Mark Stoops previews Ohio: "They make you earn every yard"

The Ohio Bobcats bring the MAC-tion to Kroger Field on Saturday. The Cats could use a reprieve after back-to-back tough losses to South Carolina and Georgia, but Mark Stoops made it clear yesterday that Ohio isn’t your normal non-conference cupcake. The Bobcats are 2-1 this season, the only loss coming at Syracuse, 38-22, in the season-opener. Since then, they beat South Alabama (27-20) and Morgan State (21-6). Kentucky opened as a 15-point favorite, another sign Saturday’s game won’t be the mega-romp most are hoping for.

“It’s a team that is a very good team,” Stoops said of Ohio on Monday. “Most of the time when I say that most fans don’t believe me, but I think this year you can tell by looking at the MAC (Mid-American Conference) and the very big victories that they’ve had this year, they’re not a joke.

“People think it’s coach-speak when you sit there and say they’re very –- it’s just a good league, good teams, good coaches, this staff has been together a long, long time. This head coach (Tim Albin) I think is going into year four but he’s been there forever. There’s a lot of continuity and they play very well.”

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Yesterday, Albin confirmed that Parker Navarro will start at quarterback on Saturday despite being benched after throwing three interceptions against Morgan State. Former Northwestern running back Anthony Tyus III carries the load in the backfield, totaling 49 carries for 367 yards and four rushing touchdowns so far this season, along with five catches for 41 yards and a receiving touchdown. Stoops is prepared for a balanced attack from the Bobcats on Saturday.

“They spread it out quite a bit, I think they want to get rid of it and throw it quick and also run it from spread formations. They’re either spread out in two by two, three by one or they bring the ‘Y’ in and attach him, but they’re balanced. I think it’s like two hundred, two hundred (200 yards per game rushing and passing), so that’s pretty good, that’s pretty efficient.”

Ohio’s defense held Morgan State without a touchdown last week and an average of three yards per play. The Bobcats upset Iowa State last season 10-7 thanks to some huge plays on defense. Defensive lineman Rodney Mathews picked off a deflected pass late in the fourth quarter to help seal the signature win. The Bobcats finished the 2023 season ranked sixth in the nation and first in the MAC in scoring defense but lost 12 players to the transfer portal, including defensive stars Keye Thompson (Pitt), Rayyan Buell (Colorado), and Torrie Cox (Illinois). Stoops is still impressed with what he’s seen on tape thus far.

“Defensively, very, very tough. They play very hard. They mix it up up front, play both four down (linemen) and three down, and they make you earn every yard.”

“The MAC has done very well this year. This team (Ohio) has won back-to-back bowl games, if I’m not mistaken, and 10 games for two years in a row, and beat a heck of an Iowa State team a year ago, so we have to go play good football, but that’s what we want, right?”

Saturday will be the seventh meeting between the two programs. Kentucky holds a 4-2 edge in the series, the losses coming in 2004 (28-16) and 1971 (35-6). The Cats won the last meeting 20-3 in 2014 and have shut out the Bobcats twice, in 1910 and 1987.

Kentucky vs. Ohio: How To Watch, Listen

• Kickoff: 12:45 p.m. ET
• TV: SEC Network (Dave Neal, Aaron Murray, Ashley ShahAhmadi)
• Watch college football games live – try Fubo for free! Click HERE NOW.
• Local Radio: UK Sports Network (Tom Leach, Jeff Piecoro, Dick Gabriel)
• AM: 840 WHAS, 630 WLAP
• FM: 98.1 WBUL
• Online: iHeart Radio
• Sirius XM: 119 or 191
• Live Stats: StatBroadcast

You can also keep up with the game and chat with other fans on our game thread on KSBoard, with Nick Roush, Adam Luckett, and Drew Franklin providing updates from Kroger Field and the rest of us from home.