Kentucky Football opened the doors to the media today to discuss Commonwealth Stadium renovations, preview the upcoming season and take photos.
The biggest difference I noticed from last year was the energy and camaraderie. There was a lot of laughter and joking. Everyone seemed relaxed and comfortable with one another. Even the coaches seemed a bit more at ease this time around.
Another thing that stood out was the expanding reach of Kentucky’s recruiting. Various groupings were lined up for photos and it was eye-opening seeing all of the “Ohio Boys” gathered in front of us.
The Ohio Boys
Mark Stoops on recruiting Ohio from Fox Sports’ Aaron Torres:
“I know the quality of players in Ohio,” Stoops said. “I felt like we had something to offer by being so close and giving them a chance to compete in the SEC.”
Scout.com national recruiting analyst Brandon Huffman:
“It’s interesting because before Stoops arrived, they really felt like they had to compete by recruiting Florida, Georgia, Alabama, places like that. Stoops comes in and his name carries weight in Ohio. So if you’re a high school kid in Ohio, even if you’re not getting recruited by Alabama or Georgia, it’s still the SEC. And it’s a reason to look at Kentucky.”
Torres:
From 2004 to 2013, Kentucky convinced just 18 Ohio kids to sign on the dotted line. For comparison’s sake, Stoops and first-year Wildcats recruiting coordinator Vince Marrow brought in 11 in a single haul.
Read more:
Mark Stoops has changed UK’s recruiting approach. And now Kentucky is a football destination because of it http://t.co/OoofLnxWpR @foxsports
— Aaron Torres (@Aaron_Torres) August 8, 2014
Enjoy this photo gallery from all of the day’s events.
*Photos by Regina Rickert. Click to enlarge.
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- The Florida Boys
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- Patrick Towles
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- Thaddeus Snodgrass and WR Coach Tommy Mainord
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- Thaddeus Snodgrass with Coach Chad Scott
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- Za’Darius Smith and D-Line Coach Jimmy Brumbaugh
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- Thaddeus Snodgrass and T.V. Williams
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- Blake Bone and Javess Blue
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- “Bad Boys”
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- “Bad Boys”
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- A.J. Stamps
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- Jacob Hyde
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- Adrian Middleton
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- Blake Bone
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- Reese Phillips
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- Drew Barker
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- Javess Blue and Blake Bone
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- Thaddeus Snodgrass
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- Thaddeus Snodgrass and Ryan Timmons
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- Bud Dupree
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- O Line
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- Mark Stoops
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- Cardinal Mooney Guys
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- Darius West and Vince Marrow
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- The Kentucky Boys
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- Matt Elam
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- Mark Stoops and Ryan Lemond
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- Jojo Kemp
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- Jojo Kemp
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- Ryan Timmons
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- Ryan Timmons
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- Javess Blue
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- UK Athletics Photographer Chet White
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- Drew Barker
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- Drew Barker and Clay Jackson
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- Stanley “Boom” Williams
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- QB’s with Neal Brown
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- RB’s Boom Williams and Mikel Horton
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- Jojo Kemp
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- Matt Elam
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- Mikel Horton
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- Jojo Kemp
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- Nate Willis
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- QB’s
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- Kentucky Coach Mark Stoops and the Seniors
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- The Georgia Boys
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- The Ohio Boys
A special thank you to UK Athletics photographer Chet White, the Kentucky Kernel and Clay Jackson. Be sure to check out all of their galleries from this year’s Media Day.
