If you follow the newspapers (some of you don’t, which is sad) that cover the Cats, you’d know there’s a little bit of struggle going on.

Sophomore running back Derrick Locke, never one to mince words, called out his coaches about wanting to run the ball more after the Alabama game.

Monday and Tuesday, Rich Brooks shot back, saying that it wasn’t just one factor that is stifling UK’s running game, citing it takes a full effort by the backs, offensive line and it all depends on the type of defense the Cats play.

Now, on the surface, what Locke says makes sense. A deeper look shows otherwise.

First, UK’s offensive line is too banged up/isn’t good enough to get a three-yard push off the line every play. Instead, UK must utilize their speed with Locke and Alfonso Smith by going outside and throwing screens. A screen is basically like a run, anyway.

But if there is one game where the running back really needed to jump start, it’s against South Carolina. The Gamecocks have the SEC’s top ranked pass defense. UK’s wide receivers aren’t experienced enough to be expected to overcome that pass defense. Instead, Tony Dixon, Smith and Locke will need to step it up themselves, and make due with however many carries they are given.

I can understand Locke wanting to run more and I personally believe that Dixon is just complicating matters by playing so much.

Either way, whether it’s more running plays or UK’s running backs just having to explode to get better rushing yards, something needs to be done.

Wow, what a game right?

I just love when a kicker misses four field goals, when the running game stalls and wide receivers don’t know the routes. So when Papa Brooks says it’s time to open some positions back up to competition, I rejoice.

Let’s face it, Lones Seiber has been a problem for a while. I’m sure Lones is a great guy in real life. But he can’t kick worth a nickel. Time for you to go.

Tony Dixon, it’s not your time either. I know you’ve waited your entire career, but you aren’t a feature back. Alfonso Smith and Derrick Locke bring more to the table, namely speed and ability. You’re a great guy Tony, but time to step aside.

And all of you wide receivers, learn the darn playbook. This is silly. Learn the checks. You want to know what made Andre Woodson good? His wide receivers. Dicky Lyons Jr. can’t do everything, so step it up. I’m looking at you E.J. Adams, Demareo Ford, Aaron Boyd and Kyrus Lanxter. Step it up.

Rich Brooks needed to make some changes and I’m glad it’s looking like he will. The defense can’t hold up all year, as MTSU showed, and the offense can’t keep putting the defense in bad situations.

Change was on the horizon and now, it’s time for change. And now we can’t wait a moment later.

Here are some things that will make my day if they happen in this week’s game.

1. A passing touchdown from Mike Hartline. Kentucky needs a good game out of Mike to keep their scheme intact. The staff wants to use both quarterbacks, which is fine by me. A good game with at least one touchdown pass by Hartline, along with continuing to avoid turnovers, will do wonders for Mike’s confidence and the fans’ confidence in him. Randall Cobb showed what he could do last week, leading all of Kentucky’s first half scoring drives. He also turned it over twice in the second half. Both quarterbacks have strengths and flaws, and both guys need to play well in order to camouflage those flaws.

2. More Derrick Locke, more Alfonso Smith and less Tony Dixon. All apologies to Dixon, who is a 5th year senior who stuck it out when times were at their toughest, and because of that, has earned the admiration and respect of the coaches and players, but he isn’t a lead running back. His flaws are the easiest to point out among the four running backs who got meaningful carries last week. He gets happy feet before hitting the hole and he’s prone to fumbling. Locke and Smith do not have these flaws, though neither of them are perfect – Locke is tiny and Smith doesn’t pick up blitzes well. Still, those guys are more dangerous than Dixon, and the most dangerous guys are the ones who need to touch the ball the most.

3. Continue the defensive intensity. MTSU doesn’t run a revolutionary offensive system. They spread the field and use draws and the short passing game, just like pretty much every team outside the Big Ten. Speaking of the Big Ten, USC is going to roll Ohio State, regardless of whether or not Chris Wells plays. But it isn’t like Kentucky has never seen this kind of offense before. The front seven has been extraordinary so far, and I believe it would take a lot to keep them from regressing to the point of the team being in grave danger this week.

4. Don’t get the big head. If you’ve watched the news this week, you might know that Coach Brooks was about as angry with his team as I’ve ever seen him, even in this period of relative prosperity. I’m not really sure why, other than that it was just a bad practice. It probably happens all the time in college football, and no team is immune to it. The last thing Kentucky needs to do is get an undeserved sense of accomplishment. We’ve beaten Louisville and Norfolk State. That’s it. Kentucky football cannot afford to crap the bed against a seemingly inferior opponent. Remember Michigan and Appalachian State? There you go.

5. Dominate field position. Kentucky did it again last week. The short punting of Ryan Tydlacka and the booming kickoffs of Tim Masthay have kept Louisville and Norfolk State inside their own 20-yard line. This will win games in the SEC. You’ve seen these LSU/Auburn defensive stalemates in years past, right? Often a big special teams play will be the difference in setting up a team for score because points are at so much of a premium. If Kentucky can keep this up, they can get some cheap points on days where the offense is off. Let’s keep this up tomorrow.

I’m Seth Stogsdill. Make it happen, Blue.

I was so glad to hear from Coach Brooks and Randall Cobb during the post-game radio interviews that they were disappointed with the fans booing Mike Hartline when he returned to the field to begin the 2nd half. I could not agree more. Why would you boo a kid who has done nothing wrong? Yes, he has gotten off to a slow start running the offense. No big surprise there. Don’t forget, he has only two starts at quarterback under his belt. He is still getting used to actually putting the helmet on every game instead of sending signals in to Woodson. Saturday’s game and the WKU game, not so much the MTSU because it will probably be a tough game, are games that he needs to get in the game as much as possible to learn and gain experience. Don’t boo him when he’s in the game, cheer him. We haven’t been bitten by any injuries so far this year but if we do (e.g. Cobb gets hurt) (KNOCK ON WOOD), he will be our only option. If he hears boos right now, he will have no confidence in his abilities. Think before you act next time.

That’s more like it. The offense wasn’t perfect, but it didn’t have to be. All I wanted to see was significant offensive improvement from the Louisville game, and that’s exactly what happened. I’m very happy with the way the offense played, but there’s just one thing I have to get off of my chest.

If any of you people reading this booed Mike Hartline when he came back in to start the second half, you are worthless. “Look at me! I’m a drunk hillbilly that doesn’t know anything about football, but by God, I can tear down college kids with confidence issues! Now THROW IT DEEP, JAY-RUD!” Those of you who booed Mike Hartline sicken me. All this kid did was not turn it over, lead three scoring drives and start his college career with a 2-0 record, including a dominating win over Louisville, and you have the balls to boo him because he had a rough couple of series in the first half? As if those first series were going to lose the game for Kentucky? You can’t defend booing Mike Hartline. You can’t even defend the copout, “Well, I wasn’t actually booing Mike. I was booing Rich Brooks and Joker Phillips for putting Mike back in.” So in other words, you were booing Mike. In other words, you suck. Don’t boo college players unless you know they’re getting paid.

I’d love to see Derrick Locke and Alfonso Smith get the meat of the carries for the rest of the year. Tony Dixon just isn’t a lead running back at the SEC level. He’s perfectly acceptable at the #2 or #3 level, but I think Smith and Locke are both better, and Moncell Allen might get there soon. Dixon just doesn’t have the speed to hit the hole with the velocity needed to get big gains in SEC games. Locke and Smith did that against Norfolk State, and they’ve shown that they can do it against better opponents. One of the problems Hartline has faced is that he hasn’t gotten to play much with those two backs. The receivers are probably going to be shaky all year. Why not surround Mike with the best possible players at each position?

The real star of the game was Randall Cobb. Remember how awful the media was when talking about Chris Lofton? I’m one of Tubby Smith’s stiffest critics, but I will defend his decision to sign Bradley, Rondo, Crawford and Morris over Lofton every day. Well now, the tables are going to be turned on Tennessee. How can Fat Phil Fulmer not pick up a kid in his backyard? Alcoa is a suburb of Knoxville, and you lose a kid from there to Kentucky? I think this kid can be special. He looked great in the first half, not so great in the second. The turnovers may have hurt against a better team, but I think those will decrease as Cobb matures. I’m actually in favor of playing both quarterbacks. You need somebody who can scramble (Mike is underrated on his feet, but Randall is a beast), but at the same time, you don’t completely give up on Mike Hartline because he has shown some attributes that I like. He’s an accurate passer and is an exceptional decision maker for somebody so green. He doesn’t take sacks and unlike Andre Woodson, he has a good idea when to throw the ball away. I think it’s a win-win situation for Kentucky.

Defense was unbelievable once again. In the second half, Coach Brown started bringing some heat on the NSU line, especially with Johnny Williams lining up as a 5th lineman. Johnny just went around the tackle on a couple of blitzes. The man is fast. Just like last week against Louisville, I saw very few broken tackles against this defense. At the same time, I saw Louisville play Tennessee Tech and make all those plays they couldn’t make against Kentucky. I think that shows just how good the defense has been these first two weeks. I don’t care who the opponent is, holding a team to negative net yards in a half is amazing, and consecutive games without giving up a touchdown is equally awesome.

I have lots of basketball information for tomorrow involving the open gym scrimmages that were held yesterday at Memorial Coliseum. I think you’ll like what I’ve found so far.

I’m Seth Stogsdill, reminding all UK fans that if you boo, you’re automatically in Al-Qaeda.

Here is a list of things that would make my day if they happened during the Kentucky vs. Norfolk State game.

1. Run blocking. Chalk it up to first game jitters, new starters or whatever, butt run blocking was a big disappointment against Louisville. To make matters worse for Saturday, Garry Williams had surgery to repair some torn cartilage in his knee and will be out for a few weeks. According to the sources I’ve seen, He should be back to speed during the bye week, which means he would be able to play against Alabama. Given the defensive domination of Alabama last week, Kentucky will need all the help they can get, and a healthy Williams will make a huge difference. Until then, Williams’ injury opens the door for the Cats’ younger tackles to get some playing time against weaker opponents.

2. Sweeps. I understand why Kentucky kept running up the gut against Louisville. It was hot, Kentucky had field position and the lead. It was a battle of attrition. It also didn’t get a lot of yardage. If the lanes were there for the backs to get to the outside against Louisville, they should be there against Norfolk State.

3. Derrick Locke and Alfonso Smith. Tony Dixon is good in short yardage situations, but he fumbles too much to be a lead back. Also, Dixon doesn’t have the breakaway speed that Locke and Smith possess. I’d love to see these guys get more carries, even though I understand why they don’t (Locke is small and Smith doesn’t pick up the blitz well). Hopefully they’ll get their chance on Saturday.

4. Enough of a passing game to keep the defense honest. Mike Hartline did pretty much all the right things on Sunday against Louisville. The one mistake, the safety, was more the fault of Joker Phillips than Hartline. He didn’t make many bad throws, but one was a surefire touchdown that sailed over the head of TC Drake. I think he got so excited that Drake was wide open over the middle that he just gunned it. Well, now that Mike has a college start in a rivalry game under his belt, he should be a little calmer during this game. If his receivers start catching balls, defenses won’t put eight in the box, and that’s when the running game will take over.

5. Continued excellence on defense. I couldn’t have been any prouder of a defensive unit than I was after the Louisville game. I have no idea when Kentucky last kept an offense from scoring. I know there was a shutout in 1998, but that was against Eastern Kentucky. The Kentucky defense wrapped up better than any UK defense I’ve ever seen, which isn’t saying much, but they did do an excellent job in that area. Hopefully Jeremy Jarmon will bust loose for some big plays, now that Myron Pryor has started to play out of his mind. If the UK front seven can control the line of scrimmage against Louisville, I’d like to think they can do it in the next three games.

6. Win the field position battle with special teams. This was the most surprising story of Saturday, even more surprising than the defense. Tim Masthay just killed kickoffs, especially the one after the safety. I think Louisville got to return one kick all day. Masthay and Ryan Tydlacka pinned Louisville deep in their own territory in the punting game. On the other side, Dicky Lyons Jr. had a couple of nice punt returns that set Kentucky up for scores. These simple plays win ballgames, especially in a league like the SEC where every team is so good on defense.

7. Win while avoiding major injury. Obviously injuries are part of football and are often unavoidable, so this might be wishful thinking. But it would make my day, which is why it’s on my list.

I’m Seth Stogsdill, and I hope Kentucky makes my day on Saturday.

Raise your hand if you saw UK score two defensive touchdowns, have the potential for six interceptions (and getting three) and flat out playing the way the defense did on Sunday, before the game.

Put your hand down. You never saw that one coming as well as it did.

So what is next? Obviously, Louisville has some major questions offensively and defensively. But this isn’t a Louisville blog. So let’s breakdown what UK has to answer.

1. Can Dixon, Locke and Co. learn to make defenders miss? Joker Phillips admitted after the game that teams are going to put an extra guy in the box. If those RBs don’t learn some spins, jukes and hurdles…. maybe that running game won’t be so good. That will be fatal to the offense.

2. Will the defense get too confident? Cat fans better hope not. Cantwell isn’t a Tim Tebow or Matt Stafford. Those QBs are better and have better receivers. They played well, but Louisville is still awful.

3. Can Myron Pyror sustain his great start? The dude was a beast. One forced fumble that created a defensive touchdown. Then a fumble recovery that he rambled 72-yards for a score himself. Wow. Things will be so much easy for the rest of the defensive line, including Jeremy Jarmon, if he keeps it up.

4. Will Hartline continue to be a game manager, not game changer? When UK played at Arkansas last year, the gameplan was simple for the defense, make Casey Dick try to win the game. Why? Because Casey Dick is awful. I’m not saying Hartline is awful, but you can’t really tell anything from the Louisville game. He did limit mistakes and showed a good short passing game. Can he continue to be the game manager UK needs or the game changer (good or bad) that will give fans ulcers.

That’s what I see as the questions UK has to answer. But one thing is for sure now… 4-0 GOING INTO TUSCALOOSA. Put your money down now, CBS will pick up that game with the way Alabama started. Holler.

I see the game going like this. Defense will set the tone for the day, and I expect a low scoring affair.

I think that both defenses will come out with guns blazing, but eventually, Louisville’s lack of depth in the trenches will come back to bite them. It has to, because it will be hotter than the mouth of hell in Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium.

I think that Kentucky will slowly but surely wear down Louisville’s front seven with the running game. Louisville has woefully inexperienced linebackers, so I expect a lot of counters and misdirection plays from Joker Phillips.

It wouldn’t surprise me if Kentucky went with power in the first half with Dixon and Allen, then switched it up to speed in the second half with Smith and Locke. I predict that Kentucky will build a sizeable lead in the 4th quarter thanks to ball control and the running game, but Louisville will rally behind the passing of Hunter Cantwell.

This game will be close because Brooks and Phillips are very conservative coaches when their team has a lead. Here’s exactly how I see the scoring working out.

Kentucky will score first on a short completion from Mike Hartline to Dicky Lyons Jr.

Louisville will come back with two field goals. I think 7-6 will be the halftime score.

The two teams will trade touchdowns to open the third quarter. I predict touchdown runs by Dixon and Bolen.

I think Kentucky will force a turnover, get the ball in good position, but settle for a FG by Lones Seiber. I also think Seiber will miss one field goal, but I don’t think he’ll miss any extra points.

The touchdown that decides the outcome will come from Derrick Locke on a run of at least 25 yards.

Louisville will tack on a late touchdown on a long throw, Cantwell to Doug Beaumont. Then they will recover the onside kick with less than a minute to go.

Trevard Lindley will either break up or pick off the Hail Mary at the end of the game.

Kentucky will win, 24-20.

Kentucky will not be as good on offense as they were in 2007. This is a given. Andre Woodson, Rafael Little, Keenan Burton, Steve Johnson and Jacob Tamme are all trying to cut their teeth in the NFL. Mike Hartline emerged as the starting quarterback after Curtis Pulley was dismissed from the team, though I believe that Hartline would have been named the starter anyway. If you believe coaches, Mike did a lot of the same things Andre Woodson did during the offseason where he was expected to battle with Pulley for the starting job. Hartline became a leader and gained the support of his teammates. As Dicky Lyons says, “Nobody doesn’t not like Mike Hartline.” In fact, quarterback is not my biggest area of concern for the offense. Hartline is green, but by all accounts he has been very efficient. Also, watch out for Randall Cobb. I don’t think he’ll get any snaps at QB, but I do think you’ll see him on the field a few times, maybe just as a decoy by Joker Phillips to scare the crap out of the Louisville defense.

My biggest concern is wide receiver. Lyons is awesome and everybody loves him, but he’s not a #1 receiver. He’s a slot guy. He’s more of a possession guy than a slot guy. It would be like the Indianapolis Colts making Anthony Gonzalez their top receiver. Some guys are just natural in the slot, and with Burton and Johnson on the edges last season, Dicky got to play at his most natural spot on the field. Now he has to carry the same kind of load that Burton or Johnson did last year, and I worry about his ability to do that. More that that, though, I worry about the depth at the position. EJ Adams is going to start opposite Lyons instead of the injured Kyrus Lanxter. I don’t really know enough about either man to say which guy would work out better, but I do know that Lanxter is more experienced. Demoreo Ford is a blocker first and foremost. Matt Roark and Eric Adeyemi are freshmen, which means they’re unpredictable. Roark has pro size and Adeyemi has blazing speed, but who knows how they’ll do in backup roles in a game situation? I like Maurice Grinter at tight end. Nobody can replace Jacob Tamme, but if Grinter won the starting job over TC Drake in his first season playing the position (Mo used to back up John Conner at FB), then he must be decent.

At running back, I feel great about the good guys. Little ran all over the Cardinals defense last year, but even though he’s gone, Kentucky still has amazing depth in the backfield. Tony Dixon will start, but I’m not sure if he’ll get the most carries. Dixon is a good power runner, but he’s always had problems with fumbling. Derrick Locke is second on the depth chart. If he were three inches taller and 25 pounds heavier, he’d be #1 on the list. He’s the fastest back on the team, and his play in the games against LSU and Arkansas showed that he could take a hit. I don’t think Locke got one carry against Louisville last season, so the Cards are in for a treat. Alfonso Smith is probably the most complete back on the roster in terms of running ability, but he had problems last year with blocking. Moncell Allen is the tank. I’ve always loved his running style, and he’s so short and stocky that it’s very tough to bring him down. I hope he gets the nod in goal line situations instead of Dixon, unless Dixon has gotten better at holding onto the ball. John Conner is an outstanding fullback in all phases of the game. He runs hard in what few touches he gets, he runs a good flat route in goal line packages and he’s also a very good blocker.

At the line, Kentucky has three starters returning. Garry Williams, Justin Jeffries and Zipp Duncan all got better as the season progressed. In fact, I’m pretty sure Williams won SEC Lineman of the Week one week last year, possibly for not giving up a sack against LSU. Jess Beets beat out Brad Durham and Stuart Hines to take the spot at RG vacated by Brodhead resident Jason Leger. I thought Durham would have gotten it, so Beets beating Durham is a bit of a surprise to me. At 6’2”, 285 lbs., Beets is the smallest of the five linemen. Jorge Gonzalez takes over for Eric Scott at center. It was his job to lose going into the season, and he didn’t lose it. He should do just fine.

Louisville has experience along the defensive line and in the secondary as well. Ends Maurice Mitchell and LD Scott are pretty big for their position. I don’t remember Scott, but I do remember Mitchell from last season. If my memory serves me correctly, he lined up against Jeffries last season. Tackles Adrian Grady and Earl Heyman are seniors and are both very good. Both guys held their own on the 2006 Louisville defense, though most of the praise went to current Houston Texan Amobi Okoye. I don’t think this Louisville defense is strong at all, but I will say that the line is the least of their concerns.

Linebacker, however, is a huge concern. None of the linebackers on the Louisville depth chart have been credited with a tackle in a game. Linebacker was probably the Cardinals’ strongest position last season. I liked Malik Jackson, Lamar Myles and Preston Smith. I thought it was an incredibly stupid decision by Myles to test the waters in the NFL and not come back. He would have been huge because of the leadership that comes with the MLB position. Instead, the depth chart lists Antwon Canady at MLB and Jon Dempsey and Dexter Heyman on the outside. Dempsey is a junior, Heyman is a freshman (but supposed to be pretty good for a freshman), and the depth chart I looked up didn’t say what Canady was. If Kentucky can open up the same kind of holes against Louisville that they did for Little last season, these linebackers had better be able to wrap up. All four of the Kentucky backs are tough to take down.

Louisville has experience at three of the four positions in the secondary, but that was probably the weakest part of Louisville’s 2007 defense, so I’m not sure that returning experience is necessarily a good thing. At cornerback, Woodny Turenne returns, and if you’re a Louisville fan, you hope he’s better at defending the deep ball than he was last year. Steve Johnson thanks you while he collects his check from the Buffalo Bills. Bobby Buchanan and Richard Raglin return at safety – good if you’re a fan of alliteration. I didn’t think that Louisville’s safeties communicated well with the corners during the Kentucky game, and really during every other game. The Cards also bring back LaTarrious Thomas at safety, who missed most of the 2007 season on the shelf.

It comes down to this: I think Kentucky is weak at WR, strong at RB and right in the middle at QB and OL. I think Louisville is weak at LB and DB and decent at DL. If push comes to shove, I say Kentucky has the advantage when they have the ball, but it’s closer than I made it look. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous about the offense. I have very bad memories of the 2006 game.

I’m Seth Stogsdill, and I’ll turn the tables with Part 2 either tomorrow or Saturday.

Oh, how people forget. Rather funny actually.

People forget that two years ago, Andre Woodson was a big question mark. A kid who threw as many interceptions as touchdown passes. No one ever projected him to become the QB that eventually emerged, helping lead UK to bowl games.

Two years ago, Keenan Burton had injury problems. You couldn’t keep him on the field. The potential was a possible waste. Same for Rafael Little, always injured.

Steve Johnson is by all means a one-hit wonder. So then why is every pre-season magazine and SEC message boards saying UK is doomed without them? Pre-season magazines have an excuse: they are lazy after they set their top 25. They fall into ruts and old traditions.

But I expect SEC fans to have a little more intelligence. Too much to ask from the Southern states?

It’s funny, because the coaches who improved those players, made them better, made them leaders to accomplish what they did, all those coaches are still here. Randy Sanders is still there to mold any quarterback into greatness. Joker Phillips is still there to improve wide recievers and the offense as a whole. Rich Brooks is still there.

Players come and go. Obviously, so does respect. I’ve seen Alabama blogs and message boards put UK into the “should win/easy win” slot for them this year. Sure, if you can keep your team out of jail and keep forgetting you went 6-6 last year. How bout those Ragin Cajuns from Louisiana-Monroe. Pretty easy win right?

South Carolina thinks we are an easy win too. Even though don’t have a solid quarterback, Spurrier looks more washed-up every year and if we could hold onto the ball, we would have beat them last year. Oh and they went 6-6 too, finishing below us. Funny.

Four players leave and UK is suppose to go back to cellar? Sorry fellas. Players are interchangable when the coaches are good. UK’s are good. How easy you forget Derrick Locke tearing up LSU, Arkansas and others. How easy you forget that Dicky Lyons Jr. can catch and block too!

How easy you forget that two years ago, we had an amazing turnover ratio. How the majority of the defense remains that has improved every year under Brooks. How we actually have similiar depth to South Carolina, Alabama, etc. How easy you forget.

Your arrogance is funny. I bet you won’t laugh when Kentucky shows they aren’t going back to the cellar. Ask Georgia if they laughed in 2006. Ask a top-ten Louisville team and national champion LSU if they laughed in 2007.

Now ask yourself if you still think you’ll be laughing in 2008.