A re-tooling of the offense should have Kentucky moving the ball more creatively in 2021 than it has in recent seasons, but the shift is also paying dividends elsewhere.
UK ranked 45th in total defense and points allowed last season after finishing among the top-20 units, nationally, the two years prior. That was a higher finish than many notable football teams — including national championship runner-up Ohio State and all but four Southeastern Conference squads (Alabama, Auburn, Georgia and Texas A&M) — but not strong enough, when paired with the league’s least-potent offense, to keep Kentucky from falling backward with its win-loss record.
Seeing different looks in spring ball than it has the last few years is raising the football IQ of UK’s defense, coordinator Brad White told reporters Thursday following the Wildcats’ second spring practice.
“We are seeing some of the things last year that gave us trouble, like the outside zone, we’re seeing that earlier now and we can get a good beat on it,” linebacker DeAndre Square said. “ … I like our new offense and I like the way they’re headed. I think it’s pretty good.”
Square described the last few springs as a “cake-walk,” in terms of expectations about the types of things he’d probably see from the opposing Wildcats in practice. After a frustrating first day against Liam Coen’s guys, he and some other linebackers stayed at UK’s training facility until 7 p.m. studying film, and he said they’d probably do the same on Thursday.
A willingness to improve isn’t something that players like Square, about to enter his third year as a starter, need to actively demonstrate; it’s apparent that they have a “want to” based on where they’re at in the program compared to where they started. But the sprinkling in of an additional motivator keeps veterans like him engaged and excited about learning in practice at a point where they might think they’ve figured most of it out.
“What makes it so good for us is it’s not stagnant,” said White, now in his third year leading the defense. “If I’ve been a veteran that’s been in this system three or four years, you get accustomed to seeing that offense across from you every day in practice, in spring, in fall camp. The only time you go against a different offense is in season. So now, this is like facing a different offense for them and it really forces them to focus and dial in.”
Kentucky’s defense is comprised of several veterans like Square, but also of younger, talented players who haven’t seen much time on the field. There aren’t as many guys in the middle of those two demographics, putting more onus on the leadership of older guys to bring along the greener ones.
White doesn’t seem distraught by that entering the year.
“We’re gonna push hard on the young guys to not act like young guys, and they’ve gotta close the gap,” White said. “They’ve gotta act like juniors, they’ve gotta act like sophomores. It’s just day two, but I think you can hear it in my voice: I really like this group.”
Notes
▪ Opposite Square, D’Eryk Jackson this week has been running with the No. 1 unit at Mike linebacker. A redshirt freshman, he saw snaps in nine games last season and recorded four tackles (two solo). “We’ve challenged him to become more vocal,” White said. “He’s very much an introvert. To play that position, to play the Mike, you have to be an alpha. We’re continuing to draw that out of him. He’s got it in there. He plays like an alpha but now he needs to vocalize that.”
Michigan State transfer Luke Fulton will challenge for that spot, too, but needs time to learn Kentucky’s defense. White praised Jared Casey’s growth in one year backing up Square and says he’s a guy “that we’re gonna count on” this year.
▪ K.D. McDaniel hasn’t played much — he’s appeared in nine games through two years on campus — but a move to the Jack linebacker spot should see the sophomore more involved in 2021’s defensive rotation. “He just looks more comfortable,” White said. “He’s closer to the football. … So much about that position is learning and confidence.”
▪ Several defensive backs — Vito Tisdale, Joel Williams, Davonte Robinson, Ty Ajian and Yusuf Corker — are getting snaps at the Sam linebacker spot to broaden their adaptability for the season ahead. Marquez Bembry, who returned for an extra year of eligibility, is the “base” guy at that position after spending last year with the inside linebackers. “When we took him out of junior college he was coming to play Sam, but we had such a need at that moment for inside backers, we slid him in there,” White said. “So now you sort of get a jack of all trades. He can provide some depth inside if emergencies happen, but I think he’s more comfortable out there as a Sam backer.”