Kentucky Wildcat Football – Offense v Defense: Who Needs to Catch Up More?

As strategies are put into place and playbooks begin filling up, we look at the depth chart and the returnees from last year and think We have a lot of ground to make up. Like 2008, this team has lost most of its offense, including their QB. But 2008 had a defense that held up under any pressure and kept the Cats in most of the games, sometimes outright winning games single-handedly (almost shutting out Louisville with the exception of a Hartline safety). This year is different though, we have lost all of our playmakers but the defense still has a lot of question marks that need to be addressed. New coach, new schemes, and new personnel positions all equate to an unsteady feeling looking out over the field. The offense has lost virtually all of its production and a once deep QB stable has been reduced to unproven talent or worse, talent that isn’t as bright as we hoped. Joker’s inability to give clear cut answers about the QB position may not have forced Mossakowski out the door, but it sure didn’t help. But like it or not, we are all in with Newton and no established receivers to throw to and a tight end position with no one that has caught over 20 passes in their career. So who has more catching up to do?

The offense, as previously mentioned, is bereft of existing stat lines and anyone wanting to see the long, long awaited QB battle between Mozz and Newton are now left with the only one that ever seemed to get a legitimate chance at leading the offense, and we’re going to have to get used to it. Whether Maxwell Smith is a diamond in the rough, the point is anyone not named Randall Cobb can’t step in and contribute without a couple years in the system with Rock Oliver’s man-building program. La’Rod King has the potential to become a receiving threat but with no one else to draw coverages away from him, his catch totals might start dropping. TE Jordan Aumiller provided some much needed receptions during the year, but in order for the offense to take off we need more options and less dropped passes. Matt Roark absolutely needs to become the big play receiver that he was meant to be and while not necessary, Brian Adams would provide a useful third option in the receiving corp.
Losing Locke will not hurt as much as you would think, as the combo of Raymond Sanders, Jonathan George, and Brandon Gainer will provide all the punch out of the backfield, provided we can find a replacement for Moncell Allen. The fullback position was a place that UK fans have become very spoiled at over the past few years, and its importance to a great running scheme cannot be understated. Sophomore Andrew Joseph looks to fill some big shoes, but he will be getting solid support from a veteran offensive line that will keep everyone in the backfield nice and comfortable.

Defensively, we aren’t looking that bad. Our playmakers are still there; Trevathan will still be the stuff of nightmares, and Martavius Neloms looks to be a ball-hawking safety, but whether Winston Guy flourishes in his new role as Troy Polamalu rerun is up in the air. Everywhere else there is one common theme: we are young and inexperienced and a lot is being thrown at them over one offseason. Ridge Wilson and Ronnie Sneed enter the year as de facto starters but the new scheme uses only two true linebackers and Danny Trevathan isn’t leaving the field, so the extra depth will provide experience off the bench. The nation’s 72nd ranked scoring defense will need to improve the pass coverage, as we were torched consistently downfield. Putting Guy closer to the line helps greatly (anywhere but the last line of defense will help) and Neloms seems to have the ball tracking ability to succeed as a safety. Saturday’s closed scrimmage decidedly went to the defense, but turnovers were still an issue as only one was forced by the defense, by Martavius Neloms. Negative yardage plays and sacks were up, thanks to blazing fast speed all over the front line, but what remains to be seen is whether that speed will overcome the potential to get pushed around when the conference schedule arrives.
So who needs the boost more? My answer still goes to the defense. Having a line as stable as ours creates a foundation for the rest of the offense, and one has to hope that another Woodson Leap (see also, my other articles. What? Nobody reads them?) is in the works and he turns into a world beater. There will always be options to catch the ball, but having protection is the first step and we will have that. The defense is young all around and there will be mental mistakes, but with the terminator roving the middle, the defense will be looking up to the offense for stability.

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