First Down Kentucky: Win the Week

Kentucky handled its business Week 1 in a shutout victory against Southern Miss. Week 2 brings a sizable game with some stakes. The Wildcats have lost consecutive games to South Carolina and cannot afford that to become a three-game losing streak with the remaining schedule ahead.

Saturday will be a big moment for the program, but Kentucky needs to win its preparation before winning the football game.

“We gotta win the week. Last week was last week,” Kentucky defensive coordinator Brad White said. “Nice job there by rising up in the red zone when we had the opportunity to do it but that’s last week.”

All attention is now on South Carolina. KSR’s First Down Kentucky is back to provide a full practice report after speaking with the defense after Wednesday’s practice.

Kentucky must slow down the QB run

Expect South Carolina quarterback LaNorris Sellers to draw comparisons to Cam Newton, Tim Tebow, Dak Prescott, and Anthony Richardson throughout the 2024 season. The redshirt freshman is still growing as a passer, but Sellers is already a dangerous runner. In his first start, Sellers rumbled for 100 yards on 18 non-sack carries.

Kentucky must be ready to slow down the QB run.

“A really talented quarterback. Yes, one that may had some first game jitters. Anticipate him coming in ready to just light it up. He’s got all the tools,” Brad White said about Sellers. “He’s got the arm strength, he’s got the legs.”

“When a Q can run, it adds that extra dimension and it forces you to have to do some different things. Or play with a little bit of a different mentality.”

White pointed out that the QB run adds an extra gap in the running game and that Kentucky’s front would have to play more than their gap in run fits to shut down running lanes. Star tailback Rocket Sanders will get his touches but Sellers’ legs appear to be the biggest strength on the South Carolina offense.

“We’ve got our work cut out for us,” White said.

Kentucky needs more from the safety position

Expectations were high for Kentucky’s safety group entering the 2024 season. The Wildcats returned three players who played big snaps last season and added an SEC transfer to the room. Kentucky needs this group to be a positional strength.

That wasn’t the case in Week 1. Kentucky will need better play from the safety position moving forward.

“I thought they all got a chance to get in, and rotate, and played with some different combos. I do think maybe some played better than others,” Brad White told the media. “Again, it’s first game and sometimes there’s jitters. There’s some things we’ve gotta get cleaned up there — and they will.”

The safeties will play a big role this week helping fit the run and limiting explosives in the passing game. Kentucky will need a bounce-back week from an important position.

Weather delays are stressful

The wait was long for everyone on Saturday night in the Bluegrass. Mother Nature caused a multiple-hour delay that forced thousands to wait out a lighting delay. The fans were enjoying music, a stadium light show, and the Notre Dame vs. Texas A&M game on the jumbotrons.

While all that was going on, Brad White was trying to remain calm.

“He stresses,” White joked. “It was interesting. Everybody did a little bit of something. You walk around and then you realize it’s going to be extended. You sort of sit down and luckily some other games are on at that time so you can try and take your mind off it.

White mentioned that watching football only reminded him of different situational scenarios that his team may need to know. The defensive coordinator had to take a step back and remain calm in the moment. Not playing a game can be as stressful as playing in one.

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