I’m in a bit of a gloom and doom mood because my beloved Chicago White Sox have a one game playoff tonight to determine the AL Central winner, and I think they’ll get crushed. So I don’t feel like writing a sunshine and lollipops piece of fluff about UK football. Instead, I want to focus on something that has already happened, the open gym extravaganza that took place this past Saturday before the WKU game. Let’s take a look at some selected players and see how they did. The info comes from a close friend who was able to make it to the show on Saturday.

KEVIN GALLOWAY

The best word to describe this guy is “smooth.” While his shot isn’t good enough to keep defenses from sagging off of him, he is good at taking it to the rack. He has one desired trait of the big point guard, in that he uses his size to advantage when matched up against smaller guys. He can post up and use either hand, either in the post or going to the lane. Both he and DeAndre Liggins have a great feel for the game.

JOSH HARRELLSON

One of the first things you notice about him is how wide he is. He isn’t Robert Traylor or anybody like that, but he’s still very big. Another good thing that needs mentioning is how he has a very good nose for the ball. He doesn’t have the athleticism to win a battle on the boards with a guy like Joey Dorsey, but he can counter that lack of athleticism with his magnet hands and nose for the ball. That’s such an underrated asset for a player to have, but the more guys like that you have on a team, the better off everybody will be in long run, and I’m thinking of 2003 when I say that. Also, his midrange jumper is good enough that it will be difficult to continuously double team Patterson when both of them are in the lineup together. He might end up being Patterson’s favorite teammate because of this.

RAMON HARRIS

You always want to take news on Razor with a grain of salt when it comes to a non-game situation, but he looked like his primary weakness (ball handling) had improved somewhat. I believe that he has the mindset to be more aggressive on offense, but he hasn’t had the skills to put the plan to action. With a handle as improved as it was this weekend, the aggression will pick up, just like it did on Saturday. He showed some nice moves and capped off the day with a huge dunk.

JON HOOD

There’s still a lot of time left for Jon, but he has grown since the last ratings came out. He is now a legit 6’6”, and there might be room for a little more growth. I think Hood may have been a bit overwhelmed to start the day, but as the games went on, his play got a lot better. The form on his shot is very good and the accuracy is also good, but there is hardly any rotation on it. This is very odd, and it may need to be worked on some more. Luckily, there’s still a lot of time for him.

DEANDRE LIGGINS

Liggins didn’t play as well in this set of scrimmages as he did in the one from a few weeks ago, but that isn’t a big problem in my opinion. Like Kevin Galloway, he is very smooth, which is what you love to hear about your potential starting point guard. He looked to push at any chance he could, which is a welcome change from years past. He had some nice assists on penetration and kickouts for open threes. If Kentucky has a penetrating guard, the offense will look great more often than not.

JODIE MEEKS

It looks like Jodie is injury-free. He was back to his freshman year speed and quickness that we all know and love. The shot was quick, and while they didn’t go in at the rate that we’d all like to see, they at least looked good. I’ve said the same thing about guys like Chris Lofton and Shan(e) Foster whenever they missed against Kentucky – well, it missed, but it looked good. He even took it to the rack a few times, but his handle is not good enough to play point guard in case of a slew of injuries.

PATRICK PATTERSON

First things first, this is a firsthand story. The players all came out at once and got a polite response. Then, about 20-30 seconds later, Patterson came out and received a standing ovation from the crowd. Patrick hasn’t been allowed to practice for very long, so he doesn’t look like he could play 40 minutes right now, though I have no doubt that this won’t be a problem a month from now. In a limited role, he looked like the same old Patrick Patterson, which is a good thing.

MATTHEW PILGRIM

It’s official, I need to see this kid play. EVERY single account I have read has said he’s a beast. Once again, he was the best player on the floor this weekend. When he got it down low, people just needed to get out of his way, as he had quite a few thunderous dunks. He also hit the face-up jumper between 12-15 feet out, and even stepped back and made a three. Another thing I’ve read in every account is that he has a mean streak, but it’s a good mean streak because it’s a competitive one.

DONALD WILLIAMS

This was the pleasant surprise of the day. Williams threw down some impressive dunks in the warmups, showing off his athleticism. Then when the scrimmages began, he started scoring. He is a terrific backcourt scorer. His shot is streaky, but when it’s going in, he’s lights out. Because of this, he may show some tendencies of being a gun, but who cares if the shots are falling? I can see this guy come in like Mu Evans in 1998 and provide instant offense for this team.

Well, those are the guys who stood out. I hope you enjoyed the report, and I hope they do it one more time before Madness. But now, I have to stop because it’s four hours until Sox/Twins and I have to get my game face on.

I’m Seth Stogsdill, and you can put that on the board.

That’s right, I’m booing a televised game.

Why? Simple. It’s going to be on Raycom. Worst announcing ever. Bad start time too.

A 12:30 p.m. game on the second weekend of Keeneland is not cool. Not at all. Big Blue Madness is the Friday night before the game. Then, people are suppose to go to Keeneland, then the game.

But no. Raycom decided to pick up the game. I could care less now.

Sigh. I really can’t wait until Raycom dies off next year.

I want to preface this by saying that I am in awe of what Alabama did this past weekend against #3 Georgia. I am not surprised that they won, as I thought that one could go either way. But I am surprised that they scored the game’s first 31 points. I’ve never seen a good Georgia team get beaten down like that in Athens. It was the most dominant performance in one game of the entire season.

With all of that said, I will not concede defeat this week. Have you watched college football this year? Did you see Oregon State jump out on USC and hold on? Oregon State was on TV two other times up to that point. They lost in overtime to a bad Stanford team and got destroyed by Penn State. They had no business even hanging with what Colin Cowherd was calling the best USC team ever. Did you see Michigan come back this weekend against Wisconsin? I saw Michigan look like absolute garbage on TV against both Utah and Notre Dame. They had no business hanging with a very good Wisconsin team, especially after being down by 19 and turning it over five times in the first half.

Of course, neither of those teams is Kentucky, but that’s okay, I have another good example that’s relevant. Remember LSU last season? How unbeatable did LSU look going into the Kentucky game? They took the best shot that an outstanding Florida team could give them, and they survived. In every other game, they dominated. How could the Kentucky defense, which had played poorly all year, make enough plays to even keep that game within two touchdowns? Well, you know what happened. 43-37 was one of the five greatest sports moments of my life.

Now I realize that Andre Woodson, Rafael Little, Keenan Burton, Steve Johnson, Jacob Tamme and Wesley Woodyard are all gone, but I don’t care. The Kentucky defense has been awesome. The WKU game might have been the best defensive performance of the young season, and that was without Ricky Lumpkin and Micah Johnson. I saw where Coach Brooks said that both guys were doubtful for the Alabama game, but in the SEC, you often see the “doubtful” guys from Monday all of a sudden become healthy enough on Saturday. In order to stand a chance against that powerful Alabama offensive line, they have to play. If they play, that defense can hold its own against any offense in America.

I’ll go into a little more detail in the next few days, but I just wanted to set the mood for my football columns this week.

I’m Seth Stogsdill, and I’m just saying that you never know what’s going to happen in college football.

Oh-em-gee!

This weekend is going to be a barnburner folks. Just make sure it’s not your barn that’s burning! Enough with the jokes. This weekend is serious.

What’s the game plan? The defense is good, but so is Bama’s offense? Can the run game work? Can Hartline lead us to victory? Let’s see what Al thinks.

Alabama is no. 2. They best in the SEC. They finished awfully against Georgia. This is a trap waiting to happen. Can UK roll the Tide? Looks like we’ll find out.

The SEC East is up for grabs. Step one to grabbing the crown is beating Alabama. The time is now.

First off, what a great crowd.  Western had a great turnout considering they are not one of the major colleges in the state.  I applaud the WKU fans for their showing and for not being obnoxious like so many other small schools that have come through Commonwealth.  The only thing I have to gripe about on that front is that if you are a Kentucky season-ticket holder who roots for the Cats evry game, why were you wearing red on Saturday night.  I realize you may be a WKU grad but there should never be a time when you are wearing red at a Kentucky home game.  We’ve seen and struggled through way too much for you to let our players down by wearing red in their home stadium.  Shame on you.

Traffic into the stadium sucks two and a half hours before kickoff.  Usually we tailgate but this week we decided to stop at the local Applebee’s in Lexington for a great meal.  Coming in Nicholasville Road is a tough task on gamedays.  There has got to be a better traffic plan to get folks to the stadium quicker.  I did see a lot of sights on the way though including several frat guys using the houses as urinals.  If we’re going to sell out games on a regular basis we have got to get a better plan regarding traffic.  Lexington Police, GET IT DONE!!

If you missed the game Saturday night, you missed quite a few UK alum making appearances during timeouts.  First, we had Ryder Cup winner J.B. Holmes make an appearance with his wife Sara after the first quarter.  They then made their way to their luxury box where it looked like the family had a great time.  We also had Indianapolis Colts tight end Jacob Tamme in attendance.  While he was in attendance rooting on the Cats, he was also watching his younger brother Seth, a sophomore wide receiver for WKU.  Also making an appearance was World Champion Boston Celtic Rajon Rondo.  Rondo is a Louisville native and played for the Cats for two years.  Not introduced but on the sideline towards the end of the game was former wide receiver Craig Yeast along with his son and daughter.  The most comical guest of the evening was the squirrel who ran out of the WKU tunnel and spinted 60 yards down the center of the field before finally stepping out of bounds to stop the clock.  After a brief game of chase with Scratch, he exited the stadium without harm.  Nice run little man. 

As for the actual game, I thought the Cats looked pretty good for three quarters.  The defense was stout all night except for a couple of big plays by WKU in the second quarter.  Midway through the first half the Toppers had -15 total yards, always a great looking stat for a defense.  I thought everyone played well especially the guys filling in for injured players.  The Justin Jeffries injury is going to hurt the o-line but as they showed the rest of the game, they have guys who can step in and play just as well.  One thing I thought about while watching was that we may be the only team in the country with a kickoff man, a field goal kicker and an extra point kicker.  Oh well, if they are on scholarship we might as well use them. 
That’s all for this week.  I hope the guys work hard because next week will be a tall task, but one these guys can do.

One thing that made me mad during the game was that a fan in the next section over got kicked out because he was smoking and snuck in a bottle of bourbon.  The guy had not created a scene but when a sheriff’s deputy came walking up the stairs, another fan pointed and ratted the guy out.  He said the smoke was irritating and the guy was going to get wasted in front of his children.  I have two problems with this.  One is that if the guy was irritated by the smoke, why did he not freak out when the fireworks blasted off and the smoke came down into the seats?  And second, and most important, if you are a Kentuckian you should never complain about smoking or bourbon.  Why, you ask.  If it weren’t for the tobacco industry and the bourbon industry, that great stadium we all pour into on Saturdays would probably not be there.  The money for Commonwealth was made off of these industries and without that funding (taxes) we would still be at Stoll Field probably.  Get over yourself and deal with a little smoke or leave.  Don’t ruin a guys fun because he’s not doing anything different than another 30,000+ fans.

Now that is more like it. Maybe Kentucky just plays better when the live TV cameras are rolling. I thought this was by far the best offensive performance of the year, and the defense wasn’t too shabby either.

The most satisfying thing about this win was the improved play of the running game. I saw more successful runs to the outside last night than I did in the first three games combined, which meant that the receivers were blocking better. Also, the line opened up some huge holes for all four backs. Alfonso Smith averaged over ten yards per carry. I realize that he isn’t the lead back because Tony Dixon is better at picking up blitzes, but ten YPC is ten YPC, I don’t care who the opponent is. That’s an Adrian Peterson statistic. I want to see more of him and less Dixon. I keep repeating this, but Tony Dixon is best suited as a backup running back. His forte is supposed to be power, but he likes to tiptoe into the hole, while the other three guys hit it at full speed. Plus, look at what Moncell Allen has done in the second halves of these last few games. If Dixon weren’t a 5th year senior who stuck with Rich Brooks when the times were at their worst, he’d be the 4th string back on this roster.

I can’t say enough about Derrick Locke. I still think Smith should be the lead back in Kentucky’s system, but he should probably share the majority of the carries with Locke. Derrick is the most explosive back I’ve seen at Kentucky since…I don’t know. If you look at the top running backs at UK since I started following the team (1993), you don’t see too many speed guys. Moe Williams and Artose Pinner (both Vikings legends) were pure power. Rafael Little was elusive and incredible at breaking tackles, but he doesn’t have the breakaway speed that Locke does. That kickoff return was amazing. He broke one tackle and was gone. It was the first kick return touchdown since Keenan Burton against Louisville in 2006, if memory serves me correctly. He’s the best on the roster at turning the corner, which is so key to winning in the SEC. When was the last time you saw a team win an SEC game without running to the outside? It probably has never happened before. I know lots of coaches don’t like playing their best players on special teams because of the injury risk, but I love Locke and Smith returning kickoffs and Dicky Lyons returning punts. I think Dick will take one to the house before the year is over.

Special teams have been unbelievable all year. I love how Ryan Tydlacka was forced into a tough situation in his first game as kicker, coming in on the first series and having to kick one from over 40 yards and putting it through no problem. That one would have been good from at least 50 yards out. That’s a tough kid. I know it’s only one game, but I already trust Ryan more than Lones Seiber. I won’t pile on Lones anymore after this, but the only thing he hasn’t done is completely whiffed on the kick like Charlie Brown, only the ball never moved. Tydlacka came in on his first ever college kick and blasted one. He’s already proven to be an effective short-range punter, and I’d venture to guess he’ll be taking over punting duties full time after Tim Masthay graduates. Speaking of Masthay, I know people don’t pay attention to punters unless they’re freaks like Glenn Pakulak and his bazooka leg, but Tim has quietly had a great season so far. His punting has been much better than what he did in previous seasons, and he’s just been killing kickoffs. Field position wins games in the SEC, and if Tydlacka plays as well as he did last night, special teams will win UK a game in conference play. Just you wait.

The defense is very good. I can’t really say more than that. Four games into the season, Kentucky has the top scoring defense in the country. Call it fool’s gold because of the schedule, but I don’t care. It isn’t like Kentucky always does this well with similar schedules. I’ve seen UK lose to Ohio, some very bad Indiana teams and Louisiana-Monroe. I’ve also seen Kentucky get scared to death against Central Michigan and Idaho State. In those games, the offense bailed out the defense. In the games this season, Middle Tennessee coming to mind, the defense has bailed out the offense.

Last night, the front four put more pressure on the quarterback than they had in any other season. It’s one thing to flush the QB out of the pocket and force him into bad throws. That’s what last year’s defense did at its best. It’s another thing to finish the deal and sack him, which is what this year’s defense has done. Western had a mobile quarterback and ran some of that Urban Meyer spread offense, and Kentucky snuffed out 98% of the plays from that formation. If the defensive linemen didn’t get the guy with the ball, Braxton Kelley and Johnny Williams did, and they wrapped up last night. It might have been the best “pure linebacker” game I’ve seen from Williams.

Now it’s time to focus on Alabama. I’ll divulge more as the week progresses, but I’ll say that UK has a puncher’s chance.

I’m Seth Stogsdill, and Alabama let WKU get into the endzone in their game – just saying…

This is not good.

No, no, no, no.

Stalking, terroristic threatening and more, according to the Herald-Leader, is not something you do, Ashton Cobb.

The promising junior strong safety has really messed up, if what everyone is reporting is true. Using “why so serious,” a reference to the Joker in the Dark Knight for those not in the know, is not funny in the context used. It’s sadistic, just like the Joker was.

Threatening to rape and kill your ex-girlfriend, which the H-L said Cobb did through a plethora of calls and text messages, is not cool. Especially when those types of topics are touchy on UK’s campus anyway. Seriously Ashton? Why so stupid?

At first, we thought Matt Lentz had won the job fairly. Maybe he did. But Cobb just gift-wrapped the job to Lentz for the rest of the year. Head coach Rich Brooks said Cobb was suspended from the University, not just the team. Good.

If all this is true, Cobb should be off the team. This is just sad. Who does such a thing. Ashton, you’re an athlete on the football team at a SEC school. Move on to the next hot girl who shakes her ass at you. Don’t threaten the old one.

Why so serious, Ashton? Because you messed up. Now it is serious.

That’s right, we talkin’ bout practice when it sells out in 40 minutes.

If you were looking for Big Blue Madness tickets, pray your buddy got some. They sold out in 40 minutes today, through direct sales at the Memorial Coliseum ticket office and online at ukathletics.com and ticketmaster.com.

I guess some people really like to see how things will play out this season. If that’s what Big Blue Madness really does.

Sigh.

Color me a critic, but if you’ve seen one Madness, you’ve seen them all.

* I am torn about this Alabama/Georgia game. On one hand, I like Georgia and I want the SEC to be represented in the BCS title game, and Georgia is one of three teams than can get there. On the other hand, if Georgia wins like I think they will (black jerseys = magic), how angry is Alabama going to be next week when Kentucky comes to town? Not that I think UK stands much of a chance against the Crimson Tide, but if they somehow beat Georgia, they’d come into the Kentucky game with a top five ranking and a huge head. And, as USC showed last night, it isn’t good to have a huge head when playing a perceived lesser opponent.

* Speaking of USC, why do they keep doing this? First it was Oregon State, then UCLA in 2006. Then Stanford did it last season and finally Oregon State did it again. Imagine Florida being unable to win on the road against Vanderbilt under Urban Meyer. How absurd is that? Well, that’s the SEC equivalent of what’s happening to USC. The Pac-10 is down this year, especially after five teams lost to Mountain West teams in week 3. Since that time, Oregon and USC have lost. USC might run the table the rest of the way, but I’m not sure that will be enough to put them over other top one-loss teams by the end of the season. This one hurts a lot.

* Do you feel sorry for Tennessee? Neither do I. Tennessee has to go to Jordan-Hare tomorrow to take on an angry Auburn team that lost in the last minute to LSU. Good luck, Fat Phil. You’ll need all the luck you can get to stay within three touchdowns of the Tigers. Is it possibl