Music City Bowl Notebook: Young Cornerbacks get Big Opportunity

It’s been a chaotic 48 hours over at the KSR compound covering Kentucky football signing day and a couple of men’s and women’s basketball games. Kentucky football Music City Bowl practice got lost in the shuffle. Don’t you worry, we still have a few updates from the defense as the Wildcats take a brief break for the holidays before reconvening in Nashville next week.

Young Cornerbacks’ Time to Shine

One unexpected offseason announcement came from Carrington Valentine. Kentucky’s two-year starter at cornerback will not play in the Music City Bowl as he prepares for the NFL Draft. Players expected to play a role in 2023 will now be called into action a little earlier than expected and Brad White thinks it’s just what they need.

“It’s going to be a good challenge for them and it’ll be a great chance to build meaningful reps and hopefully they can play well and carry that on into spring ball and then next fall,” said Kentucky’s defensive coordinator. “That’s the beauty of college football. Somebody’s gotta step up, somebody’s gotta grow and this is just another opportunity for guys to step up, to see guys like Max Hairston and Jordan Robinson and see what they can do.”

Hairston in particular has performed well in practice. Most fans only remember No. 31 after he gave up a big play on fourth and long against Vanderbilt, but the redshirt freshman from Detroit has a bright future.

“They’ve came a long way the whole year, especially Max,” said safety Zion Childress. “Max had a great camp. To continue practicing and keep getting better, I think he’ll show a lot of people he can play come the bowl game.”

Early Eye-Opening Experience for Deone Walker

Deone Walker made a surprising early impact for the Kentucky Wildcats. He entered into the defensive line rotation almost immediately, eventually earning All-SEC honors, a rarity for a true freshman. Once Walker started feeling comfortable around the Mississippi State game, he truly showed what he brings to the table.

“I’ve always been a real shy individual, quiet, I’d say. When I’m on the field I know what I can do. I thought coming into college it would be a whole different thing, but it wasn’t. I just had wrap my head around that,” Walker said. “I thought it would be like all 100%, no fun, like the Marines or something. But it wasn’t. I followed my brothers on the team, I love my D-line room, I love my coaches and we’re having a great time together.”

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Preparing for a Quarterback-less Iowa

Iowa will be without starting quarterback Spencer Petras in the Music City Bowl. His backup, Alex Padilla, is in the transfer portal. Scouting Iowa is not a simple task for Brad White.

“You’re flying blind. You gotta sort of fly by instruments,” said White. “They’ve got really good coaches over there and they’re going to make sure all of those guys are going to play really hard, they’re going to play really fundamentally sound. They’ve got really good players, the tight end is elite, the running backs and o-line, they still have all the pieces to do what they need to be able to do.”

Childress’ Eyes Opened to Football Knowledge

The transition from Texas State to Kentucky was not seamless for Zion Childress. From a football knowledge standpoint, it’s almost as though he made a jump from Algebra I to Calculus. He took his medicine early and received plenty of help throughout the year, namely from the guy in front of him on the depth chart, Ty Ajian.

“I didn’t play as much as I wanted to, but I took it as an opportunity to learn. The guy in front of me has been here, it’s his sixth season. He knows a lot of football. When you got a guy like that in front of you, he was my hotel roommate so we’d sit there and watch film together. He’s preparing for the game, I’m seeing how he prepares and learning from him has been a big deal the whole year.”

Childress had at least five tackles in the final three games he participated in this fall, including a big sack in the Governor’s Cup win over Louisville. In addition to Ajian, Mark Stoops has also been a valuable resource. The defensive backs specialist always pays extra attention to the secondary and it has paid off for Childress.

“When Coach Stoops has something to say, you definitely listen,” said Childress. “It’s always a great coaching point because he gives you something that gives you that edge, that advantage on your opponent. With him being around, he doesn’t say too much, but he will when he feels like it needs to be said. It’s always a great coaching point.”