2008 Kentucky Football Picks & Predictions

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The Kentucky Wildcats had a dream season by their football standards beating national champion LSU, FSU, Louisville, and Arkansas behind the playmaking ability of Heisman Trophy candidate Andre Woodson. After back-to-back eight win seasons, it appears the Wildcats will have a tough time making the .500 mark. Find out if Jimmy Boyd thinks they can survive the loss of their star QB in his 2008 Kentucky Wildcats predictions and season preview.

Offense

It doesn’t matter if junior Curtis Pulley or sophomore Mike Hartline takes the snaps this fall, neither will give Kentucky as good a chance to win as Andre Woodson did. The Kentucky offense should consist of a heavy dose of running the football this season because of their QB deficiencies. Senior Tony Dixon will be considered the number one tailback, but Alfonso Smith, Derrick Locke, and Moncell Allen will all get plenty of carries. Few teams have as much running back depth in the conference. With three offensive line starters returning, the Cats should be able to run the rock. The wide receiver position is a big offensive concern. Dicky Lyons has 108 career receptions and 16 touchdowns, but no one else has proven themselves at all. It will be vital for Kentucky to establish some sort of a passing attack so that teams can’t stack the line of scrimmage against their running game.

Defense

The defense ranked last in the SEC in scoring defense last season, but it was able to come up with big plays in wins over Arkansas, LSU, and Florida State. Because of the returning personnel, this year’s defensive unit should be the best that head coach Rich Brooks has had. Defensive end Jeremy Jarmon leads the attack. He was fourth in the SEC in sacks last season and is also a very capable run stopper. Ventrell Jenkins will play the other end, moving out from tackle, and Nii Adjei Oninku returns from injury to give the Cats more depth. The Wildcats are experienced inside with senior Myron Pryor and junior Corey Peters. Wesley Wood will be a glaring loss at linebacker despite the rest of the unit staying in tact. Braxton Kelley will replace him on the weak side and former prep All-American Micah Johnson will take the middle. Trevard Lindley is a big play corner who came up big in several games last season. You might remember his fourth quarter pick against LSU to help the Cats force overtime. Free safety Marcus McClinton has also shown big play ability with six career picks and seven forced fumbles.

Special Teams

Kickoff specialist Tim Masthay had an SEC-best 23 kickoffs for touchbacks. That is huge to know your kicker can put your opponent in bad field position from the outset. The return game could suffer as the Cats lost their top return men from last year.

Prediction – 5th in SEC East

After back-to-back exciting eight win seasons, the Wildcats will take a step backward and will be hard-pressed to reach the .500 mark. Fifth place in the SEC East is likely. The Wildcats are going to struggle to beat Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, and South Carolina, but should be able to handle Vanderbilt.

Check out all of Jimmy Boyd’s articles on college football team predictions to get a head start on the upcoming season. Jimmy Boyd does his homework before the season starts so he can pick apart the college football odds from day one. For the most consistent winners in the industry all year long, make sure you’re doing your betting our college football picks.

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About the Author: Jimmy Boyd is known for his consistency. He's a proven winner in college and pro football, college and pro basketball and pro baseball. He finished as the No. 1 ranked MLB handicapper in 2007 by earning $1,000/game bettors $50,050. He also finished as the No. 1 ranked basketball handicapper in the 2008-09 season, profiting $1,000/game bettors 38,530. His basketball plays have banked $1,000/game bettors nearly $80,000 the last five years. Check out Jimmy's premium picks for tonight!
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