After young players shine, the future looks bright for Kentucky
Kentucky got a tiny glimpse of its future on Saturday night.
And the Cats like what they see in the distance after that 56-10 drubbing of Louisville at Cardinal Stadium.
There was sophomore quarterback Terry Wilson, who has been growing into the role all season, with the best game of his career, completing 17 of his 23 pass attempts for 261 yards and three touchdowns.
“He was slinging that thing,” tight end C.J. Conrad said. “That’s what I was telling everyone on the sideline. He looked extremely comfortable out there. He’s a younger guy. Coming from JUCO and only being here less than a year now, it’s going to take some time.
“He just feels like as the season has gone on he’s getting more and more confident. You saw that tonight.”
Kash Daniel’s confidence is sky high about next season’s team after seeing Wilson put on that show.
“I feel pretty good, pretty confident about Terry ‘Touchdown’ after that performance,” the junior linebacker said. “He’s got a whole year here, a whole offseason to work with us and to have him back next year is going to be huge.”
Wilson’s favorite target — as he has been all season — was another sophomore in Lynn Bowden. The wide receiver had 86 yards and two touchdowns on six catches.
“He’s been really steady and getting better,” Coach Mark Stoops said of Bowden. “We know he’s great with the ball in his hands but now he’s getting open and Terry is hitting him. That’s a lot to build on there.”
Not including the touchdowns from junior Benny Snell, underclassmen were responsible in some way for six of the Cats’ eight touchdowns on Saturday night.
There was Wilson, who also ran for 79 yards and a score in the win, moving the offense. There was backup running back A.J. Rose racking up a team-high 112 yards on the ground, including an impressive 75-yarder early in the fourth quarter.
Then in his first game of the season, true freshman Kavosiey Smoke added a 37-yard touchdown run.
“We haven’t had to lean on a lot of those guys, but we feel good about them,” Stoops said. “Kavosiey, you saw a little bit of him tonight. And A.J., his speed. That’s good to see.”
Sophomore wide receiver Josh Ali caught his first career touchdown, a 32-yarder from Wilson, in the fourth quarter.
“I feel like a lot of guys scored, a lot of guys got their hand on the ball,” Conrad said of the future of the program. “That’s good for everyone just to spread the ball around and get some confidence in these young guys. I’ve only got one game left here, but hopefully that continues on in the future.”
On the defensive side, eight of the Cats’ top 13 tacklers were underclassmen, paced by Daniel’s eight tackles, including three for loss. True freshman Chris Oats was second with five, including a sack and tackle for loss of his own.
“Even defensively and across the board, offensive line, defensive line, a lot of good players in there,” Stoops said. “There’s some good young talent there.”