Mark Stoops taking a different approach to Kentucky's early bye week

The Kentucky Football program is not good after bye weeks during Mark Stoops’ tenure, just 6-10, 5-9 against SEC foes. The first bye week of this season is unusually early, after just the third game. In turn, Mark Stoops is reaching out to his friends for advice.

On today’s SEC Teleconference, Stoops said he’s asked his fellow coaches how they handle bye weeks in hopes of shaking things up. Kentucky travels to South Carolina next Saturday for a critical matchup against the Gamecocks and the week after, to Georgia to face the No. 5 Bulldogs.

“I’ve really tried to talk to quite a few of my colleagues and talk to friends around the country, and just get different ideas for the bye week,” Stoops said. “I’ve been here 13 years, and just don’t want to stay stagnant. We want to try to get better and are looking at a lot of different options.”

As a result, Kentucky is going harder in practice than they typically would during a bye week. Several players will use the bye to heal up, including defensive back Terhyon Nichols, running back Dante Dowdell, and defensive back DJ Waller, but the rest of the team will be putting in work on the practice field and weight room.

“This is a bit early for a bye week, so I really wanted to take the approach that we obviously need to work, and so really put in a big, heavy week this week. Also, you’ve got to be cognizant of getting their bodies right and making sure they can get some lifts in and even some running, and just making sure our bodies are prepped for the tough season that lies ahead. So it’s a bit of a combination. The bottom line for us this week is we’re going to push hard and do a lot of work because we need it.”

Stoops said the team has already had its typical Monday practice and a lift and film day. Today and tomorrow, they’ll have physical, “heavy” practices, and then the players will have the weekend off to rest up while the coaches hit the recruiting trail. Early prep for South Carolina has already begun. After games vs. the Gamecocks and Georgia Bulldogs, the Cats have their second bye week, then face a brutal stretch of No. 8 Texas, No. 15 Tennessee, No. 22 Auburn (away), and Florida.

“It’s unrelenting, that’s for sure,” Stoops said of life in the SEC this season. “It’s very, very difficult. It always has been, and probably always will be. You just have to embrace it and stay within the moment, stay week to week, day to day, and that’s what we’re trying to do. I feel like we have a better football team, but we haven’t always shown it this year, and so we’ve got a lot of work to do.”

We’ll hear more from Mark Stoops following tonight’s practice.