Monday Evening Practice Notes
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UK Athletics[/caption]
Before I begin, allow me to exhale. WOW. Boom AND Badet?! Say it isn't so. It apparently isn't much, but I was, and am still, a little worried. Stoops was rather jovial today on the state of the team, speaking for 11 minutes before dropping the Boom on the Media Room.
"You're going to get some injuries unfortunately. That goes with the game, but I get a little perturbed when things could be avoided," Stoops said. "There's times to be physical and there's times to be smart."
When contact occurs during practices that aren't fully padded, people scream from the sideline, "STAY UP! STAY UP!" This time they didn't, and Stoops turned somber. Hopefully all remains well with Boom's knee (and Badet's ankle). Despite additional depth, Boom is one of the few with skills that are irreplaceable.
- The Cats have another big hole to fill on the defensive side of the ball, thanks to the two-game suspension of Jason Hatcher. As I believed, Stoops and Eliot will use multiple options to fill the gap. Jabari Johnson will be the first on the field, with Denzil Ware used from time-to-time in passing scenarios as he continues to develop. They are also working out JuCo transfer Alvonte Bell at the position. Eliot acknowledged that he has much to learn - especially when dropping back in the pass - over the next month.
On the other side of the ball, Farrington Huguenin has been a steady presence at defensive end, gaining 20 pounds of muscle in the offseason. From D.J. Eliot:
UK Athletics[/caption]
Before I begin, allow me to exhale. WOW. Boom AND Badet?! Say it isn't so. It apparently isn't much, but I was, and am still, a little worried. Stoops was rather jovial today on the state of the team, speaking for 11 minutes before dropping the Boom on the Media Room.
"You're going to get some injuries unfortunately. That goes with the game, but I get a little perturbed when things could be avoided," Stoops said. "There's times to be physical and there's times to be smart."
When contact occurs during practices that aren't fully padded, people scream from the sideline, "STAY UP! STAY UP!" This time they didn't, and Stoops turned somber. Hopefully all remains well with Boom's knee (and Badet's ankle). Despite additional depth, Boom is one of the few with skills that are irreplaceable.
- The Cats have another big hole to fill on the defensive side of the ball, thanks to the two-game suspension of Jason Hatcher. As I believed, Stoops and Eliot will use multiple options to fill the gap. Jabari Johnson will be the first on the field, with Denzil Ware used from time-to-time in passing scenarios as he continues to develop. They are also working out JuCo transfer Alvonte Bell at the position. Eliot acknowledged that he has much to learn - especially when dropping back in the pass - over the next month.
On the other side of the ball, Farrington Huguenin has been a steady presence at defensive end, gaining 20 pounds of muscle in the offseason. From D.J. Eliot:
"He's a lot more stout there on the inside. He's a similar player to Za'Darius in the fact that he's a very good technician. He plays the run well, and again, he's a Senior. He's played a lot of football over the years and has always been in a backup role, but has seen a lot of game reps. I think he brings a lot of experience and now he brings size."- To see a brighter side of things, look a little further back on defensive side of the ball. Stoops admitted that he was displeased with the safeties for much of last season, but now believes they will be one of the stronger positions, thanks to redshirt freshmen Mike Edwards and Darius West. Normally, Stoops would be ready to throw a guy like Marcus Walker (who is physically ready to play today) into the mix right away, but he doesn't have to rush him because of the play from West and Edwards. - To stay on the defensive side of things, cornerback will easily be the most intriguing competition in camp. Not just because of the freshmen, he's even getting Kendall Randolph in the mix. Stoops said he wouldn't hesitate to start a true freshman. The last time he did, Antoine Cason started every game after that for Arizona, finishing his career as the Jim Thorpe Award Winner. Hopefully he's hiding one of those in his arsenal for this Fall. Stoops' One-Liner of the Day: "That one-handed grab that A.J. had last year, I'm working on that right now." To listen to it all, chiggity check out the video below.
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