Good morning, BBN!
Football season is almost here as the Kentucky Wildcats are gearing up for what will hopefully be another exciting season for the program in the SEC.
This offseason has been somewhat of a whirlwind for the UK football program, ultimately leaving Mark Stoops having to find another offensive coordinator. With Liam Coen off to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Bush Hamdan, a former Boise State OC, comes in.
To this point, it sounds like the offense is having success in the new system, but one aspect of the offense seems to stand out to the fanbase compared to the Coen era in Lexington: The pace of play.
The tempo of the offense last season was not good. With plays coming in late or the ball being snapped at the very last second, it continually put the Cats in difficult situations. Also makes it incredibly hard to win, when you are snapping the ball 10+ times less than your opponent. It sounds like that is going to be fixed this season.
In the media day press conference, Hamdan alluded to the fact of the tempo being faster but nothing too fast.
“We always want to be somewhere in the middle, and what that means is having the flexibility, depending on how the game is going, to do whatever it takes to win the football game. I think that’s important for us all to know. For me, the checklist in fall camp is that we’ve got periods where we are playing as fast as anybody in the country. One-word plays, getting up there, snapping the ball within seven seconds.”
Hamdan continued;
“We also have that focus where we can huddle, operate, execute, and take time off the clock. I know everybody wants to play fast, but it always comes back down to execution with us. The thing I want you guys to know is that we are going to have the ability to play fast and keep people on their feet.”
This philosophy lines up with what Coach Stoops mentioned at media day this past week as well.
“I want everybody to understand this, I’ve said it 20 times — yes I do (want to play faster), but I’m not trying to be a tempo offense,” Stoops said. “We’re not trying to be Ole Miss or Tennessee and some of those teams that do it exceptionally well and snap it with 30 seconds on the play clock. That’s a different style and it’s very difficult to defend, and they do it very well. But we can’t be that overnight.”
Sounds like some tempo will be coming to Kroger Field this fall. That is music to my ears.
Tweet of the Day
Brock and Barion were at it again deep today. pic.twitter.com/d8NfCNTQf1
— Aaron Gershon (@agershon99) August 3, 2024
Let’s hope we see these throws completed quite a bit this season!
Headlines
Kentucky Offense Adapting Well to Changes – UK Athletics
The Cats spent the spring and the entire offseason getting to know a new system and getting to know each other.
USA and Canada on a collision course for Gold Medal Game in Paris- KSR
Will likely be plenty of Cats facing off for the Gold medal in Paris.
Stoops, White Hope UK Defense Takes Another Step Forward in 2024 – UK Athletics
The Cats return 10 starters on defense and have what figures to be one of the most experienced units in the SEC.
Kentucky’s defense impresses at UK Fan Day- KSR
The defense continues to check boxes in fall camp.
Kentucky Football notes from Friday and Saturday’s open practices- Cats Pause
Our first look at this seasons team in action.
Q&A with Mark Stoops at Kentucky Football Media Day- Cats Pause
Read what Stoops had to say entering the 2024-25 season.
Dolphins and Tyreek Hill agree to restructured contract- ESPN
The Dolphins are shaping up to be legit once again this season.
Katie Ledecky win fourth straight 800m freestyle- ESPN
Another huge win for the USA swimming team, and an awesome streak for Ledecky.
Julien Alfred win women’s 100m final- ESPN
A crazy upset.
Top Moments from NFL Hall of Fame Inductions- CBS
A cool night for a handful of NFL legends.
Surgeons successfully rebuilt half his face, after a father-of-two was saved by the family dog sniffing out a cancerous tumor.
