Tuesday Tackles

Jarmon Picks Up Award UK defensive end Jeremy Jarmon was named SEC Defensive Lineman of the Week for his performance Saturday at Vanderbilt. He recorded 2 1/2 sacks in UK's 27-20 win. His nine total sacks now places him atop the SEC conference. Jarmon showed us glimpses at the end of last season of what he is capable of, and this season he has exploded. A big time talent for only a sophomore, Jarmon is only going to get better as he continues to add experience to his young college resume. Stevie gettin' loose During Bowl practice leading up to the CATS 28-20 Music City victory over Clemson, Joker Phillips raved about how well Stevie Johnson was starting to "get it" offensively. The extra month of practice played a huge factor in the progression of Johnson and his talents. As spring practice rolled around, coach Brooks warned us how good Stevie could be, and he has certainly lived up to the expectations that were placed on him by the coaching staff. With Johnsons 55 yard Touchdown grab Saturday at Vanderbilt, he now has 40 catches for 754 yards and 9 touchdowns on the season. Most impressive is the 18.9 yards per catch that Stevie has, a sign that he is a true down the field threat for defenses. Really wish we could have had Stevie for four years as he not only is a great football player, but a hell of a young man as well. Quick Recovery For Warford After suffering a broken clavicle against LSU, it was fuzzy as to when starting cornerback Paul Warford would make it back in the lineup if at all this season. Warford made a very nice recovery and returned in time to contribute six tackles in the win over Vandy. Paul has been criticized at times this season, but once he went down you could then see how valuable he is to this defense. He plays hard, is a solid tackler, and only a TRUE sophomore. Big things ahead in the future for Paul. Woodyard a semifinalist for Lott trophy Senior linebacker Wesley Woodyard has been named a semifinalist for the Lott Trophy by the Pacific Club IMPACT Foundation. Named after former defensive back Ronnie Lott, the trophy goes to the outstanding college defensive player of the year who also has the greatest IMPACT on his team, both on and off the field. IMPACT stands for Integrity, Maturity, Performance, Academics, Community, and Tenacity. Woodyard is one of eight semifinalists for the award, which honors personal character in addition to athletic performance. So far this season, Woodyard leads the Southeastern Conference with 102 tackles, along with eight tackles for loss, two quarterback sacks, five pass breakups, and two fumbles caused. He was named SEC Defensive Player of the Week for the Arkansas game when he tied a career high with 18 tackles and caused a fumble that Trevard Lindley returned for a touchdown. Woodyard has reached 100 tackles in three consecutive seasons. He ranks ninth in school history with 358 stops and is the first Wildcat in 14 years to reach 300 tackles in a career. Off the field, Woodyard is on track to graduate in only three and one-half years with a degree in social work. He has been very involved with the UK Athletics community service program and was named to the UK Athletics Society of Character. Woodyard also is a semifinalist for the Butkus Award (nation’s best linebacker) and Bednarik Award (national defensive player of the year) and is on the watch list for the Nagurski Award (national defensive player of the year). Quick hitters *The season finale against the Tennessee Volunteers is now officially sold out *Junior cornerback Ahmad Grigsby will miss the remainder of the season after being hospitalized last week for a blood clot in a subclavical artery. Brooks said Grigsby has been released from the hospital but will be sidelined from athletic activity for about three months while he takes blood thinners. *Andre Woodson has now passed for 2,553 yards with 29 Td's and 7 interceptions.