Saturday, 15 September 2007
U of L vs UK
I don't get a chance to blog much about sports, but I figure today is a good chance to rectify the situation and talk about the biggest football game in Kentucky this year and make some predictions.
This game has a interesting feel because on one side the UK fans really think they are going to win this game. Heck many of the national pundits are calling this game a potential upset special. On the other hand Louisville feels they are an unstoppable force and will overwhelm UK.
Coming into this year, the game wasn't supposed to be close. What happened to change the perception? What is fueling UK's new found hope. One simple thing. U of L's defense in the first two games was porous. It I hard to understate how bad the defense looked and became the stimulus for all of the growing doubt surrounding U of L.
What do I think about the game? For me the difference in this game is going to be the offensive line. Which ever team which can control the line of scrimmage will win. Why? Because they will be able to run, throw, and score lots of points. In this regard U of L has a distinct advantage. They have a more experienced and more heralded line. Ultimately, I believe this advantage on the line will be the difference in the game. I think U of L wins this game by double digits.
Of course the X factor in every game is turnovers and penalties. These are mistakes that can turn a game regardless of how dominating one team might be.
What should you look for in this game? Can UK get out a head of Louisville in the early stages of this game. Because of the explosiveness of U of L's offense, UK must play most of this game with the lead. If UK gets behind by more than two scores this game it will be over. They won't be able to keep up with UL's ability to put points on the board. From behind UK will be forced to take chances and you can only press so much before mistakes happen. The pressure to score will only mount the longer they trail and cause them take to many chances. Errors will occur and the game will turn into a route.
Regardless of what should happened, you still have to play the game.
