Welcome to the Big Blue Insider. Dicabrielle with you Tuesday edition of our program eleven days away from Kentucky Football. And we know this because many of you, well some of you out there are posting on the interweb, on Twitter, on x on Facebook the countdown to Kentucky Football. Now, I used to do this on the WKYT website and we would repeat it on the air here on the Big Blue Insider, But my countdown was a little different.
I don't know that I was the first one to do it, but I'm older than a lot of the people who are doing it now, so I was one of the first people to do that within the Big Blue Nation among Kentucky media and fans. But what I also did was I would pull the number of the
countdown day. For instance, of course, numbers eleven, and I would remind you who wore number eleven, and going back several years, I brought up Rick Norton, I brought up Chase Harp, I brought up maxwells, Jeff Speedy, and Dominic Fuci. Not dom the coach over at Tate Creek, but his
dad was a great athlete. But then I would pull the number eleven out of the fact book and come up with stuff like Steven Johnson ran eleven yards for a touchdown with thirty three seconds left and UK's went over Tennessee back in twenty seventeen, for the fact that U of L was ranked number eleven when Kentucky upset the Cardinals at back then Papa John's Cardinals Stadium, Lamar Jackson the fumble, and remember now people want to blame all of that on Lamar's fumble. Benny Snell had fumbled
the ball to Louisville. That's why U of L had the ball, and Benny never fumbled. It's all he did really was swap fumbles and then Kentucky drove for the winning touchdown. Another one that I really liked was Mike Edwards was ranked eleventh in the end CC and passes defended per game the year prior, and Mike, of course has I think two Super Bowl rings now. So anyhow, I had fun with the countdown, and I'm not knocking anybody for not doing it this way, but yeah, I mean I had a lot of fun, a lot of
work putting that together. I can tell you that labor alone, though, because it got us one day closer to football. Coming up today, We're going to talk a lot of football and some basketball and track and volleyball with Maggie Davis BBN tonight. She has been back. She's back now from her honeymoon and working hard as always. So is Michael Epps from Fox fifty six. The sports director. Will talk
to Michael as well. We will hear from Craig Skinner and some of the volleyball Wildcats coming up an hour number two, because yesterday was their media day and Kentucky is now a popular product.
For national television.
Eighteen matches on ESPN the Deuce or esp in you. That's a high for Kentucky volleyball. That's great news for the program. Not so much for your old dad here because I do of course volleyball and the UK streaming channel. That only leaves like four or five matches for us. But that's okay because more and more people watching volleyball and learning to love it as well they should. So yeah,
we'll talk to volleyball a little bit later. We're gonna talk a lot of quarterbacks here in the first segment, but first need to make sure you understand that Dion Walker has made yet another preseason All America team. This one seems to be one of, if not the highest profile team. For whatever reason, it's the media's preseason All America.
You may quibble with that, say it ought to be the coaches, But as I've said before, sometimes I think the media is more in tune with what's happening because coaches don't have time to study and rank and do research and things like that. But everybody, I think has Dion Walker on some form of They're All America team. So Sporting News, ESPN, having first Team, Atlon Magazine, Phil Steels Magazine, USA Today, the Walter Camp Award, AP, They've all got him on the second team. He's on everybody's
watch list. And of course he's a preseason All Conference first team player. And down at the SEC Media Days in Dallas, somebody asked, Dion, what are your goals specifically for this season.
I'm really just being more of a leader, being more off spoken, outgoing. You know, I'm more of an introverted person, So really just being more off spoken, making sure people are where they need to be, making sure people are doing everything that they need to do in the classroom, because I feel like if we got everything else square to the tee. Then on the field, that's going to come no matter what.
He's right about that if Kentucky defensive squared away, the Cats will have a chance in virtually every game they play. Lot's going to depend, of course, on the offense and on the rock Vandergriff. We're going to talk quarterbacks here in just a minute. But there is some more college
football stuff in the news. You may have seen that Mike Gundy, who is the head coach at Oklahoma State and very outspoken, came out yesterday afternoon and basically sent a message to players everywhere saying, tell your agent to quit calling us and asking for more money. This guy's pretty blunt, and this wasn't just to his players, but to everybody, he said. He told his players, though there is no negotiating now. The portal is over. Negotiations are history.
Now.
We're playing football, just coaching and playing football, he said. The business side of what we do now is those conversations with him. But tell your agent quit calling us and asking for more money. Start again in December. And of course, anybody who follows Kentucky football knows that Mark Stoop's very outspoken about his job. Raising money now he and his staff for the nil dollars that are out there. So man, coach is just hated. You saw this coming,
but you just got to deal with it. And one way to deal with it is to basically appoint somebody general manager, even if you have to give him the title. Eddie Gran helps spearhead Kentucky's fundraising and he doesn't have the title of GM. But you know who does at Alabama, Courtney Morgan, and he now has a brand new contract is re signed with Alabama eight hundred and twenty five thousand dollars.
A year for three years.
He is in charge of the negotiations for Alabama football. Not everybody, of course, can do this, not every program has this kind of money. But the board of Trustees at Alabama approved the contract yesterday. It's an updated contract as this guy came from Washington.
With Caitlin de Boor.
He had a similar job up there, and when they hired Debor to replace Nick Saban, he brought this guy with him. So it's almost a must. Now it's a necessity to take a lot of this off your head, coach and spread it around a little bit. You don't want your recruiters dealing with this. You want them to be knowledgeable and up to speed, but you don't want them to stop what they're doing when it comes to looking for talent and have to deal with this kind
of thing. So I think that's a pretty fascinating. While we're on football, if you're a fantasy football player or just an NFL fan, you know it's all about quarterbacks right now, who's going to start, and it's always that way, but this year there's a lot more talk about rookies who's going to start in a lot of different spots because some of them have played pretty well, most specifically bow Knicks, who lit up my Packers the other night.
I thought he was playing against the second and third teamers, but bo Nicks, who was the sixth player drafted, sixth quarterback drafted, it looks like maybe the starting quarterback in Denver, and they've needed a solid quarterback out there for quite a while.
But he's not the only guy.
Caleb Williams was six for thirteen but so dynamic that now you've got a case for him being the starter for the Chicago Bears. Drake May with the Patriots making a move Jaden Daniels has been named the starter for the Commanders Heisman Trophy winner out of LSU. That was kind of a no brainer, really. I mean, the Commanders are a mess and they need him. Michael Pennix will not be an issue. He's backing up Kirk Cousins in Atlanta. I thought the kid out of Washington, I thought he
was the best quarterback in the draft. I thought Daniels deserved a Heisman because he was a dynamic college player thanks to his arm and his legs.
But in terms of the NFL, and what do I know?
I thought Pennix had the brightest NFL future and he might still, but he's the backup the Kirk Cousins, one hundred million dollar man in Atlanta. J. J.
McCarthy from Michigan.
Of course, you know out for the year with a knee injury. But think about all these rookies who may be starting for their respective NFL teams. And Tom Brady was on Steven A. Smith's podcast and he has a real problem with going back to the college game, the transfer portal quarterbacks looking for places to plan. Of course, Kentucky has benefited from the portal going back, of course, to Will Levis, Stephen Johnson, tran it In, and of
course Devin Leary last season, Brock Vandergriff this year. But we all know that while Kentucky appreciated and needed those guys, that's.
Not what they want.
I go back to when Drew Barker signed, he was the future. He was the guy who was going to start for three years and give Kentucky the opportunity to develop quarterbacks behind him. But that didn't happen because Barker got hurt and that kind of started the carousel spinning. But it's become something in college football that has Tom Brady pretty disappointed.
Now there are players transferring from schools when they're not playing, and they're going to different programs, and they're going to different techniques they're learning, they're never advancing in an own individual system. There used to be college programs. Now there are college teams. You're no longer learning a program, you're learning a playbook, and the program is ultimately like a Michigan And for me, that was a.
Pro style program. Five years. I got to learn how to drop back.
Pass, to read defenses, to recoverage, is to be coach, to deal with winning games, to deal playing in Columbus o'hian front one.
Hundred and ten thousand people.
I had to learn from being seventh quarterback on the depth chart to moving up to third to ultimately being a starter. I had to learn all those things in college. That was development. Then I went to New England and I was developed by coach Belichick and the offensive staff there.
I didn't start my first year.
I think it's just a tragedy that we're forcing these rookies to play early.
But the reality is.
The only reason why there is because we've dumb the game down, which has allowed him to play.
I knows a little something about playing quarterback. He's not the only former NFL player with some frank comments about quarterback play. Mark Schlereth, whose nickname is Stink, has a podcast called The Stinking Truth, and he lit up Russell Wilson. If you're a Steelers fan, you're not gonna like this. But he did not like what he saw it has not liked what he has seen Adam Russell Wilson, including his time spent briefly now with the Steelers.
The empty hollow statistics that he compiles that makes people that don't know jack about football think that he can play is incredible, right, So they'll stand on that. You know, they'll plant their flag in eight for ten eighty percent.
Bam, look at Russell Wilson.
And then they'll say things like this, like Mike Commins said, we've got to do a better job of protecting we What are you guys a bunch of French waiters. We Russell Wilson has got to do a better job of understanding football and throwing the football to open receivers as opposed to pulling the football and taking sack after sack after sack, three and out, three and out, three and out, three sacks.
I mean, it is absolute garbage.
Laras went on to say he would start justin feet was the guy who came over from Chicago if he were running the Steelers. So lots to talk about when it comes to quarterbacks in the college game and the pro game. Coming up here from the Football Wildcat's Bottom of the Hour Maggie Davis here on six point thirty
WLAP Welcome back over UK football practice today. They brought out offensive people for us to talk to, including assistant coach in his first year with receivers, Doc Keel Shorts and he's giving thumbs up to what he's seeing in camp so far.
You know, the thing I'm most happy about coming out of his camp. They worked their asses off. I'm sorry about that. They worked their tails off, they worked their butts off. But they've been s been doing a good job. They continue to buy in and they work hard and they care about each other. So it makes it a lot easier.
When you reached this point in camp.
It is it hard to keep the guys sort of walked in and focused and discipline?
Yeah, naturally, yes, you know, human nature is just hard to you know, stay consistent within your discipline and the small details. But you know, like they allow us to coach them pretty hard and we demand a lot from them. They don't take it personal as we're attacking them. They take the coaching and they try to be the best that they can be. And that's all that you can ask for. Chemistry biggest theory of growth you've seen from barryon from when you.
Got here in December one.
I just want to say I'm extremely proud of him. I think the biggest growth for him, I mean, he is what he is, He's an electric He's going to make plays he's just he's got some guy giving ability that none of us have. But just mentally, you know, just mentally, you really wanted him to get mentally tougher. And I think that's something that he got better at this summer, trusting his teammates, trusting his coaching, just being more dependable and reliable. But the biggest thing is just
his mental aspect. I think he grew and he matured a lot off of that.
We've heard from coach Stoop say some of the players about what you brought to this group.
What did you think this group needed when you got here? What have you brought one?
I would say they've done.
The guys that were here before me and the guys that are here now did a hell of a job recruiting. These guys got a lot of talent. But I just think, you know, sometimes you just need a fresh start, and a lot of these guys just, you know, you know, they just want to want to see how it's supposed to be done, and they just want somebody that's going to demand a lot and stay on them. I think they do want tough love. Obviously, I played the position and I'm a little younger, so I'm not afraid to
challenge him and push them. But you know, it's easy for It's easy for me. They do all the work, you know, like they buy in. They come out here day in and day out. They work pretty hard, so you know, they make my job a lot easier.
Some of the names that came up that maybe you haven't heard much about so far. Fred Ferrier, a guy who's kind of flowing under the radar a little bit but has been getting rave reviews. Mark Stewpens talked about him the other day, and of course Anthony Brown stevens uh five ten, one seventy six but plays big a white out just a sophomore, but naturally everybody knows about Dane Key and about Barryon Brown preseason, all this, all that as an all purpose player as much for his
returns as his receiving ability. He believes in this his third year, he could be hitting on a big season.
Man.
I feel great, you know, just set some goals for myself and actually exceeding the goal. So feel great to you know, actually be held accountable for some and you know, meeting the responsibilities that I set for myself.
What was it like having that accountability come into your life. From the coaches.
Great, you know, just just knowing that they can count on me. If they say do something, I get it done. Gotta be very detailed and doing it and you know, just keeping my best for forward.
So much is expected to you this year. You know what, how do you feel about it? I'm ready.
I always ready for a challeng's never never shied away from a talent. That's you know, and it's again it's just doing something I love. So nothing no pressure on me. This is some I've been doing as a child. I'm just ready for it to continue.
Brown said he and Brock vandergriff It worked a lot on the side uh before and after practice. He said, I'm up for throwing and catching anytime he wants to. So sounds like they're putting together that kind of connection. It's star receiver and quarterbacks have to have. But of course you'll get double team. Barrian Brown will that's going to open the gates for Dane Key. The tight ends the receivers coming out of the backfield should be interesting.
With Bush Hampden's new offense. We hear more from him coming up tomorrow.
Up next.
Maggie Davis of BBN Tonight and the UK TV network that's ahead on six thirty WLAP.
Welcome back to the Big Blue Insider.
Joining us now on our Celebrity hotline is a regular long time one of our favorite friends of the show, Miss Maggie Davis. No longer you're missus what now?
I am missus maddingly now but I'm still going by Maggie Davis on air, so no worries there.
Well, congrats died.
Did the wedding planning and all the fun stuff to go off without a hitch?
I hope it did?
It did it was? I know everybody says this, but it was the best day ever. We truly had the best time, the best weekend. So many friends and family members who are able to come, so I think came to celebrate with us. And you know, it's a year in the making you plan your wedding. We were engaged for just over a year, so certainly felt like a long time coming. And it was all worth it in the end. A wonderful ceremony of fun reception and then
a very relaxing honeymoon on a beach somewhere. So that was a lot of fun.
There you go, So the production paid off. Game day paid off and now you're back hard at it. And yesterday you were running around like a headless chicken, talking track and field, talking volleyball. We talked yesterday about Messiah Russell. You had a chance to sit down with her for BBN tonight, and I had never interviewed her. I don't think I've ever interviewed a gold medalist. I've interviewed a silver medalist in the past.
But I'm amazed at how tiny she.
Is, which makes a lot of sense.
I guess you know, well, she's tiny, but then you see her when she's competing, and obviously she is absolutely jacks. I as one hundred percent muffle, and that's why she looks so tidy sometimes heause you just don't realize. But I loved hearing her talk yesterday, and like you said, I was able to sit down with her one on one after the press conference as well, which is great because I have actually probably interviewed Massai close to eight or nine times now since she's been at UK and
then obviously into her professional career. I sat down with her maybe two weeks before she went to Paris, and so I almost hated to ask for her again because I feel like I really called in the favor, trying to get her right before Paris, and then of course she gets home and I'm like, oh, it would be awesome to get a follow up with her as the gold medalist, right, And so I was a little tentative
in asking. I felt a little guilty, but ultimately knew that you know, last time I talked to Massi, I was so appreciative and so thankful of her time, and she was like, listen for Big Blue Nation, I will always sit down and talk to you, like they have supported me. I can't believe how much they followed me, that kept up with me. I've been gone for a year and I'm still getting all these Kentucky fans in
my comments, Like she loves it. She is so in and so thankful for it that I was like, okay, fine,
I'll ask her for one more interview. So I did, and of course, the nice, nice, nice person that she is, she was able to do another one with me and we had another great conversation just about truly how challenging the season was for her and how much she didn't even think she was going to make it through trials, let alone to the Olympics let alone to be the gold medal winner, and she had put all of that on her vision board really early on in the season,
like over a year ago, and then the regular season just did not go the way she wanted to know. She was running five six, seven tenths slower than her best times and what she ultimately went during the Olympic season, So she wasn't necessarily in a position to have so much confidence heading into the Olympics, and yet she was able to find that confidence within herself even though her
time hadn't really reflected that throughout the season. So really cool to hear her talk about that, that perseverance, that just so much respect for Messiah, the way she's handled herself through all of it.
Yeah, I talked about this last night on the show that you know, she and her coach talked about ups and downs, and all we as media people in Fancy are the ups. We see her on the metal stand, we see her, you know, hitting that tape first, leaning into that tape. But she mentioned sleepless nights and tears and I asked to follow up about that, and Lonnie
Green talked about it as well. Having to help his athletes get through some of those tough times, and I was fascinated Maggie by the level of self doubt and she and I'm sure almost every athlete out there has to deal with, you.
Know, absolutely, And I'm sure you heard her mention this yesterday, but she brought up Budapest and she said it like, oh, I went to Frankfurst, but she's like, oh, when I was in Budapest, this happened to me. And she's talked about it quite a lot really since the Olympics, in terms of what happened when she was in Budapest last year the World Championships and she hit a hurdle, she fell. She just had a terrible race and that would have
been really easy to wallow in. And I think that was maybe even the race coach Lawnie Green was talking about when he was like, she went to the bathroom and just said I want to cry. I want to cry. I want to cry, and he was like, Okay, you can cry, but then you've got to get back up and you got to get back out there. And she's certainly been able to do that, and obviously it paid off for her in that moment. But I also love talking to her about how this season's not done right.
Everybody thinks of the Olympics as the pinnacle. It certainly is, but it's actually not the end of the professional track season. She still has a couple more meets this year, so she is still going after that world record. That's certainly still on the top of her mind. She said, if she had to pick between the two, she would take the Olympic gold medal because nobody will ever, ever, ever be able to break that or be able to take
that away from her. But you know, you're not going to complain about a world record either, So that's still certainly on her to do list in the coming months as well.
And you know, speaking of the wow, okay, boy, did UK do so well in the Olympics. I would love to get a chance to talk to Sydney. Now, you know, she's only on campus for a year, and a lot of you guys got a chance to chat with her
then I did not. But I was on vacation up at Saratoga with some friends and family and we watched so much of the of the Olympics on TV and we were all amazed at how easy Sidney McLaughlin makes it look It's like I kept wondering, Okay, when is she gonna start running hard, you know, and the next thing you know, she's hitting the tape in record time. Was another gold medal.
Did it look that way to you?
It does, and it does every single time I watched Sidney run, and so that is what it's so impressive about her. And I also love watching her in the relays because you know, her event is the hurdles, it's the four hundred hurdles, and they put her on the four by four as well with no hurdles, and she runs just as fast as everybody else, which I also am always amazed by. So she is a generational athlete, one of the best to ever do it, and it's for one of the best to ever rup present the
University of Kentucky. And I have had the chance to interview her, but it was over zoom during the last Olympics, right before she went to Tokyo, so a little bit different. I've not done one with her in person. But again, I mean, just so respectful and so appreciative of like you said, just one year at Kentucky, and yet she so proudly repped the wildcast, which is really cool, I think too.
Yeah, and I forgot to ask Lonnie Green this question, although he would have to answer it as simply an informed spectator somebody with tons of experience, obviously. But I thought it was interesting that Sidney ran the second leg of that relay. I always wonder how do they decide who runs when? If you got somebody with an incredible kick, Yeah, but away I figured Sidney would be the one running the anchor leg. But I mean it worked out because she gave them a lead that nobody could overcome.
Absolutely.
I mean, she just built such a buffer that what are you going to do about that? Right? That's Sydney McLaughlin way and did to see alecxic Hole on that relay as well is really cool. She's one of those athletes who doesn't get quite as much maybe name recognition, just because of the generational athletes we talked about already in Masai and Sydney especially, but Alexa Holmes has certainly paved her own path as well, and she did her part on that relay too.
Yeah. I agree.
We're talking with Maggie Davis of BB and tonight. She is producer, anchor, chief cook and bottle washer. Although You got a great team though on that project, don't you.
We do. Oh my gosh, I think we are one of the only sports departments in America with seven people still on it. So we are very very appreciative of the full team effort here at BBA Tonight.
Yeah, you've got football to talk about, volleyball to talk about. We're going to talk about all of that on the other side of the break here on the Big Moon Sider six thirty WLAP Welcome back. We're talking with Maggie Davis of BBN tonight, and it is, of course, eleven days into a football season. We're going to double back to volleyball and make because you had to cover that
or you got to cover that yesterday. But all the preseason, all America teams have come out and all the speculation, all the surveys, all that, it seems like, Maggie, I don't know about you, but we talk about the talking season. To me, the last two weeks, it just seems like they drag on, like, let's get to the first It's going to help that the games begin actually Thursday night, but the game we cover is still eleven days off. But man, it just seems like it takes forever, doesn't it.
It does, It does, especially because talking season starts so early now, right, Like I feel like a couple of years ago, maybe we really started talking about football like late July, early August, and then it was just a
month until kickoff. And now with the way the schedule sets up, with how late the season goes, all of the big talking points that happen in the off season now, whether that's the coaching cares out in il changes, just college sports landscape in general, making these huge sweeping changes. I mean, there just is so much talk all off season. It starts a little bit sooner, I think, and that
definitely makes it feel longer too. So I always think about the first day really of talking season being sec media DA's, which of course happened this year, I think in like mid July, and so really from then on, then you have team specific mediada's, right, So we had that a couple of weeks ago. Then you have all the kickoff luncheon. We've now had that in Lexington and in Louisville, and there's just a lot of events like that that really gear you up, put you on that
ramp towards the season and I'm with you, Dick. It's like these last two weeks, I'm like, let's just get there. Let's just get to the thirty first, get to that Southern mis game, and really see what we're working with, because at this point, all these questions we have, we're probably not going to be getting direct answers to anymore. Right, you have a better chance of getting a direct answer early in fall camp than you do closer to that
first game. And I think these next couple of weeks it's going to be a lot of question maybe not so many answers, and we just will have to wait and see on the thirty first.
What are the blips on the football radar? This summer has been Mark Stoops's comments he made down I think in Destin, Florida. He might have made him back here with to Darryl Bird of the Cash Bass, and they were pointed and they were dramatic, I think, And I talked about this the other night. Stoops now is getting ripped by people who keep saying, you know, I'm so tired of hearing this from Mark Stoops went In fact,
he said it once, he said it to Daryl. Everybody in the world had their take on, it had their version of it, and so it was all over the place. We are surprised by the comments he made because they were very pointed to Daryl, and he talked as much about that as he did about football.
I wasn't surprised really at all by those comments, just because I felt like they were really consistent with the kind of messaging we've have heard from Stoops in the past. Not as much recently, but over the past couple of years. I think he's been a very open and honest coach in terms of the difficulties of NIL and what that
has done to the coaching profession as a whole. I think it's very easy as somebody who's not seen that profession to say, well, that's why you get paid X million dollars a year, right, you got to deal with it. But I think if you can take a minute and really try to put yourself in those shoes, I mean, you don't go into coaching to try and raise money, and that wasn't the job even three, four or five years ago, and so there has been a drastic change
in that profession. Think about the change, like I just said, in the past couple of years now, think about the change throughout Soups' entire career and how much his job and frankly his job description has changed. Obviously, you have to be able to adapt if you want to stay in the profession. That's what it is now. And so there's there's a point where, like people do get tired of you talking about it, you either deal with it and you figure it out, or you don't and you
step aside. And we've certainly seen coaches do that in the past couple of years. I mean, Nick Stateman is the best to ever do it, and I think if Nil hadn't come along, maybe he'd have a couple more years less in them. But it just takes a toll. And like we talked about a minute ago, I mean,
there is no off season. Guys at that level really did work three sixty five anyway, but with the way the portal and NIL works now, I mean, there is truly something for them to be doing at all hours of the day, and I'm sure that is an exhausting exercise and it's not necessarily their favorite part of being a college football coach. Right, So, no, I wasn't surprised by the comments. In general, I would be surprised if
he continued to reiterate them. You know now that the season is a little bit closer, but I haven't really seen any indication that he's going to do that. I think at this point it's full steam ahead toward that first kickoff, and maybe he'll address more a little later in the season or into the next off season.
No, I'm with you completely. I think from here on it's football with stoops. And that said, we talked before about the schedule, the calendar, when the game shit, not so much that the games are on the schedule, but when they hit all of that, said Maggie, and we all know that what people believe my happen when they talk in the spring. I'm talking about fans now, the hype I think grabs hold of folks, and the optimism
takes hold and the expectations begin to grow. What do you think Kentucky fans can realistically expect this year.
I think realistically it's fair to expect Kentucky to do better in the home games. I think that is where people if you take a really honest look at the last couple of seasons, I think those are the games that people have been the most disappointed in Obviously, you want to upset Georgia. It would be so fun to beat Alabama, right, But realistically, I think there are a few home games on the schedule the past couple of years that scanned out as games it should have been wins, honestly,
whether they were at home or on the road. But then you take them and you put them inside Kroger Field. They had good home crowd environments and the team just needed to take care of business in those games. And as South Carolina comes to mind, Sandy to mind, the Surrey comes to mind, those were all winnable games, especially since they were at home, and I think Kentucky's going to have a couple more like that on the schedule
of this season. Those are the games that I think, I don't want to say the most realistic Kentucky fan, because I think any Kentucky fan, whether they want to be realistic or not at the time of the year, I mean, it's fun to dream big, and who am I to say don't. But I definitely think you look at the schedule and you see South Carolina coming to Krueger Field in Week two, and you want to take care of business in that game. Because that's the home game.
Alburn is coming to Kroger Field a little bit later in October, right, I mean, that's a really high pedigree program, but you get them on your home turf, and it's
not necessarily the Auburn teams of the past. I mean, they could figure it out by late October, absolutely, but I think that's the home game that people could really get excited for, and then you just got to take care of business and some of the other ones like the non conference gamee the Bandy game, and then obviously you have Louisville coming selecting kid at the end of the season too, So I think that is where the
expectation will really start and end. I mean, you have some tough, tough, tough road trips on the schedule, the Texas and the Tennessee and you know, even down to Florida and the Swamp is not an easy place to play. So I think if you just want to be realistic, if you look at the schedules, you want to take care of business at home and as many of those home games as possible.
Yeah, and they're already an underdog against Louisville. You know, a game that's going to be played here a non conference game, and at least in some of the early rankings, Louisville's favored to win that one.
So well, it said, that's talking season at its finest. I mean, I do know that the last day of the season. I mean, the things can be completely different. I don't think Kentucky's been favored in that game in at least three or four of the last five years in which he nets have won against the Cars. So I'm not worried about that one.
You must guess. H And by the way, you mentioned Auburn. I keep flashing back because bo Nick's making headlines with his performance for the Broncos, and of course he finished his career at Oregon. People might remember that he started his career at Auburn, and in fact, back in twenty twenty, the very first COVID game of the year, remember they only played SEC games at Kentucky opened down there and he threw for three second half touchdowns to beat Kentucky.
So but I don't think. I think you're right, it's not that same Auburn. But I think we're not quite.
Sure what we're going to see.
So it's going to be fun.
Just a few minutes left with Maggie Davis of BBN Tonight. Your thoughts on a loaded quarterback room? Stoops talked about that after the scrimmage on Saturday. Do you foresee a controversy or do you see a big season for Brock Vandergrive.
I don't foresee controversy at this point, but I certainly think that it is appropriate to listen to scoops talk about the quarterback groop and get excited about the depth in that room because it is a little bit deeper than I think we've seen in recent years, and to an extent, I think that's a little surprising in the portal era. I mean, most of the time, one AA's going to play right, so there's not going to be
a ton of seasons. There's not a ton of teams that have three or four guys in that quarterback room that you're like, Okay, worst comes to worst. He could probably figure it out and help us with some things. Obviously, I think Brock Vandergriff is the starter and will continue to be the starter unless something insane happens. But I think that listening to soups talk about the depth specifically is giving him a little bit of peace of mind.
Even though the room as a whole, all four of those guys are not really experienced, especially in the SEC quarterbacks. They don't have a lot of in game experience, but they do have a lot of recruiting trusts, right, I mean, those are four and five star players and that you kind of have stacked up against each other. Hopefully good
competition pushes each and every one of them. But no, I still certainly think Brock Vandergriff is the guy, and I'm excited to see how he looks in Game one because we really don't know very much about him until then.
It's interesting that he's the starter, likely backed up by two guys in Whimsit and bo Allen, who have multiple starts in college football, but to your point, not in the SEC. And you know, I kept hearing and then John Clay said that one of the beat writers from down to Georgia, you know, said that vandergripp was this close to beating out Carson Beck, who is everybody's favorite quarterback.
Now. So if that indeed was the case.
I can't wait to see what he what he can do with the lights on. You know.
Well, yeah, there's certainly a ton of excitement around that, especially when you start hearing stories like that out of Georgia. But I think that it does make well. It couldn't make you super excited. It could also make you a little cautiously optimistic, right, because we just don't know anything.
Like even when we got Devin Leary to Lectington last year, Right, you could go back and watch NC State and obviously he had dealt with injuries and he had had some issues, but we really didn't have an unknown there because there was plenty of it State footage. You could go back and watch it, and obviously, keeping in mind some of the injury history, you got to watch a little paper
on the guy. Right, We really have not had any of that with Rock Vandergrift, so certainly a lot of question marks around his play, and there have been, you know, some differing stories coming out of camp, and I think it's really depending on the day and.
Who you talk to.
So I think the Rock Vandergriff we see week one might not be the Bronx you seed week eight, nine or ten. And obviously you want your quarterback to get more comfortable in a system. You want him to find the rhythm what you get into the meat of the SEC schedule, but I definitely think it'll be a learning process for him, just because of the lack of experience in games.
Interesting that some of the only in game video of Rock Vandergrif from last year was mop up duty against Kentucky and he looked pretty good. So Maggie Davis is the producer and cole anchor of BB and Tonight and you can follow her each and every night thirty on LAX eighteen and on Game Day on Saturday. When your first game day, I guess.
Is game Day? Right?
First Gay Day was actually last Saturday. Oh really cut a little bit early. We we do in this Saturday. We have a special hour long football season preview show coming your way. I know you gave me just enough runway to take over.
I'm sorry.
We do have this hour log special on Saturday that we are so excited about. We had exclusive sit down interviews with book Handed and Brad White. I know we were working on a JJ Weaver feature. We got Jeremy Jarman coming to the studio, so a whole lot of fun and it is a full hour only about UK football, so definitely tune into that. It's on in Lexington. I
believe at nine thirty on Saturday. But we are syndicated all throughout Kentucky and I'm really all across the region right now, So check those listings and tune in, check us out.
Excellent.
Thank you, ma'am, Thank you so much.
I'll talk to you soon.
More football talk coming up in hour number two with Michael Epps of FLOXX fifty six.
Here on a Big Old siderix w l ap.
Welcome back to the Big Bluing Cider.
Joining us now.
As we mentioned Michael EPs, Fox fifty six sports director, a guy called the Road Warrior who is back at it. Man, you had a busy day yesterday, Another busy day today, Michael.
But you told me you got a little time off.
You had some fun, right.
Yeah, I did. I went up to your stomping grounds, went up to Starattoga this summer, went for I think I think it was the day before the whitney, so I didn't get to see the whitney, but it was a great day just checking up the track, went up north Northern Michigan summertime in Northern Michigan's kid Rock said, can't beat it, and a couple other trips. So yeah, it's been a good summer, but summer's over. Now football's here.
You are a Michigander. But before I get to football, real quickly, tell everybody what you like about Saratoga. I've tried to I've tried to describe it. You don't really compare it to Keenland. It's like apples and oranges. But uh it's It's just a great spot, isn't it.
Yeah, it's a little different, you know, dress code, some people do stuff, but you still get people that you know, just going shorts and a T shirt and just run up,
you know, for opening day. The gates open and then they sprint over their picnic tables and you know, the funny thing is you're allowed to bring in beverages, which just like, oh okay, and uh yeah, it's I think it's I think it's a really nice track and you can feel like, yeah, this is one of those signature spots on the horse race calendar every year, because there are a couple of them that really set some horses up for the Breeders Cup Classic and some other races
on that first weekend in November. So it's a lot of fun to just go hang out and experience another track. I've been the three in my life now and I definitely want to hit more out a boy.
And of course the surrounding town, those houses, just that particular style up there, it looks like it's something out of Central Casting. So yeah, I can't recommend it enough. All Right, back to the matter at hand and before.
We talk football.
A lot to cover yesterday on the UK Beat with Massi Russell talking to the media along with coach Lonnie Green and volleyball. Let's start with track. I don't know about you. Had you ever had a chance to interview her, because I had not, and I did not. I should have known because I'd interviewed Passion Richardson and other track athletes. I wasn't aware of how tiny Massi Russell is. But I guess that's why she can.
Fly, right.
Yeah, I never interviewed I don't think I've ever interviewed an Olympic gold medalist, so that was a that was a bucket list for sure. And yeah, she's she's impressive. Man. It's crazy. You know, move in Day, Big Blue move In Yeah, is going on this week, So you got all these kids coming on the campus and it's like, yeah, she was just one of those kids and she just graduated in twenty twenty three, and now she's a gold medalist. I mean, it's pretty amazing, and you got to give
her credit. And it's such a competitive field there. You had three you had two other Kentucky connections in that race with Devin Charlton and Jasmin Camacho Coin represent in Puerto Rico, so and and then you know you have like a defending world champion in there. So she beat some talent to earn that gold medal. So she's got to be proud of herself.
I had not yet been in the Jim Green Track Center because I was out of town when they dedicated. I've known Jim forever, have done stories on him, He's been on my show. So happy they named it after him. But I was so impressed with that facility. It amazes me, Michael, that Kentucky had been so successful before they open that place. I know Edward Chloriel works so hard to get that done. Now he's at Texas. Lonnie Green comes down from Purdue
and now is you know, reaping the benefits. But that's that's one impressive facility.
Yeah, and you know Lonnie was on point by saying that other schools will try to call themselves hurdle you, but there's really only one hurdle you. I mean when you get the hundred meter hurdle gold medalist and Sidney Glaughlin the four hundred meter hurdle gold medalist, and I mean that Sidney had been winning this for years in the world, I mean clearly the best in the world for over four years. So yeah, this is hurdle you for sure.
Yeah.
Yeah.
And not only does Sydney win it, she wanted the second second time. She's the first woman American woman to win back to back four hundred goal.
Right, Yes, I believe so, and she I wonder if she has another one in her I mean, I'm sure she could go out there in twenty eight and probably have a good chance to do something. So I don't know, but I think I think MASSI was the really exciting part where she was like, yeah, I'm I'm I got two more Olympics in it, like I'm not going anywhere. And I think that gave you know, fans a little excitement and certainly awesome to see her go out there
and you know, continue this history. Really and I don't feel like it's a long history, Dick, but it's this recent like surge of UK athletes just dominating on the world stage and track and field. It's really awesome and I hope he continues.
Yeah, and heavy signer like Avy Segner did and even make the Olympics. Yes, I mean she she We really thought she was going to be there in twenty four. Yeah, just didn't work out for her, but she still got a chance.
Yeah, and shout out to Daniel Roberts silver in the hurdles. So to your point, the one ten, yeah it is hurdle. You we're talking to Michael Epps, Fox fifty six sports director.
You also was over there.
We're over there at the volleyball media day, and the obvious story there is can Kentucky make eight straight? But it's going to be tough with the Longhorns in the league now. But I thought it was interesting, Michael that this team, in a way, it's not that they're glad to see people move on, but they want to establish their own identity. Nobody who was on that national title team for the most part, is still on the roster, so you know, they want to do it on their own.
I think that's it's ambitious, but everybody has the same ambition, right.
Yeah, That's what I asked Craig in the press conference, was like, Hey, as another year passes, it's another year farther from when you won the national championship. These players still need to remember that that's the standard. You know, once you win one, it doesn't matter what sport, Once you win one, that's the standard for your program now. And it felt like the UK has had chances in the last couple of years to match that just couldn't quite get it done. Now it's a whole lot tougher.
I mean, they're I mean they're they're right there. They're ranked ninth in the preseason poll. They're going to be a fantastic team. But as you mentioned, Texas dominant in the conference now as the new member, new kids on the block, and I love the excitement that volleyball is getting. You know, some of these matches are on ESPN and the ESPN two and they're certainly gonna roll. But in the tournament, man, you just you need the dominant outside hitters.
And Brooklyn delay Is is incredible U up there up front, but I don't know if they have enough to you know, I don't know if they have enough you know, above the net athleticism and just hitting power. But I think, you know, I m Ac Grom and Eleanor Bevin to really strong returners. So they're gonna be good. It's gonna be fun to watch them, and certainly fun inside the brand new memorial costume.
I was gonna say, how about the comments about getting air conditioning Finally, Yeah, man, I.
I can't wait. It was. It was nice to go in there and check it out when they let us in for Inside Peak a few weeks ago with Mitch Barnhart. But I don't believe that that exhibition was close to fancy the entire time. I mean, they they switched that kept the clothes they need to for safety reasons, and yeah, you know, so hopefully they get it done in time for the opener, which is what next Friday, so again
I think Northern Kentucky. So they hopefully they have you know, we were there for media day and we could still hear a lot of banging and you know, rustling around right on the other side of those doories that picked up on the mic for the press conference. So hopefully, hopefully they get it done in time.
I think the fire alarm went off like six times, and Craig Skinner said, We're used to that. It happens every day. We're talking to Michael Lepsi as the sports director at Fox fifty six, and we'll come back and talk Kentucky football on the other side of the break here on six point thirty WLAP Welcome back. We're talking with Michael Lepsi is a sports director WDKY Fox fifty six and like all of us, anxiously awaiting football both high school and college. And obviously we don't get a
chance to shoot video of scrimmages. I got a chance to sit in as a member of the network, but nothing really jumped out that Mark Stoops didn't talk about getting some work done Michael with the twos and the threes this past Saturday. I kind of thought that was a good sign. Kind of tells me they're pretty button down with the first team ors.
Did you take it that way?
Yeah, I think that it's interesting that they've talked a lot about the depth in the QB room and there's a they're really kind of been a scenario where if they did not get Brock Vandergriff in the portal and maybe they got someone you know, not as exciting. There's a chance that could have been a competition because I really do think Cutter Bowl is talented now he is, you know, playing at LCA is a lot different than playing in the SEC, and it would have been some
serious growing pains as a true freshman, I think. But because I don't know if he's at that level, but he's talented, and we know that some of the depth that they have, you know, on defense, I think that's you know, obviously a strong unit for them. It always is under Brad White. You know, twenty points per game is like kind of his staple that they allow for scoring defense. I wonder a little bit about you know, the receivers. I think your top three is great, but
the Dane Barryon and Jamury Macklin. But after that, it's encouraging to see that they made some place because I don't think that if you really need a four wide receiver set, I don't love any of those options.
For UK.
I think they might utilize tight ends a little bit more than they have in the pass because I do like Caddis, jefsh Kattis and during Dingal so I don't know. I think Brock's got a lot of options, which is exciting he.
Does, but right now you got to wonder about running back, you know. And Stoop's talked about how much confidence and faith they have in sumocarn Bay, but he said, at least one of the young guys is going to have to really step forward and prove himself, you know, because as you know, you can't just lean on one guy. And Demi's deal is speed and he can catch the ball as well as get to the outside. He's not
necessarily a power runner. In Kentucky's been blessed with a lot of power running back play over the last six or seven years.
Well, the unfortunate probably ill losing ship to train them is like, I think they were really set up to have an exciting one two punts that would really compliment each other, and we're still going to see it. It's just a matter of how soon. And I mean, Dick, I'm not going to surprise the world here. They're not going to beat Georgie no matter who, if they have Chip or not. So that Week three games, you know, really doesn't matter. But that Week two game against South Carolina,
that's really a must win. If you start the season one and two, you're really struggling at that point to get yourself a winning season. It's an uphill battle, and so they need to win that Week two game. Brock has to be ready. You know, the defense is going to be ready, and I don't think South Carolina will come in here and put up more than like thirty
points on this defense. But can Brock lead this offense to go score four touchdowns by South Carolina and win this game that you just have to win in the East, and they have not won it the last couple of years. If you don't win that game, you're setting yourself up for a brutal season. And to not have train him out there is going to be tough. So they're gonna certainly roll with Demi and they're gonna throw the ball a lot, so broadcasts the limited turnovers and I think they'll be okay.
You know, you mentioned Cutter Bowley earlier, and you know how fans are. They're going to get restless if things aren't perfect right away. And you've also got bo Allen. Gavin Wimsen is number two on the depth chart right now. I think that's more about the package of plays we'll see from him. But I remind people, you know, one of the biggest names right now when it comes to
college quarterbacks is Quinn Yours. And you know, he started his career at Ohio State in the Big Ten and his first, his only game came against his only appearance came against your beloved Michigan State Spartans. He played two plays and then transferred. So it's not automatic when you're that young. So they got to have the veterans come through, don't they.
Yeah. The crazy thing about Yours is if Texas goes up and like somehow loses that game to Michigan, I don't think they will because they're extremely talented and Michigan lost a lot. And you know, I'm biased, Dick being a Spartman, but I'm going to say that I'm gonna certainly look for Michigan to lose that game and lose any game I'm successful. But no, those are a new head coach and you know, new quarterback. Yeah, I think
Texas will win that game. But if they don't, imagine if those Longhorns fans start to get a little ticked off and try to get arch in there. I mean twin Hewers could be a first round pick and they could Bill sit in to go and put Arch out there. So it's crazy to think about the riches that other teams have. And you know Kentucky has it a little bit. You know, Cutter Bolly's a good quarterback and certainly will
get his chance. You know, hopefully next year Rock has a big season and wants to declare early for the NFL Draft and Cutter would have his year next year. That's kind of how you know it would go in a perfect world for them, But can't turn them over and Will Levis so basically first round pick, technically a
second round pick. He turned the ball over a lot, and if he did not turn it over that much, there would have never been that awkward moment where he was sitting in Brady Quinn style, yeah, on national TV at the NFL Draft. If he limited those turnovers, he would have been a top ten pick. So that's a challenge for Brock and they're going to need him to take care of the football because they're not going to run the ball as much until Trip comes back.
I will always wonder what that second year under will Levis might have been if he hadn't been shackled by Scanguerrello's command that he's stay in the pocket and not run the football. At least you know, he would sometimes scramble for his life. But you know, you remember what s Gangurella said, it's an NFL thing. I want to protect the quarterback and all that. And yet forcing him to sit back in the pocket, A, he suffered more injuries than he would have if he had been running.
And B to your point, he made bad decisions. He made her decisions and through picks. I think Vandergriff is going to remind us I don't know about arm strength, but in terms of his footwork and ability to run away from trouble, I think he'll remind us of Will Levis that first season, you know what I mean.
Yeah, and the old line was really struggling last season too, I mean certainly two years ago. Yeah, and and but but struggled again last season. And like I mean, they were top five in the nation in sacks allowed at one point. And you know Leary he certainly, you know, needed some help, but he didn't get any help from his O line either. So you know, you need Eli Hock, Marcus Cox, Jaggerbart and those returning guys to really be steady. You know, your center play is going to be steady.
Because they tried it with Jagger last year. It didn't work out. They put Eli back there, even though his better position naturally would be at guard. But they'll they'll figure it out, but they have to be solid. So yeah, it is. It's it's sad because that tendant three year. You know, if he somehow convinced Bondelle to come back with Levis and Liam Cohen, I mean that team could have been actually scary because that defense was good too. But it's tough. You know, Liam Cohen did what he
had to do. He left and came back and and Skangerello. That was a failed experiment, but I don't really blame Stoops for trying it out. He had a pretty good history with quarterbacks at San Francisco, you know, just what he had done with development and the rest of his NFL assistant career. I think this was a good opportunity
for him. I don't really know if he did much recruiting, but he clearly you could tell on the field that it was struggling, and so it was a struggle to watch and he was hampered by the online play too. They did a lot of bubble screens Tavion Robinson and even Barryon. I mean, they weren't taking a lot of downfield shots with him. So I think bus Shamdon out here is gonna give the fans something exciting to watch at Kroger Field. But well, the players executed. That's a question.
You mentioned wide receivers.
I'll let you go with this.
I really believe that Brown and Key are both sitting on big seasons because this could be their chance to leave after three season and go to the NFL. And they know this, you know, got to not just cut down on but eliminate the drops. But that only highlight what they do best. What do you think?
Yeah, well, I was thinking about it really when we were at media Day, because a media day last year, Dane and barry On both were saying, oh, they want to be a thousand yard receivers. They want to be the best wide receiver duo in the SEC, and they just didn't live up to it. They were kind of hovering around six hundred yards. And I think Barryon is going to have that opportunity this year because they're going to connect with him on those seat balls that Leary
just could not connect with him. I asked barry On on media Day. I was like, there were times that you were in the end zone and just throwing your hands up in the air because that ball was either like ten yards overthrown or five yards to left, and like Leary just could not hit him on those deep balls. I think Brock will be able to hit him. I think he's got the arm talent. But for Danes, he's gonna find that over the middle. If Baryon can kind of take the top off, I think both of those
guys could have big years. And I expected Morriy Macklin have a big time year too. I mean, I think they're kind of all they're all going to take each other away from getting to that one thousand yard mark. But if one of them hits it, that's great. Certainly not both of them will hit it, but they both
have good junior years. I know Dane was struggling with some stuff in his personal life there for a little bit last season two, and so I think if those guys are kind of just hunkered down, they could each have big enough seasons to go ahead and leave and get drafted in the first, three, four or five rounds. I hope for them.
He is Michael Lipps Fox fifty six. Tell everybody how to follow you on Twitter.
At Michael EP's TV. Follow our team at Jordan and I'm at Colby Wilson. We got we're ramping up home team Friday nights. Is this Friday night? So we got some high school football back here in the Bluegrass. Our show is going to be on at ten thirty pm for all the highlights. Make sure to tune in. This is this a fun part of the year.
We'll be watching. Thank you, Hi, Thanks Dix to you hand up next to UK Volleyball.
We'll talk more with Craig Skinner and his players on six thirty WLAP.
Welcome back to the Big.
Blue Insider on this national radio day. And I've had a lot of fun in my radio careers such as it is, and one of the better assignments I ever had was doing UK Volleyball on the radio. I don't know did I do one or two seasons, but I did it a while back before the SEC network came along. The SECTV network came along, and of course with the advent of sec TV, they decided the powers it'd be
at UK. They didn't really want to fork over whatever it cost to do volleyball on the radio when all the games were on TV in one way or the other, either streaming or on the worldwide leader, the SEC network. Even though a lot of schools do radio broadcasts of their women's volleyball Florida, Nebraska, some of the lead programs, but its tradition for those programs. And we didn't do it long enough to UK at UK to call it a tradition. But I did enjoy it, like I said,
part of a fun radio career. But I still enjoy covering volleyball. And I was there yesterday at media day yesterday afternoon and Craig Skinner in his twentieth year. You know, Mark Stoops is the high longest tenured coach in SEC of football twelve years. Mary Wise has been at Florida forever, but number two is Craig Skinner at Kentucky. His team has won seventh straight SEC titles. And one of the many things he touched on yesterday was scoring and how it has to come for really.
All over the court.
I think the biggest factor for us is finding point production across the board from five different positions, not one or two.
You know.
Obviously, Brooklyn Delay had an incredible freshman year and great summer of the USA Volleyball Aaron Lamb had a great year last year to finish her you know, junior campaign. We have two new middles starting for US, you know, so you know, red shirts, you know, and to one transfer, one freshman, you know, Megan Wilson moving from the left
side to the right side. So having that balance where we're very difficult to fend because no one knows where the ball is going, is going to be the most important thing for US.
Wildcats open up with an exhibition game against Dayton on Friday. It's closed to the public. It's in the coliseum, but they're not going to be finished with it, and they just want to play it behind closed doors in the interest they say, of safety.
But then the following week.
Regular season begins on Tuesday in.
Louisville at the Coaches Association Showcase, Wildcats take on number two Nebraska. Wildcats are ranked number nine, and as Skinner pointed out, great opportunity to learn about your team.
The challenge is you don't really know yet what your team will look like under the lights. Against high level competition. So and you know that, you know, teams like Nebraska aren't just gonna give you points. You're gonna have to earn them. And so it's you know when you typically aren't exactly where you want to be your first match or two. So you know, how claim can we be? How efficient can we be?
Skinner led the Wildcats of the NCAA Championship three years ago. This is a brand new team now, everybody's moved on, and Skinner said, these players like that. They want to build their own name, their own reputation. They want to eave a new legacy.
You know, our team has brought that up. They're excited for the fact that no one on this team was part of the twenty two or twenty twenty championship team. And so they want their identity to be what this team is about. And they want to build their own expectations and owned results and not be compared to that team. And you know, I think that's fair. It's it's like
we talked, you know, Saturday night. As you know, comparison is it can be the evil, you know, empire, and so comparing ourselves to ourselves is the most important thing. How do we do yesterday? How are we going to do today? How are we going to do tomorrow? So it's this team is excited about the chance to prove themselves and show people what they're made of.
Of course, the win number eight. Now it used to be you got to go through Florida. Then now you've got to go through Kentucky. New player in town is Texas, and Skinner knows that and realizes that, you know, you got to beat everybody, but it starts with Texas.
Yeah, just just to drop in the bucket, you know.
No, No, it's I mean it's you know, the expectation to compete for championships every year. Did it get harder? Of course it got harder. I mean it's our league is better. Adding Texas makes it, you know better, And you know, to me, that's motivation. It's exciting because it's a new challenge, it's a new target and you know what else can we do?
How much better can we get?
Adding people and great teams in great coaches league helps us to your point of recruiting earlier. It's like, why wouldn't you want to be a part of the league like this, and why wouldn't you want to compete for SEC championships, because if you're winning and competing for SEC championships, you're in the conversation for the national championship.
The first true home game for the Wildcats is Friday, August thirtieth, the night before Kentucky's football opener against Northern Kentucky, and a new and improved Memorial Coliseum. It includes air conditioning. And this is a team that's been without really a home for eighteen months or so, Skinner says his playyers can't wait.
They're like caged animals, I would say, to get out and play. They haven't really had a home for the last year and a half, and we've been shuffling between locker rooms and gyms and courts, and you know, I know the time and effort and commitment from their sake, and you know our administration and Chris and Director of Operations, our coaches to try and where are we going? Where are we practicing? Is so I think that having you take for granted some of the things you have before
they're gone. And I don't know if they'll take those things for granted once you get in the building, but they can't wait. I mean, it's you know, they see some things happen in near locker room and our video room and all that.
Type of stuff. So the excitement is pretty clear.
They've got some new faces, but they've got some veterans returning, including, thankfully for the Wildcats, Emma Grome, All American last year, All Conference, six time SEC Center of the Week. She is the quarterback, she is the point guard, if you will, of this, and we had a chance to talk with her on media day about the fact that, yeah, they've accomplished a lot in the past, but this is a new year.
I feel pretty confident.
We obviously have a lot of new pieces to the team, and we lost a couple key starters, but I think we have a lot of depth this year and people might not be expecting that, but just our time in the gym, we've put in a lot of work on our offensive systems, defensive systems, and everything's clicking pretty well.
Chris also talked about how nobody on this team played for.
That national championship team and how important it is for you to have your own identity.
How much has that kind of been discussed.
It's been discussed quite a bit.
I think it's honestly pretty cool for us this year because nobody's had that win under their belt, so there's a lot more like urgency and desire to get there since none of us have felt that. But yeah, I think it just makes us stronger and wants us, makes us want to push a little bit more.
Well, what has to happen for you all to do that?
Are there going to be one or two keys to this season for this particular team.
I think we're still figuring that out a little bit, and since there's a lot of new pieces, still figuring out what's going to be the best you know, identity off the court and on the court for our team. But I think if we work on the offensive systems we're working on, we're doing a little bit faster, some different things than we've seen before. Every year, it feels like we're adding new pieces to how we're playing the game.
So I think if we figure all that out and really like buy into the culture here, it'll be good.
Part of your identity, though, is SEC championships. See you guys, how much of that do you carry emotionally and mentally? A lot?
I mean seven in a row is really hard and we're pushing them for eight. So that's the goal every day is just to come out here, put our best foot forward, leave it all on the court, and if we do that, we'll be able to get another one.
And yeah, Texas is the unanimous pick, So yeah, tell me about that challenge.
It'll definitely be a challenge.
It'll be tough, and we have two new teams coming into the conference and obviously we were put farther down on the list than we'd like to be in the preseason polls, but that just gives us all the more desire to prove ourselves and show the world what Kentucky can do.
Bekinna cool.
You have air conditioning?
Now, how much are you going to be?
I personally will be loving that. I am a big sweater. It was very tough, especially in those five set matches in August and September, but I think it'll make us stronger and I'm excited.
Also coming back. Brooklyn Delay just a sophomore, but she burst on the scene last year as a freshman, made the All Freshman Team, was the SEC Freshman of the Year, Honorable Mentioned All American WHAT five times Freshman of the Week Player of the Week as well, and she got a chance to play because Reagan. Ruththerford, who was graduated, was hurt, so they pressed Brooklyn Delay into the lineup and she never left.
Just that year of experience under my belt and then also being able to have a different role on the team, Like you come in as a freshman, you're kind of that little freshye, but now you kind of get a take on new freshmen to come in and kind of be more of a leader.
I feel like a murderer.
You've never had a home court?
You got one?
Yeah, No, I think it'll be awesome.
What do you think about it? Take the peaks walk down on it.
Yeah, for sure.
I haven't seen much of it because it's kind of been I'm closed off, but I think it'll be really cool, super grateful, and it's going to be my first year or ever.
In memorial we'll shift you back to college football on the other side of the break here on six thirty WLAP.
Welcome back to the Big Boon Sider.
Final segment of our program, and I thought we'd wrap up with more college football chatter mentioned earlier.
The Dian Walker p season.
All America on everybody's list, including latest DAP and of course he is showing up on the pre draft big boards for everybody. I thought we would take a look at the one on the cbssports dot com website that seems to be the one I come back to. Interestingly, a cornerback Will Johnson and Michigan is there number one right now?
Hello?
By man a.
Michigan d tackle. They go one to Will Johnson, Mason Graham, and yet Ohio State is a team that supposedly is the most loaded and should be feared in the Big Ten. But either one number three, believe it or not, it's an SEC player. It's not Dion Walker. It's James Pierce, Junior and edge rusher at Tennessee called a freaky athlete coming off the edge rushing. The quarterback, Travis Hunter of
Colorado is fourth. He is the guy who plays both wide receiver and cornerback and he was a preseason AP All American.
By the way, and out.
There in Colorado they're upset the shdhar Sanders, a quarterback, was not on the first or second teams. First was Carson Becka, Georgia's second was my man, Dylan Gabriel, no relation, but you love the name from Oregon. Sanders had nice numbers last year twenty seven touchdowns, only three picks, thirty two hundred passing yards, but his team only won four games, So you're not gonna a whole lot of love that way. Carson Beck in fact number five on CBS's pre draft
big board. Kelvin Banks, o tackle from Texas, number seven back to the SEC. Banks, by the way. Now in the SEC, Luther Burden, the wide receiver from Missouri, maybe the most dangerous player in the Southeastern Conference, at least offensively, and Dion is number eight and there's only one line. There's like a paragraph for each player. All they wrote about Dion this is really all you need to know. It says Walker is a mammoth of a defensive tackle,
yet he doesn't move like one. That's basically all you need to know. Right behind him another defensive lineman or outside linebacker, depending on how you look at him. Michael Williams, the edge from Georgia, listed as another freak athlete. And there are a lot of these guys, these hybrid players in the SEC. Number ten is Benjamin Morrison, a cornerback from Notre Dame. Cbssports dot Com as the list. But you gotta think Dion he won't drop out of the top ten. If he stays healthy, and he may be
moving up on these draft boards. It just depends on who needs what. But it's always fun to look at those when they're way too soon, but it's still fun and it just tells you football is right on top of us. I was talking about young NFL quarterbacks. There's a veteran NFL quarterback who made headlines overnight to a tongue of below of the Dolphins really candid when he was talking about Brian Flores during an interview which aired yesterday, he called the former head coach a terrible person. He
was talking to Dan LeBatard on Lebatard's podcast. I've talked about Lebratard before. I really like him. But he said, to put it in the simplest terms, if you woke up every morning and I told you that you suck at what you did, that you don't belong doing what you do, that you shouldn't be here, that you haven't earned the right, how would that make you feel? Listening
to one or the other. So evidently to his relationship with Brian Flores not the greatest in the world, you can understand if indeed that's what happened why he struggled. No comment as of yet from Flores. We'll keep an eye on that for you. Back in the first hour, I mentioned Tom Brady played a comment from Brady about
how they've dumbed down the game for quarterbacks. I wanted to bring this one back to you because I talked the other day about Andre Woodson and the job he did developing into a quarterback just the way Brady described, I mean he struggled. Andre did when he first got here, and under the tutelage of Randy Sanders, he became one of the best quarterbacks in the country. At one point
was a Heisman candidate. And again Rich Brooks spoke more than once about the fact that Andre became really adept at going to the line of scrimmage and not necessar necessarily checking off to a big play, but getting them out of a bad play. And that takes quarterback smarts, know how and knowledge, as Brady said of the program with a capital P and a relationship with the coaching staff. And listen to the way Brady described what he did, and think about what Andre Woodson did at Kentucky.
Not that Andre was.
The only QB, but it was a great example of what Brady's been talking about.
When I was a quarterback, what I aspired to be was a game general out there. I wanted to be that field general. I wanted to call the shots.
You could.
If you were my coach, you would call a play.
That play would come into me.
I would say, okay, I think, and we've communicated before the end. This is the reason why he called the play we talked about. So I'm walking the line of scrimmage, I'm looking.
At the defense. Oh perfect, I love.
The defense is exactly why we call this play.
I snapped the ball.
Well, every defense is built a little differently, and every defense takes away something different. Sometimes I walk to the line of scrimmage, I knew exactly why we call the play, and I goes, oh god, it's not gonna work. We have no chances play working based on the defense that they called. So I would change the play and I get out of the play. I'd turn it and if let's say I had a deep pass and they were guarding you deep, I would check to a run, I checked to a short throw. I'd get out of that
play to make sure that play was successful. Now, the quarterbacks walk to the line of scrimmage. Coach calls a deep play, defense calls the coverage that takes away a deep play, and they snapped the ball and that quarterback's holding the ball and he gets sacked. And then I hear people go, oh, the offensive lines got to hold up for and I'm listening like there was no one going to be open on that play. You could call it one hundred times the same result would have happened.
When is the quarterback's responsibility to check to a play that's going to be successful. That's what I did. That's what Peyton Manning did. That's what Ben Roethlisberger did. That's what Drew Brees did. That's what Philip Rivers did. Those are the guys. That's what Joe Montana did. That's what Steve Young did. That's what John Elway did.
Those are some of the all time greats. And again I had Mark Slera's on on the first hour talking to about Russell Wilson, who for a while there was considered on his way to becoming an all time great. Not lately though, Schlareth not a fan, as he pointed out with our comment in the first hour, and to
pick up on what he was talking about. Slaith mentioned the fact that, yeah, Wilson had great numbers but took sacks way too often in a preseason game in regular season games, and Mike Tomlin stands up it kind of blames the O line, and everybody picks up on it, fans and the media, and Shlareth keeps reminding folks that, you know, you got to go to the source. You can't just listen to people who may not know what they're talking about.
The media doesn't know what they're looking at. The beat writers don't know what they're looking at. So you know what the assumption is, while our offensive line really sucks, now your quarterback really sucks.
It's your quarterback that's You realize.
That, don't you, and not that Justin Fields is much better.
Fie, as of course, was a bust in Chicago. But back to what he said. That's why I am very hesitant when I try to evaluate, because I've not yet had the opportunity to play or coach college football, so
it's not always what we think we see. And oftentimes I'm privy to conversation with coaches that educate me about certain parts of the game that I can't always share with you, because if they're as frank and open as it could be in postgame conversations, well, they'd be tearing down some kids that they don't want to publicly tear down. And I think that's what Tomlin's been doing as well
with the Steelers. Although he may honestly believe Russell Wilson's the right guy for the job, Mark schlera who played the game, won some Super Bowls, he clearly does not agree.
That's going to do it.
Thanks so much to Maggie Davis, to Michael Epps, Thanks to you back tomorrow night.
That's it.
Good night from the garage and Lexion.
I'd like to ask a few questions about this breakfast cereal.
I yeah, yeah, A box of tricks, that's right.
I've been led to understand the tricks are exclusively for children.
Is that correct? Well, I mean they say tricks are for kids in the commercials, and there's that enforced by law, not to my knowledge, no, n