Kentucky Practice Report: Defense will need communication, sure tackling against Ball State

Game week has arrived. Over at the Joe Craft Football Training Facility, prep work is being done for long hours as Kentucky gets ready to start a long season. The first challenge will come at home when Mike Neu brings his Ball State program to Lexington.

Kentucky defensive coordinator Brad White met with the media on Wednesday evening to discuss some of the challenges that Ball State presents. The Wildcats will see a similar offense to the one they have been practicing against all offseason.

KSR’s practice report is diving into what we learned on Hump Day. Let’s ride.

Ball State has NFL approach

Mike Neu is entering his eighth season at his alma mater, and the 52-year-old led the Cardinals to a MAC title in 2020. The former Arena Football League quarterback played professionally from 1995-97 before becoming an Arena Football League coach. After five years as the head coach of the New Orleans VooDoo (2004-08), Neu made the jump to the NFL and became a scout for the New Orleans Saints in 2011. A few years later, Sean Payton hired Neu to coach quarterbacks. The Indiana native spent two years on the Saints sideline and has brought a pro-style approach to the MAC.

“They’re extremely efficient at what they do. Coach Neu and his staff, they do a really good job of marrying plays both run and pass, play pass. Getting the ball out of the quarterback’s hands,” White told reporters. “Making it QB-friendly in that regard. Those two tight ends are really talented. The running back is arguably the best running back in the MAC.”

Ball State will show defenses a lot of 12 personnel looks with a bunch of eye candy. There will be a heavy volume of pre-snap movement hoping to create confusion. Kentucky will have to be locked in from the jump. Alignment out of the huddle will be critical on Saturday afternoon.

“It’s going to be a really, really big challenge. We know condensed sets, motions, shifts, all those kinds of things it stresses you,” White said. “To get all that in game one — that’s a lot.”

Communication

Due to the eye candy that Ball State will show, communication on defense will be key. Most notably, Kentucky’s new-look secondary could be challenged. Brad White has a lot of confidence in that group, but game days are different.

The Cats need to keep the confidence they’ve displayed on the practice feel while also knocking out all of the required pre-snap communication.

“I want to see communication. I want to see confidence. That’s the big thing back there. I’m excited to see this group because they play with sort of a confidence and have a swagger about them and a little chip. But that’s one thing to be on a practice field, and that’s another thing on Saturdays,” White told the media. “I want to see guys that not just make plays, but I want to see guys that bounce back after a play doesn’t go his way.”

Most notably, Ball State’s scheme will force Kentucky’s cornerbacks to come down and make tackles. Saturday will be redshirt sophomore Maxwell Hairston‘s first extended playing time in college football. Kentucky has liked the physicality they’ve seen from their secondary in practice, but now that tackling efficiency must repeat itself on game day.

Nerves are real

Brad White has been doing this for a long time. The 41-year-old has been involved in football coaching since 2007. White has spent time with Wake Forest as a graduate assistant, Murray State as a safeties coach, Air Force as a linebackers coach, the Indianapolis Colts as a quality control assistant and outside linebackers coach, and Kentucky as an outside linebackers coach and defensive coordinator. That’s a lot of work hours logged.

However, some things never change. Butterflies still come each week.

“I get nervous (heading) into every game,” White told reporters on Wednesday. “Because every game is different. Every game is new.”

Most notably, the first week can be extra nerve-wracking because you’re never really sure what is on the roster until you go play a game.

“You think you know, but you don’t know until you play ball,” White said.