UK football talking points you’ll tire of before the 2019 season opener
It’s (almost) football time in the Bluegrass!
The University of Kentucky football team kicks off its fall training camp Friday following its annual meet-and-greet with the media. An open practice scheduled for Saturday morning will be fans’ first opportunity to see the Wildcats since the spring, and everyone’s first chance to see what the coaches have cooked up for the 2019 campaign.
There are several questions regarding this group, and frankly, meaningful answers won’t present themselves until Aug. 31 when Toledo comes to Kroger Field. That won’t stop conversations from starting, though, so here are some big topics that will be on folks’ minds throughout camp and the lead-up to the season opener.
Can at least one other receiver emerge?
You know that Lynn Bowden is the Cats’ meow. And their bite. And just about anything else you could possibly think of.
Bowden, a junior receiver, caught five touchdowns last season; the rest of UK’s returnees at the position combined for two TD grabs — one each by Josh Ali and Allen Dailey Jr.
Based on raw production, Ali could be a capable running mate. The junior is the only other receiver on the roster who recorded double-digit catches (10) and triple-digit yardage (115) last year, and while he’s never started, he has played in 21 total games through two seasons.
Another junior, Isaiah Epps, made two starts last year — versus Georgia and at Tennessee — and has appeared in all 26 games since he got on campus, but recorded just 76 yards on eight catches last season.
Ali and Epps should get first dibs, along with pass-interference specialist Ahmad Wagner, but a deep well of young pass-catchers — including three redshirt freshmen in B.J. Alexander, Akeem Hayes and Bryce Oliver — will press for playing time, and earn plenty if they can provide the explosiveness needed for Kentucky to go to another level with its passing game.
Who’s stepping up in the secondary?
By the end of fall camp, diehards will be able to name every defensive back along with their measurables, hometowns and parents’ names.
But none of them, nor anyone in the media, and perhaps not even the coaching staff will have a true sense of how Kentucky’s secondary will perform until Toledo’s high-octane pass attack shows up on Labor Day weekend. It could be a disaster, or it could be the case that ample young talent makes up for an exodus of seasoned old heads.
Jordan Griffin after Davonte Robinson’s season-ending injury is the lone defensive back with ample game experience; he’s started in five of the 33 games in which he’s played, and is a lock to start at strong safety. Sophomores Ty Ajian (10 tackles and an interception in 13 games last year) and Yusuf Corker (eight tackles in 13 games) were already in line for significant time and will need to meet greater expectations with a starting job at free safety up for grabs. Moses Douglass, a true freshman who went through spring camp, goes from a possible redshirt candidate to a likely rotation piece.
At cornerback, two mid-year enrollees from junior colleges — Brandin Echols and Quandre Mosely — could lead the way early in part because that spot’s only three returning lettermen — Jamari Brown, Cedrick Dort Jr. and Stanley Garner — all redshirted last year (Brown and Garner were true freshmen, and Dort Jr. was sidelined with an ankle injury after playing as a true freshman). Freshmen M.J. Devonshire, Taj Dodson and Jalen Geiger boast impressive recruiting profiles; ideally they would get some time to develop off the field, but getting this position right could result in an “all-hands-on-deck” situation.
Will Terry Wilson be unleashed?
Does “Terry Touchdown” have a few more touchdowns in store for UK fans in 2019?
Some of that will depend on whether he gets to toss the ball around a bit more. Quarterbacks coach Darin Henshaw during an appearance this week at the Louisville Quarterback Club told attendees that UK this year wants to throw the ball 35-40 times a game.
That’s fun to hear, but it’s tough to buy based on the program’s recent history. Terry Wilson averaged 20.6 pass attempts per game last season. Stephen Johnson in his two years as a starter averaged 22.3 throws. Under Mark Stoops only one quarterback — Patrick Towles — has cracked a 30-throw average; he averaged 32.8 attempts in 2014.
Wilson has a case to be let loose: His 67.2 completion percentage (180 of 268) ranked third in the Southeastern Conference, behind some guys named Tua Tagovailoa and Jake Fromm. That’s the best mark for a Wildcat since Maxwell Smith (68.7%) in 2012, and Wilson had more than 100 additional attempts than Smith.
After Bowden, Wilson is the most-proven offensive playmaker on this roster; he’s UK’s leading returning rusher (547 yards on 135 carries) and scored four TDs last season. He set a school record for wins by a new starting quarterback and showed flashes of brilliance in a come-from-behind win at Missouri, but also gave the ball away too often (four lost fumbles and eight interceptions, both team highs) while throwing only 11 TDs; for perspective, graduate transfer Sawyer Smith threw 14 scores on 39 fewer passes last season and was similarly efficient (62.9 percent).
Wilson has the advantage of being the clear starter, a luxury afforded few UK signal callers entering fall camp this decade. How much room he’s given to play around in the offense, particularly before the SEC slate gets going, will determine whether that head-start was worth anything.
Important upcoming UK dates
Aug. 2: Media Day and first practice
Aug. 3: Fan Day and open practice
Aug. 31: Season opener vs. Toledo at Kroger Field
