Kentucky’s final spring workout wasn’t a traditional Blue and White game but, instead, a showcase that provided a sneak peek of what to expect next fall.
The free event lasted for 90 minutes and mainly featured 11-on-11 scrimmages on Saturday at Kroger Field. The format followed a nationwide trend across the college landscape that appears to be phasing out spring football games. The workout was the 15th and final one of the spring for coach Mark Stoops and his squad.
“Throughout the spring, I was very proud of this group,” said Stoops, who said the event was very vanilla and basic. “We got better (and) we made a lot of strides.”
The Kentucky coach added the Wildcats “intentionally” emphasized improvement in short-field areas and he was pleased with the team’s progress.
“(We worked on) critical third and ones, third and two goal lines that we got stopped on so many times, we were able to do that full tilt this spring, and get that work done with the bigger bodies in there,” he said. “Overall, very productive spring. Glad to put it in the books and put the wraps on it.”
Veteran quarterback transfer Zach Calzada (Incarnate Word) took most of the first-team reps and appears to be ahead of Cutter Boley in the signal-caller battle. Calzada also has played at Texas A&M and Auburn and brings experience to the offense. The quarterback position is deep with Beau Allen retuning for a sixth season.
Kentucky receiver Ja’mori Maclin, also a veteran, has been impressed with Calzada this spring.
“He's old like me,” Maclin said. The way he thinks is so different from what I've experienced with other quarterbacks — the way he throws the ball …. very, very, very well. (We’ve just got to get) — that chemistry and on the same page with him. It's been a process. It's definitely been some fun and there's been frustrating moments — like football, it happens.
"He’s been frustrated with me. I've been frustrated him, but it's like a good frustration of where we can just talk to each other, get on the same page, and just continue to go from there.”
Maclin added the Wildcats are still getting “comfortable with each other in the locker room,” which he says will be beneficial and help build chemistry.
“I think that's where it starts,” he said. “You can't have a good team on the field if you don't have a good team off the field — just spending time with each other, going out to eat, you know, playing the game with each other, just the small things to build that chemistry to help us succeed on the field.”
The Wildcats finished 4-8 last season and went 1-8 in the Southeastern Conference. The returning players weren’t pleased with the finish and are looking forward to starting over next fall.
“I feel like no one wants to go through what we went through last year,” Kentucky defensive back Ty Bryant said. “Everyone knows that we won four games. It was a bad season for us. The feeling that we had when we walked off the field for the last time against Louisville. No one wants to feel that way again.”
Maclin agreed.
"A lot of people probably count us out,” he said. “They don't know much about us. But that's what we like. We just want to go out there and just work (to get better).”
Kentucky coach Mark Stoops talks with transfer quarterback Zack Calzada during a spring showcase event Saturday at Kroger Field. (Keith Taylor/Kentucky Today)
