Somewhat lost amid the fever surrounding Kentucky football’s return to the sky on Saturday was the performance of Isaiah Epps, who in one of UK’s final practices leading up to the opener wore smiley face bandages on opposing fingers, one on each hand, during an interview session.
“I like to do stuff different,” Epps said when asked about the decorations. “I’m not a mainstream guy. I like stepping outside the box. It’s just something that I find interesting. … Keep the mood light.”
A senior who missed all of 2019 and most of 2020 due to various injuries, Epps had plenty of reason to grin in Kentucky’s opener. He reeled in three catches for 83 yards, the bulk of that total coming on a throw that wasn’t dialed up by the coaching staff. On a third-and-8 snap from UK’s own 24-yard line in the third quarter, Will Levis heaved a ball into Epps’ vicinity — about 37 yards downfield along the right sideline — and Epps caught it in stride and took it 20 yards further before getting brought down by two Louisiana Monroe defenders.
“The throw down the sideline to Epps, that’s not schemed that way, just so we’re all clear,” offensive coordinator Liam Coen said on Saturday. “He made a throw because he saw the corner overlap the seam, and he just flicks it. That’s the thing about him, you tell the wideouts, ‘You can never stop running when he’s playing quarterback, ‘cause he’ll let it rip.”
Coen’s insight was directly about Levis, but offered a glimpse into the mentality of Epps, who before last year against Vanderbilt hadn’t caught a pass in an organized football game in two years. Before the third quarter ended on Saturday he caught another long ball, for 21 yards, to put UK into ULM territory. The Wildcats scored five plays later to go up 38-7 early in the fourth quarter.
Epps didn’t get into the end zone himself, but he was thrilled that he even had the opportunity to make big plays that led to two UK scores (his first bomb from Levis might have led to a touchdown, too, but a fumble later in the drive forced the Cats to settle for a field goal). His longest reception before Saturday was for 28 yards, and was made four years ago.
“It felt good,” Epps said. “It’s been a long time coming. I’ve been open on some deep balls in the past and just been unable to connect. Just Will’s trust in me and the accuracy, it felt good to finally connect and make a big play.”
Speed
Epps matched his career high for single-game receptions and in one game collected more yards than he has had in any single season while at UK; his best before this year was 76 yards on eight catches as a true sophomore. A broken foot, for which he underwent two surgeries, kept him off the field for all of the 2019 season. He played in UK’s season opener at Auburn last year but sat out the next five games with a thumb injury. He returned for the final five contests, and made his first career start in the Cats’ Gator Bowl win over North Carolina State (in which he set his career high for catches).
Wide receivers coach Scott Woodward texted Epps after the season opener.
“I said, ‘Hey man, anyone that plays for me like that, anyone that gives that amount of effort and makes those plays like that, I’m behind ‘em 100 percent,’” Woodward said. “He played lights out for me and is just another guy in the room we can count on. His effort was tremendous. … It gave us more confidence in the kid.”
Speed has always been a distinguishing characteristic for Epps, who played in every game as a true freshman in 2017. He told reporters this week that he started to get “a little weary” following his second surgery to repair his broken foot, but he leaned on his faith to get through that setback.
“There’s not much that I could do on my end,” Epps said. “Just make sure I’m taking care of everything I can in the training room and let everything work out for itself. I just had to stay the course, really.”
Kentucky can use all the speed it can muster against a Missouri squad that gave up 301 passing yards in its opener versus Central Michigan, which in 2020 averaged 100 fewer yards through the air. The Wildcats are anticipating a healthy dose of man coverage, which Epps said he prefers going against opposed to a zone scheme.
Epps says he never thought about losing his speed while rehabbing. If Saturday was any indicator, he was right not to; in the preseason he was the most evident option to be UK’s “third” receiver, after Josh Ali and Wan’Dale Robinson, and as long as he’s on the field, that’s likely to be as low in the pecking order that he’ll go.
“I know what I’m capable of and I know the work that I put in,” Epps said. “I don’t think I’ve even got close to reaching my full potential. This year, not missing any practices and being able to go out there with the 1’s and stuff, I’m really confident and (ready) to see it come together after this long journey.”
Next game
Missouri at Kentucky
When: 7:30 p.m. Saturday
TV: SEC Network
Radio: WLAP-AM 630, WBUL-FM 98.1
Records: Kentucky 1-0 (0-0 SEC); Missouri 1-0 (0-0)
Series: Kentucky leads 7-4
Last meeting: Missouri won 20-10 on Oct. 24, 2020, at Columbia, Mo.