[Aslan]

Joker Phillips didn't ask for it but if he did, here would be my advice.

Prepare this week as if your Kentucky Wildcats are going to play the No. 2-ranked LSU Tigers on Saturday. Follow your usual schedule, as not to tip off anyone. Go ahead and do the weekly news conference on Monday. Practice Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Board the charter plane for Louisiana on Friday.

When you arrive in Baton Rouge on Friday night, take your team to the best seafood restaurant in town. Order everything on the menu. Enjoy.

Then Saturday morning, inform the SEC office that your entire team has come down with one of the worst cases of food poisoning in modern memory.

Got a better plan?

Saturday night's Kentucky-Florida game at Commonwealth Stadium played out like a movie we have seen over and over again with the same exact ending. Florida scored early and often. Kentucky fell way behind. Again. Gators won 48-10. Again.

Florida came into the game ranked 15th in the latest AP poll.

LSU is ranked No. 2.

The Florida game was a home game for the Cats.

Saturday's LSU game is in the stadium affectionately known as Death Valley.

The last time UK visited LSU, back in 2006, it lost 49-0.

And now, these current Cats are coming off a 38-point home loss.

"We're 2-2," said Phillips afterward. "It's not a pretty 2-2, I can promise you that."

It goes beyond 2-2, of course. Kentucky has not been impressive in any of the first four games. There was nothing in the first three that made you think it could play with the Gators, and that was confirmed.

Let's be honest here. Those five consecutive bowl trips notwithstanding, Kentucky football is no closer to competing with the SEC big boys than they were back in 2005, the year before Rich Brooks saved his tenure by lifting the Cats up out of the conference cellar and into post-season play.

But it's fallacy to think this program has risen to the ranks where it has closed any sort of gap with the SEC elite.

Phillips disagreed, citing UK's first-half turnovers, which helped put the Cats in a 31-10 hole.

"I don't think turnovers have anything to do with talent," he said.

But given the score, Kentucky is still playing major-league catch-up in a league whose speed was exemplified Saturday night by those Florida speedsters Jeff Demps and Chris Rainey, each of whom blew past blue-clad defenders practically at will.

Demps gained 157 yards, including an 84-yard TD, on just 10 carries. Rainey gained 105 yards on 15 carries. Kentucky, meanwhile, gained 299 yards total, and many of those came against second-string Gators.

It appears Kentucky's bowl streak could be in major jeopardy, and that may say more than when it went to bowl after bowl — especially when you consider that upward of 70 teams go to bowl games in these modern television-oriented football days.

Simply put, there was no comparison between Florida and Kentucky on Saturday, not in talent, certainly not in speed, and not in execution. There is a reason the Gators have now won 25 straight over Kentucky. Same as it ever was.

Not exactly. Before this streak, Florida led the football series over Kentucky 20-17. Now it's 45-17. That gap is widening.

Kentucky's football motto for this year was "Rise" but, to a disgruntled bordering on apathetic fan base, the only thing that has risen is the ticket prices.

The road doesn't get any easier because now the Cats go on the road. In two weeks, it's defending SEC East champ South Carolina in Columbia. This week it's LSU in Baton Rouge.

Who knows, maybe Les Miles' team will be tired from spanking West Virginia in Morgantown on Saturday. No one could blame Miles' team for being overconfident, that's for sure. And LSU fans don't like day games, much less a morning game, with the SEC Network tilt scheduled for an 11:21 a.m. CDT kickoff.

I suppose a cancellation is out of the question?

Read more: http://www.kentucky.com/2011/09/24/18962...z1YwEhwVFQ

[TidesHoss32]

Dear John Clay,
Thanks for the news flash there, Captain Obvious.
Sincerely,
The UK fan base.

[Real Badman]

UK is terrible, but I would bet after 2007 LSU will NEVER underestimate a UK team EVER.

[RunItUpTheGut]

Clay speaks nothing but the truth.
Id try to get out of this one if i was uk

[HAIL PIKEVILLE!]

It pains me so much to say this but hes right. UK will never have the football program with the likes of Alabama, Florida, LSU, ETC.... Not because UK doesnt have the funds or facilties. The schools I mentioned above have one thing that UK will never have in football. SUPPORT! Im not talking about fans because UKs fans are as die hard as they come. Im talking about the REAL support that really matters from boosters, alumni, administration, etc. ALL of those mentioned are basketball all the way and will admit publicly to such. Ill tell you when I first realized this. In 1995 when Bill Curry was fired (Anybody remember watching Tim Couch trying to run the option?) There were a list of SEVERAL NFL and College coaches with serious pedigree who wanted the job. Who does CM Newton hire? An unknown D-3 coach from Valdosta, Ga named Hal Mumme. Why did he hire him? "I wanted to see basketball on grass" was CMs reply. Its then that I knew and realized UK would never be a football power. Could anyone imagine what wouldve happened to, lets just say, LSUs AD for making a comment like that about football coaches hire for example? Heres a hint: Joan of Arc. I love UK and Ill ALWAYS bleed blue. But its like the line from the Montgomery/Gentry song: "Im tired of spinning my wheels". And to think if theyd just bought Bear Bryant a Caddy instead of a cigarette lighter we wouldnt be having this conversation right now....

[Stardust]

UK should go Independent with Football. Then we could get teams like Trinity, Bell County, Mayfield on the schedule and at least be competitive.......

[Wildcatk23]

Just join the ACC, Great basketball Conference, And we would have some success in football.

[TidesHoss32]

It pains me so much to say this but hes right. UK will never have the football program with the likes of Alabama, Florida, LSU, ETC.... Not because UK doesnt have the funds or facilties. The schools I mentioned above have one thing that UK will never have in football. SUPPORT! Im not talking about fans because UKs fans are as die hard as they come. Im talking about the REAL support that really matters from boosters, alumni, administration, etc. ALL of those mentioned are basketball all the way and will admit publicly to such. Ill tell you when I first realized this. In 1995 when Bill Curry was fired (Anybody remember watching Tim Couch trying to run the option?) There were a list of SEVERAL NFL and College coaches with serious pedigree who wanted the job. Who does CM Newton hire? An unknown D-3 coach from Valdosta, Ga named Hal Mumme. Why did he hire him? "I wanted to see basketball on grass" was CMs reply. Its then that I knew and realized UK would never be a football power. Could anyone imagine what wouldve happened to, lets just say, LSUs AD for making a comment like that about football coaches hire for example? Heres a hint: Joan of Arc. I love UK and Ill ALWAYS bleed blue. But its like the line from the Montgomery/Gentry song: "Im tired of spinning my wheels". And to think if theyd just bought Bear Bryant a Caddy instead of a cigarette lighter we wouldnt be having this conversation right now....

Whats scary, is that Bear Bryant LOVED his time at Kentucky. The lighter was a slap in the face. However, Im glad that UK bought him that lighter, and Im glad Adolph got that Caddy. On the bright side, you all havent done that bad in basketball, lol..

[BlackcatAlum]

It pains me so much to say this but hes right. UK will never have the football program with the likes of Alabama, Florida, LSU, ETC.... Not because UK doesnt have the funds or facilties. The schools I mentioned above have one thing that UK will never have in football. SUPPORT! Im not talking about fans because UKs fans are as die hard as they come. Im talking about the REAL support that really matters from boosters, alumni, administration, etc. ALL of those mentioned are basketball all the way and will admit publicly to such. Ill tell you when I first realized this. In 1995 when Bill Curry was fired (Anybody remember watching Tim Couch trying to run the option?) There were a list of SEVERAL NFL and College coaches with serious pedigree who wanted the job. Who does CM Newton hire? An unknown D-3 coach from Valdosta, Ga named Hal Mumme. Why did he hire him? "I wanted to see basketball on grass" was CMs reply. Its then that I knew and realized UK would never be a football power. Could anyone imagine what wouldve happened to, lets just say, LSUs AD for making a comment like that about football coaches hire for example? Heres a hint: Joan of Arc. I love UK and Ill ALWAYS bleed blue. But its like the line from the Montgomery/Gentry song: "Im tired of spinning my wheels". And to think if theyd just bought Bear Bryant a Caddy instead of a cigarette lighter we wouldnt be having this conversation right now....

I agree with a lot what you said, but the administration are the only ones who don't support the football program like they should. They're too satisfied with 6 & 7 win seasons. Boosters are there every game supporting the football program, I know one personally.

However, when football revenue is down dramatically from past years then the administration will feel the heat from everyone and either Barnhart will act or the new president will be forced to take action himself.

Just join the ACC, Great basketball Conference, And we would have some success in football.

Hell to the no.

UK was one of the first colleges in the SEC and will never leave.

[Wildcatk23]

I agree with a lot what you said, but the administration are the only ones who don't support the football program like they should. They're too satisfied with 6 & 7 win seasons. Boosters are there every game supporting the football program, I know one personally.

However, when football revenue is down dramatically from past years then the administration will feel the heat from everyone and either Barnhart will act or the new president will be forced to take action himself.



Hell to the no.

UK was one of the first colleges in the SEC and will never leave.

U got to work at this sarcasm . Lol. The last thing i would want to do is switch conferences because were not good enough.

[hop24]

Should join the OVC in football but then EKU would smoke them every year.

[rustyankle]

Just join the ACC, Great basketball Conference, And we would have some success in football.

Man that's crazy we do too much for basketball that's the problem why we can't build program

[NothingTrivial]

The problem is support from the bottom up, even a lot of the fans. Joker Phillips takes over his teams arent improving....the are taking a big step backwards. What do we do, some call for his head and some just simply pat him on the head like and say "that a boy, joker, that a boy" and call for more time to get his players in. His players or not, skills such as blocking should not be getting worse.

If this were basketball what would happen if the coach came in and played awful to a bad team...say someone like gardner webb? 07 ring a bell basketball fans? What happens in that situation? Fans, Boosters, and Administration all raise and eyebrow.

Why cant a school call for greatness in 2 sports? Texas and Florida off the top of my head have done it on a pretty regular basis over the last 10-15 years. Im not saying UK could be Florida or Texas, but we can surely demand to be better when we perform as poorly as this football team has this year.