Chris Low, SEC blogger for espn.com, threads the needle when writing that Kentucky can not be as good a football team without the presence of Curtis Pulley, dismissed from the team yesterday.
Indeed, even if Pulley did not wrestle the starting quarterback spot away from co-No. 1 Mike Hartline, the former Hopkinsville star was too gifted an athlete to keep off the field. He would have played receiver. He could have returned kicks. And he would have backed up Hartline.
That’s not to say that Rich Brooks erred on Tuesday. Not at all. I vigorously back the stand of the UK head coach, one he found absolutely no joy in taking. Losing Pulley not only hurts the team, but hurts the head coach who though he could put his talented young quarterback on the right path. Brooks said he felt like he failed. I believe him, even if I disagree with that take.
In the long run, however, there was only one choice to make. A coach is as good as his word. And I’ve seen teams ripped apart when the head coach’s actions represented vastly different standards for different players, depending on the individual talents of those players. That breeds jealousy within the ranks and distrust of the man in charge.
The key could be Will Fidler. Not that the former Henderson County star will overtake Mike Hartline for the No. 1 job, or that Hartline isn’t up to running Kentucky’s offensive show. But Fidler displayed good throwing skills in the Blue-White game. He just needs work. And experience. If he comes on this fall, Fidler gives Brooks a viable backup at the team’s most important position. It would also mean that Randall Cobb, the triple-threat freshman, could spend more time at receiver, another position in need of depth.
John, yes UK is not as good without Pulley as they would have been with him. But I still feel this team will hover around 7 or 8 wins despite the loss. UL, South Carolina, Arkansas – have to sweep those 3 games, those teams do not have greater talent than UK. Then you have 3 easy OOC games, plus Vandy at home gets UK to 7 wins.
Is another win among the 5 other teams possible? Sure. Who thought 2 years ago we would beat Georgia? Who thought this time last year we would beat LSU?
While the pieces around Hartline are less experienced than a year ago, I think the overall team talent is better, which should help. We haven’t touched on the offensive line, which Brooks believes could be one of the best he has been around. A deep stable of tailbacks helps, as well.
My own initial reaction when Pulley’s troubles were first revealed was that he would be kicked off the team. As a result, when the first report was that he would pay a price but still might be the starter, I was surprised. So it looks like Coach Brooks did a diligent and careful review and then made a hard and disappointing but correct decision. These last two seasons the team has displayed a strong work ethic by playing and hitting hard. That is a tribute to Coach Brooks, his assistants, and to, in my opinion, the group of seniors that left after last season. The extent that ethic has been adopted by the new team leaders is, I think, the most important factor on how this coming season plays out, because good arguments can be made that the team will win 8-9 games or only 5-6.