Tuesday Night News & Views

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="598"] Hats off to this fine soul in Louisville for fighting the good fight. (@STUdebaker29)[/caption] On Tuesday, we enjoyed the leftovers from the Blue/White game before turning our sights back to football. Both programs doing so well at the same time is a luxury we don't often have in the Bluegrass, and I have a feeling we're about to enter a few weeks in which we are especially spoiled. The basketball team has six straight Sunday games starting with the Pikeville exhibition on Sunday night, and the football team has four chances to become bowl eligible. And judging by UK's performance against Mississippi State, I think they can win three of those. #WhyNot With that in mind, let's start with Neal Brown and Patrick Towles' comments about the big game against Missouri Saturday.

Neal Brown says he's looking forward to having Boom Williams back on the field.

Yesterday, Mark Stoops told reporters that, barring any setbacks, Boom Williams will play against Missouri, and today, Neal Brown said he's excited to have one of his top playmakers back in action.  "Excited to get him back. He's a guy that we can get in space. I think he's eager to get back on the field. I don't think he played his best game against LSU. He realizes that, and he'll add a spark to us for sure." Patrick Towles agreed. "It's huge," Towles said. "He's the kind of guy that really spreads out a defense. He's quick. Y'all saw against Florida what kind of burst he has, so it'll be great getting him back." Brown also said the offense is riding a wave of confidence after the Mississippi State game, but he's anxious for the running backs to rebound after a tough outing. "We've got to feed the running backs and get them in a rhythm," Brown said. "I think maybe we're trying to play — trying to give too many guys carries, so I think we've got to slim that down.

Patrick Towles expects to win Saturday

After a career day against the number one team in the country, you can't blame Patrick Towles for feeling confident. Towles said he's looking forward to Saturday's challenge, and totally thinks the Cats will become bowl eligible against the Tigers. "Winning SEC games on the road is always really tough, no matter who it's against," Towles said. "So we just gotta play disciplined and be focused. This is a very winnable game for us and we expect to win. So we just gotta go in there and execute." Gotta love that new Kentucky football swagger. [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="272"] @JHNNsports[/caption]

Gary Pinkel and Markus Golden expect to have their hands full with Towles

On Monday, Missouri head coach Gary Pinkel raved about Kentucky's improvement this season on both sides of the ball. "They've really improved defensively. They've got good skill players and their quarterback is playing well. You have to watch him (Towles) as he can run pretty well. That's what generally happens. If your defense starts playing better and a quarterback that is producing then you're going to play better. Head Coach Mark Stoops has done a really good job." Senior defensive end Markus Golden agreed that Towles is legit. "He's a pretty good player. He's a big quarterback with a good arm. He's mobile and can run too. He's going to be a handful, but we're going to go out there and handle it."

The first College Football Playoff Rankings are out

...and the SEC West accounts for three of the top four: 1. Mississippi State 2. Florida State 3. Auburn 4. Ole Miss I can hear Phyllis now: "But Paaaaaaawwwwwwl, where's Bama??? (They're sixth)

This guy's Kentucky Joe costume is spot on

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="408"] @realshanemunson[/caption] Now all he needs are some business cards to hand out to trick or treaters. Keep sending us your UK/KSR Halloween costumes and we'll feature them throughout the week ([email protected] or @MrsTylerKSR).

Anthony Davis celebrated the start of the NBA season by flirting with a triple double

Tonight is opening night in the NBA, and 19 former Cats began a new season in the big league, more than any other school. Who is where? Here's the list: Rajon Rondo, Boston James Young, Boston Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Charlotte Nazr Mohammed, Chicago Jodie Meeks, Detroit Terrence Jones, Houston Julius Randle, LA Lakers Tayshaun Prince, Memphis Brandon Knight, Milwaukee Anthony Davis, New Orleans Darius Miller, New Orleans Nerlens Noel, Philadelphia Eric Bledsoe, Phoenix Archie Goodwin, Phoenix DeMarcus Cousins, Sacramento Patrick Patterson, Toronto Chuck Hayes, Toronto Enes Kanter, Utah John Wall, Washington Four Cats are in action tonight. Darius Miller and Anthony Davis' Pelicans beat the Magic, while Julius Randle and the Lakers just tipped off against Terrence Jones' Rockets. In case you needed further proof that Davis is now a superstar, he flirted with a triple double tonight, putting up 26 points, 17 rebounds, and 9 blocks. Phew.

Andy Dalton and Andrew Whitworth challenge the UK Basketball Team to #Layup4Lauren

By now, you may have heard of the #Layup4Lauren campaign. Lauren Hill is a college basketball player at Mount St. Joseph in Cincinnati, and was diagnosed with a rare form of brain cancer a year ago. The NCAA allowed Mount St. Joseph to move their opening game up to Sunday because Lauren's condition is worsening. The inoperable tumor has forced the normally right-handed Lauren to shoot with her left hand and she's unable to turn her head side-to-side without getting dizzy. To raise awareness and money for brain cancer research, Lauren started the #Layup4Lauren campaign and incorporated the side effects of her condition so that those who participate have to spin around five times and shoot a layup with their non-dominant hands. So far, Spud Webb, the Dallas Mavericks, Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton and left tackle Andrew Whitworth have completed the challenge, with Dalton and Whitworth issuing a challenge of their own to the UK Basketball team: http://youtu.be/9rR466EzFT4 Best of luck to Lauren. To learn more about #Layup4Lauren, click here.

Tomorrow is Unpopular Opinion Wednesday on the radio show

On tomorrow's show, Matt, Ryan, and Shannon will discuss their unpopular opinions and you should call in and share yours. I'll get things started: unlike many people and almost all of my former coworkers, I'm not a fan of Subway. Subway's sandwiches are subpar at best, and no matter how many times you wash your hands after eating them, they still smell like Subway because everything at Subway, regardless of what you order, smells the same. And that smell lingers all. day. long. Also, a friend once told me that the only reason Jared of Subway fame started eating Subway for every meal was because it was on the ground floor of his apartment building. Sure, Subway may offer "healthy" options and have a catchy jingle, but they can't hold a candle to the millions of other sandwich chains out there. (Looking at you, Firehouse Subs. You're awesome.) Sorry, Madison. You're up. What's your #UnpopularOpinion?