1. Running out of wide-outs. Alex Montgomery's triumph has turned into tragedy, with an ACL tear result after scoring his 2nd career touchdown. Ryan Timmons' ankle appears to be just as bad. Timmons' replacements on the depth chart (Ronnie Shields and Daryl Collins) are at the bottom of the stat sheet in receiving, each only having caught one pass a piece for a combined 12 yards. Montgomery was filling in for Javess Blue Saturday after Javess' face got rearranged during warm-ups. Javess should be ready to go Saturday, but without Montgomery A.J. Legree will have to play a much more prominent role.
"I don't think we've had enough depth. But we got to continue to work, continue to improve. It's nice to see some guys last week step up," Stoops said today.
Stoops pointed to Demarco Robinson, Jeff Badet and A.J. Legree as guys that are stepping up that the team will rely on to fill the void. All 3 are listed as outside receivers, but don't be surprised if one of them takes Timmons' place in the slot.
2. "Act like you've been there before." Most kids first heard that line in grade school after getting carried away after a touchdown. It can be applied universally, with no example more evident than what happened last Saturday night. Coach Stoops doesn't want to be the "GET OFF MY LAWN" kind of a guy, but
"we lose enough guys during games and practice, we can't lose em during warm-ups and celebrations, that's for sure." Stoops said they won't be making too many changes, but did say that he will address it with the team today and that they'll only be practicing in helmets, rather than the usual shoulder pads/helmet combo.
Stoops said he gets a little nervous when guys are getting hyped before practiced, doing back-flips and stuff like that. It's hard to believe that's a problem, but see for yourself.
3. Missouri is a BIG challenge. Playing a Top-10 opponent is always a big challenge, but it takes on a literal meaning when looking at their wide receivers. There isn't a wide-out on their depth chart listed below 6'0 with their top three averaging 6'4,
"I can't remember playing a group bigger than this," Coach Stoops said today. Stoops can't feed his DBs Miracle-Gro overnight so the question is, how do you combat a big squad? The answer to that question will keep Stoops up at night this week. The D will have to use a variety of packages, but they can't focus on defending the pass too much or Mizzou will run it down their throats. At the end of the day "there's no hiding"; the DBs will have to embrace the challenge by going on the field and executing.
4. Jalen looked better on film than in person. While it's easy to remember the 4th and 1 throw to Jordan Aumiller that Jalen missed in the end zone, after watching film Coach Stoops has pumped the brakes a bit, "there were a few throws that stuck out to me during the game that we know he missed, but after watching tape I thought he did a really good job at hitting some guys as well." Some of those throws he may have been over-thinking, trying to guide the ball in or short-arming simply because Jalen doesn't have a ton of in-game experience.
If you actually stuck around to watch the 2nd half, you would've noticed how much more they threw the ball.
After only 11 attempts in the first half, Jalen threw it 15 times before Max entered the game with 10:50 left to play in the game. Coach Stoops confirmed today that they used that time to get him more game reps in the pocket. It may have been a little risky leaving in the injury-prone QB during an FCS blowout, but those added reps were worth it as we saw him make multiple throws 10+ yards downfield that we haven't been accustomed to seeing this season.
[caption id="attachment_144560" align="alignnone" width="500"]
Jalen's legs were Saturday's highlights, but his arm will carry a heavier load in the future. (@ukstoopstroops)[/caption]
5. Forcing turnovers vs. taking care of the ball. If you're looking for a main storyline or a 'key to the game' this week, look no further than the turnover category.
The UK offense set a school record by going turnover-free through the past four games. Missouri has a league-best +15 turnover margin, 10 ahead of the next closest team.
Stoops said today, "I see our offense doing a very good job protecting the ball, they've been very conscious of that. I think we do a good job coaching ball security and the quarterbacks have done a nice job taking care of the ball and that's a big key." Stoops attributes the Tigers' success to an active secondary unit that gets a ton of help from their offense, "generally when you see an offense that's explosive as they are, teams are trying to catch up quite a bit as well, so you get more chances to create turnovers."
6.
Dyshawn on D? After making some great plays on Special Teams the past few weeks, last week I wondered how long it would be before Stoops brought him over to the defensive side of the ball to add some depth at linebacker. After getting 3 tackles last week, including a move that the wrestler Sting would have been proud of, Stoops confirmed my thoughts today,
"He's going to get the ball or he's going to come play defense."
1. Running out of wide-outs. Alex Montgomery's triumph has turned into tragedy, with an ACL tear result after scoring his 2nd career touchdown. Ryan Timmons' ankle appears to be just as bad. Timmons' replacements on the depth chart (Ronnie Shields and Daryl Collins) are at the bottom of the stat sheet in receiving, each only having caught one pass a piece for a combined 12 yards. Montgomery was filling in for Javess Blue Saturday after Javess' face got rearranged during warm-ups. Javess should be ready to go Saturday, but without Montgomery A.J. Legree will have to play a much more prominent role.
"I don't think we've had enough depth. But we got to continue to work, continue to improve. It's nice to see some guys last week step up," Stoops said today. Stoops pointed to Demarco Robinson, Jeff Badet and A.J. Legree as guys that are stepping up that the team will rely on to fill the void. All 3 are listed as outside receivers, but don't be surprised if one of them takes Timmons' place in the slot.
2. "Act like you've been there before." Most kids first heard that line in grade school after getting carried away after a touchdown. It can be applied universally, with no example more evident than what happened last Saturday night. Coach Stoops doesn't want to be the "GET OFF MY LAWN" kind of a guy, but "we lose enough guys during games and practice, we can't lose em during warm-ups and celebrations, that's for sure." Stoops said they won't be making too many changes, but did say that he will address it with the team today and that they'll only be practicing in helmets, rather than the usual shoulder pads/helmet combo.
Stoops said he gets a little nervous when guys are getting hyped before practiced, doing back-flips and stuff like that. It's hard to believe that's a problem, but see for yourself.
3. Missouri is a BIG challenge. Playing a Top-10 opponent is always a big challenge, but it takes on a literal meaning when looking at their wide receivers. There isn't a wide-out on their depth chart listed below 6'0 with their top three averaging 6'4, "I can't remember playing a group bigger than this," Coach Stoops said today. Stoops can't feed his DBs Miracle-Gro overnight so the question is, how do you combat a big squad? The answer to that question will keep Stoops up at night this week. The D will have to use a variety of packages, but they can't focus on defending the pass too much or Mizzou will run it down their throats. At the end of the day "there's no hiding"; the DBs will have to embrace the challenge by going on the field and executing.
4. Jalen looked better on film than in person. While it's easy to remember the 4th and 1 throw to Jordan Aumiller that Jalen missed in the end zone, after watching film Coach Stoops has pumped the brakes a bit, "there were a few throws that stuck out to me during the game that we know he missed, but after watching tape I thought he did a really good job at hitting some guys as well." Some of those throws he may have been over-thinking, trying to guide the ball in or short-arming simply because Jalen doesn't have a ton of in-game experience.
If you actually stuck around to watch the 2nd half, you would've noticed how much more they threw the ball. After only 11 attempts in the first half, Jalen threw it 15 times before Max entered the game with 10:50 left to play in the game. Coach Stoops confirmed today that they used that time to get him more game reps in the pocket. It may have been a little risky leaving in the injury-prone QB during an FCS blowout, but those added reps were worth it as we saw him make multiple throws 10+ yards downfield that we haven't been accustomed to seeing this season.
[caption id="attachment_144560" align="alignnone" width="500"]
Jalen's legs were Saturday's highlights, but his arm will carry a heavier load in the future. (@ukstoopstroops)[/caption]
5. Forcing turnovers vs. taking care of the ball. If you're looking for a main storyline or a 'key to the game' this week, look no further than the turnover category. The UK offense set a school record by going turnover-free through the past four games. Missouri has a league-best +15 turnover margin, 10 ahead of the next closest team.
Stoops said today, "I see our offense doing a very good job protecting the ball, they've been very conscious of that. I think we do a good job coaching ball security and the quarterbacks have done a nice job taking care of the ball and that's a big key." Stoops attributes the Tigers' success to an active secondary unit that gets a ton of help from their offense, "generally when you see an offense that's explosive as they are, teams are trying to catch up quite a bit as well, so you get more chances to create turnovers."
6. Dyshawn on D? After making some great plays on Special Teams the past few weeks, last week I wondered how long it would be before Stoops brought him over to the defensive side of the ball to add some depth at linebacker. After getting 3 tackles last week, including a move that the wrestler Sting would have been proud of, Stoops confirmed my thoughts today, "He's going to get the ball or he's going to come play defense."
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