KSR Today, presented by Eckrich: We have a Kentucky Football and Big Blue Madness Schedule

Before we get to the schedule, a message from Eckrich:

Eckrich is proud to present the $1 Million Challenge for Teachers! This 2022 college football season Eckrich, in partnership with Extra Yard for Teachers and Kroger, will invite a local teacher (and true hero) onto the field at the South Carolina vs Kentucky game on October 8th.

These lucky teachers, randomly selected from a list of nominations, will have a chance to throw a football through a target to win up to $1 million dollars in donations to fund local classroom projects. Nominate a teacher here for a chance to throw! Make sure to nominate your teacher by September 28th.

---

There’s a football game Saturday night at Kroger Field, but we don’t have to take things one game a time. Tuesday night the SEC Network rolled out 2023 football schedules for the entire conference. The Kentucky football schedule for next season does not resemble any sort of schedule from year’s past.

Teams typically seen in September are now later in the year and vice versa (except for Florida; the SEC refuses to send the Swamp-dwellers north in November). The Wildcats will host the Gators, Tennessee and Alabama, while staggering opponents Kentucky typically takes care of business under Mark Stoops. It will be a challenge, but it all starts with a nice, soft landing spot for Kentucky’s new starting quarterback. We discussed that and more last night on the Kentucky Sports Radio YouTube channel.

Bedlam: Not on a Schedule

Before the SEC unveiled its 2023 schedule, the college football world was jarred by the latest rivalry lost to realignment: Bedlam. Oklahoma and Oklahoma State could not reach an agreement to continue to in-state rivalry once the Sooners joined the SEC. There could have been room for the two to play on the final week of the regular season, but the scorned lovers were not eagerly welcoming their old rival back with open arms. Mike Gundy accepts no blame in the matter, adding another victim to the long list of rivalries ruined by realignment.

Kentucky Football Practice Schedule

After the offense met with the media Tuesday night, it’s the defense’s turn. Defensive coordinator Brad White will bring some of his players to the podium this evening around 6 pm. If you can’t wait any longer to hear from White, don’t worry. He joined Max Duffy on this week’s Pin it Deep.

No News on Lombardi

Northern Illinois may be without its starting quarterback Saturday night at Kroger Field. Michigan State transfer Rocky Lombardi was 7-of-7 for 79 yards and a touchdown when he suffered a lower leg injury against Vanderbilt. Head coach Thomas Hammock did not share if his brightest star will be available at UK.

“We got better news than we anticipated, so we feel good about where he’s at and the progress that he’s going to be able to make,” Hammock said Tuesday. “We’ve got the rest of the week to figure that out. I can’t answer that question on Tuesday, but we’ve got the rest of the week to figure out how he progresses.”

Big Blue Madness Campout Schedule Revealed

The Madness begins at 5 am Oct. 1 when members of the BBN can begin claiming a spot in line outside of Memorial Coliseum. The return of the campout has slightly shifted where exactly fans can pitch a tent for a few days. Check out the map before you go (or avoid the line and claim them on Ticketmaster.com Sunday at 9 am ET).

John Calipari is on the Road

It’s not exactly a free-for-all, but now is a good time of year for John Calipari to check in on top prospects across the country. Yesterday he made a trip to see arguably the most talented 2024 prospect in America, Ian Jackson.

.⁦@KentuckyMBB⁩ coach ⁦@UKCoachCalipari⁩ in today for class of 24 SG ⁦@22_captainjack⁩ Ian Jackson
of ⁦@CardinalHayes⁩ and ⁦@wizkidsaau⁩ pic.twitter.com/fi8vPPwXat

— Adam Zagoria (@AdamZagoria) September 20, 2022

Need more Kentucky basketball recruiting talk? 247 Sports’ Travis Branham joined Jack Pilgrim for another live episode of Sources Say. Rewatch all of the action to get your Kentucky basketball fill.

A Heartfelt Message

Tuesday morning we learned freshman Kentucky women’s basketball player Tionna Herron is recovering from successful open-heart surgery that she underwent in late August. Herron is expected to make a full recovery, but nevertheless, it’s a scary situation for the tallest player on the Wildcats’ roster. It’s one Kenneth Horsey was in not so long ago. Like Herron, he underwent open-heart surgery prior to his freshman season. Now he’s an All-SEC caliber offensive lineman.

I know better than most what it takes to come back from open heart surgery. We’ve never met but if you ever need someone to talk to about it I’m here 💙 @TREEvibess https://t.co/bykdsSe1E1

— Kenneth Horsey 6️⃣8️⃣ (@Work_Horse68) September 20, 2022

Do You Remember?

The 21st night of September.