As a lifelong Kentucky football fan, Saturday was just another one of those games. You know the one where we were so close and lost. From Florida to LSU to Georgia we know how to grab defeat from the jaws of victory like pros. Sometimes it seems like nothing will ever change, but I am here to say thing have changed.
In the past losing those games has been just as painful if not more painful than any other loss. But today the loss stings even more than before. This is because of the cultural change that has gone on in Big Blue Nation when it comes to our football.
Now, we expect to win those games.
There are no more moral victories when the Wildcats are on the gridiron. When Kentucky played a SEC powerhouse close in the past, it almost seemed like a victory. We stuck around and showed some fight. What more can we ask for?
Well sticking around is not good enough anymore. It never should have been, but I don't think it ever will be again. After beating Louisville and LSU last year, the program will never be the same. The Wildcats expect to get it done and when the game is on the line they are going to drive down and score.
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So with 1:54 left in the game and Georgia lining up for the kick off, the 70,626 fans packed into Commonwealth Stadium were, in fact, confident. Victory was well with in our reach—we had done it before and we could do it again. Move the ball and score that's all we had to do, it was simple. Then a minute later it was all over.
The crowd went silent.
There was no cheering, no celebrating, but an utter look of disbelief and shock. This doesn’t happen anymore. Now we win these games; we drive down and score. It was not the case that day. It was like many other Saturdays and it was not a good one. The interception shouldn’t happen any more, then you look down on the field and notice something.
The player with his face buried in the turf isn’t No. 3. The final drive is no longer Andre Woodson to Steve Johnson. It is now Randall Cobb to??? The experience is gone, the cool nerves are gone, and there is a young green quarterback in the pocket. This is all in the learning curve, there will be some growing pains for Cobb and the Georgia game was a very big one.
The rest of the season will be a huge factor for this football team. I think they need to prove something to everyone—that we are here to stay. The best way to do that is by wining the next two games. These will be games where the Wildcats will have a good chance before going in and they need to take advantage of that.
This is a program going in the right direction and can only get better with the recruits coming in and the current talent. Now, almost winning doesn't mean that it was a good Saturday. Now, Saturdays in the Commonwealth are filled with aspirations of victory and not doubt.
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about 1 month ago
This was a great read, and I totally agree. Kentucky fans are so used to losing the close one, but now they expect to win it. I love what you have to say. Every game used to be a quest for a moral victory, and now no such thing exists since the Cats are off probation. Good job.
about 1 month ago
thanks man. one big factor to getting better is changing the culture around the program
from about 1 month ago
I think Brooks has done a good job of that. Five years ago, Kentucky fans would have walked away from the game saying "that figures" instead of "We should have won."
Kentucky is far from being a mainstay near the top of the SEC, but it could happen. The fanbase is there, the coaching is almost there, and the passion surely is.
about 1 month ago
o yeah were far from a top tier mainstay but its nice to not be scraping the bottom of the barrel any more.
about 1 month ago
A few more years and UK won't be just another one and done team in the SEC. They are truly fighting like Wildcats. You have to love it. I know I sure do. I can't be more proud of my Kentucky team then ever. You can't blame Randall Cobb for throwing that INT. He is just a freshman and is learning. I was just as proud of him after the game, then before the game. He played his heart out and left it on the field. He played like a senior on a mission. I think that he will only continue to get better. The pony package is here to stay. It has to be. When they started that, it started the offense. ON ON U OF K. FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT
about 1 month ago
I feel the same feeling when watching UK play Tennessee, Steve Spurrier, or Georgia. Close but no cigar is always how it turns out.
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