The New Orleans Pelicans are trying to be the Kentucky Wildcats South

Aug 5, 2011; Lexington, KY USA; Kentucky Wildcats helmet and football sit on the field during media day at Commonwealth Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark Zerof-USA TODAY Sports

On to football and the Nate Willis watch. Some fans have been concerned about Willis’s academics, but according to him, everything is going well and he should be in Lexington in early August.

"Arizona Western defensive coordinator/associate head coach Jerry Dominguez remains “optimistic” that Willis will be on Kentucky coach Mark Stoops’ roster this season. “He has to finish two summer school classes,” Dominguez said Monday. “He’s trying to get finished up now. He’s in those classes now. He should get done August 1 and try to get there for training (preseason) camp. “The original plan obviously was for him to be there for summer workouts. But he had two classes he was not passing and had to drop them and take them over.” Willis is back home in Florida taking the online classes and also working out on his own to prepare for the season. “Obviously the coaches from Kentucky and myself are working on making sure he is taking the right classes to transfer back here,” Dominguez said. “I think it will all work out. I don’t see why it wouldn’t. I think he is in good shape. He is enrolled in classes and I’m confident he’ll pass them both. “He is a smart kid. He was trying to take seven classes in the spring to finish early and it was just a bit overwhelming. He passed five, but he has two left. It was quite a load for him to try to carry. He almost made it, though.” Willis says he is “doing very well” in both his classes. “It is looking real good,” Willis said. “Basically I am two weeks away from finishing up my classes. I am passing with all A’s and B’s. I can’t let myself down or everybody else down. I am knocking things out. Dominguez said the Kentucky coaches knew completely about Willis’ academic situation when he signed. “The coaches knew this might happen. It was always a situation where it could have come down to this,” he said. “We were fairly optimistic he would finish in May and all thought he would get it done.”"

Hey Kentucky football fans. Keep doing what you are doing on Twitter and social media. The recruits are noticing the power of the BBN. TV Williams sure did.

"“It did surprise me at first. I couldn’t explain it to any of my friends. They were like, ‘What is wrong with Twitter?’ I was getting hit (on Twitter). I just fell in love with the Big Blue Nation. We have the best fans in the world. It is amazing. I am so happy to be part of it and able to say I am a Kentucky Wildcat now,” Williams , who committed to UK Tuesday, said. “I would tell the fans to keep it up for everybody. It means a lot. A lot of colleges hate it (fan interaction on social media). A lot of college fans hate it and say it is inappropriate for grown adults to tell children about their college decision. But there’s not a rule against it. It is a good recruiting tool to show how great our fans are. If you don’t like it, don’t do it. But Kentucky fans are great at it.”"