This is the year, they said.
In Mark Stoops’ third season in Lexington, players and fans alike aimed for a bowl game for Kentucky.
“Six games is what we have to win,” UK safety A.J. Stamps told reporters at SEC Media Days. “Those six games are all that matters. I don’t care who it is. We just have to get to six games (because) it would be very big for Kentucky to go to a bowl.
“This is Stoops’ third year. Everybody says it’s supposed to be his big year.”
The program has been building — perhaps more off the field — with three top 40 recruiting classes as Stoops has tapped into talent-rich Ohio. The program also unveiled a $120-million renovation plan to Commonwealth Stadium and a $45-million indoor practice facility that’s under construction.
Yet the path to a bowl game hit a bit of a speed bump Saturday in Starkville with a 42-16 loss to Mississippi State. The (4-3, 2-3 SEC) Wildcats now face Tennessee (3-4, 1-3), which has won 29 of the 30 games in the series since 1985, including 50-16 last year.
With road games remaining against Georgia and Vanderbilt, and the balance of the schedule being Charlotte and Louisville, which may be gunning for its own bowl eligibility, the margin of error is slim.
Stoops admitted on Monday on his radio show that he met with some players one-on-one. “A few more than normal.”
“There’s things I’ve already addressed on both sides of the ball,” he said. “I’ve touched on them briefly in the media. I don’t want to beat a dead horse publicly. There’s things we’ll get ironed out and fixed in the staff. I’m not panicked about it. There’s just things we’ve got to get better at.”
A former newspaper veteran, Keith Farner is a news manager for Saturday Down South.
