BTI's Rants and Ramblings: The Blueprint to win against all odds

I know Matt has said many times that the ceiling for UK football is usually 6-7 wins a year, and hope for an 8-9 win season every blue moon. And while I tend to think that is a realistic, accurate portrayal of where Kentucky football stands, I think that opinion comes from a long-standing history with the UK program and mediocrity. We have been average or bad for so many years, never sniffing a conference title, that fans (or at least the reasonable ones) just assume that it in not in the cards for Kentucky to ever seriously compete in this league. I unfortunately think that Joker is playing right into that mindset by trying to match the other SEC schools in strategy, offense, and general mentality. The idea that we will just line up and by sheer will overmatch anybody not named Vanderbilt in the league doesn’t seem like a good plan to me. But that is what Joker seems to hope for. Running straight up the middle a bunch and playing conservatively/limit mistakes has been tried for years and years and has failed for years and years. Are we getting better players now in Lexington? That’s what we are told. But they still are not rated as highly as those at most of the other SEC schools.

Which is why I have always argued you have to be UNIQUE at Kentucky to have any chance of winning big. And by winning big, I simply mean being in the conversation in every game and having a SHOT at winning the SEC East. And I truly think there is a blueprint out there on how to do it: GEORGIA TECH AND COACH PAUL JOHNSON.

If you are not a huge college football fan, you may not know Paul Johnson. So, here is a quick resume for Johnson. He would two national championships at 1-AA Georgia Southern. He then moved on to Navy, which had been 1-21 in it’s 2 previous seasons before Johnson arrived. He proceeded to, in 6 years, take the team to 5 bowl games, ended a 44-year losing streak to Notre Dame, and NEVER lose to Army. The 5 bowl game streak is the longest in school history. And I think we can admit that Navy football has its recruiting “limitations”. He then moved on to Georgia Tech. He took over a program ON PROBATION, with limited scholarships. The Yellow Jackets had been to 1 conference championship in 6 years. Johnson has now taken them to 2 in his 3 seasons, and they are favorites to win the league again this year.

And how has Johnson done this: HE RUNS A TRIPLE OPTION ATTACK. If you have ever seen the triple option run correctly, it is truly one of the neatest offenses to watch, and nearly unstoppable. It absolutely demolishes teams who are undisciplined on defense and also, more importantly, SUCCEEDS WITH AN UNDERSIZED OFFENSIVE LINE. The offense allows for less talented players to be successful. See where I am going? Johnson’s Navy teams led the nation in rushing for 3 seasons. His current Ga Tech team leads the nation in rushing and several other offensive categories.

So where does Kentucky come into the picture and why would this offense work in the SEC? Well, this offense could work for 1 simple reason: NOBODY ELSE RUNS IT!! Every SEC opponent would have to prepare for an offense that is complicated anyway AND it would be an offense they have not seen all season. Look at the ACC opponents who are befuddled by it. But you might argue it couldn’t work in the SEC. All I can say is that Ga Tech has beaten Georgia 1 out of 3 times during Johnson’s tenure. In those 3 games they have scored 45, 24, and 34 points. Georgia’s SEC caliber defense has not held GaTech under 24 points yet, but the Yellow Jacket defenses have not been able to stop UGA. Taking Georgia out of the equation, they have beaten Mississippi State 38-7 and 42-31 and Vanderbilt 56-31. In 6 games against SEC OPPONENTS, Johnson’s teams have averaged 39.8 points per game.

Here is further evidence this style could work: Georgia Tech’s recruiting is NO BETTER than what Kentucky has.

Class of 2011 Recruiting Ranking (Scout.com)
Kentucky: 30th
Georgia Tech: 42nd

Class of 2010 Recruiting Ranking (Scout.com)
Georgia Tech: 41st
Kentucky: 46th

Here is another fact. Their budget is SIMILAR than Kentucky.

2010 Football Spending
Georgia Tech: 15.51 million
Kentucky: 13.90 million

2010 Football Revenue
Kentucky: 31.89 million
Georgia Tech: 24.87 million

GEORGIA TECH IS THE KENTUCKY OF THE ACC. They rank 7th out of 12 teams in SEC spending on football. Kentucky ranks 9th of 12 in the SEC. Their football stadium only holds 55,000. And they don’t fill it. Kentucky has a bigger stadium, and generally does fill it. The two schools currently have very similar football programs, with one major difference: WINS.

And what has led to those wins for them and losses to us? It’s not the talent. It’s not the spending. It’s not the fans. It is simply their UNIQUE offense that forces their more talented opponents to gameplan different than they normally would. It allows them to recruit a less heralded player and put them on equal footing against the Virginia Techs and Miamis of the conference. Georgia Tech took the chance to hire a coach who runs an offense that many consider old-school and methodical. I would tend to think the fans of Georgia Tech could care less about that now as their school wins conference championships, goes to BCS games, and plays equal to their SEC RIVAL.

I am not saying that Joker Phillips has to go to the triple option. That is not his offensive philosophy. But, I can GUARANTEE that running a pro-style offense similar to many of the other SEC schools will lead to nothing but mediocre seasons. Rich Brooks proved that kind of offense could get Kentucky to 6 and 7 wins. I would argue a unique offense, like that of Paul Johnson, COULD lead to a few more, and once in a blue moon, just maybe make Kentucky an SEC East contender. Just some food for thought.