Mondays with Bobby, featuring Mitchell Henry

Comments from WKU defensive coordinator Nick Holt and junior safety Jonathan Dowling on facing Kentucky’s offense. The Hilltoppers will hold a closed mock game Friday night at 6 p.m.

Nick Holt

    Kentucky’s offense: “We’ve spent the last couple days looking at some stuff and what they’ve done in the past, where they’ve been. We don’t have a lot of information, other than where they came from and watching a little Texas Tech film.

“The last couple days we have looked at that stuff and trying to get a good gameplan. From now, it’s gametime and we gotta be ready to go.”

    Facing the unknown: “It’s a challenge, there’s no question. In the opener, like every opener, we don’t really know what to get. Its new and they could come out in some stuff that we don’t know about and that’s probably very likely that they have some things that we’ve never seen on film.

“We’ve got to adjust on the run and play really sound defense and hopefully we’re prepared for the if’s, and’s and but’s and we’ll see what happens here next Saturday.”

    Facing two QBs: “It’s tough. Knowing what we know about their returning quarterbacks off last year’s film – but it’s a whole different staff and, obviously, it’s a whole different system.

“We don’t know what we’re gonna get. We try to prepare for both and one might be a better runner or better thrower, and one might be better at doing this and that, but again, it’s really hard to get a beat on it because we don’t know what really for 100 percent what we’re gonna get.

“We’ve watched, obviously, some film of Kentucky last year and seen the quarterbacks that got to play last year that are back. We’ll just see how that goes.”

    Facing the ‘Air Raid’: “That’s what they’ve done in the previous years where they’ve been, ‘Air Raid’ and throwing the heck out of the ball. That’s a big concern, regardless of our secondary and how many games they’ve played.

“This offense and the philosophy of this offense that we’re playing against is high-tempo and getting up on the line and throwing the ball all over the place. A lot of screens I imagine and spreading us out and going really fast. In the first game when there’s new staffs on both sides of the ball, that’s gonna be taxing. It’s challenging, and that’s what makes this game so fun.”

    Friday’s mock game: “I think we’re just trying, what we’re getting, is really the format of a gameday. How we do things with pregame meal and pregame meetings and walk-throughs and kind of just the format of what we do on a gameday.

“Then, obviously, when we get out there to do the mock game, we wanna be sharp with our substitutions, we wanna have really good, sharp kicking game substitutions, we don’t wanna have 12 guys on the field or 10 guys on the field. I wanna be really sharp.

“I’m sure we’re not gonna be out there too long. We wanna be sharp and we wanna be efficient and we wanna stay healthy.”

 D-line: “They’re getting better every week. Bodies are getting banged up and I think they’re a little tired of practicing against each other and looking forward to a game.

“They’re coming around. I think they’re a little weary and we’ll get them fresh here in the next couple of days. Some guys are getting better, especially a couple young guys are getting better. Bar’ee Boyd is doing a nice job at one of the positions and really taking a leadership role and has really had a nice fall camp.

“We just gotta keep those guys fresh. We don’t have a lot of them, but the guys that will play we gotta roll with. Hopefully we’ll be OK.”

Jonathan Dowling

Kentucky’s offense: “We got into a little bit. We’re just watching everyday, just preparing for ‘em. I’m getting a good feel for ‘em so far.”

    Facing the unknown: “I wouldn’t say hard, but we kinda think about what they’re gonna do. They got the same coordinator and we know in football coaches ain’t gonna switch up what they do. All we gotta do is watch Texas Tech film, because that’s where their OC came from last year. I feel like just watching Texas Tech film will let us know a little bit about ‘em, what they plan to do.”

    Facing two quarterbacks: “We’ve talked about that they they’re gonna play both of them, but it doesn’t change our gameplan. We just know that one likes to throw more, one likes to run more.”

 Interceptions in ’12 translate into confidence this year? “Last year was last year. You gotta take a new attitude toward every game. We’re just preparing everyday, just have our best outing to date.”

    Friday’s mock game: “I don’t really even know what to expect, I haven’t even seen the schedule. I just plan to see our team come out and work hard like we do everyday. Just another day in the office.”

    Tackling: “I think it’s been good. It’s been great, just learning techniques from different coaches and taking a different approach toward it. It can never be its best, it’s going to get better as we go through the season and the more I get comfortable playing it’s just going to get better.”

Filed under: Football, Talkin’ bout the Tops