1st and Ten –
Little Man – Ask coaches throughout the SEC about the
running backs that they’ll see this fall, and you’ll see grown
men run their fingers through their hair and let out a big
sigh. Nothing like having to face some of the best running
backs in the nation week after week.. The names are quite
impressive. Kenny Irons. Arian Foster. Darren McFadden. Pick
one from Georgia. But, one guy who is also on the minds of most
SEC defensive coordinators is Kentucky’s Rafael Little. The
5’10”, 200 pound dynamo was a 1,000 yard rusher in 2005 and is
as dynamic an offensive talent as has set foot on the Lexington
campus in some time. Like McFadden from Arkansas, he’s a
complete back who can hurt a defense with his quickness in the
running game, he can catch the ball out of the backfield and he
can also return kicks. Hmm, sounds a lot like the guy who won
the stiff-armed trophy last year. Although Little has a long
way to go to emulate the great Reggie Bush, the impact that he
has for this Kentucky offense is nearly the same. If after
reading that list of runners above, you question whether Little
belongs in that group, pop in the Vanderbilt tape from last
year. 372 yards later, you might have to re-think your stance.
The Kentucky coaching staff will tell anyone who listens that
Tony Dixon will push Little for the starting spot, but this kid
is a star and will be the bellcow for this offense. Dixon will
help to take some pressure off of Little, but when the Cats need
a play to be made, it’s going to be Little’s ball.
2nd and Seven –
Bo Knows Ballin’ – The Wildcat secondary was the worst pass
defense in the conference last season, but that wasn’t due to
the play of last year’s defensive MVP Bo Smith. Smith, a smart,
physical cornerback, was fourth on the team in tackles with 63
and led the team with 2 interceptions. Although the rest of the
secondary spots are up in the air, Smith gives defensive
coordinator Mike Archer a lockdown corner on one side of the
field. The problem is that most teams will go away from him and
challenge the youngsters on the other side. Consequently,
Archer is going to have to find ways to keep Smith active and
let him still affect the game. As teams start to go away from
him, he might be the perfect backside corner ‘cat’ blitzer,
especially from the short side.
3rd and Three –
Line of Distinction – Kentucky’s offense finally has some
quality skill players. Keenan Burton is ready to break out
(finally). Rafael Little is special. But, when that’s the
case, the offensive line always stinks, right? Well, not this
year. The offensive line may not have a Joe Thomas or a Justin
Blalock, but after three years, offensive line coach Jimmy
Heggins finally has some returning experience and some grown up
talent. Each of the five projected starters started at least
one game last year and their backups might be even better. They
have eight guys who could play significant minutes, if everyone
stays healthy, something Fatu Turituri and Aaron Miller weren’t
able to do last season. The offense was much improved over
2004, and with a line like this, they should be even better this
year.
4th and One –
Pulley Action – Some players are just way too good to keep
off the field. When Marques Hagans, former UVA QB, couldn’t
beat out Matt Schaub, he moved into an inside WR/slot position
just so he could put pressure on opposing defenses. With that
being said, don’t be surprised to see Curtis Pulley all over the
field this year. He’s listed as a backup QB, but that’s just an
alias, well, if the Cats want to maximize
the sophomore’s stout athletic ability. He did a little of
everything last year – throwing, running, receiving, returning
and even blocking kicks. QB Andre Woodson didn’t play well
enough last year to keep Pulley out of QB meetings this year,
but offensive coordinator has to continue to find ways to get
Pulley the ball this year. Just imagine – Pulley, Little and
Burton – that’s a threesome that could put some defenses on red
alert this fall.