After he was asked about joining Christi Thomas on the two-hour Countdown to Kickoff on the UK Radio Network, former Kentucky quarterback Freddie Maggard wasn’t sure what to expect.

He had never met her and knew she would be the first female to host a pregame radio show for any Southeastern Conference football program if the idea worked.

“We had a lunch meeting (about three years ago) with the JMI folks to discuss the possibility of doing a pregame show,” said Maggard. “Her preparation and organization impressed me. She runs the show, there is no doubting that. Plus, growing up the daughter of a defensive coordinator, her X and O knowledge is at a high level.”

That’s obvious on the Countdown to Kickoff that will air live again Saturday in front of the Nutter Field House outside Gate 1 of Kroger Field near the Coke Fan Zone (for away games the show airs from various Kroger stores in Lexington).

Thomas had done plenty of TV work but no radio when she was approached about hosting the pregame show with Maggard. She was as apprehensive as Maggard going into their lunch meeting.

“After Freddie and I had lunch, I knew we had hit it off. I knew we could be good,” she said. “Nobody does more homework or works harder at understanding football than Freddie. I just set him up and let him go. He has been that good.”

Thomas jokes that in another life she was meant to be a boy and a football linebacker. Her father was defensive coordinator at Taylor County High School in Campbellsville. When Campbellsville University started football in 1987, her dad coached there.

“I spent all my years growing up as a water girl for the football team,” Thomas said. “I spent a lot of time in the football locker room, sideline, huddles, breaking down film with my dad. I always loved college football. Me getting into sports and athletics was just natural.”

She didn’t want a male-dominated audience to see her on air and wonder “who is this dumb blonde” doing sports. Instead, she wanted them to talk about how well she knew what she was doing.

“A female in this industry can lose credibility in a minute,” she said. “There was a time where stations never tried to implement any sex appeal. You had to know your stuff. Then it evolved to having a pretty face on the sideline and it didn’t matter what she knew. Now they want the best of both.”

Thomas won’t settle for second best. Maggard says she worries constantly about fans and creating a show that fans will like and share ownership of every time.

“Want to tick her off? Say, ‘Well that’s the way we’ve always done it.’ That don’t fly with Christi Thomas,” Maggard said. “If any idea or concept isn’t best or better for the listener, she wants no part of it. She’s a UK fan. We work very hard to liven up the broadcast to enlighten, engage and entertain the listeners. Status quo is not an acceptable answer for her.”

Maggard still wonders why Thomas does not get more credit for being the first female host of a network football pregame radio show in the SEC.

“That’s huge. My partner is crazy smart and excellent at her job. She makes my role easy,” Maggard said. “She’s simply the best.”

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If freshman point guard Quade Green had any doubts about whether Kentucky would be the right spot for him, they disappeared after an in-home visit from UK coach John Calipari last year.

“He came into my home and was really confident. Once I got to see that, I thought, ‘It can’t get no better than Kentucky.’ He looked eye-to-eye more (at me) than any other coach,” Green said. “I really had no choice but to come here. Everybody around me here makes me feel better. It’s the perfect spot for me.”

He has his own bit of Philadelphia swag – much like former UK point guard Tyler Ulis did from his high school career in Chicago.

If the game is on the line, Green will want the ball in his hands this season.

“We can run pick and roll and I will get my shot. I will take it myself – or get it to a teammate if he’s open. Guys have jobs to do and I will do mine,” Green said.

So will Kentucky win a national title this year?

“We will see,” he said. “For now, let’s just leave it that way.”

•••

Kudos to Kentucky for giving rising musicians – who all have been huge UK fans – a chance to perform at pregame football concerts this season.

First it was Walker Montgomery of Lexington followed by Burgin’s Aly’An (Alyson Rogers and Andrea Gross) and then Paul Childers of Lebanon. This week before the Cats play Missouri it will be Magnolia Vale – twin sisters Katelyn and Samantha Daugherty of Marion County.

They were paired against Montgomery in the first round of the fan voting to determine who played before the opening game. They were thrilled to get this opportunity.

“We have grown up as Kentucky fans, mainly basketball, and don’t miss a game when the season rolls around,” Katelyn said.

They played basketball at Marion County, including two seasons for coach Anthony Epps – a starter on UK’s 1996 national championship team. They also played with his daughter, Makayla, on Marion’s state championship team.

Childers is a childhood friend and they were happy he got to perform at Kroger Field and are excited to have their turn now.

“It’s beyond special to have such a cool connection with your sister. We’ve shared everything our whole lives – our faces, cars, rooms, clothes, shoes, makeup and even our voices,” Katelyn said. “We just want to share our love for music with everyone. That’s all we have ever wanted.”

•••

Kentucky coach Mark Stoops, and UK fans, were not overjoyed with the 24-20 win over Eastern Michigan. Yet it does put UK at 4-1 going into this week’s game with Missouri.

Kentucky’s anemic offense had five three-and-outs on eight second-half possessions and the offensive line was shredded by the Eastern Michigan defense. However, there’s still reason for optimism going forward.

Missouri has been outscored 86-17 the last two weeks and has allowed 31 or more points in every game this year. Tennessee lost 41-0 at home to Georgia last week.

Vanderbilt has given up 97 points the last two weeks in losses to Alabama and Florida. Mississippi State after a then-stunning 37-7 pounding of LSU has been outscored 80-13 in losses to Georgia and Auburn. And Mississippi got crushed 66-3 by Alabama Saturday.

“We have a lot of stuff to fix. We can never argue about a win and we can never be mad about a win,” Kentucky quarterback Stephen Johnson said after the Eastern Michigan game. “We definitely know we have a lot of stuff to fix, so we cannot put ourselves in those situations when it comes down to it. But we also know if we get some things fixed, we still have a chance to win a lot of games.”