Nerlens Noel, now a former Kentucky Wildcat, is the best player in the NBA Draft

photo courtesy of official UKAA Facebook

Now the the Blue/White game is history, the time to analyze it and obsess on it for the next few months is here. In case you missed it, WBN Football Editor Kyle had an outstanding list of ten takeaways and a recap of the game.  Mark Story also weighed in with his top ten list of takeaways from the game as well.  Story closed with the top if expectations as the big lingering question is what to expect from a team that finished 2-10 in 2012:

"1. Expectations. The main question for the first year of the Stoops era is whether UK, coming off a 2-10 season and facing a schedule whose strength borders on the sadistic, can play well enough in 2013 to maintain the good feelings and (recruiting) momentum that Kentucky football currently enjoys? “Now, our fans gotta have a little patience with us,” Neal Brown said. “I think they saw that (Saturday night). It’s going to take a little time. But our kids will play hard and they are going to play physical. And we’re going to put them in a position to be successful.” So, UK football fan, what would constitute “success” for the Wildcats in 2013?"

Oct 6, 2012; Lexington, KY, USA; Kentucky Wildcats quarterback Patrick Towles (14) prepares to hand the ball off during the game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Commonwealth Stadium. Credit: Mark Zerof-USA TODAY Sports

Drew Barker was one of the big recruits that was at the Blue/White game on Saturday and he remains arguably the top target for the 2014 class. He also is a long time friend of Patrick Towles so when he visits Lexington, he has a bit of an inside view of the Wildcats. Rivals’s Justin Rowland, in a pay article, brings us up to date on Barker and talks a bit about his relationship with Towles:

"Barker’s focus has largely been on Kentucky lately. He attended a spring practice in Lexington on April 8 and he returned over the weekend for a trip that spanned Friday and Saturday, ending in Commonwealth Stadium with Kentucky’s spring game. “It was great,” he said of the weekend. “It was a little different this time because they kinda just let me be on my own. They told me when I got there they were just going to let me do my own thing and find out what I like for myself. They weren’t going to hound me so much. It was a different approach.” For the duration of the trip Barker was around the players currently on Kentucky’s roster. He spent time with long-time friend and acquaintance Patrick Towles and other players like Langston Newton, Jordan Swindle, Landon Foster, Zach West, Jon Toth and others. Barker’s relationship with Towles, and his respect for him, dates back to his earliest high school days. “We go back a few years,” Barker said. “I remember when I was a freshman and I think he was a junior, just wanting to be in the same position as him. He was Mr. Football and I always wanted to kinda be like that. He’s a real cool guy.” Sure enough, Barker finds himself in a very similar position. In fact, he’s ranked even higher than Towles was when he was in high school heading into his senior season. Barker had a chance to watch Towles and the other quarterbacks closely. He watched the entire offense and he saw some good. However, questions remain. “I watched the quarterbacks and basically everybody from the line to the wideouts. I kinda had some questions about the offensive line and skill players. I’m not really worried about the skill players. I know they’re bringing in good skill players,” he said."