2012 Record: 2-10 (0-8 in SEC)
Head Coach: Mark Stoops (first time head coach)
Last Bowl Game: 2010 BBVA Compass Bowl: lost to Pitt 27-10
Stadium: Commonwealth Stadium in Lexington, KY (capacity = 67,606)
Home Field Advantage: ranked 64th out of 69 BCS teams
Schedule Glimpse:
Out of Conference: 8/31 vs WKU, 9/7 vs Miami (OH), 9/14 vs Louisville, 11/2 vs Alabama State
Swing Games: 10/24 at Mississippi St, 11/9 vs Missouri, 11/16 at Vandy, 11/30 vs Tennessee
Toughest Conference Games: 9/28 vs Florida, 10/5 at South Carolina 10/12 vs Alabama, 11/23 at Georgia
Statistical Snapshot:
Stats to Fear: gained only 13 turnovers in 2012 (tied for 12th in SEC), scored on 70.59% of trips to red zone (last in SEC), had only 10 plays of 30 or more yards (last in SEC)
Stat to Cheer: they have a fresh start with a new coach this season (not really a stat but when you go 2-10 that's what you have to settle for)
Advanced Stats (Football Outsiders 2012 FEI Ranking): 111th out of 124 teams
Personnel:
Phil Steele's Returning Starters: Offense: 7, Defense: 7, Special Teams: 1
Key Defensive Returnees: LB Avery Williamson (135 tackles), DE Alvin Dupree (91 tackles)
Key Offensive Returnees: QB Maxwell Smith (975 yds pass, 68.7% completions, 8 TD, 4 INT), RB Raymond Sanders (669 yds rush, 5.35 ypc, 5 TD), RB Jonathan George (504 yds rush, 4.67 ypc, 4 TD)
Top 2013 Recruits: DE Za'Darius Smith, ATH Marcus McWilson, RB Ryan Timmons, DE Jason Hatcher, CB Nate Willis
Verdict:
Mark Stoops has his work cut out for him at Kentucky. Stoops takes over from Joker Phillips after the Wildcats posted their worst record since they went 1-10 in 1994. It will be a tough road for Stoops and Wildcats but it looks like the fans are buying in as over 50,000 of them showed up for their spring game.
Stoops will turn the offense over to Neal Brown (2010-2012 OC at Texas Tech) and Brown plans to bring an Air Raid style offense with him. How will the current personnel fit this style? The Wildcats have three QBs that have some experience (Maxwell Smith, Jalen Whitlow and Patrick Towles) and Stoops says that the battle will continue two weeks into fall camp. If you look at Maxwell Smith's 68.5% completion percentage last year it's hard to believe that he won't be the starter but Whitlow and Towles both have good upsides. Kentucky has some good RBs on the roster but they have struggled with health. If they can stay healthy, this will be the Wildcats strongest unit and it will be interesting to see how Brown works them into the offense. The WR corps is thin and inexperienced so I would expect to see the RBs get a chance to show off their versatility. Raymond Sanders is the back to watch as he should be a great fit for the system. The OL returns just 39 career starts and both Phil Steele and Athlon have them ranked dead last in the SEC.
The Kentucky defense fell off a cliff last year as they dropped from 24.7 points allowed to 31. The Wildcats will move from a 3-4 to a 4-3 and will definitely see improvement because of their new coaching staff. The question is how much improvement? The tandem to watch on defense will be the DEs as Alvin "Bud" Dupree and JUCO transfer Za'Darius Smith should provide a good 1-2 punch at getting after the QB. The LB corps should be improved this year due to experience but the big concern is the secondary. If the defense wants to take a big step forward there are a lot of young guys in the back four that will need to step up.
Last year, Kentucky was outscored 36 to 11 in conference play. This isn't an overnight fixer-upper here, this turnaround is going to take time but with Stoops at the helm I think the Wildcats have the right guy. Kentucky will improve this year but fans should temper their expectations.
Prediction: 4-8
Previous 2013 Pre-Season Previews:
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