KSR Today: Two more sleeps until kickoff...

Good morning, folks! I walked outside earlier to a slight crisp in the air. It smelled different, too — like real fall football weather. I got the Ryan Lemond chilly bumps for a moment. Even though Saturday’s kickoff against Ball State is going to be closer to 90 degrees than 55, you can just feel what’s brewing in the air: it’s almost time for some football at Kroger Field.

The Kentucky Wildcats begin its 2023 season in a little over 48 hours. On Saturday at noon EST, the Devin Leary era at quarterback officially begins. Here at the KSR headquarters, we’ve been pumping out as much content as possible to help get you through the week. We’ve already heard from offensive coordinator Liam Coen and defensive coordinator Brad White over the last couple of days, along with various players. Adam Luckett even has a Practice Report from everything the defense said on Wednesday that you can check out here.

But later today, we’ll hear from the boss man himself one last time before the ‘Cats take the field. Head coach Mark Stoops will meet with the media following today’s practice.

Will he tip his hand? Of course not — that’s not the Stoops approach. He’ll play it cool as he normally does, talking about how he’s excited for his players to finally hit someone not wearing a Kentucky jersey. But if the entire offseason has been any indication, he’s just as jazzed up about the season-opener as anyone else. So are we.

New 11 Personnel is LIVE

What better time to keep talking endlessly about Kentucky football than right now? Let’s keep the theme rolling with a brand-spanking new edition of 11 Personnel with KSR’s Nick Roush and Adam Luckett. It’s all about Week 1 in this week’s show, as the guys break down what to expect out of the Ball State Cardinals on Saturday. That’s not all they talk about though…

• Jeremy Flax is RT1
• Ramon Jefferson returns
• Keys to victory
• Kentucky players to watch

Subscribe to the KSR YouTube Channel for press conferences, interviews, original shows, fan features, and exclusive content.

3 former ‘Cats in World Cup second round

The 2023 FIBA World Cup has made it past group stage play over in Asia. After all 32 countries played three games each, the Round of 16 has been set. Four former Kentucky players entered the event, but only three will contend for a medal.

Canada’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Dominican Republic’s Karl-Anthony Towns and Eloy Vargas have made it to the second round of the World Cup. All three will be in action on Friday and Sunday morning (all games are on ESPN+, by the way) as they fight to make it to the quarterfinals. SGA, in particular, has been otherworldly in this event. The folks over at HoopsHype rank him as the second-best player at the World Cup so far behind only Slovenia’s Luka Doncic. KAT comes in ranked No. 20.

Top 30 players at the World Cup so far… with 19 NBAers (out of 57) making the cut.

A reminder that Doncic is putting up those numbers is 40-minute games. pic.twitter.com/aHWWJP7jz2

— HoopsHype (@hoopshype) August 31, 2023

Meanwhile, Wenyen Gabriel and South Sudan were eliminated from medal contention in group-stage play, but continue to play as part of the loser’s bracket. In fact, South Sudan is on TV as I’m typing this, taking on the Philippines in one of the last games of the day. But if you’re interested in watching Canada or the Dominican Republic go for gold, here is the second-round schedule for both countries.

No. 15 Canada

• Friday vs. No. 13 Brazil (9:30 a.m. EST)
• Sunday vs. No. 1 Spain (9:30 a.m. EST)

No. 23 Dominican Republic

• Friday vs. No. 20 Puerto Rico (8:00 a.m. EST)
• Sunday vs. No. 6 Serbia (8:00 a.m. EST)

Got thoughts? Subscribe to KSR+ to continue the conversation on KSBoard, the KSR+ Message Board. New subscribers can try 1 month for $1 or get 25% off an annual subscription.

Last day to apply to work at KSR

KSR is looking to add a new piece to our team of talented interns. We have officially opened the position of Kentucky Women’s Basketball beat writer and are currently accepting applications to fill the role. This would be an unpaid position with the opportunity to advance within KSR and our parent company, On3, and can be used for academic college credit.

To learn more about what the position entails, click the link here.

If you believe you meet the requirements listed and are interested in the position, please send an email to [email protected] attached with your resume, two sample writing pieces, your class schedule for the upcoming fall semester, and links to any/all of your social media accounts. The deadline to apply is the end of the day on Thursday, August 31. That’s today!

Check out the All-Commonwealth Stadium team

For those of you who don’t know UK statistician Corey Price, all you really need to know is that he’s a true-blue Kentucky fan with an expansive knowledge of the school’s rich athletics history. To celebrate 50 years of Commonwealth Stadium/Kroger Field, he decided to compile the best of the best from this current era that dates back to 1973. In doing so, he sought out as many media members as he could to create three All-Commonwealth Stadium teams. I was one of the 61 people blessed with the honor of putting together my selections, which Corey then added to the rest of the group to create the three teams.

As someone who wasn’t even born until 1995, this was no easy task at times. I was dipping into parts of the Kentucky football record books I didn’t even know existed. I’m well-versed in the Rich Brooks, Joker Phillips, and Mark Stoops runs at UK, but everything before then required some additional research. I felt confident with my picks though. The internet is a helpful tool. I won’t list all three teams here as that would consume this entire post, but I will link the teams that Corey put together here.

I still find myself calling it Commonwealth Stadium every now and then…

KSR is on Twitter (er… X)

We finally caved and joined the 21st century by creating a KSR-specific Twitter/X account. It hasn’t even been 48 hours since we created the account and it’s already gained nearly 4,500 followers. You should join the club, too. It’ll make keeping up with all of the work we do here at KSR much easier and all in one convenient spot. While you’re at it, follow us on all of our social media channels. Football is almost here — don’t miss out on anything.

• Twitter/X: @KSRonX
• Facebook: @KySportsRadio
• Instagram: @KSR_IG
• YouTube: @WatchKSR
• TikTok: @KentuckySportsRadio