| 26. Kentucky Wildcats |
| #8 in SEC |
Kentucky showed athletic departments everywhere what is possible with a little patience. It took six years, but Mark Stoops took over a terrible team, made them respectable by Year 2, a bowl team in Year 4, and then a 10 win team that won the Citrus Bowl and finished #11 in the polls. It was the best team in Lexington since 1977 went 10-1, but was ineligible for the SEC title or a bowl trip, due to NCAA sanctions, but did finish #6 in the polls. That bought Stoops a lot of leeway, and while many are expecting him to cash that chip in this year, I’m not so down on the Wildcats. The offense has a chance to still be very good. There is no replacing Benny Snell, who left early for the NFL Draft, but Asim Rose looks ready to break out. He averaged only just under 6 carries per game, but averaged 6.2 ypc on those limited, but not statistically insignificant number of carries. Now Benny Snell had 289 carries, fourth most in the nation, so those additional touches have to come from somewhere, because it’s doubtful that Rose gets anywhere near that number. The easy answer is, nobody, that this shifts from being Snell’s offense to being quarterback Terry Wilson’s. Only 12 teams threw the ball less frequently than Kentucky, and half of them were triple option teams. Wilson is a dangerous runner, but he showed plenty to evidence that he can handle increased passing responsibilities. He completed a high number of passes, third highest in the SEC at 67.2% of passes, but a lot of safe, short throws, relying on yards after catch, averaging just 10.7 yards per completion, in the bottom 20 of the FBS. What is unclear is whether that system was due to Wilson, or due to his receivers, or lack thereof. Dorian Baker returned from an injury that cost him all of 2017, and looked like a shell of his former self, while Tavin Richardson’s performance declined from his 2017. Lynn Bowden burst onto the scene. I’m not entirely sure he’s a receiver, so much as a playmaker, and with Snell in the backfield, splitting him out seemed like the best way to just get the ball in his hands. He did finish with 67 receptions, the only receiver to tally more than 16. The graduation of Baker, David Bouvier, and tight end C.J. Conrad, along with Snell’s departure, and Richardson’s transfer, means that after a year of underperformance, Kentucky is actually worse off this year. The most experienced player aside from Bowden is junior Josh Ali, who had 10 receptions last year. Justin Rigg, who started two games last year as a true freshman, may develop into a weapon at tight end. What concerns me more is the defense, that is relying heavily on a linebacking core, which itself is without Josh Allen, depending on whether you count him as a defensive end or linebacker. The remaining linemen all return, but aside from Allen, there wasn’t a ton of production there, even with Allen drawing double teams. Kentucky’s defense ranked #5 nationally in sack rate, without a single other lineman tallying more than 3 sacks. The secondary graduates all four starters from a group that was solid, but not spectacular. They were sound tacklers, who gave up a lot of completions, and didn’t force many turnovers, but did a good job of limiting yardage, and hoping eventually they’d get a sack to put their opponent behind the sticks. The linebackers have a chance to be very special though. Kash Daniel, in his first year in the middle of that defense, proved to be Kentucky’s best run stopper, a sound tackler, and Jamar Watson, a pass rush specialist, can now fill Josh Allen’s role. He was second on the team in sacks a year ago, despite only getting limited play time. Then you have DeAndre Square, an outstanding cover linebacker, a converted safety, who was forced into a starting role in the Citrus Bowl, and responded with 6 tackles and a sack. Fellow true sophomore Chris Oats looked solid in a backup role as a true freshman, and looks primed for a bigger task. More than anything, Kentucky has been dipping into the guys that Michigan State was landing earlier in Dantonio’s tenure. A lot of these names I recognize as 3* Ohio players who don’t warrant an Ohio State offer, but are now picking Kentucky over Michigan State. There are 20 Ohio players on the roster. While I don’t see a repeat of the school’s best season in over 40 years, I don’t think they are going to fade away again either.
| KEY PLAYERS |
| QB | Terry Wilson, Junior |
| RB | Asim Rose, Junior |
| WR | Lynn Bowden, Junior |
| . |
| LB | Kash Daniel, Senior |
| LB | Jamar Watson, Junior |
| S | Davonte Robinson, Junior |
| 25. Miami Hurricanes |
| #3 in ACC |
What a weird couple of years in Coral Gables. Alum Mark Richt comes in, takes a team with no expectations up to #2 in the nation on Thanksgiving, on the cusp of the Playoff, but loses three in a row. Then takes a team with solid expectations in 2018, loses four in a row in the middle of the season, doesn’t even get bowl eligible until the second to last game, and then resigns after the season. 7-6 considering the schedule, where the only two ranked teams were LSU on a neutral field, and Pitt at home, is really bad, but the talent remains. After being the Temple head coach for less than three weeks, Manny Diaz returned to Miami as head coach, after serving as defensive coordinator for the past three years. And the defense was more than fine, even last year. While the turnover chain got all the attention (and it was FAR too much oversaturation, and far too often imitated), the defense as a whole was outstanding. It was actually even better last year, when they finished #2 in the nation in total defense, and led the nation in tackles for loss and pass defense, allowing just 140 yards per game. The defense should continue to shine, with 3 All-ACC players returning. The loss of Sheldrick Redwine from safety hurts, the converted cornerback allowed Miami to match him up on receivers without issue, but Trajan Bandy returns, as Miami’s best defensive back. It’s the early departure of Joe Jackson that hurts more, the Hurricanes best pass rusher on the line, from a team that thrived on creating pressure. The compensation will be a group of linebackers that might be the best in the nation at attacking the quarterback, while still holding opponents to just 3.5 ypc on the ground. In 2017 the offense did enough, and they took advantage of all the turnovers. While the defense was still creating turnovers in 2018, the offense was giving the ball right back, with the most turnovers in the ACC, falling from #5 nationally in turnover margin to #85. So turnovers are why Miami only ran 66 plays per game, and why they were second worst in the ACC in total offense, but even per play they were in the bottom third of the league, thanks to a non existent passing game. Mark Richt could have handled it better. He insisted senior Malik Rosier was his guy, until he kept underperforming. Then Richt went with redshirt freshman N’Kosi Perry, until he struggled. Rather than let the freshman learn, he went back to the departing senior in a meaningless Pinstripe Bowl. Having two quarterbacks who struggle to throw the ball, and then not letting either one gain momentum is how you end up in the bottom 20 in the nation in yards per attempt and interception percentage, worst in the ACC in both. Perry was expecting a challenge from redshirt freshman Jarren Williams, a top 100 recruit from 2018, but Miami also added Ohio State transfer Tate Martell, who was granted a waiver...because...Justin Fields got one too? To show how Miami fans feel about Perry, a Miami SB Nation blog with over 2,000 votes, presumably mostly Miami fans, had Perry finish 3rd among their five quarterbacks, for who should start in 2019. Whoever wins it, has some pretty good weapons to throw to, the strength of this Miami offense. It got a boost when Jeff Thomas, who led the team in receiving last year, despite being dismissed from the program prior to the final three games, did an about face on his plans to transfer to Illinois State, and announced he has been reinstated, because that’s the way the U operates when anybody but Mark Richt is in charge. Lawrence Cager taking a grad transfer to Georgia hurts, but Mike Harley is undersized, but maybe the most dangerous of the bunch. Brevin Jordan, who was maybe the best tight end in the conference last year as a freshman, could be in line for an even bigger year, reunited with his high school quarterback, Martell; and a new offensive coordinator in Dan Enos, who should make an even more concerted effort to get the ball to the tight end.
| KEY PLAYERS |
| WR | Jeff Thomas, Senior |
| TE | Brevin Jordan, Sophomore |
| G | Navaughn Donaldson, Junior |
| . |
| LB | Shaquille Quarterman, Senior |
| LB | Michael Pinckney, Senior |
| CB | Trajan Bandy, Junior |
