If you don’t check out ESPN’s website everyday, then you probably haven’t seen their little summer trick of picking a “face” of every college football program.

Cal’s “Face” is The Play, Boise State’s is the Blue Turf, and Alabama’s is Bear Bryant. What is Kentucky’s you ask? Babe Parilli. Maybe it shows my age, but I got to wondering if Babe really is the face of UK football. I’m willing to bet most of you don’t think of good ole Babe when you think Bluegrass football.

Don’t get me wrong, the guy was a player. A two-time All-American, he’s probably the most accomplished, by far, at UK. He had a good AFL career too. But I just don’t picture him as the “face”, so I looked at the rest of the options ESPN provided. Bear Bryant, no thanks, everyone knows he made his claim at Alabama… so why try and ride Bama’s coattails?

Then it was Tim Couch. Possibly, I said. Couch did huge things here and restored the program if only for a few years. But right now, Couch is seen as a huge bust in the NFL, not as a great college player. Love you Timmy, but sorry, I don’t want my program seen as the producer of NFL busts (unless they are Hall of Fame ones).

Next was Derrick Ramsey, who led the 1977 team, the last great UK team before this past year. Andre Woodson rounded out the last of the ESPN options, but come on, you can’t say a guy that just graduated is the face of a program.

So with the choices I have set by ESPN, I went with Ramsey. But the list is piss poor in my view. Maybe it’s because Kentucky just doesn’t have football tradition (which I don’t believe). Maybe it’s because there has never been one stand out above the all-stars at Commomwealth Stadium.

Personally, I don’t think there is one single “face” of Kentucky. No player shined long enough, no coach stayed or shined long enough. There’s nothing that screams at me “UK FOOTBALL BABY!”

But, I think we have candidates nearing that status on the coaching front. A few more years of success for Rich Brooks and the old man becomes my pick. His successor, Joker Phillips, has an even better chance if he takes Brooks’ foundation and runs with it.

So if you ask me today, Derrick Ramsey is the “face” of UK football. If you ask me in 5 or 10 years, I’ll probably have a different answer.