Practice Notes from the Offense

[caption id="attachment_184816" align="alignnone" width="1890"] © Jim Dedmon[/caption]

Mikel Horton Should Be OK by Saturday

Dawson said Horton practiced some today and is "doing fine."  Horton had 2 carries for 20 yards a touchdown before a neck injury forced him to the sideline.  His presence near the goal line can't be replicated by any other UK back.

There are Few Complaints for the Running Backs

Shannon Dawson's running backs have been nothing short of great through the first two weeks of the season. "There's a lot of competition in that room; a lot of productivity," Dawson said. They were very successful in two-back sets in the shotgun, as well as formations with C.J. Conrad at H-back and Taco Meat Collins at fullback.  The way Dawson designs his offense is by selecting six or seven formations for each opponent, keeping what works and throwing out what doesn't as the game progresses.  The better the backfield produces, the more reps they'll receive. One who won't have to worry about reps is Boom Williams, "Keep getting him the ball, try to get him tired." 

"They're really gonna get in your face."

Florida's defense is aggressive.  The Cats must continually attack.  If they get hit in the mouth a few times, they must show the resiliency they displayed in the 4th quarter.

The Third Quarter Was Close to Looking Like the First Half

Dawson had a lot of words to say about how the second half looked so much different than the first.  The main point: one guy messed up on every play, and the snowball effect was crippling.  They were the same plays from the first half, but a penalty here, a bad snap there, an errant misread and you've got a team behind the chains, unable to move the ball. He was proud that his team could once again kill a game on the final drive.  They remained calm throughout and Patrick Towles made plays, "I thought when it mattered, he played well."

Jeff Badet with the Quote of the Day

"Whenever I step onto the field, I'm clocked in."  

He's been wearing it since Spring Training, a product of running a little late to practice.  Since then, he used the above excuse as his motto.

It's almost that time #BBN pic.twitter.com/CLjkJ8OSuv

– Badet (@uk_jb4) September 12, 2015