And the good fortune started today.
I’ve been out of town for much of the afternoon, so you can imagine how cool it was to get home and find out from most major UK news sources that Micah Johnson and Jeremy Jarmon were each coming back for another year. Most of us probably had a feeling that Trevard Lindley was as good as gone, and it’s perfectly understandable. He’s without question the best defensive back to play for the Big Blue since I’ve been following college football, which is admittedly not long. If Eric Kelly can make the NFL and start for the beloved Minnesota Vikings (and totally whiff on Mike Vick on that famous 2002 overtime run), Lindley will do just fine.
But let’s get back to Johnson and Jarmon. Larry Vaught said on the Sunday call-in show that he expected both of those guys to declare, so it’s a bit of a surprise that they’re coming back, but what a great surprise it is. Johnson has gotten so much better every year it’s ridiculous. Nobody is ever going to confuse him for Ray Lewis, but I’ll go ahead and throw another name out there for you. Remember Levon Kirkland? He started at MLB for the Steelers team that went to Super Bowl XXX, and he was even bigger than Johnson. I compare because their builds are similar. In 2006, a lot of Internet types were upset that Braxton Kelley was getting Johnson’s reps at MLB. It’s a credit to this staff to see how much he has developed as a linebacker since then. Jarmon is already one of the best defensive ends in the country. It will be an absolute thrill to have him back for another year. He demanded double teams all year long, which opened things up for Myron Pryor and Ventrell Jenkins to have career years. All of a sudden, the defense got a much-needed boost, and I love it.
Also, there’s a big basketball game tomorrow. The team began its metamorphosis in its conference opener against Vanderbilt last year. There’s no reason why it couldn’t happen again. Patrick Patterson had one of his best games ever against AJ Ogilvy last season, and has outperformed Ogilvy (and most other big men in the country) this season. Vandy leads the SEC in team defense, both scoring and FG%. From what I’ve seen on TV, they play multiple defenses, but for the most part play man. They don’t have a guy like Alex Gordon to wreak individual havoc on guys and force steals, but I think their interior defense is better with Festus Ezeli. The big thing about this game is that Shan(e) Foster and Ross Neltner are gone. Obviously we’re all glad Foster finished up his 18th year at Vandy and finally graduated, but I won’t miss Neltner either. He always channeled that “Shunned Kentucky HS Player” rage and made big shots against UK, both at Vandy and LSU. In Nashville last year, the game started with Neltner banking in a three from the top of the key, and it was pretty much over after that. Vandy doesn’t have that kind of advantage this time.
What I’m saying is, if you’re a betting man, you might want to bet on the Wildcats tomorrow. It’s just a hunch.