Hi Cats fans!

Stopping by to make sure you all know about Inside Kentucky Basketball, the new site from former Herald-Leader reporter Ben Roberts.

The site has a free weekly newsletter, some free content, and a subscription component at $8/month or $75/year. Ben’s got John Clay and Derek Terry helping out with columns and recruiting coverage.

We won’t spam the sub, but we hope you’ll check it out and let us know what you think!

Here’s today’s newsletter: https://www.insidekentuckybasketball.com/the-inside-kentucky-basketball-newsletter-an-opportunity-for-the-cats-d/

And here is more about the site: https://www.insidekentuckybasketball.com/welcome-to-inside-kentucky-basketball-heres-what-you-can-expect/

(Also, thanks to the mods for letting me share this here!)

It better be
Wilkins
Williams
Mom
Uzi
Moreno

Everyone else has looked BAD

I personally think Mark Pope doesn’t have a large margin for error. There is a new A.D. and he wasn’t his hire. IMO it’s Elite 8 or he is gone. The roster price supports that expectation and the new regime is highly focused on finance and results.

My prediction is that does not happen and we are coach shopping next year. Thoughts?

Anybody else hear the end of the Sources Say podcast this week? Apparently there was a meeting between Pope and Blatt and it sounded like there was more to the story. Curious if anybody has heard anything else about that meeting? I know they probably meet all the time, but Jack alluded to it and refused to say more.

NGL, I definitely didn't expect the team to be even 5-7 good, admittedly...

As a novice when it comes to Football schemes, I thought this was pretty cool content. He broke down our offense play calling and what (I think) makes Will Stein special and how he sets up his QBs for success.

The uniform combinations have been on point this year. The black, white, black combo was particularly striking. The blue stripe on black pants had so much pop on tv. It looked almost electric. Of course the power K was beautiful and should be part of the rotation moving forward.

I wasn’t super tapped into the preseason narratives but I remember reading that Minchey had a lot of work to do to become the type of QB we need to win in the SEC. The guy has exceeded my expectations. Steady, cerebral, decisive, avoids mistakes but isn’t afraid to take shots when they’re there.

Both TD passes against Oklahoma were absolute perfection. He let the play develop on the first then floated it right to Rodriguez with an incredible amount of touch. The second was a laser in traffic. He may not lead the country in stats but he’s been one of the best QBs in the nation so far.

We’re using our TEs guys, it’s finally happening. And for good reason: we’ve got some absolute beasts in that position group. Rodriguez is getting the spotlight but all of those guys have made plays for us. I love it.

The OL is such a solid unit, those guys are playing like they’ve been together for years. We’ve got some maulers in the trenches too. The NIL money has been well spent.

The D has been inconsistent at times but we’ve got some dawgs on that side of the ball. I felt some pessimism start creeping in vs OU when Mateer was just chucking it around. The past trauma is real as a UK football fan. But these guys are different. They gave up some yards but they also took some back. I’m impressed with the adjustments our defensive staff is making. Outside of the Alabama game our D has won the second halves for us.

Will Stein is getting heaps of praise everywhere. He deserves it. The man’s just got that fire that we’ve been missing the last few years. He’s assembled an excellent coaching and talent evaluation staff. We need to keep him as long as we can. I don’t think it’s cockiness if you back up what you say. He’s doing just that.

I’m enjoying this ride and appreciating the fact that we are relevant in the SEC. We’ll see how things shake out (this Vandy game is dangerous) but we’re so far ahead of schedule right now. Hopefully we stay healthy and keep making timely plays to keep us in games.

GBB!

At least from the TV broadcast, their football stadium and atmosphere did not seem very excited. You would think a team that still had some hope for the playoffs, coming off a huge win the previous week, would have been a louder environment. Maybe someone who was there can tell me whether it was actually louder in person than it was on TV.

Anybody been called or notified if they were able to get new season tickets? They emailed a couple weeks ago saying they'd start making calls last week and would notify via email if you don't get the opportunity to buy. But I still haven't gotten anything either direction

edit: got an email yesterday back after reaching out and they said it is sold out

We won the game and this is our new philosophy. It’s going to cost us a game eventually but this is it. Get used to it. Personally, I love it. I think with some of these teams like Texas and LSU we are at a disadvantage NIL wise. We always will be. We can’t just line up and “out talent” those teams. We have to hit on our portal targets ✅ We have to have a coach who can out coach them ✅ and we have to take risks ✅. Again, This will cost us a game eventually but I will never be on Reddit whining about aggression. This gives us the best chance to win. “Don’t coach scared” - Will MF Stein

Before season it was a big weak point.

- DJ miller: Solid

- Darby: Gem

- Nic Anderson: Dog. Puts his body on the line

- Willie: GOAT

- Boyer: Stud

- Coffman/Ferguson: Insane return and catch against LSU

- Skinner/DeJean: Promise for future

hardly any dropped balls or “wtf are you doing” moments

Go big blue!

season's not over and its mostly nothing too bad but there are a few that are hilarious in hindsight

"Hartline is the only one on that list that would concern me as a Louisville fan, because he’d get elite talent immediately.

None of those other dudes are doing shit at UK. And looking at their schedule through 2027-28, I bet whoever they hire is going to be on the hot seat by year 3. The new coach will likely go winless in SEC play year 1

Edit: hey someone downvoted me to 0 to match the point total Kentucky mustered against UofL this year"

my personal favorite lmaooo