Everything Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops said about facing South Carolina

Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops spoke to the media on Monday to preview the Wildcats’ upcoming road trip to play South Carolina. Kickoff on Saturday is at 7:45 p.m. on SEC Network.

Here’s everything Stoops had to say about facing the Gamecocks.

Opening statement

“Looking forward to a great opportunity here this week. We know going on the road in the SEC, playing at night is never easy. It’s going to be a great challenge. It’s a game that’s important to both of us in a South Carolina team that’s very good coming off a tough loss. So I’m sure they’ll be amped up. Our team will be prepared and ready to go. We had a good week of practice last week, and looking forward to getting back at it today.”

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What are the challenges for quarterback Cutter Boley in starting on the road at night this weekend?

“Yeah, I think, you know, as I mentioned, going on the road in the SEC is difficult. We know playing at South Carolina, you know, Williams-Brice (Stadium), I mean, that place is incredible. What a great atmosphere. It’s always a real challenge. And I think it’s about us, and it’s about our operation for him to play in a hostile environment like that. We got to have people play well around him, and we got to really work it this week, you know, with the silent count and crowd noise and all those things, decision making.”

When you talk about the people around Boley playing well, what specifically are you looking for going into South Carolina this weekend?

“We have to play clean. We’ve done a very good job this year of protecting the football. I think we have one fumble, one interception, and we’ve got to continue to protect the ball. The operation has to be good as far as pre-snap penalties and things of that nature. Just the communication as a whole. Offensive line, I think it starts there; they have to give some protection. We know South Carolina can harass the quarterback. We have to give him some time. We have to have some balance as well.”

Dylan Stewart at EDGE really wrecked things last year as a true freshman. Are there things you can do schematically to try to help out with that guy?

“Well, I mean, at times, and then there’s times when you just have to win. We have to give them enough time. You always have to be very aware of where he’s at and have a plan. But again, you can’t do that on every snap. There’s going to be one-on-one matchups, and we have to hold our own.”

Has the scheme of South Carolina’s offense changed drastically with Mike Shula calling the plays versus Dowell Loggains in South Carolina’s offensive scheme?

“Yeah, I think that’s a good question, but there’s a lot of things that carry over. I think it’s very easy to see that the offense running through LaNorris (Sellers), right? I mean, he’s just a dynamic player, just an extremely talented player, very good. I think you watch him in the pocket with a clean pocket, and you see the way he throws the football and the velocity that he has on it, the accuracy, very impressive. We all know what he can do on his feet with either designed runs or when things break down. He is so big and so strong. He’s tough. He’s good in a lot of ways. So, you know, playcalling, there’s obviously going to be some difference, but there’s a lot of things that are carried over as well.”

With Clayton White being at South Carolina as defensive coordinator, what has that defense done well against Kentucky in these last few matchups? What kind of challenges do they bring on that side?

“I mean, I don’t go back looking at the four games in particular, but they’re a good team. Last year, I think, was the game that stood out. It was just protection, you know, they had some guys that wrecked it. Pressure was a big thing. I think last year, that was the thing. It was the first SEC game for us. Going into that matchup, we didn’t know exactly how we would hold up. And I think we found a lot in that game that that was a tough matchup for us. And so to your point earlier, do what you can do and find some ways to protect and not let those guys just wreck a game.

“But overall, South Carolina, there have always been good matchups. They’ve always played very aggressive, extremely impressive up front. In particular, if you’re going back to the past, you know, last year they had a good look going back to the past. Last year, they had good, really good cover guys. A lot of those guys returned. And the guys up front, I don’t think enough was talked about last year with their interior players. The same this year, they’re very disruptive. But last year, they had some very experienced guys, guys that were there for a long time, to go with the game wreckers on the edge.”

Missouri had good rushing numbers against South Carolina last week. You talk about playing well around Boley. How much does your rushing game contribute to playing well around him?

“Well, I think that’s obviously a point of emphasis — that balance. You’ve heard me say it 2,000 times, probably, you know, but you have to have some balance. And then go back again to the previous games, if we’re not able to run the ball and you have to drop back and pass, and that was an area of concern a year ago in particular. So we have to have the balance in the run game. It always starts there with us.”

LaNorris Sellers is obviously a different type of athlete. You’ve faced some pretty mobile quarterbacks so far. Do you feel like your rushers have a good feel for what to expect on Saturday?

“Yes, and it’s also very difficult. He’s different. He’s definitely different because he’s one of those guys that, if you sit back there and you give him the time, he will dissect you. So he can certainly throw the ball very accurately. So it’s a little different when you’re playing a guy that is very talented in both throwing the ball and running.”

What does South Carolina do with its return game, where it feels like it can always pull one out of a hat?

“Yeah, very, very impressive. Just overall special teams, that’s Shane (Beamer)’s expertise. They’re very good in all phases. They really are in the return game with (Vicari) Swain, you know, he’s been very dynamic, with three touchdowns — pretty impressive — in four games. So they’re just good. They’re well coached, they play extremely hard, and they’re good units across the board.”

Your thoughts on the SEC permanent opponents, one of which is South Carolina?

“I really have no comment. I’ve got my hands full if you haven’t noticed. I’ve got a lot going on. I’ve heard different things, different reactions. I think those are opponents we’ve played for a long time. So people are very familiar with them. I think you’ve heard me say it over and over again: put the ball down and let’s play. Those decisions are made way above my pay grade. So it is what it is.”

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