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UK Women Lose First SEC Game

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - Adrienne Webb scored 16 of her 19 points in the second half and LSU snapped No. 6 Kentucky's 10-game winning streak with a 61-51 upset on Sunday.

LaSondra Barrett scored all of her 12 points in the final 20 minutes for the Lady Tigers (15-8, 5-5 Southeastern Conference), who came in having lost five of six games but rarely trailed as the Wildcats managed to shoot only 35 percent (21 of 60).

A'dia Mathies scored all of her 12 points in the second half as she tried to keep Kentucky (21-3, 10-1) unbeaten in league play. Keyla Snowden added 11 points for the Wildcats, who came in having won 13 straight SEC games dating to last season.

(Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.)

 

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Kentucky Beats SC On Day When, "Somebody Was Losing By 30"

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - Anthony Davis couldn't believe all the Kentucky blue he saw around South Carolina's home court, so he and the No. 1 Wildcats put on a performance that would've drawn several standing ovations at Rupp Arena.

Davis had 22 points, eight rebounds and eight blocks to lead top-ranked Kentucky to its 15th straight victory, 86-52, over the Gamecocks on Saturday night.

Doron Lamb had 18 points, Terrence Jones 16 and the Wildcats (23-1) shot 51.6 percent as they moved to 9-0 in the Southeastern Conference for the first time in seven years in what coach John Calipari said was his team's best performance this season.

"It didn't matter who we played, somebody was losing by 30," Calipari said.

Davis, the 6-foot-10 freshman, was a big reason why. He finished several alley-oops in the first half as Kentucky opened 52-25 lead and was there to swat away several shots by the Gamecocks, who made only nine field goals in the opening period.

Davis said the Wildcats got a fast boost by Kentucky's fans, who made up at least half the 16,527 who turned out at the Colonial Life Arena.

"I'm not used to this," Davis said. "I thought, 'It feels like a home game in here.'"

If Kentucky keeps playing like this, expect the team's fans to turn out on the road even more than they already do.

Davis made his first nine shots, finishing 9 of 10, and added two steals.

Davis, who sat for long stretches of the second half, got back in the game with about 6 minutes to go and looked as though he might have a chance at the program's second-ever triple double. But when he took a hard spill on a collision with Anthony Gill, Calipari took his prized freshman out for good to the applause of several thousand Wildcats fans.

Calipari was talked into putting his star back in to try and match Chris Mills' feat - he had 19 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists against Austin Peay in 1988 - and did not hesitate yanking Davis when he crash landed.

"Do you care about that?" Calipari asked Davis about a triple-double. The freshman shook his head no.

"Yes he does," Calipari cracked to the media.

It might be harder for Davis to get one down the stretch, though. Five of Kentucky's remaining seven league games are against Florida, Vanderbilt and Mississippi State - the SEC's other ranked teams.

Damien Leonard scored a career-high 19 points for South Carolina (9-13, 1-7).

Davis and the 6-9 Jones did most of the damage as Kentucky got things in hand early on. The two combined for eight dunks in the first half, including four straight during one stretch of the period as Kentucky moved in front 23-10 with 13:12 remaining before the break.

"I just think everybody began the game with a lot of energy," Jones said.

South Carolina made one last drive to get back in it when Leonard hit a pair of 3s that cut the lead to 25-18.

The Wildcats then took off on a 17-2 run the next six minutes - Jones scored nine of the points and Davis five - to take control.

Davis didn't stop with a big lead, either. He grabbed a rebound from about 18 feet out as the shot-clock buzzer sounded and glided in for his fifth jam of the period to increase Kentucky's margin to 52-25 at the break.

The Gamecocks, who have just one senior on the roster, appeared shell-shocked through most the period. The team's best inside presence in 6-9 Damontre Harris played only seven minutes after getting three fouls. Malik Cooke and Bruce Ellington, South Carolina's top two scorers, were a combined 1 of 10 from the floor for 3 points. They ended with eight points, 16 fewer than their combined averages coming in.

Kentucky kept it going with an 11-4 run to open the second half and eventually grew the lead to 41 points as the large Wildcat contingent of fans shouted, "Go Big Blue!" in the final minutes.

The Wildcats have rolled since their only loss of the season, 73-72 at Indiana back on Dec. 10, with 14 straight wins. That's included a dominant first half run through the SEC, winning seven of their nine league games by 13 points or more.

The Gamecocks who opened league play 0-4 for the first time since 2007 seemed to find some confidence in their play last week with their first league win, 56-54 over Alabama, and a last-second, 66-62, loss at Ole Miss. They put on a strong showing but fell again two days ago at No. 12 Florida, 74-66.

Instead, it was the worst home loss of coach Darrin Horn's four seasons and a vast difference from the last time No. 1 Kentucky showed up here.

In 2010, Gamecocks point guard Devan Downey scored 30 points in a stunning, 68-62 victory that quickly ended the Wildcats first time atop the rankings in seven seasons.

The basketball Gamecocks began a trend of toppling No. 1s that swept through the athletic department in 2010. The baseball team defeated No. 1 Arizona State on the way to a College World Series crown. And the football team beat No. 1 Alabama that fall as it won the SEC Eastern Division.

None of that mattered to these Wildcats, who won their fifth in a row over South Carolina. Horn said Kentucky had improved dramatically over the past month since the Gamecocks 79-64 loss at Rupp when South Carolina outscored the Wildcats in the second half.

"They played outstanding," Horn said. "They looked like the No. 1 team in the country."

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Facts And Stats: UK Crushes South Carolina

Kentucky Basketball Postgame Notes
Kentucky vs. South Carolina
February 4, 2012
Colonial Life Arena - Columbia, S.C.

-- Kentucky improves to 23-1, 9-0 in the Southeastern Conference, while South Carolina falls to 9-13, 1-7.
-- The Wildcats are 46-10 all-time against South Carolina and 18-6 in Columbia.
-- UK is now 894-251 in SEC regular season action.
-- Kentucky has won five-straight against South Carolina by an average of 22 ppg.
-- UK extended its winning streak to 15-straight games and has won five straight on the road. The 15-game streak is the second longest streak in the Calipari era behind the 19-0 start by the 2009-10 squad.
-- Kentucky has won its first nine in league play, the best SEC start for the Wildcats since the 2004-05 team started 10-0.
-- The Wildcats have held three of their last four opponents to 50 points or less, and allowed only 51 points today.
-- Kentucky has won three-straight by 20 or more for the first time since the 1995-96 season.
-- UK returns to action on Tuesday, hosting Florida. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. ET and the game will be televised on ESPN.

Team game notes
-- The Wildcats used the starting combination of Terrence Jones, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Doron Lamb, Anthony Davis and Marquis Teague for the 15th time. UK is 14-1 with that starting five.
-- Darius Miller was the first sub off the bench for the 14th time this season.
-- Kentucky extended its streak of games with a 3-pointer to 811 games, the third-longest streak in the country.
-- The Wildcats led 52-25 at the half and are now 19-0, 8-0 in the SEC when leading at the half.
-- UK's 27-point halftime lead was its largest in league play this season.
-- The Cats shot a blistering 58.6 pct. from the field in the first half. It was the third time in the last four games UK has shot 56 pct. or better from the field in the first half.
-- Kentucky registered double-digit blocks for the 10th time this season.
-- The Wildcats' 34-point victory is their largest in league play this season.
-- Kentucky shot 51.6 pct. from the field, while holding South Carolina to 30.5 pct. shooting.
-- The Wildcats committed just three turnovers, the fewest all season.
-- UK dished out 17 assists to just three turnovers.

Individual game notes

#1 Darius Miller
-- Finished with five points pushing career total to 1,090 career points 48th on the UK all-time scoring list.

-- Shooting .452 pct. from 3-point range in league games (14-31) compared to .339 pct. in 15 non-conference games.

#3 Terrence Jones
-- Scored a season-high 16 first-half points. It was his fifth time this season scoring double-digits in the first half.

#20 Doron Lamb
-- Has hit multiple 3-pointers in seven of his last nine games.
-- Hit double-figures in the first half for the sixth time this season.
-- Scored 18 points, a personal best in league play this season.

#23 Anthony Davis
-- Tallied eight blocks, giving him 116 on the season, breaking Shaquille O'Neal's SEC freshman record for blocks.
-- Davis is now ninth on the league's single-season blocks list.
-- His eight blocks was the most by a Wildcat against South Carolina.
-- Tied his personal-best for blocks.
-- Tallied a season-high 18 first-half points. It was his sixth time this season going for double-figures in the first half.
-- Of his nine made field goals, seven were dunks.

#33 Kyle Wiltjer
-- Scored a SEC career-best 12 points and it was the most since he scored 24 against Loyola on Dec. 22.

 

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Davis Leads Cats To An Easy 86-52 Win Over South Carolina

UK comes flying out of the gate. They go right at South Carolina. They press. They run and they are hitting shots.

UK hits 4 of their first 5 shots. They get the fast start thanks to Doron Lamb who hits 2 three's and gets 8 quick points as UK goes up 14-8 at the 15:21 mark when the first TV time out appears.

UK then put on a big time dunking show. I've never seen any records on this, but the Cats scored 4 buckets in a row on dunks as they hit 8 of their first 10 shots.

Terrence Jones dunks to make it 17-10. He's smiling as he comes down the court.

Anthony Davis with a flying dunk on a good feed by Darius Miller.

Then it's Davis again on a pass from Teague.

Terrence Jones finishes the dunking party to make it 23-10.

With the Cats up 31-18, Anthony Davis has 6 points, 4 blocks and 3 rebounds.

Davis with another dunk to make it 38-20. UK is in the process of a 17-2 run.

Terrence Jones with a very strong move to the bucket, 41-20 UK.

Davis dunks again. Nice feed by Michael Kidd-Gilchrist. UK goes up 44-22.

Lamb's third 3 of the half makes it 48-25. Lamb didn't miss a shot in the first half. He had 11 points.

Davis gets yet another dunk to make it 52-25 at the half. Davis has 18 points, 6 rebounds and 5 blocks at the half. Plus Davis hit all 7 of his shots from the field.

Terrence Jones has 16 points and 3 rebounds.

I have UK with 8 dunks.

Jones and Davis have outscored South Carolina. They have 34 points. Carolina has 25. UK leads 52-25 at the half.

UK is shooting 58%.

South Carolina can't throw it in the ocean. They are at 26%.

The second half had no excitement except for one thing. Would Anthony Davis get a triple double.

Chris Mills did it in 1988 against Austin Peay with 19,10 and 10.

Davis does get the Freshman SEC block record at 116.

Davis got two more quick dunks in the second half to make it 59-25 UK.

He finishes with 22 points on 9 of 10 from the field, 8 rebounds, 8 blocks, and 2 steals.

Over the last three games, Davis has hit 21 of 23 field goal attempts.

Doron Lamb was 6 of 7 from the field. That includes 3 of 3 from downtown. He finishes with 18 points, which is his best total since playing Samford on December 20th. Plus, he pulled down four rebounds.

Terrence Jones once again stepped up his play with 16 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals.

UK hit 52% of their shots.

South Carolina was awful hitting only 30%.

UK beat South Carolina on the board 41-30.

If Davis isn't SEC player of the week, there needs to be an investigation.

Kyle Wiltjer made it four Cats in double figures. The freshman forward finished with 12. It's the fourth time this year he finished in double figures.

Cats destroy South Carolina 86-52.

 

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Lexington Native Dawson Makes NFL Hall Of Fame

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - Running back Curtis Martin and four linemen were elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday, along with one senior committee choice.

Martin is the fourth-leading rusher in NFL history. He is joined by Chris Doleman, Cortez Kennedy, Willie Roaf, Dermontti Dawson, and senior selection Jack Butler.

Jerome Bettis, Cris Carter and Bill Parcells were among the finalist who didn't make it.

A panel of 44 media members voted. The inductions are in early August in Canton, Ohio.

Martin made it for his consistency and durability, rushing for 14,101 and 90 touchdowns. He rushed for at least 1,000 yards in each of his first 10 seasons, the first three with New England and the others with the Jets. The 1995 Offensive Rookie of the Year, Martin won the NFL rushing title in 2004 with 1,697 yards.

Doleman and Kennedy were sackmasters from the defensive line, Doleman at end and Kennedy at tackle.

Doleman had 150 1/2 sacks in his 15 seasons, mostly with Minnesota, and was one of the prototype agile yet powerful pass rushers who dominate the game today. He made the Pro Bowl eight times and was fourth on the sacks list when he retired.

Kennedy was a force inside, both as a run stopper and in threatening quarterbacks. The 1992 Defensive Player of the Year made eight Pro Bowls, had 58 sacks - an unusually high total for a tackle - and spent his entire 11-season career with Seattle.

Roaf spent one season at right tackle, then the rest of his 13 seasons on the left side, making 11 Pro Bowls. He made the All-Decade team for the 1990s.

Dawson made seven Pro Bowls as the Steelers' center, that rare snapper who also could block defensive players one on one. He replaced a Hall of Famer, Mike Webster, and started for Pittsburgh for most of his 13 pro seasons.

Butler also played for the Steelers as a cornerback from 1951-59, picking off 52 passes, at the time second most in NFL history. But he was best known for his tackling skills.

Guard Will Shields didn't get in - the only first-year eligible player to make the 15-man finals. Shields started all but one of the 224 games in his 14 seasons in Kansas City.

Bettis also fell short. He was the 1993 Offensive Rookie of the Year with the Rams who retired in 2006 after winning his only Super Bowl with the Steelers. He is the NFL's No. 5 career rusher.

Parcells coached the Giants to Super Bowl titles in the 1987 and 1991 games and also lost the 1997 Super Bowl with New England. He coached the New York Jets and Dallas Cowboys, too.

Carter is the No. 4 career receiver with 1,101 in 16 seasons with three teams.

Others not voted in were receivers Tim Brown and Andre Reed, defensive end/linebackers Kevin Greene and Charles Haley, defensive back Aeneas Williams, and former 49ers owner Ed DeBartolo Jr.

The other senior finalist, guard Dick Stanfel, was not chosen, either.

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UK Hoops Begins Stretch Of Road Games At LSU

The No. 6/5 Kentucky women's basketball team is set to embark on a tough stretch in conference play as it travels to LSU on Sunday for the first of three straight road games. Game time in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center is 3 p.m. ET and it will be televised on Cox Sports Television.

UK, which has won three in a row over the Lady Tigers, is one win away from tying the school record for the most Southeastern Conference wins in a single season and the longest consecutive winning streak in school history (11).

"We have a tough task ahead Sunday afternoon," UK Hoops Coach Matthew Mitchell said. "LSU's a very talented team and they've gotten a bit more healthy here. They're motivated to win so it'll be a tough matchup, it always is in Baton Rouge. We'll have to do a good job as we've been able to on Friday afternoons of getting ready to turn our attention to our game Sunday. I'm real confident we'll have good preparation for the LSU game, we'll need it."

This marks the first time in program history UK has started conference play 10-0 and UK's 21-2 start ties its best start in program history through the first 23 games. Kentucky also started 21-2 in 1982-83. The Wildcats have also won a school-record 13 straight SEC games dating back to last season, including six consecutive league road games, also a school record. UK is 4-0 in SEC road games this season.

Leading the way for the Wildcats is junior All-America and SEC Player of the Year candidate A'dia Mathies (Louisville, Ky.). Mathies leads the team in almost every statistical category, including scoring (15.2), steals (2.8), 3-point field goals made (39) and 3-point field goal percentage (.382). She is also second on the team in rebounding (5.5), assists (2.5) and blocks (0.7). SEC Freshman of the Year contender Bria Goss (Indianapolis) follows in the scoring column with 11.7 ppg. She has scored in double digits in three of the last five games, including a team-high 19 points vs. Ole Miss on Thursday. Sophomore forward Samarie Walker (West Carrollton, Ohio) is UK's leading rebounder with 6.3 rebounds per game and has averaged 8.8 points and 8.8 rebounds in the last four league contests.

UK ranks in the top 10 of five national statistical categories. The Cats lead the nation in turnover margin (+12.0), are sixth in won-lost percentage (91.3), sixth in scoring offense (78.3), seventh in scoring margin (21.9) and eighth in steals per game (13.3).

LSU (14-8, 4-5 SEC) enters Sunday's contest coming off a 64-73 loss to Florida at home on Thursday evening. The Tigers had three players reach double figures in the game, led by junior guard Adrienne Webb's team-high 19 points. Senior forward LaSondra Barrett pulled down a team-high eight rebounds.

Barrett is the Bayou Bengals' leading scorer and rebounder on the season, averaging 12.0 points and 6.9 rebounds. Barrett has been especially efficient on the glass in conference action, grabbing 8.3 boards per game, the third highest mark in the SEC. Senior forward Courtney Jones is also having a very nice SEC season. Nine games in, the Midfield, Ala., native is averaging 10.8 points and 6.3 rebounds per game.

Sunday is the 39th meeting between Kentucky and LSU. The Lady Tigers lead the overall series 28-10, including an 11-3 advantage when the game is played in Baton Rouge.

The?Cats have won three in a row over the Lady Tigers by an average of +4.3 points. UK defeated LSU twice last season, winning on a buzzer beater in Lexington, 49-47, and taking a 60-58 win in the SEC Tournament quarterfinals.

The game also can be heard live on the UK IMG Sports Radio Network or www.UKAthletics.com with Neil Price calling the action. Fans can follow the UK Hoops team on Twitter at @UKHoopCats and use #UKHoops to comment on the game.

 

 

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Lamb Says UK Men Would Beat The Ladies By 100

When UK womens play at home, you will find some of Cal's guys watching.

The coaches are friends.

It also isn't everyday when you have both teams undefeated in conference play this late in the year.

But, Bria Goss, who led UK to a blowout against Ole Miss with 19 points, believes that her Cats play tougher defense than the guys, and that she doesn't believe the men could play as hard as they do on defense.

"Let me just say I know Marquis (Teague) personally," says Bria Goss. "I don't think he can do it."

Samarie Walker, who is really coming into her own for Matthew Mitchell wasn't as strong.

"I will just say it's not easy and obviously it was tough for me when I came in to get used to this but, I mean, I don't know if they could do it. I'm not taking anything away them but, I don't know if they can do it."

It was fun sharing those thoughts with Doron Lamb. The look he gave me when I told him was priceless.

"I don't pay them no mind," says Lamb. "We'd beat the girls team by like a hundred points if we played them in a game so, I'm not going to say nothing."

Defense or not?

"Yeah, don't matter."

Doron was on a roll. He steps up his talking game by saying the men could spot the ladies by 20 and still beat them by 100.

To Doron the prankster. His roommate is Marquis Teague.

"Sometime at the beginning of the season I used to, when he was trying to go to sleep I would wet him when he'd sleep, but I stopped doing it because he would get mad, so I understand how he feels so I stopped wetting him a little bit."

Part of him being a rookie?

"No, I do it to everybody. Everybody knows that they can't sleep in front of me because I will wet you if you go to sleep in front of me so. It's hard to take naps in front of me."

Doron admits that some of the Cats wouldn't want to room with him.

 

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Cal Comments Pre-South Carolina

For the second time in three years, UK goes into South Carolina as the Number One team in America.  Cal as always talked before UK's last practice in Lexington before hitting the road.

UK Head Coach John Calipari
On whether or not the freshmen have hit the wall at all ...
"I think all four of them are doing great. They're getting better, learning, attentive, focused. I think they're all the first ones in there because they're excited about playing. So no, I don't believe so. They may in February somewhere with the schedule of games we have coming up. We could get
hit in the mouth."

On what he has seen defensively most recently from his players ...
"One of the things that's happening when we've got a pretty good lead so we're grinding it out at the end and that gives that other team, probably, six less possessions which is what we're trying to do. That's helping us. I always say, teams that lead the nation in defensive least amount of point, when you watch them offensively they hold the ball. So that other team has way less opportunity. What's happened to us is seven minutes to go, six minutes to go, we're pulling it back and grinding out the ball."

On making sure the team doesn't overlook any opponents coming up ...
"We approach every game the same and I'm going to go in there today like we played North Carolina or anybody else. We're going on the road. It's going to be a hard game. I watched their game last night with Florida. They shouldn't have been in the game and then all of the sudden you turn around and they've got the ball and it's a five-point game. I watched their game with Alabama.

They beat Alabama. I watched their game with Mississippi. They had Mississippi beat. If you watch the end of the game, you thought they won. If you didn't see the score, you said, ‘South Carolina won.' And they lost and it was the same thing. They're good enough to beat us and if we don't come and play one of our better games, we get beat."

On how South Carolina is better now versus when Kentucky played them last ...
"They've got two or three guys that are really playing well. Whether it's [Anthony] Gill who can really get it going offensively, or obviously their point guard, (Bruce Ellington), he can get it going. They have the other wing player who is really scoring baskets, their leading scorer, or their leading rebounder. And then the one kid blocks shots. They have a little bit of everything. I'm a little bit surprised at their record but I'm telling you, when you see they beat Alabama, had Mississippi beat, played Florida on the road and had their chances to win the game, and now have us, I think you see them moving in the right direction and I think you're going to see them start knocking people off. I just hope it's not us and that we're not the first."

On whether (Bruce) Ellington looks different from last time ...
"Yes, when he missed a few it led him to miss another one, another one, another one. He's not doing that now. He'll miss two shots and come back and make a shot or two. He's playing physical, he's better with the ball, his decision making is better than it was then. He'll be an issue for us."

On his thoughts on his team bonding on the road ...                                                                                                                                                                    "The best thing about when school ends and we have that time together and we're going three times a day, including a breakfast meal and an evening meal. Then you go on the road and you're 24/7 for two days and you're together at meals, at shoot around, at film sessions. They start coming together and that's why this time of the year, I like it and I really don't mind going on the road, especially when you're just trying to bring your team together."

On what Darrin Horn has been doing at South Carolina ...
"He's been doing fine. It's a hard job. He's set the stage for where he wants this to go, he went from man to zone. He's not afraid to try things. I think he's doing a fine job. It's just, South Carolina is hard. It's a hard deal to get going and that's why you have to stick with a guy and give him seven or eight years and give him something to get going. I think the last guy to really do some stuff down there may have been, what, Frank McGuire? It's a good program. It's a great school, great facilities. It just takes time to get it going right."

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Kentucky Values Teague For Playmaking, Not Points

(AP) - Marquis Teague's scoring average keeps dropping. It's just what top-ranked Kentucky has needed from its freshman point guard.

Teague has been passing up shots and cutting his turnovers, transitioning from scoring leader to distributor to the delight of coach John Calipari.

"The guy that has the ball, if he's playing well, you've got a chance. If he's not playing well, you have no chance. Now, he can play well and you still lose because everybody else is playing bad, but they can all play well and if he's playing poorly and you can't win," Calipari said. "He is really listening. He's playing the way we need him to play."

And Kentucky (22-1, 8-0 Southeastern Conference) has another bona fide star at the point following the likes of John Wall and Brandon Knight. Calipari also had success developing Tyreke Evans and Derrick Rose at Memphis.

Teague, the younger brother of Atlanta Hawks point guard Jeff Teague, has increased his value while producing fewer points.

"It's kind of like having a quarterback and that guy has to get us all in tune, and he is," Calipari said. "He's doing really well."

Teague had averaged 10.9 points over the Wildcats' first 17 games while averaging 4.4 assists and more than three turnovers per game. In the last six, Teague has reached double digits only once, but he's committing one less turnover a game while Kentucky won all six by an average of 15.6 points.

"It makes it a lot easier when you all like each other. I think we've got a great team where we pass the ball to each other," Teague said. "We've got guys that are like superstars on this team, everybody's unselfish, plays together and plays hard. It makes it a lot easier."

Kentucky's next test is a trip Saturday to South Carolina (9-11, 1-5), where the Gamecocks knocked off Calipari's first No. 1 team with the Wildcats in 2009.

Calipari stuck up for Teague earlier this season when he was criticized following 18 turnovers over a four-game stretch. He's improved even as fellow freshman Anthony Davis and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and the rest of the Wildcats draw most of the headlines.

"A guy like Marquis Teague, who scored 28 a game in high school, is running our team, not scoring as many points. A Michael Gilchrist who scored 25 a game. We're not running one play for Michael Gilchrist," Calipari said. "Whether it's Doron Lamb, Terrence Jones or Darius Miller ... they're accepting that these freshmen are really good. Yet they're still stepping up and playing. So there's a good thing going because they want to win. They like each other. They really do like each other."

Teague said repeatedly he knew what he signed up for when he came to Kentucky, and he's beginning to thrive in the system. He also has plans come April when the Wildcats may be featured in the only game of the month - the national championship.

"I'm just trying to stay within the offense, get everybody good shots and do what coach asks me to do," Teague said. "We just want to continue to get better every day. (We) just want to get better and ready for April."

(Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

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UK Women Blow Out Ole Miss 82-41 To Go To 10-0 In SEC

(AP) - Freshman Bria Goss scored 19 points and No. 6 Kentucky matched its best start ever with an 82-41 victory over Mississippi on Thursday night.

The Wildcats (21-2, 10-0 Southeastern Conference) equaled the 1982-83 team and are looking to do something that team couldn't - win an SEC championship to join the school's only other title team from the 1981-82 season.

Kentucky forced Mississippi (12-11, 2-8) into 36 turnovers, the most in a conference game this season, and didn't skip a beat even though leading scorer A'dia Mathies had an off night. Mathies, averaging 15.4 points, went 2 of 14 from the field and finished with 11 points.

Courtney Marbra scored seven points to lead Mississippi.

Kastine Evans scored 12 points and had a career-high seven steals, while Samarie Walker added 11 points as Kentucky won for the 18th straight time at home.

Whether Kentucky captures its second conference title in school history will likely be determined over the next three games. Kentucky heads on the road for games at LSU on Sunday, at No. 8 Tennessee on Feb. 13 and at Alabama on Feb. 16. The Wildcats already have a win over the Volunteers, who are two games back in the loss column after falling to South Carolina 64-60 on Thursday night.

Mississippi never got within single digits in the second half. Up 40-29, the Wildcats used a 15-3 run to put the game out of the reach that included five different scorers.

Crystal Riley hit a 3-pointer in the right corner, Walker cleaned up a miss from Mathies, Evans hit a jumper and after Bernisha Pinkett's strip and missed layup, the Wildcats grabbed three offensive rebounds before Walker finally scored to give Kentucky a 55-32 lead with 13:53 left.

Kentucky would make it 30 with just over 8 minutes left and take its first 40-point lead in the final 1:27 as Mississippi shot 27.3 percent in the second half.

The Rebels were without inside presence Nikki Byrd, who was averaging 13.1 points and 9.5 rebounds but was hurt late in the Rebels' loss on Sunday to Auburn. Leading scorer Valencia McFarland was held to six points, well-short of her average of 13.6 per game.

Kentucky freshman Azia Bishop didn't dress because of an unspecified violation of team rules.

No matter, the Wildcats kept on rolling after an early hiccup.

Kentucky jumped out to a 7-2 lead, but after Mathies' layup the Wildcats went more than 6½ minutes without a field goal before Brittany Henderson's putback of a Mathies' miss gave Kentucky an 18-16 lead.

Mississippi, which is beginning a stretch of five of its final seven regular-season games on the road, took its only lead, 14-12, after consecutive baskets by McFarland, but couldn't extend it because the Rebels kept sending Kentucky to the foul line early.

Kentucky finally got going and Keyla Snowden hit a 3-pointer from the right corner that gave Kentucky its first double-digit lead, 29-18, with 6:05 left. Mississippi, which came in averaging 17.5 turnovers per game, committed three in the final minute to finish the half with 20 and trailed 37-23 at the break.

(Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

 

 

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UK 82 Ole Miss 41

UK, off to their best start in SEC history came out with some tough defense, but Ole Miss didn't seem to upset because they were out-shooting Matthew Mitchell's team.

With less than 7 minutes to go in the first half, UK led 24-18 even though they were shooting only 32%.  Ole Miss was hittintg 53%, a surprising number.  UK had the lead because their defense at times looked like they had six players on the court. 

Ole Miss had 13 turnovers at that point, with UK losing it only 6 times.

Kentucky's energy started wearing Ole Miss down.

Keyla Snowden with a pretty three from the baseline to give UK a 29-18 lead.

Then it was A'dia Mathis with a slick long pass to Samantha Drake who makes it 31-21 UK. The turnover battle is 16-7 and Ole Miss is starting to miss with their shooting down to 45% with the Cats up by 10.

Ole Miss averages 17 turnovers a game.  They have 20 at the half.  UK has only 8.

Ole Miss continued to lose their shooting touch.  They finished the half at 41%.  UK didn't shoot well for the entire 20 minutes and they finish with 30%.

UK leads 37-23 at the half with their best player, A'dia Mathis having an off night.  Mathis has hit only 1 of 8 shots, but UK still leads by 14.

Ole Miss ran out of steam in the second half.

Crystal Riley with a 3 to give UK a 49-32 lead.

Then after another UK steal, Samarie Walker goes to the boards.  After four misses by UK she puts it in.  55-32 with 13:52 to go.

After yet another Ole Miss turnover, Bria Goss goes flying in for a layup, UK leads 70-39.  The talented freshman led all scorers with 19 points.

UK had four players in double figures.  Kastine Evans had 12 points and a career high 7 steals. The great A'dia Mathis had 11 even though she shot 2 of 14, and Samari Walker also chipped in with 11 points and 6 rebounds.

What was more impressive than the 82-41 win was UK forcing 36 turnovers.  That's their best effort in SEC play this season.  UK only had 10 turnovers.

After a fast start, Ole Miss got cold from the field.  Both teams shot 35%.

UK is now 21-2 overall and 10-0 in SEC play.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Top Recruit Nerlens Noel Reclassifies To 2012

Nerlens Noel was the best center in the class of 2013, until now.

Noel has reclassified to the class of 2012 and Kentucky is on his list.

At 6-foot-10, Noel is a defensive beast, and may even be a better shot blocker than Anthony Davis.

He also lists Syracuse, UConn, Georgetown, Florida, Providence and North Carolina as schools he's interested in.

Noel is currently in prep school.

 

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UK Hoops Takes On Ole' Miss Thursday

The No. 6/5 Kentucky women's basketball team looks to continue its record-breaking season when they meet Ole Miss on Thursday in Memorial Coliseum. It will mark the final home game for the Cats until Feb. 20. Game time is 7 p.m. ET.

This marks the first time in program history UK has started conference play 9-0, and UK's 20-2 start ties its best start in program history through the first 22 games. Kentucky's best start to a season was in 1982-83 (21-2). The Wildcats have also won a school-record 12 straight SEC games dating back to last season, and their current 17-game home winning streak is the fourth longest in program history.

"We are looking forward to playing tomorrow night," UK Hoops Coach Matthew Mitchell said. "We have another tough opponent coming into Memorial. We're happy to have a chance to play at home and Ole Miss has a good team and we'll have to be ready to earn a victory. We're looking for a good practice today and we're excited to have another chance to play."

UK earned its third consecutive 20-win season Sunday with an 82-68 win over Alabama. The balanced scoring effort was led by senior Keyla Snowden (Lexington, Ky.) with 14 points, while junior A'dia Mathies (Louisville, Ky.) and freshman Bria Goss (Indianapolis) added 13 and 11 points, respectively. UK forced the Tide into 25 turnovers resulting in 29 points for the Wildcats.

Overall this season, Mathies, who was named to the John R. Wooden Award Midseason Top-20 list, leads the team in almost every statistical category, including scoring (15.4), steals (2.9), 3-point field goals made (38) and 3-point field goal percentage (.388). She is also second on the team in rebounding (5.4) and assists (2.4). Goss follows in the scoring column with 11.4, while sophomore forward Samarie Walker (West Carrollton, Ohio) is the team's leading rebounder with 6.3 rebounds per game.

UK ranks in the top 10 of five national statistical categories. The Cats lead the nation in turnover margin (+11.4), are sixth in won-lost percentage (90.9), seventh in scoring offense (78.1), eighth in scoring margin (21.0) and ninth in steals per game (13.1).

Ole Miss (12-10, 2-7 Southeastern Conference) enters Thursday's contest coming off a 54-67 loss at home to Auburn on Sunday afternoon. Sophomore point guard Valencia McFarland led the Rebels with team highs in points (15) and assists (four), and a team-high tying five rebounds and three steals.

McFarland leads the Rebels in scoring and assists. The 5-foot-4 Edwards, Miss., native is sixth in the conference in scoring, averaging 13.6 points per game, and is second in the SEC in assists, passing out 5.3 per game. Senior forward Nikki Byrd cleans the glass for Ole Miss, grabbing 9.5 rebounds per game, second in the conference, to go with her 13.1 points per game.

Thursday will mark the 33rd meeting between Ole Miss and Kentucky. The Rebels lead the series 20-12, including an 8-6 advantage when the game is played in Lexington. However, UK has won two in a row vs. the Rebels and two in a row in Lexington. UK won last year's meeting 74-68 in Oxford on Jan. 27, 2011.

A limited number of reserve tickets remain for Thursday's game. Fans interested in tickets can visit the Joe Craft Center ticket office, go to UKathletics.com, or call the UK ticket office at 1-800-928-CATS.

All reserved tickets are $7 regardless of age. Age 5 and under are admitted free. UK students, faculty and staff are also admitted for free, based upon availability.

If not able to attend the game, it can be heard on the UK IMG Sports Radio Network with Neil Price. Fans can also follow the UK Hoops team on Twitter at @UKHoopCats and use #UKHoops to comment on the game.

 

 

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Joker's Comments On His 26 Player Recruiting Class

This is most of Joker's comments during his signing day press conference.

COACH PHILLIPS: This past season has been a really good season and I say "season" past year, because this thing started a year ago. We didn't just all of the sudden begin to recruit. Recruiting is year-round these days, and this staff did an unbelievable job of recruiting. The (recruiting) staff is made up of the coaching staff, their families, their wives did an unbelievable job, our support staff, the people in this building, and across the campus.

That includes Mitch Barnhart, Dr. (Eli) Capilouto, and Coach "Cal" (John Calipari), who did an outstanding job of -- very few big-time Division I coaches in men's basketball are willing to open up their locker room at the 30-minute mark and let some high school football recruits come in and address them, and I appreciate Coach Cal for doing that.

And Dr. Capilouto and Mitch Barnhart, when we got those guys in front of our prospects, they did an outstanding job of selling our vision and where we are as a football program, and it was a good chance for us to -- for the recruits to hear from our administration, the support that we have here at Kentucky. This is a strong recruiting class, and the class got stronger in the last 48 hours when a couple of kids decided to join us.

This is our second year in a row that we have had an opportunity to sign a full class. I say "full class" I mean a full class of 25. Because of the numbers and because of the quality that we have had in these last two classes, I think the core, the core and the strength of this program is in our younger players, these 59 players that have three years or more (of eligibility) in this program right now.

Last year we brought in 25, 11 of those got on the field, could have easily been 4 or 5 others that could have got on the field, the other guys probably needed a year of development but there were a couple of other guys that could have gotten on the field and we feel that this is that type of class and might even be better than the class we put together last year.

I also talked to you last year about we have come up with a profile of what the student athlete in football looks like here at Kentucky. Has to be high character, a guy that really wants to get a degree and a guy that wants to be successful and loves the game of football, not only loves the game of football but loves playing the game of football here at Kentucky, and this staff did a good job of evaluating early and I say "a year ago" because we started a year ago.

We started two or three weeks ago starting on the 2013 class. So it's about the same time that we started on the '12 class, so we did a good job of evaluating early guys that fit this profile and guys that fit our needs, also playing at a high level in this league that you have to have.

Because of that we were able to get kids to commit to us early and they might not have gotten all the attention from other scouts, other schools because of that. We were able to get 'em early enough because we identified them and because of the profile that we talk about, that our kids that we're looking for, okay, the commitment meant something to them and late in this process there was a lot of kids that were getting hammered by other teams, and Jordan Watson was one of the those guys getting killed by other teams, trying to get him to turn his back on the University of Kentucky, and Jordan stood strong. A couple of other kids, Dyshawn Mobley, another kid that stayed strong because of the profile that we were looking for, a guy that has high character, wants to get a degree and loves to play football and brings that love here to the University of Kentucky; we were able to hold on to what we called a great class that got even better in the last 48 hours.

A lot of that had to do with the relationships that we have established and that's the thing that this staff has talked about. We talk about family atmosphere and it truly is. If you look at the staff from to the to bottom, those are guys that I have had relationships with in the past, not only as they have coached me or I've coached with or seen coach or some of them were friends that we have met in this business, and that has nothing to do with -- and I heard a statement that "Coach Brooks' guys are out of here," it's not about Coach Brooks' guys, it's about Joker's guys, and everybody understands the type of relationship that Coach Brooks and I had here at Kentucky.

I would die on the sword for Coach Brooks, our relationship was strong, very strong. I want the guys that are willing to die on the sword for me in the back of the room, and we have 'em.

We were able to sign some top players here from Kentucky, the top player (Patrick Towles), and along with that three other players from Kentucky. The state of Ohio, who we have been talking about has to be important to us, we got two kids from the state of Ohio, and I appreciate the effort of Coach (Rick) Minter and Coach (Mike) Cassity, who has joined our staff, we were able to get two quality players in the state of Ohio and has to be a huge emphasis of ours to be able to go into the state of Ohio, which is - (there are) a lot of people between here and Dayton that love the game of football that fit the profile that we're looking for, and we have got to be in there, and not just be in there but be in there strong.

Eight kids from Georgia, we continue to go into that state and attract kids. I think because of the relationships that many of the guys on this staff, Coach (Greg) Nord has relationships with the coaches in Georgia, Coach (Tee) Martin, myself, Coach (David) Turner, offensively our staff has relationships with the high school coaches, with the addition of Coach (Steve) Pardue, he got us into south Georgia, which we hadn't been as strong in the in the last few years but bringing Coach Pardue on board strengthened those relationships.

Four from the state of Florida, and Coach (Mike) Summers has done an unbelievable job in the north Florida area. Usually you don't see an offensive line coach responsible for a huge area, he has one for us in Florida, and a lot of that is in the northern part of Florida and done an outstanding job for us.

Coach (Chuck) Smith did a great job in the state of Indiana in which we were able to sign three more kids along with the other kids that we have on our team from Indiana.

State of Tennessee, which Coach (Randy) Sanders continues to go into Tennessee and get players that we know and that fit our profile that we know can compete here in the SEC, and one kid from Alabama that Coach Martin just hangs around, hangs around until one shows up that we feel like can help us. The needs offensively, what we were looking for, the key to the class was to find a top-ranked quarterback (Patrick Towles), and he came on early. He was coming back from his spring break, came over to the office, committed to us.

He became the face of this class, so we were able to get that top quarterback; playmakers at the wide receiver position (A.J. Legree and DeMarcus Sweat), as you all know, is something that we had to go for. We feel good about that position, couple of SEC backs (DyShawn Mobley and Justin Taylor). We were kind of hanging around late, and when he (Taylor) became available we reached out and touched people that we had relationships with and we were able to attract him and those relationships were strong and there were a lot of people who hadn't seen this place, and the kid hadn't really seen this place, and that speaks volumes to me on the relationships that we have, because the kid hadn't seen the place and late in the game decided to join us and gain a top-ranked back.

A Wildcat-type quarterback, that was important for us to find (Jalen Whitlow), especially the way we played in the last game. Sometimes things happen you have to get into different packages and I think when we can get an opportunity to add a package to our offense that's great.

He is a Randall Cobb-type athlete. It's hard to compare to be with Randall Cobb, but that's what Randall was when we got him, we think he's the type of player.

Big offensive linemen, I'm not talking about big this way, but big this way (tall)! And Coach Summers, his profile, he wants guys over 6-4 and the one thing he says is he and Coach Nord say, "If you want NFL offensive linemen, they have to look like them." There are some exceptions, especially at the center position, they could be more athletic, smaller, but we want to get the guys -- but we were able to get those guys over the 6-4 mark and especially on the edge and on the offensive line.

Defensively we are all learning how to recruit to this new system. This new system requires us to have more athletes on the field, what you are seeing offensively, with the spread, people are running the spread and running a power game with it, power packages, you better have athletic guys that cannot only play out in space but they better be physical enough to play over tight ends and playing the power game. So, the back seven, it was really important that we go out and try to fulfill those needs because of the production that we lost in the back seven, the back seven being the linebackers and the secondary.

We signed 11 guys in those positions, in the linebackers and the secondary; seven in the defensive backfield and four linebacker-type bodies. We were able to add to what we think should be our strength on defense, the defensive line, still able to go out and find three quality defensive linemen. Any questions?

Q. Re: opportunity for defensive backs to come in and play

COACH PHILLIPS: Obviously we recruit guys that -- one of the selling points was you were going to have an opportunity to come in here and play.

Again, we will continue to do what we have done in the past, our present players will be battling for the 1 and 2 spots because we want to give our new kids this new class an opportunity to get enough reps to see if they can come in and help us. They will come in at the 3 spot. Some, because of depth, may come in at the 2 spot because of depth, so they will all get an opportunity early to see if they can help us.

We feel like the more that can help us -- again, we played 11 out of our class last year, and this class should be able to come in and help us, even more this year.

Q. re: Jonathan Reed and Cody Quinn

COACH PHILLIPS: Reed and Quinn, first of all you want guys in the secondary that are wanting to compete. These guys are good competitors, they better have a short memory, because things happen back there, better be physical, better be tough and guys that want to get up in people's faces and challenge them; that's the way we play.

When they walk into the room, they light it up, they are guys that people want to be around. We always talk about "This is a guy that I would hang out with in college," and both of those guys are it.

Q. Possibility of Quinn being a kick returner

COACH PHILLIPS: We talked about the return game with Quinn, same with Reed; they need to be dynamic returners, also.

Q. When did you get word that the late commitments were going to sign?

COACH PHILLIPS: Well, I mean, we had heard, had a couple of ideas that these kids were probably going to sign with us, but you never know. And one guy (Taylor) was two miles from the school, from home to school, a lot can happen in two miles, a lot! Especially in Atlanta, two miles is probably forty minutes, right? (Chuckles.) And we heard that he was headed to the school to fax it, you don't want to get too excited but there is some excitement in your belly. It erupts when the fax comes through.

I think Dick (Gabriel) had a chance to experience it, the excitement that our staff had when he came in, when the fax came in on both of those guys. Again, we thought that both might sign, but you don't get excited until those faxes really come through the machine.

Q. Re: the excitement in the recruiting room when the new commitments came through.

COACH PHILLIPS: Lit up, it lit up. It made us better coaches, no question about that. We tell the players we got better today when every one of the kids on the side of this room came in. The first one that came in was this guy up here (Towles). That's what you better have. You better have a guy that's going to pull the trigger, going to be the leader and the face of your program, that's going to be the first guy that shows up and his was the first that showed up.

Q. Re: Patrick Towles and what he brings

COACH PHILLIPS: Well, again, Kentucky guys, parents are born and raised here, his grandfather (Hall of Fame pitcher Jim Bunning), we know what type of athlete he was, and actually he will wear his number, he will be No. 14, I think that was important to him. Again, high character, he is a guy that will get a degree and a guy that wants to be successful here at Kentucky and I think that's important.

It's very important for this staff, important for him. Again he was a guy identified early, established a relationship, got him to commit, and didn't worry, okay, did not worry about people coming in and trying to sway him. Because he was a high-character-type kid.

Q. What did you like about him?

COACH PHILLIPS: Big, big athlete that can throw the football. He's a guy that came in here, I think he's at 230; he was 242. Hopefully he doesn't get as big as his quarterback coach he has right now -- (Chuckles.) But big athlete, takes charge, he's a film room junkie, winner, went in as a sophomore when the starting quarterback goes down, he was the guy that went in and all he did was lead 'em to a state championship as a sophomore and then went on to win two more after that. He's the guy that's the type of leader that we need to be the face of this program.

Q. Re: concern over Towles' commitment

COACH PHILLIPS: With a guy like Patrick Towles, no, very little concern, let's put it that way because I got a call at 10:30 from him, woke up out of a sleep and all he wanted to know was, "Coach, does the SEC letter need to have a time on it?" And, again, he's the type of kid that we were looking for. He committed early, and the profile, the kind of kid that we believe in, he stayed strong to what he believed in.

Q. Re: deciding which defensive backs play cornerback and which play safety

COACH PHILLIPS: We will have some that we have identified to be corners, some that we have identified to be safeties, some that we have identified to be the hybrid safety. What this allows us to do is maybe some of the kids that are in our program that are the hybrid-type of guy that's probably in development, couple years ahead of these guys in development might allow us to move them inside closer to the ball.

When you move 'em closer to the football it makes us a faster football team defensively.

Q. Re: Patrick Graffree being the type of player you want at Kentucky

COACH PHILLIPS: Coach Turner, did you hear that one? Patrick Graffree, is he the type of kid that you want at Kentucky? All you have to do is follow him, he's going to give you information every day. He's a guy that's proud to be a Wildcat and not ashamed to show it. Patrick Graffree is not ashamed to show it, he's proud to be a Wildcat.

Q. Re: the challenge of finding linemen

COACH PHILLIPS: It's real important to grow your big guys close to home, I think that's real important. We have had success in doing that here, (Corey) Peters, (Myron) Pryor, (Garry) Williams, we have had guys that have had success here and not only success here but at the next level. It's real important for us, if we can, to grow our big guys close to home.

Q. On opportunity for Towles to compete for playing time

COACH PHILLIPS: It definitely is, they all have an opportunity to play and to compete for a job here.

Q. Re: recruitment of Justin Taylor

COACH PHILLIPS: Well, he was on campus and he did not see many of our coaches. He was on campus two weeks ago, and we got word of him being here with an academic team here on campus, we got wind, we invited him over, Coach Sanders was the only coach that he got a chance to see along with Tyler Sargent, showed him around the facility, our trainers checked out his knee and felt that he would be ready for June, and we feel that he will be ready to come back and display his ability in the fall camp as an SEC back.

He's not as big tall-wise as he is compact, and I think that's what an SEC back better be, to withstand the blows that he's going to take, Dyshawn (Mobley) is the same type of back; he has the ability to make people miss. Coach Sanders always talk about one guy in the back end that you can't block, and we want backs that if we turn the safeties loose, about the third period, they don't want to tackle them. Sometimes when we go in and have plays, our receivers will go in and dig out safeties. Now it's the corners, they don't want to tackle these guys after period one, and we have a couple of those guys, and we think that's important.

Q. Re: Khalid Henderson

COACH PHILLIPS: Khalid Henderson was a guy that we were sitting there waiting, when he became available, Coach Minter had a chance to go down and visit with him, and he liked the look in his eyes, liked him physically -- and I say "physically" because you better like 'em physically first, you know, because -- it's just like when I met my wife, I saw her from a distance, I better like what I saw first, before I approach her (laughter).

And Coach came back and described him to us, he liked him physically, you kinda question until you see him for your own eyes, and when I did that, it was exactly what Coach Minter saw, again, fit the profile of what we want to be the face of our defense, and that's what the linebacker is, the face of our defense, and he runs around and makes play after play after play. Coach and him sat down and watched film, and it was only on Danny Trevathan. Coach doesn't mind long meetings when he has a recruit on campus, and Khalid didn't mind those long meetings. We are looking for football junkies, and that's what Khalid is. He saw the potential to be put into the position that Danny Trevathan was in making plays for us.

Q. Re: offensive line signees are already the size of college linemen

COACH PHILLIPS: It definitely helps when you can bring in offensive linemen that look like SEC offensive linemen. Now, their strength levels might not be up there yet but we brought one in last year in Darrian Miller whose strength levels weren't there, but he was athletic enough and mentally he could handle it, therefore he was -- and, again, talent will overcome experience and his talent overcame some of the experienced guys that was in front of him.

We think these guys are talented enough, we got to get 'em physically ready to compete at a high level, but physically their bodies, they have long arms, at the tackle position. We have a couple of guys that have enough strength to play inside, we just got to get 'em prepared mentally.

Q. Re: possibility of Towles being further along because of having worked with Jared Lorenzen

COACH PHILLIPS: Well, just because of the system that he's been in, also, not just Jared They (Highlands HS) do a good job of developing quarterbacks, he (Coach Dale Mueller) was there before Jared, Coach Minter had one of his guys, a kid from Cincinnati (Gino Guidugli), so they have done a good job of developing quarterbacks, it's the system there. We feel like it gives him a chance to compete and compete early.

Q. Re: being able to see a player in summer camp

COACH PHILLIPS: That's huge! That's huge! We don't worry about what stars any of you guys might put on 'em, it's huge. I value, I really value the valuation back there in that room more than I do some guy that's putting stars on guys. Just watched a couple reels of film and put a star value on those guys.

I value Coach Summers and his evaluation. And being able to work with guys in two sessions of camp means more than to me than anything, and some of them might not be ranked as high as some of our folks might want, but I don't remember Dermontti Dawson having a huge star on him, he might have been a zero star when he came in because he hadn't played a lot of football, and he couldn't bench, but he left here a five-star guy. And that's the reason I value the evaluations of those guys in the back room, along with this guy here in the front.

One thing we want to do is see all of our kids practice, also, we want somebody to see 'em do something physically, and that's what I value. I don't value the star system.

Q. Re: recruiting of Langston Newton

COACH PHILLIPS: Langston Newton, he has been (here), but it isn't as easy as you would think. You would think that we have a good relationship with his family and his family has been outstanding through the time that Morgan has been here but the recruitment of Langston was not as easy as you think. He wanted to do his own thing, he wanted to go about this process in his own way, he took Morgan out of it and his family out of it and he's, again, high character kid, very intelligent kid that did his homework. He didn't allow Morgan to do his homework. He did his own, and we were able to land him because of that, because he felt strong enough about this program himself.

Q. Re: seeing DyShawn Mobley in the summer

COACH PHILLIPS: Well, we made the decision at camp that Dyshawn was good enough to play in this league. We made that decision that night at camp. After going through the testing, after watching him go through the drills, watching how he worked, how he interacted with other people. The problem was we didn't know him, okay, we did not know him and a lot of the other kids we didn't know, some others that we offered in camp. One thing we wanted to be fair is to this program. Let's establish a relationship with him, let him establish a relationship with us.

We asked him to come back up here, he did, we asked him to come back up for a game, Coach Pardue went down to watch him play a game, we got around the school, so we are now starting to establish a relationship because if we would have offered him then and there and he would have committed because we hadn't established a relationship, it's hard to think that the commitment would have been strong enough to keep him.

But because of the relationship that we built with him first, then the trust that he had in us and us telling him, "Love to offer you now, but we would like to get to know you." That's it, that's what we told him, and it's hard to do in this business, and because we were honest and up front with him, that's the reason we were able to hold off the teams that tried to come in and sway him.

Q. How many of the signees were seen in he summer?

COACH PHILLIPS: Oh, I don't know. Somebody count that up, how many guys were in our camp? I don't know. Lots! Lots! I know the Blaylock triplets were in our camp, I can tell you that! I've been asked that numerous times, Chapman was in our camp, Patrick Graffree was in our camp, Foster was in our camp twice, Nord? Harris was not, more than that now, T.J. Jones -- 15. I value those guys back there evaluations. We had two sessions when they were in our camp, that's two sessions to work with 'em and that's what I value.

Q. Re: what attracted the coaches to Landon Foster

COACH PHILLIPS: Foster? Made it rain, Coach Nord? Didn't he, Coach Nord? Make it rain, that's his term, and the ball has to sound different. You know an SEC punter when you hear him, you know an SEC kicker when you -- you don't have to see it, you can close your eyes and walk past and it's going to sound different than a pee-wee punter. This guy is an SEC punter, high character kid, intelligent, right look in his eyes, room lights up when he comes in.

Q. Re: challenge of recruiting with the addition of Missouri and Texas A&M

COACH PHILLIPS: Again, this is the toughest league no, doubt about that and we have proven that we have been right in the mix here, and this gives us plenty of hope that we feel like we can compete with the top-ranked teams. I think we've beaten every team in the east in the last four or five years except for Florida, beaten many of the teams in the west and went toe-to-toe with 'em, so we feel comfortable with us being one of those top-ranked programs, also, we just got to find consistency in the program.

Q. Re: after defeating Tennessee and signing his class, does the program have momentum?

COACH PHILLIPS: Well, we have a lot of momentum right now. With that win over Tennessee and with this class, but it means nothing, means nothing. We have to continue the development of the players that we have on our campus and that's the way to get better, is development of the players and also additions. We have added a quality class, the thing that we have to do is have some momentum going into not only fall camp but also have momentum going into the football season.

Q. Re: being able to sell the opportunity to play

COACH PHILLIPS: Yeah, we are. We are selling the opportunities to play. If you look at our top classes we don't have a lot of numbers in our top classes so that becomes an opportunity for a young guy to come in here and play.

Again, 59 players, three years or more (eligibility remaining), it's going to be harder for us to sell that. Especially with the quality, not only the numbers, not only the 59 kids that have three years or more but the quality in that 59 that we have.

Q. Re: importance of getting wide receivers

COACH PHILLIPS: It was key for us to get some quality wide receivers and one of 'em was in camp, right? (DeMarcus) Sweat was in camp and, again, trust his evaluation, trust Coach Sanders and I used to be a decent wide receivers coach, and we feel good about him, and along comes A.J. Legree. Before he went to the All-Star game, we offer him, everybody else hears about the All-Star game and they start to come in, again, Coach Sanders established a relationship with the coach and with A.J. Legree, the kid commits and that's trust in my opinion, building a relationship with a kid when the kid commits before showing up on campus and, again, because of the profile of the kid that we're looking for, understood what commitment meant, they weren't able to sway him.

Q. Re: why rival schools were unable to sway Jordan Watson

COACH PHILLIPS: Again, the profile of the kid that we have. There is a reason why they weren't able to sway Jordan Watson -- high character, understands what a commitment means, he wants to get a quality degree and that's what we have here, kids that want to get quality degrees, therefore they aren't able to sway those type of kids.

Q. Re: getting an early look at the 2013 class

COACH PHILLIPS: And we did. Some we saw four or five weeks in a row with a different coach coming in to see them, just to get our face, our logo in front of them, again, that's how you establish relationships, and it's hard to come between when you've established that type of relationship with the kids.

It's a really good class, we will have a couple of junior days to build the relationships that we have established. We were able to get into Cincinnati, we blitzed it one Friday and that's what we tried to do is use our Fridays and use them wisely by getting into areas close to home, but Fridays are usually a short day, a day that you don't get a chance to see some recruits because they are usually on visits so we use it to stay closer to home and see some of our (2013) ‘13 kids which gave us a chance to establish relationships, have 'em on campus, just continue to build on that relationship.

Then we get a commitment from them we feel strong about that commitment.

Q. On Phillips' strong stance on positive recruiting

COACH PHILLIPS: It has definitely set us apart. Sundays I meet -- we have the kids to my house on Sunday for Sunday brunch and I meet with those kids and their parents in my office and the thing that I hear the most is, "Coach we get a lot of information here at Kentucky." We don't spend time talking about other people's problems; we don't do that. We spend our time wisely, and our time wisely here at Kentucky is talking about what we have here at Kentucky.

If I'm talking about Matt May, I'm waisting Joker Phillips, and I'm wasting time. The thing we want to do is sell our program, and the thing that I hear from our parents -- and we had, I bet you 95, 96% of these kids had their parents on campus with them when they came on the visit, and all of those parents talked about getting more information at Kentucky than we do any other school and a lot of that has to do with us selling Kentucky. We're not spending time talking about somebody else's problems.

Information with our CATS center, about our coaching staff, our conference, we have 108 majors, we sell Kentucky. We show them our stadium, our video boards, we have this beautiful city that we have here in Lexington, so we are selling Kentucky and pumping them with information to help them make a wise decision about what is going to be on their wall for the next forty years, that degree.

 

 

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Bios Of All Of UK's New Football Signees

Daron Blaylock, DB, 6-1, 215, Fr-HS, Marietta, Ga. (Walton) - Played both safety and linebacker in high school ... Second-team all-state in Class AAAAA by the Georgia Sports Writers Association ... Played at Walton HS in Marietta, Ga. ... Helped Walton to a 14-1 record and state runnerup finish in Class AAAAA ... Ranked as the No. 31 inside linebacker in the nation by 24/7 Sports ... One of the nation's top-100 linebackers by Scout.com ... Posted 75 tackles and an interception during his junior season ... Has been timed in the 4.5-second range in the 40-yard dash, an excellent time for a linebacker ... Coached by Rocky Hidalgo ... Son of Mookie Blaylock, who played 13 years in the NBA with New Jersey, Atlanta and Golden State ... Twin brother of fellow UK signee Zack Blaylock ... Name pronounced same as "Darren."

Shawn Blaylock, DB, 5-10, 166, Fr-HS, Lithonia, Ga. (Stephenson) - Two-way player in high school, seeing action as a wide receiver and cornerback at Stephenson HS in Stone Mountain, Ga. ... Projects as a defensive back as a collegian ... Broke the school record with three interceptions in a game ... Team posted a 9-2 record and advanced to the state playoffs both his seasons at Stephenson ... Also played corner his sophomore season at Shiloh HS in Snellville, Ga. ... The nation's No. 77 corner by Scout.com ... Has been timed under 4.5 seconds in the 40-yard dash ... Coached at Stephenson by Ron Gartrell ... Teammate of current UK signee DeMarcus Sweat ... Will join former Stephenson products Jabari Johnson, Raymond Sanders and Ronnie Shields at UK.

Zack Blaylock, DB, 6-0, 188, Fr-HS, Marietta, Ga. (Walton) - Big-play performer from his safety position ... Intercepted 11 passes as a senior, returning five for touchdowns ... First-team all-state in Class AAAAA by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Georgia Sports Writers Association ... Played at Walton HS in Marietta, Ga. ... Helped Walton to a 14-1 record and state runnerup finish in Class AAAAA ... Cobb County Defensive Player of the Year ... Rated the No. 34 safety in the nation by Rivals.com ... Rated No. 52 nationally by Scout.com ... One of the top-40 prospects in Georgia by SuperPrep ... Coached by Rocky Hidalgo ... Son of Mookie Blaylock, who played 13 years in the NBA with New Jersey, Atlanta and Golden State ... Twin brother of fellow UK signee Daron Blaylock.

Kory Brown, DB, 6-0, 208, So-JC, Moncks Corner, S.C. (Berkeley/East Central Community College) - Enrolled at UK in January ... Has three years of eligibility at UK after redshirting 2011 while recovering from a knee injury ... Spent the last two years at East Central Community College in Decatur, Miss. ... Played four games at safety as a freshman until sustaining the injury ... During those four games he made 26 tackles, caused two fumbles and intercepted a pass ... The nation's No. 69 junior-college player as ranked by 247 Sports, also the No. 11 juco player in Mississippi and the nation's No. 3 juco safety ... Coached by Brian Anderson ... "Kory's physical nature stands out," Anderson said. "He gets off blocks well and is a big hitter. He's also a quality young man of the finest character." ... Played high school football at Berkeley HS in Moncks Corner, S.C. ... Three-year starter who played cornerback and safety ... An all-region pick as a senior ... Helped Berkeley to three strong runs in the state playoffs, including a state semifinal appearance his junior year and quarterfinal berths as a sophomore and senior ... Played for the winning South team in the South Carolina North-South All-Star Game following his senior season ... Coached at Berkeley by Jerry Brown ... Berkeley's defensive coordinator, Ed Moore, said, "Kory was the most instinctive player I've ever coached, always at the right place at the right time. He's a very physical player, very good in run support as well as pass coverage. He's also a great young man." ... In addition to football, participated in basketball, baseball, wrestling and track and field in high school ... Advanced to the state meet in the high jump his senior year and had a best leap of six feet, four inches ... Comes from an athletic family ... An older brother, Omar, played football at Marshall and was a senior in 2011 ... Another brother, Evan McKelvey, currently plays at Marshall ... A cousin J.J. McKelvey, played at Clemson and is now playing arena football ... Kory enjoys community service and has helped coach children in youth league sports.

Thomas Chapman, DL, 6-4, 285, Fr-HS, Louisville, Ky. (duPont Manual) - Highly regarded defensive tackle prospect ... The nation's No. 30 DT and the No. 2 prospect in Kentucky by Rivals.com ... The No. 31 tackle and No. 4 Kentucky prospect by 24/7 Sports ... The No. 32 tackle nationally by Scout.com ... No. 4 in Kentucky by ESPN and SuperPrep ... Selected for the Offense-Defense All-America Game at Cowboys Stadium ... Played at duPont Manual HS in Louisville ... Bounced back to play his senior year after missing most of his junior season because of injury ... Team went 9-3 his senior season and was in the second round of the Class AAAAAA playoffs ... Coached by Dr. Oliver Lucas.

Landon Foster, K/P, 6-1, 198, Fr-HS, Thompson Station, Tenn. (Independence) - Has the ability and versatility to be a punter and kicker on the collegiate level ... Named first-team all-state in Class AAAAAA as a kicker by the Tennessee Sports Writers' Association ... Picked as the punter for the all-state "Dream Team," covering all classifications, by the Nashville Tennesseean ... Made 11 of 16 field goals as a senior with a long of 49 ... Averaged 41.3 yards per punt ... 50 of his 56 kickoffs went for touchbacks and four of the others were on-side kicks ... Named his team's Most Valuable Player, a rare honor for a kicking specialist ... Independence HS went 8-3 his senior year and reached the state playoffs in Class AAAAAA ... Rated the No. 8 kicker in the nation by Scout.com and the No. 12 kicker by 24/7 Sports ... The No. 10 prospect in the state of Tennessee by SuperPrep, which wrote, "Technically strong with good hang times and directional ability. Also performs well under pressure." ... Played for the winning West team in the Tennessee East-West All-Star Game ... Coached by Kevin Dyson ... Has worked with former Tennessee Titans punter Craig Hentrich ... Also played soccer in high school.

Patrick Graffree, DL, 6-4, 270, Fr-HS, Elizabethtown, Ky. (Central Hardin) - Second-team all-state as a senior by The Associated Press and the Louisville Courier-Journal ... Played at Central Hardin HS in Cecilia, Ky. ... Team's best finish was 9-3 as a junior, advancing to the second round of the state playoffs ... Totaled 91 tackles as a junior, featuring 10 tackles for loss, six quarterback sacks and a pass interception ... Participated in a pair of postseason all-star games after his senior year ... Played for the winning Greater Louisville team in the Best of the Bluegrass All-Star Game, defeating a team from the remainder of the state ... Also played in the Kentucky vs. Tennessee Border Bowl ... One of the top-10 prospects in Kentucky by Rivals.com, 24/7 Sports and SuperPrep ... The nation's No. 72 defensive tackle by 24/7 ... Head coaches at Central Hardin were former UK quarterback Mark Perry and Mike Lawson.

Josh Harris, DB, 6-0, 191, Fr-HS, Maysville, Ky. (Mason County) - Versatile athlete ... His multiple skills were displayed at Mason County (Ky.) High School, where he played running back, receiver, linebacker and defensive back ... Rushed for 2,848 yards and 42 touchdowns in his career, despite missing most of his senior season because of injury ... Totaled 582 receiving yards and eight TDs ... Also threw a couple of touchdown passes ... Totaled 287 tackles and six fumble recoveries on defense ... Team went 9-2 his junior season and 10-1 as a sophomore ... One of the nation's top-60 running backs as chosen by Scout.com ... The No. 2 prospect in Kentucky by SuperPrep ... Coached by David Buchanan ... Also played basketball in high school.

Khalid Henderson, LB, 6-0, 213, Fr-HS, Mableton, Ga. (Pebblebrook) - Linebacker combines good size with outstanding athleticism ... Has been timed as fast as 4.57 seconds in the 40-yard dash ... Made 74 tackles with two interceptions as a senior at Pebblebrook HS in Mableton, Ga. ... The No. 19 outside linebacker in the nation by ESPN and the No. 17 prospect in Georgia ... Rated as the No. 51 outside linebacker in the nation by Scout.com ... One of the top-60 prospects in Georgia by 24/7 Sports ... Coached by Randall Smith ... Named is pronounced "kah-LEED."

T.J. Jones, OL, 6-6, 290, Fr-HS, Myrtle Beach, S.C. (Myrtle Beach) - Offensive line prospect who projects as a tackle on the collegiate level ... Played tackle at Myrtle Beach (S.C.) HS ... Helped his team win at least 11 games every season ... Myrtle Beach won the Class AAA state championship his junior year with a 14-1 record ... State quarterfinalist as a senior with an 11-2 mark ... 13-2 record and state runner-up his soph season ... Rated the No. 23 prospect in South Carolina by 24/7 Sports and No. 28 in the state by Rivals.com ... No. 34 in South Carolina by SuperPrep ... One of the nation's top-100 offensive tackles by 24/7 and Scout.com ... Coached by Mickey Wilson.

A.J. Legree, WR, 6-1, 178, Fr-HS, Fort White, Fla. (Fort White) - Gifted wide receiver combines pass-catching skills with the athletic ability of a state-champion high jumper ... Played wide receiver and cornerback at Fort White (Fla.) HS ... As a senior, caught 47 passes for 698 yards and 10 touchdowns ... Made six interceptions on defense, returning two for touchdowns ... First-team all-state in Class AAA by The Associated Press ... Named the Area Player of the Year by the Gainesville Sun ... Helped Fort White to an 8-4 record and second round of the state playoffs ... Turned in a breakout performance in the Florida Athletic Coaches Association North-South All-Star Game ... Was named the No. 2 prospect in the game by Rivals.com and the "Sleeper of the Night" by Scout.com ... Coached by Demetric Jackson ... Won the state high-jump championship as a junior with a leap of six feet, 10 inches.

Dyshawn Mobley, RB, 5-11, 205, Fr-HS, Powell, Tenn. (Powell) - Set Tennessee single-season rushing records with 3,068 yards and 44 touchdowns as a senior ... Averaged 12.2 yards per carry ... Led Powell (Tenn.) to a 14-1 record, reaching the state championship game in Class AAAAA ... Named to the all-state "Dream Team," covering all classifications, selected by the Nashville Tennesseean ... First-team all-state by The Associated Press ... Career totals feature 5,849 rushing yards, averaging more than 10 yards per carry, and 76 touchdowns ... Three-year all-district choice ... Helped Powell to an 11-1 mark and second round of the state playoffs as a junior ... Also excelled as a linebacker on defense ... Rushed for a record 118 yards in the Tennessee East-West All-Star Game and was named the East Offensive Most Valuable Player ... Coached by Matt Lowe ... Name is pronounced "DAY-shawn MOBE-lee."

Zach Myers, OL, 6-3, 285, Fr-HS, Miamisburg, Ohio (Miamisburg) - Combines good athletic ability with offensive line skills ... Played offensive guard at Miamisburg (Ohio) HS ... Could become a center as a collegian ... Rated as the No. 52 offensive guard in the nation by Rivals.com ... Also the No. 79 guard by 24/7 Sports and the No. 85 guard by Scout.com ... One of the top 60 prospects in the talent-rich state of Ohio by Rivals ... Named second-team All-Southwest Ohio ... Coached by Tim Lewis ... Son of Brad Myers, an offensive lineman at UK from 1984-87 ... Brad played one year with Joker Phillips (1984) and blocked for three of the top rushers in Kentucky history - George Adams, Mark Higgs and Marc Logan.

Langston Newton, DL, 6-4, 254, Fr-HS, Carmel, Ind. (Carmel) -First-team all-state as a senior at Carmel (Ind.) HS ... Helped lead Carmel to a 14-1 record and state championship in Class AAAAA ... A disruptive presence in the defensive line, combining good size, strength and athletic ability ... Projected as an end in the collegiate ranks ... The No. 6 prospect in Indiana and the No. 28 strongside defensive end in the nation by 24/7 Sports ... No. 8 in Indiana and the No. 40 strongside end nationally by Rivals.com ... Rated as the No. 69 overall prospect in the six-state Midwest area by SuperPrep ... Helped Carmel to the state finals his soph season ... Coached by Kevin Wright ... Also outstanding in track and field, as he had full scholarship offers in that sport from nationally prominent schools ... Competes in the shot put and discus throw, events that put a premium on quickness and explosion as well as strength ... Brother of current Kentucky quarterback Morgan Newton.

 

 

Cody Quinn, DB, 5-10, 163, Fr-HS, Middletown, Ohio (Middletown) - Brings outstanding speed to the cornerback position, having run the 40-yard dash under 4.5 seconds ... Helped Middletown (Ohio) HS to three-consecutive 10-win seasons and berths in the state playoffs ... Third-team All-Ohio by The Associated Press as a senior ... Intercepted two passes, returning one for a touchdown, and had 10 pass breakups ... His speed also indicated by the fact that he returned two kickoffs for touchdowns as a junior ... The No. 63 prospect in Ohio by ESPN and also the nation's No. 68 cornerback ... The No. 102 prospect in the six-state Midwest area by SuperPrep ... Coached by Troy Everhart.

Jonathan Reed, DB, 5-9, 185, Fr-HS, Indianapolis, Ind. (Pike) - Swift cornerback has been timed as low as 4.38 seconds in the 40-yard dash ... Played at Pike HS in Indianapolis, Ind. ... Helped Pike to a state playoff berth each season ... Runner-up in the state sectional as a junior with a 9-3 record ... One of the top-10 prospects in Indiana by ESPN ... Also the nation's No. 44 cornerback prospect by ESPN ... Named to the juniors-only all-state team in 2010 by the Indiana Football Coaches Association ... Coached by Derek Moyers.

DeMarcus Sweat, WR, 6-1, 192, Fr-HS, Lithonia, Ga. (Stephenson) - Combines good size with explosive ability ... Has good height for a receiver ... Big-play potential shown by his three punt return touchdowns and three kickoff return touchdowns during his senior season at Stephenson HS in Stone Mountain, Ga. ... Has been timed as fast as 4.43 seconds in the 40-yard dash ... One of the nation's top-100 wide receivers by ESPN ... One of top-80 prospects in Georgia by ESPN and 24/7 Sports ... Team posted a 9-2 record each of his last two seasons at Stephenson ... Coached at Stephenson by Ron Gartrell ... Teammate of current UK signee Shawn Blaylock ... Will join former Stephenson products Jabari Johnson, Raymond Sanders and Ronnie Shields at UK.

Jordan Swindle, OL, 6-7, 310, Fr-HS, St. Johns, Fla. (Creekside) - Second-team all-state as a senior in Florida Class AAAAA by The Associated Press ... Big offensive line prospect ... His height and long reach are ideal for pass protection ... Played at Creekside HS in St. Johns, Fla. ... Helped lead Creekside to an 8-4 record as a senior and the first state playoff win in school history ... Named All-First Coast (all-area) by the Florida Times-Union ... Also named to the Florida Times-Union "Super 24" list of top area prospects ... One of the nation's top-100 offensive tackles as evaluated by ESPN ... Coached by Greg Stanton.

Justin Taylor, RB, 5-10, 200, Fr-HS, Atlanta, Ga. (North Atlanta) - Projected as one of the South's top running backs heading into his senior season ... Committed to Alabama prior to his senior year at North Atlanta HS but incurred a knee injury in September ... Decided to re-open his recruitment after Alabama asked him to grayshirt ... Knee rehabilitation is going well and is expected to be ready to compete when practice begins in August ... Rushed for approximately 1,500 yards and 10 touchdowns as a junior at Washington HS in Atlanta ... Named All-Atlanta as a junior ... One of the nation's top-40 running backs by ESPN and 24/7 Sports ... Coached by Stanley Pritchett.

Kadeem "Pancho" Thomas, LB, 6-0, 225, Fr-HS, Tallahassee, Fla. (Godby) - A tackling machine at Godby HS in Tallahassee, Fla. ... Racked up 142 tackles as a senior ... Helped team to a 9-3 record and a spot in the second round of the state playoffs ... Totaled 143 stops as a junior, ranking sixth in the state in tackles, and was named the Area Defensive Player of the Year by the Tallahassee Quarterback Club ... One of the nation's top 40 inside linebackers by Rivals.com, 24/7 Sports and ESPN ... Played for the winning North team in the Florida North-South All-Star Game sponsored by the Florida Athletic Coaches Association ... Coached by Ronnie Cottrell ... Name is pronounced "kah-DEEM."

 

 

Fred Tiller, DB, 6-0, 180, Fr-HS, Homerville, Ga. (Clinch County) - Outstanding athlete could play either side of the ball in college ... Standout wide receiver and cornerback at Clinch County (Ga.) HS ... First-team all-state by the Atlanta Journal Constitution and Georgia Sports Writers Association as a senior ... Helped Clinch to a perfect 15-0 record and Class A state championship as a junior ... Caught 31 passes for 736 yards and nine touchdowns during that junior year, along with 65 tackles and five interceptions on defense ... Rated the No. 45 athlete in the nation by Rivals.com ... Coached by Jim Dickerson.

Jon Toth, OL, 6-5, 290, Fr-HS, Indianapolis, Ind. (Brebeuf Jesuit) - Big offensive lineman who also is noted for his athleticism ... Could be slotted as a guard or tackle on the collegiate level ... Played at Brebeuf Jesuit in Indianapolis, Ind. ... Helped Brebeuf advance to the state playoffs each year he was on the varsity ... Ranked as the No. 11 player in Indiana and the No. 33 offensive guard in the nation by 24/7 Sports ... Rated the nation's No. 60 offensive tackle by Scout.com ... Coached by Ryan Gallogly ... Name is pronounced "TOETH" with a long "o" sound.

Patrick Towles, QB, 6-5, 242, Fr-HS, Ft. Thomas, Ky. (Highlands) - Named to the Parade magazine All-America team ... "Mr. Football" for the Commonwealth of Kentucky ... Gatorade Player of the Year in Kentucky ... Won the Paul Hornung Award as the Kentucky Player of the Year ... Big, strong-armed quarterback who also has notable running ability ... Led Highlands HS to three consecutive state championships as the starting quarterback, Class AAAA as a senior and Class AAAAA as a sophomore and junior ... Team compiled a three-year record of 44-1, including 38-1 with Towles as the starter ... As a senior completed 171 of 279 passes (61.3 percent) for 3,820 yards with 42 touchdowns and only one interception ... Also rushed for 589 yards and 15 TDs ... Career totals feature 7,429 passing yards and 73 touchdown passes while rushing for 1,718 yards and 38 TDs ... The No. 1 prospect in Kentucky and one of the top-10 pro-style quarterbacks in the country by Rivals.com and 24/7 Sports ... Athleticism is such that ESPN rates his college position as "athlete" instead of quarterback ... Coached by Dale Mueller ... Highlands' quarterbacks coach was former UK QB Jared Lorenzen ... Strong arms are in Towles' heritage as he is the grandson of Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Jim Bunning ... Last name is pronounced "TOLES."

Jordan Watson, OL, 6-4, 315, Fr-HS, Fayetteville, Ga. (Whitewater) - Well-regarded offensive lineman ... The No. 39 offensive guard in the nation by Scout.com ... No. 37 nationally by 24/7 Sports ... Rated as the No. 31 prospect in Georgia by SuperPrep ... Earned first-team all-state honors by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution ... Played at Whitewater HS in Fayetteville, Ga., and blocked for current Wildcat Josh Clemons ... Earned a spot in the Georgia Athletic Coaches Association North-South All-Star Classic ... Coached by Amos McCreary.

Jalen Whitlow, QB/ATH, 6-2, 210, Fr-HS, Prattville, Ala. (Prattville) - Exciting athlete with multiple skills ... Helped Prattville (Ala.) HS to the Class AAAAAA state championship and a top-25 national ranking ... Split time at quarterback and wide receiver ... Earned honorable-mention all-state honors even though he wasn't the team's full-time quarterback ... Listed as the nation's No. 12 dual-threat QB and the No. 20 prospect in Alabama by 24/7 Sports ... The No. 32 prospect in Alabama by Rivals.com ... Coached by Jamey Dubose.

Sterling Wright, DB, 5-11, 201, Fr-HS, Miami, Fla. (Coral Reef/North Carolina Tech) - Played prep school football at North Carolina Tech in Charlotte, the same school that produced current Wildcat Farrington Huguenin ... Known as a hard hitter with good range ... Coached at N.C. Tech by Tim Newman ... Played his high school football at Coral Reef HS in Miami, Fla. ... Helped team to a 6-4 record senior year ... Totaled 55 tackles and caused eight fumbles ... Coached at Coral Reef by Chevas Clements.

 

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Keith Bogans Finds A New Home In The NBA

Keith Bogans is back. The New Jersey Nets signed guard Keith Bogans and waived small forward Larry Owens.

Because Keith is a very good defensive player, and a smart veteran player, it's surprising it took so long for him to find another job after he was cut by Chicago. The Bulls let him go when they signed veteran guard Rip Hamilton. They were looking for more offense.

The former UK star started every game for the Chicago Bulls last season, averaging 4.4 points and 1.8 rebounds in less than 18 minutes a game.

The 31 year old 6-foot-5 eight-year veteran holds career averages of 6.7 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game.

"Keith will give us defensive toughness and experience," says Nets general manager Billy King. "He will add depth and versatility to our perimeter."

 

 

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Final 48 Hours Big For Cats

The Cats new class is now 26 because Kory Brown will count towards last year's recruiting class.

There are three players this coaching staff is doing cartwheels over because of how it all came together in the last 48 hours.

Khalid Henderson was going to Tennessee. UK believes he is a big time linebacker prospect.

Justin Taylor, a tailback, planned on going to Alabama until the Tide said they wanted him to sit out.

AndJalen Whitlow, a quarterback-athlete from Alabama who the coaches might have to find a way to get on the field.

"Playmaking athlete was QB / WR / RB for Prattville, the Alabama Class 6A state champs," says Joker. "Another pickup this week!"

Plus, if you like bloodlines, DeMarcus Sweat, who will have a chance to return kicks next year, is a cousin to former UK star defensive lineman Jeremy Jarmon, who is back with the Denver Broncos.

"Two receivers that I'm excited to have in this class," tweeted receiver coach Tee Martin. "AJ and DeMarcus both add value to our receiving core and both can play multiple positions and both will help us in special teams. The on thing that I look for when I'm looking for in a receiver is confidence, swag and playmaking ability. Both of these guys have IT."

Here is a list of the new Cats.

Daron Blaylock, DB, 6-1, 215, Marietta, Ga.
Shawn Blaylock, DB, 5-10, 166, Lithonia, Ga.
Zack Blaylock, DB, 6-0, 188, Marietta, Ga.
Kory Brown, DB, 6-0, 208, Moncks Corner, S.C.
Thomas Chapman, DL, 6-4, 285, Louisville, Ky.
Landon Foster, K/P, 6-1, 198, Thompson Station, Tenn.
Patrick Graffree, DL, 6-4, 270, Elizabethtown, Ky.
Josh Harris, DB, 6-0, 191, Maysville, Ky.
Khalid Henderson, LB, 6-0, 213, Mableton, Ga.
T.J. Jones, OL, 6-6, 290, Myrtle Beach, S.C.
A.J. Legree, WR, 6-1, 178, Fort White, Fla.
Dyshawn Mobley, RB, 5-11, 205, Powell, Tenn.
Zach Myers, OL, 6-3, 285, Miamisburg, Ohio
Langston Newton, DL, 6-4, 254, Carmel, Ind.
Cody Quinn, DB, 5-10, 163, Middletown, Ohio
Jonathan Reed, DB, 5-9, 185, Indianapolis, Ind.
DeMarcus Sweat, WR, 6-1, 192, Lithonia, Ga.
Jordan Swindle, OL, 6-7, 310, St. Johns, Fla.
Justin Taylor, RB, 5-10, 200, Atlanta, Ga.
Fred Tiller, DB, 6-0, 180, Homerville, Ga.
Kadeem Thomas, LB, 6-0, 225, Tallahassee, Fla.
Jon Toth, OL, 6-5, 290, Indianapolis, Ind.
Patrick Towles, QB, 6-5, 242, Ft. Thomas, Ky.
Jordan Watson, OL, 6-4, 315, Fayetteville, Ga.
Jalen Whitlow, QB/ATH, 6-2, 210, Prattville, Ala.
Sterling Wright, DB, 5-11, 201, Fr-HS, Miami, Fla.

 

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Joker's Tweets On New Cats

From the world of twitter. We thought you might want to see some of Joker's comments from the beginning of signing day.

"Kadeem "Pancho" Thomas had more than 140 tackles as a jr and sr. One of nation's top 40 inside LBs by ESPN, Rivals.com, 24/7.

T.J. Jones is a big offensive lineman who also has athleticism. Played on very good team at Myrtle Beach HS, state champ his junior year.

Jalen Whitlow is in! Playmaking athlete was QB / WR / RB for Prattville, the Alabama Class 6A state champs. Another pickup this week!

Khalid Henderson timed under 4.6 in 40. ESPN rates No. 19 LB in nation. Wore #22 in HS, liked idea of wearing Danny T's number at UK - we do too!

Justin Taylor in, great Signing Day catch! Former Alabama commit came with the Cats. Fine combination of speed and power, strong runner.

Landon Foster is in, combo punter and placekicker. 11 of 16 FG this year, long of 49. Punting average of 41.3. 1st team all-state in Tenn.

Shawn Blaylock in the house. Another two-way player as a WR and CB from Stephenson HS in Georgia. Timed under 4.5 in the 40.

Jon Toth another from Indys, big offensive lineman. Athletic player who could be a guard or tackle at UK. Rated as No. 33 guard in nation.

Fred Tiller was a great two-way player at WR and CB. We'll probably take first look at him as cornerback. First-team all-state in Georgia.

Jordan Swindle is an offensive lineman with great height and reach, ideal for pass protection. 2nd-team all-state in Florida Class AAAAA.

DeMarcus Sweat a WR with big play ability. Started returning kicks this year and returned three kickoffs and three punts for TDs.

Jonathan Reed another speedy cornerback, timed as fast as 4.38 in the 40. Indianapolis area becoming very good territory for UK!

Cody Quinn in. Cornerback under 4.5 in the 40. Originally commited to Illinois, Mike Cassity's relationship helped bring him to UK.

Langston Newton was an explosive force in the D-Line as he led Carmel to state championship. Also great in track in shot put, discus.

Zach Myers in. Good athletic ability as a lineman. Played guard in HS, might look at him as a C, too. His dad, Brad, great lineman at UK.

Dyshawn Mobley set Tennesee single-season rushing record with 3,000+ yards. Averaged 12.2 per carry. Offensive MVP of state all-star game.

Josh Harris played all over the field at Mason County HS. Very good athlete. We'll take first look a him on defense, probably at safety.

Patrick Graffree much like Chapman. DT from Kentucky who really wanted to be a Wildcat. Showed very good pass rush ability from DT."

 

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All-American QB First To Say Yes To UK

It's signing day. Of all the new players, the one who will get the most publicity and could end up being one of the best recruits since Tim Couch, is the future quarterback.

Patrick Towles, QB, 6-5, 242, Fr-HS, Ft. Thomas, Ky. (Highlands).

"Congratulations to Patrick Towles!," says Joker. "A quarterback has to be a leader of your team and Patrick was the first fax in today at 7:01."

Towles was named to the Parade magazine All-America team and "Mr. Football" in Kentucky. Plus, he is the Gatorade Player of the Year in Kentucky. He also won the Paul Hornung Award as the Kentucky Player of the Year.

He led Highlands to three consecutive state championships as the starting quarterback, Class AAAA as a senior and Class AAAAA as a sophomore and junior.

Towles is a winner. Highlands three year record was 44-1, including 38-1 with Towles as the starter.

You have to wonder with if Towles will have a real chance to become the starter as a true freshman.  Offensive Coordinator Randy Sanders is saying he will get that opportunity.

 

As a senior, he completed 171 of 279 passes (61.3 percent) for 3,820 yards with 42 touchdowns and only one interception Also rushed for 589 yards and 15 TDs.

Rivals.com calls Towles one of the top-10 pro-style quarterbacks in the country.

Plus, if you are into athlete bloodlines, Towles is the grandson of Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Jim Bunning. Last name is pronounced "TOLES."

 

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Joker Excited About Future Cats

When Joker meets with the media Wednesday afternoon, look for him to do what coaches do. Talk about how excited he is about this recruiting class will be for the future for UK.

There will be many True Blue fans who will say, that's nice, but the record needs to be better.

This is a list of Cats who are officially ready to wear Kentucky uniforms next season.

DB Daron Blaylock; DB Zack Blaylock; OL John Toth; DT Patrick Graffree; DB Fred Tiller; DB Jonathan Reed; DB Josh Harris; OL Zach Myers; DL Thomas Chapman; RB Dyshawn Mobley: WR A.J. Legree; DL Langston Newton; DB Cody Quinn; WR DeMarcus Sweat; OL Jordan Swindle; RB Justin Taylor; K/P Landon Foster; Khalid Henderson. Jalen Whitlow, QB/ATH, 6-2, 210, Fr-HS, Prattville, Ala. (Prattville).

The Cats are really excited over linebacker Khalid Henderson who is rated as the No. 19 outside linebacker in the nation by ESPN and the No. 17 prospect in Georgia. His name is pronounced Kah-LEED.

"Henderson timed under 4.6 in 40," Joker said via twitter. "ESPN rates No. 19 LB in nation. Wore #22 in HS, liked idea of wearing Danny T's number at UK - we do too!"

UK is taking advantage of some problems with Tennessee's football program.

"He's another we were waiting on pins and needles this week. Former Tennessee commit now with UK."

UK is looking for a home run threat at tailback. They hope Justin Taylor can fill the role.

"Former Alabama commit came with the Cats. Fine combination of speed and power, strong runner."

"He's one of the best running backs in the country," wide out coach Tee Martin told UK's web site.

Alabama wanted Taylor to redshirt.

As far as freshman running backs who will play next season.

"I don't look to redshirt anybody," says running back coach Steve Pardue on UK's site. "We hope everyone can come in ready to play. You need to have a stable of running backs. Running backs can also help on special teams. Redshirts usually come through injuries."

 

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