Joker Phillips and Mike Hartline both hoped that they were able to silence a few of their doubters in UK's victory over UL on Saturday. Phillips, who has been around the UK program for a while now, got his first win as a head coach. Hartline showed much improvement and poise against the Cardinals. John Clay writes about the two in this article for Kentuckysports.com
Here are a few excerpts.
Phillips is the head coach. He's the one without a honeymoon, thanks to the braying contingent of Kentucky fans who can't forget or forgive the offensive coordinator's reluctance to use Randall Cobb down on the goal line last year, or the unit's performance over the last two years.
Hartline is his quarterback. He's the senior who in the view of the armchair analysts hasn't lived up to the line of Couch, Bonner, Lorenzen and Woodson. He's the one who is just good enough to get you beat.
In the first half of Saturday's 23-16 win over Louisville, the doubting duo could not have been much better. Phillips played go-for-the-throat. He took the ball after winning the opening toss. He threw a long pass on the game's first play. When the defense first took the field, starters DeQuin Evans and Winston Guy were on the sideline. Discipline ruled. Miss a meeting, miss a start. Set a tone.
If the first half was something for the dreamers, the second half was something for the doubters.
Louisville outplayed the Cats. After going 10-for-12 through the air the first two quarters, Hartline was a mere 7-for-14 the final two. His teammates committed ill-timed penalties. Special teams suffered. The defense allowed an 80-yard touchdown run and a few converted third-and-longs.
Saturday's faults are of the fixable variety. Getting lined up correctly. Covering kicks. Blowing chip-shot field goals. Those are first-game things, the product of opening-day nerves. Even old pro Randy Sanders, UK's offensive coordinator, admitted that his stomach was churning when he made the climb to the coach's box on Saturday.
Back to one more look in the rearview. To these eyes, the doubted duo did just fine. I liked the way Phillips ran Saturday's game, the aggressive thinking, the game management. Better still was Hartline's performance. He appeared more mobile. He made good decisions. Only once did he miss on a makeable throw, failing to hit Randall Cobb in the end zone.
"Mike, he's player of the game hands down," said Cobb afterward. "We've been talking about it all summer and all fall camp. And when he finally got to come out and display it for all the fans, he showed he was the man for the job."
They both are, this doubted duo of Phillips and Hartline.
