris Matthews, Keenan Burton, Steve Johnson, and Dicky Lyons making plays week after week from the WR position.  Since Cobb’s departure, Bowden is the only one who stood out as a star at the position and we had to slam him into the QB role for a season because of it.

#3: Defend the Home Turf
2020: 3-2
2019: 6-2
2018: 6-1
2017: 4-3
2016: 5-2
2015: 4-4
2014: 5-2
2013: 2-5

These are the home records under Mark Stoops.  Very acceptable results but you may notice there is something missing: an undefeated home season.  In fact, Kentucky fans have only one undefeated home season since the Kennedy administration: 1977.  This year’s home slate is ULM, Missouri, Chattanooga, Florida, LSU, Tennessee, New Mexico State.  It’s unlikely UK will be favored in all of these games but they probably won’t be more than a touchdown underdog in any of them.  The home schedule, if Florida and LSU are truly rebuilding, is gettable.  So why don’t we get it for once?

#4 How About a Shutout?
Since Hal Mumme took over and high octane offense became the name of the game in college football, Kentucky has produced just 1 shutout, a 41-0 win in the season opener against Miami (OH) in 2009.  We’ve had some really dominant defensive games, especially under Mark Stoops, but no shutouts.  And I feel like a shutout in today’s landscape is truly one of the more impressive feats a team can accomplish.  Mark Stoops focus has always been on the defense and he faces a schedule filled with lower tier teams or rebuilding offenses.  Maybe this is the year to put up a goose egg.