First Down Kentucky: Do Your Job

The Kentucky defense did some good things in the loss to South Carolina on Saturday. But when you look up the box score, you see that the Gamecocks averaged over five yards per play and scored 31 points despite having only 47 non-kneel snaps. Seven of those came on a pick-six but there were some clear lapses in the third quarter on defense that helped flip the game for the road team.

Defensive coordinator Brad White discussed some of those mistakes when he met with the media on Wednesday to preview the upcoming home game with No. 1 Georgia. Kentucky’s play-caller wants to see his guys just do their job. Some breakdowns occurred against South Carolina because some individuals were trying to do too much.

“It’s just doing our job plus but it starts with my job,” White told reporters. “It doesn’t say ‘Hey, I’m going to do plus and negate my job’. That’s not going to win ballgames. So we have to do our job first.”

Some of the mental breakdowns occurred when players tried to do too much. Kentucky must play as a unit every play on defense. That means doing your job and playing with discipline.

First Down Kentucky has another full practice report after speaking with Kentucky’s defensive coordinator on Wednesday evening.

Kentucky did not take advantage of winning opportunities against South Carolina

When big moments arrived in the third quarter against South Carolina, Kentucky could not finish plays. South Carolina did. That ultimately is what flipped the game for the Gamecocks.

The Wildcats missed their chance at multiple fumble recoveries, jumped offsides on a likely dummy count on fourth-and-short, and saw a coverage bust lead directly to a touchdown possession. Kentucky did not rise to the moment but those moments are impossible to predict.

“You don’t know when those big moments are gonna arise and you don’t know if those moments are going to be the one that change the game. When those moments arose, we had some opportunities to change the momentum of the game and we let it slip through our fingers and they capitalized on the moments when it came for them,” Brad White said. “And that was the story of the game.”

The Kentucky offense is getting a ton of deserved criticism this week for their woeful performance against South Carolina, but Kentucky’s defense did not capitalize in winning moments, and that ultimately led to the game slipping away from the home team at Kroger Field.

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Kentucky is close to fixing third down issues

On the season, Kentucky ranks No. 62 nationally in third down defense. Opponents are converting 33.3 percent on their third down attempts, but the Wildcats lost some key situations in the third quarter on Saturday.

South Carolina converted a pair of third-and-long situations and each led directly to touchdowns. Despite the disappointing situational defense, Brad White believes Kentucky is close to fixing those issues even thought the lackluster performance on third down last year (No. 107 nationally) is hovering over the program.

“I know we’re all hurting from last year. If we started from scratch this year I don’t think people would think we have a third-and-long issue,” White explained. “The first drive of the first game — butterflies and some things there. But I think we were humming pretty good. But, again, there were plays to capitalize on.”

There are still 10 more regular season games to go. Kentucky has time to fix the problems but the issue reared its ugly head at a bad time in the first big game of the season. However, the defense believes the problems are fixable and should be cleaned up with better communication. The Cats are not pressing the panic button.

“Was it a full systems failure? No.”

Carson Beck is a problem but Georgia is a bigger problem

Carson Beck might be the best returning quarterback in college football. The redshirt senior lit up Kentucky’s pass defense for 389 passing yards on 11.1 yards per attempt last season. The Wildcats will have a big challenge slowing Beck down but Georgia is more than the quarterback.

“It’s not just Carson Beck,” Brad White said. “It’s a really good offensive line. It’s talented, fast receivers. Talented tight ends. Running backs that will run through and by you.”

Second-year offensive coordinator Mike Bobo returns after leading the Bulldogs to top-10 finishes in most statistical categories last season. UGA looks like a potential top-five offense. The group is very well-rounded and that will make the challenge on Saturday difficult for Kentucky’s defense.