Don't Bank on a Quarterback Change to Fix Kentucky's Passing Problems

You could feel it in the stadium. The Kentucky passing attack was struggling. Folks looked to the sideline to see if No. 8 was warming up. That didn’t happen until Zach Calzada suffered an injury to his right shoulder. Now, everything is on the table.

Mark Stoops spoke bluntly about Kentucky’s passing problem after the game. He’s not one to lay blame at any one player’s feet, particularly the quarterback, but his criticism of Calzada was pointed.

“The plays were there, and again, not easy, and not wide open, or things of that nature. But when you drop back and pass, and you’ve gotta throw the ball. And some of it was there… there were some opportunities there that we got to be more efficient,” Stoops said in his postgame press conference.

He even went so far as to tell Tom Leach, “I think Cutter (Boley) deserves the opportunity.”

Kentucky football fans are ready for a change. They want to see the former four-star talent from the Commonwealth get an opportunity. Through two games, Calzada has completed 25-53 passes (47.1%) for 234 yards, zero touchdowns, and one interception. As bad as the numbers may be, Bush Hamdan was unwilling to pull the trigger in his postgame remarks.

“We gotta take a look at it.”

The Kentucky offensive coordinator used some form of that phrase nine times during a six-minute postgame interview.

Deflecting questions from the media should not be an indictment of one’s ability to call plays. There are 14 games of evidence to hand one down.

During Hamdan’s tenure, Kentucky has thrown for more than 250 yards against only one FBS opponent. The Wildcats have more interceptions (18) than passing touchdowns (15) since he began calling plays. The numbers are so bad because it all looks so hard. Nothing comes easily.

Sure, there are moments of great. Kentucky had a fourth down in the fourth quarter and used motion to get Kendrick Law wide open for a big gain. Calzada connected with Ja’Mori Maclin for a 44-yard gain when the Cats called a double-move into a cornerback blitz, the perfect storm for a big play. It’s one that if thrown properly, could have been a walk-in touchdown.

Could Cutter Boley throw a better ball that leads to an easy Maclin walk-in touchdown? Of course. He showed that he can rip it when he laid a seed on Hardley Gilmore in the final minutes of the game.

Calzada looks like the gears in his head are moving a step too slow in the pocket. Some decisiveness from the redshirt freshman could go a long way in making incremental improvements, but drastic changes?

The Kentucky passing offense is a mess. This year, the protection is actually holding up well, but everything else — timing, decision-making, route-running — is dysfunctional. They have significant structural problems in the passing game.

The check engine light is turned on. They might be able to fix one issue to be able to drive this vehicle, but you should not expect to see it fly down the highway anytime soon.