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Tuesday, Sep. 02, 2008

UK-U of L no showcase for running or gunning

rushers, cantwell top disappointments

The 2008 renewal of the Governor's Cup football rivalry yielded 415 total yards.

That's both teams.

Combined.

In the 1998 Kentucky-Louisville game, Tim Couch alone passed for 498 yards.

So after Kentucky's 27-2 win Sunday, this figures to be one of those years when the UK-U of L post-game rehash provides more entertainment than the actual game.

Let's get to it.

■ Biggest reason for UK fans to worry: Kentucky flat-out could not run the football.

After all the off-season talk about UK's four quality running backs and the best offensive line of the Rich Brooks era, the Cats got stoned to the tune of 63 total rushing yards.

With the victory at Louisville, UK needs only to win home games over Norfolk State, Middle Tennessee, Western Kentucky, Arkansas (picked last in the SEC West) and Vanderbilt (picked last in the SEC East) to become bowl eligible for a third straight year.

But for Kentucky to win even those five (much less aspire to upsetting someone) in a year in which it does not appear to have an especially strong-armed quarterback nor an abundance of playmakers at wide receiver, it has to be able to move the ball on the ground.

■ Biggest reason for U of L fans to worry: In spite of all the pre-season hype about re-establishing the Louisville running game, the Cardinals couldn't move on the ground (53 yards), either.

■ Biggest surprise of the game (at least, to me): The erratic play of Louisville senior quarterback Hunter Cantwell.

The Paducah product brought four games of starting experience into Sunday's matchup and had played well in those four games. Yet it was the Louisville QB — not first-time UK starter Mike Hartline — who committed four turnovers (three interceptions and a lost fumble).

"I'm very disappointed in myself," Cantwell said Sunday.

■ The 210 yards Kentucky gained Sunday was actually fewer total yards than UK had (238) in its abysmal offensive showing in the 28-0 shutout loss to Louisville in 2004.

■ Poor Steve Kragthorpe. Losing to Kentucky while scoring two points at a school used to putting 40 on everybody was a major burr under the saddle to an already agitated fan base.

The first sentence Monday on the Web site www.firekragthorpe.com was "2 YEARS IN A ROW LOSING TO UK IS UNACCEPTABLE."

■ Turns out, Rich Brooks can get his team (at least, his defense) ready to play a big rivalry game as the season opener.

At the Web site www.firerichbrooks.com, it now says "WE WERE WRONG."

■ Three statistical indications that the UK football program is making progress.

1.) The Kentucky defense that was last in the SEC against third-down conversion attempts allowed in 2007 (some 45 percent) held Louisville to 5-for-16 Sunday.

2.) Kentucky has won 14 of its last 20 games. The last time the Cats had a similar stretch was in 1984 and '85, when Jerry Claiborne's teams went 9-3 in '84, then started the '85 season 5-3 (before finishing 5-6).

3.) In Rich Brooks' first 45 games as Kentucky head coach, UK outgained its opponent five times. In their last 16 contests, the Cats have amassed more yards than their foe 11 times.

■ Two tips for navigating next year's UK-U of L pre-game hype:

1.) Don't get fooled by people touting home-field advantage. With UK's win Sunday, visiting teams are 9-6 in the modern Governor's Cup rivalry.

2.) Don't get caught up in people touting the favorite. With UK's win Sunday, the underdog (Louisville was favored by 31/2 points) has won the Governor's Cup seven times.

■ For his first time presenting the trophy that goes to the Cats-Cards winner, Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear went Switzerland by wearing a green shirt. "Can you imagine going out to present the trophy and wearing the wrong color?" Beshear said.

■ Restoring luster to the Governor's Cup — the trophy itself.

After 14 years in which the 110-pound award had been lugged around stadiums by jubilant college football players, corporate sponsor Kroger decided the Cup needed some work before this year's game.

Said UK defensive end Jeremy Jarmon: "Got it polished. Put a new gold trimming on it. Put some money into fixing it up. Which was good. We were planning on bringing it back to Lexington and it needed to look good."