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Can UK survive three more weeks?

Cats need to recover to get solid finish

It's fourth down and three to go for the Kentucky football season.

Nine games in the books.

Three games remain.

The Cats are at Vanderbilt this Saturday. They're at Georgia the following Saturday. Then it's back home to Commonwealth Stadium to face Tennessee in the finale.

Win all three, and it's the best regular season in the Rich Brooks era. Win two of three, and stamp the season a success. Win one of the three, and UK will be bowl eligible, with fingers crossed. Lose all three, and it's a season where, after three steps up, the Cats took one step back.

So what's it going to be?

Better question: Who is it going to be?

Without its best offensive player, Randall Cobb, and its best running back, Derrick Locke, Kentucky handled visiting Eastern Kentucky 37-12 on Saturday.

Everyone knew Locke wasn't going to play. The junior has torn scar tissue on his bad knee. The healing didn't progress enough for him to play. Brooks announced that Thursday. Cobb was the surprise. No one had any idea, even the coach.

"I came thinking he was going to play," said Brooks.

The stellar sophomore took a pass off his thumb Thursday. No big deal. Happens every so often. But the thumb kept hurting. A splint was tried. It didn't feel right. A cast was placed over the thumb. Cobb said he could block. Brooks said forget it.

"Hopefully, it'll settle down this week," said the coach.

The Cats didn't need their two best playmakers to beat the Football Championship Subdivision Colonels. Dean Hood is a terrific coach. But he didn't have the manpower to threaten the Cats.

If Kentucky is going to be a legitimate threat the last three weeks of the season, the Cats need to answer some questions of their own.

"We're going to take a look at Mike Hartline this week and see if he can play," Brooks said in the news conference.

That's no knock on Morgan Newton. The true freshman played well — "He was very, very good," said Brooks — on this Saturday, completing 20 of 29 passes for 187 yards and two scores.

But Hartline still has the experience edge. If the junior can go for the first time since tearing a knee ligament against South Carolina on Oct. 10, he'll start in Nashville, according to Brooks.

"Now we'll open up another can of worms," joked Brooks, before shouting out, "Quarterback controversy! Here we go!"

It might be better to get Locke back. The junior rushed for 103 yards in last Saturday's loss to Mississippi State, his second 100-yard effort in three games. Moncell Allen and Alfonso Smith, both banged up themselves, ran hard against EKU. But they lack Locke's burst.

"We didn't have any explosive guys today," said Joker Phillips, UK's head coach for offense.

The Cats think Locke will be ready for the Commodores. He had full extension back in his knee but lacked some flexibility by the end of the week. Having EKU on the schedule was a bit of good fortune. Would love to have him, can get by without him. A healthy Hartline and a healthy Locke could be sweet music in Nashville.

A healthy Trevard Lindley wouldn't hurt either. The cornerback did return Saturday but then had someone step on his ankle near the end of the first half and sat out the final two quarters.

Afterward, Lindley said it was no big deal. He said he should be better by Saturday.

Truth be told, the Cats could use a bye week right about now. But that's where this season's quirk takes its toll. The off-week came on the second Saturday. It's been eight straight weeks of grinding it out since.

"I think everyone could probably use one from a health standpoint," said Brooks. "I think there's five or six teams in our league that play 11 straight, and I think Vanderbilt's playing 12 straight. That's just the way it is. You deal with it, and in essence, Randall and Derrick had a bye this week."

Truth is, it's fourth down, and Kentucky needs one thing more.

Said Brooks, "We need to beat Vanderbilt."

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