Kentucky Ends Spring Practice Week 1 by Punching Defense in the Nose

by:Nick Roush•03/09/23•

RoushKSR

The Kentucky football team concluded the spring practice introduction with a day in shoulder pads. Before taking a week off for spring break, Mark Stoops let his players get after it. The two sides traded barbs, which was not always the case a year ago.

“It was a little bit of ebb and flow throughout practice I thought today,” said defensive coordinator Brad White. “There were some periods where I thought the defense looked good, but I thought some where we looked sluggish and the offense looked like they had more energy. We closed solid, but in that last period I thought the offense came out fired up and punched the guys in the nose.”

White’s top 25 Kentucky defense dominated the offense for most of the 2022 offseason as Rich Scangarello implemented his complicated offense. It’s only week one, but it’s a good sign that the offensive playmakers are seeing some early success behind the new-look Big Blue Wall.

As for the defense, White is actually encouraged by some early adversity. It provides a learning lesson they can use in the future.

“They had to dig themselves out, which is good. You want to see those guys go through some adversity through spring, through individual practices to see how they respond and how they rally because that’s going to happen. There’s going to be games where you’re ready, you’re fired up, you feel good and all of a sudden they drive down and score on the first drive. How do you respond after that?”

Tons of Competition at Cornerback

The Kentucky defense will have two new starting cornerbacks this fall. At the boundary, a pair of newcomers are duking it out. The lengthy athletes from the portal are good fits for the spot, as Adam Luckett explained on KSR+. On the other side, Maxwell Hairston and Andru Phillips are fighting for playing time while bringing a little something different to the table.

“We’ve got some length back in those corners. Dru and Max may not be as long as J-Rob (Jordan Robinson) or JQ (Hardaway) or Jantzen (Dunn), but they’ve got extreme twitch and really loose hips,” says White.

“We’ve got a variety in there with some guys that can play some different sports and give us some versatility, but it’s going to be a really competitive room. I don’t think there’s anybody right now that’s necessarily separated as the clear-cut guy, or the clear-cut two or the clear-cut three. It’s going to go all the way spring and I have a feeling this battle is going to go all the way till game one, and even through the season.”

Kentucky Defensive Identity in Roster Development

If you have followed Kentucky football recruiting closely, it’s easy to identify the traits the Cats put at a premium. Length and athleticism are near the top of the board, from the defensive line to the secondary. Brad White believes that has become an integral part of UK’s identity.

“Ultimately the goal of how we’re trying to manage this roster defensively is get a bunch of long, girthy individuals that are as athletic as possible — and obviously back-end guys that are long and can run –clog zones, play with vision. We can jump in and play man when it’s needed. But we know who we are and we’re not going to change from that too much.”