Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops addressed the media after the Wildcats' 13-12 loss to No. 1 Georgia on Saturday night at Kroger Field.

*****

MARK STOOPS: Okay. You know, one heck of a football game. Really proud of our players. The waythey fought and competed. I thought our coaches did a really good job this week because you canimagine a very challenging week coming o1 of the way we performed seven days ago in thisstadium. The fans, I've got to give a shout out to them because obviously we were not proud of thee1ort a week ago and they showed up again and had a very positive e1ect on this game and wegreatly appreciate your support. We are proud of our players with how hard they played and pickingthemselves up o1 of the mat after again, our performance a week ago that none of us were verypleased with. And had to rebound and play the number one ranked team in the country and cameout and played them toe to toe. No flukes, no gimmicks, you can't trick a really good team like that.You have to man up and make plays when you need to. Give them credit. They made more than us.I think you know; I'm not saying I'm pleased with the moral victory. We are 10 years past that. I docare about the way we play. I do care about our preparation. I care about the way, you know, werepresent the fan base and the way we represent this university and the way we play. We playedhard. I thought we had opportunities to win the game. We had another ball on the ground late witha chance to win. One day that ball will bounce the right way and we will get the opportunity to godown there and cap down It o1.

I know, people are going to question the 4th down. You know I have been honest with you for yearsand if I made a mistake like last week I will tell you. I do not regret punting that ball. I felt like if wewent for it there and don't make it. Our o1ense, if we stop them, has to go the length of the field.That was going to be tough against that defense. And a predictable pass situation. That's not ourstrength. To play to our strength, plenty of time to pin them and get the ball back. What I don't like isone play during that four minute drive where they had the sail. We have to man that up and not givethem that sail route that was completed on their sidelines and that's the one play that will haunt meright here tonight and for a long time. But again, I am very proud of our coaches and our players.Let’s be honest. That was a hard week. They responded. And played exceptionally hard. And forthat, I appreciate them. We go back to work and try to find the place necessary to finish it o1.

Q Coach, At the end of the game there was a lot of attention but with the possession after thefirst half, I don’t think you took any shots at the end zone when you were driving there. Whatwas kind of the thinking?

MARK STOOPS: I'm not 100% positive on this but I think there have been 29 passes completed inthe red zone the last three years. That's a lot of points. We did take some chances – it was going tobe hard – we would take complete momentum away from us if we get a strip sack or fumble or don’tgo in at the lead. I thought our o1ense did a hell of a job possessing it and giving us a chance. Notlink we were giving up on that. That’s some hard sledding man.

Q You guys had so many swings there. You said the ball will bounce the right way someday.Can you talk about the – and just how close that was there and the e2ort he gave?

MARK STOOPS: It was huge. It was a huge hit. You know, I don't know. It happened fast and I didn'tsee it live. I would love to see one of our guys come up and scoop that thing and bounce up to usbut Zion obviously put a good hit and jarred the ball loose. You know, we didn't get it.

Q Mark, you was talking about the interception. About how close that was.

MARK STOOPS: I got distracted from another play.

Q Mark, it seems like it's been a tale between two weeks between South Carolina and Georgia.Was the preparation di2erent or anything di2erent in practice? Was there anything di2erentwith the team? What was it?

MARK STOOPS: No, I think our team was embarrassed by the way we played and rightfully so. I saidthat and I wasn't very proud of the way we played. As I mentioned to you on Monday, you know, Ithought our team did play hard a week ago. We just didn't play very good or very e1icient. We didn'texecute very well. And to play and beat this team you are going to have to make plays. Makecompetitive plays. You know, play extremely hard. I thought we did that. We had a good recipe totry to get this victory, we just fell a little short.

Q Mark, can you tell me about the offensive line and how hard the backs seemed to run allnight?

MARK STOOPS: You know, it says a lot about them. Again, let's be honest, it was a hard week.Nobody around our facility felt very good. And we won't feel very good tomorrow. But at least Iknow a little something about this team now. I like the way we fought and responded. And took to

coaching. I think that's what it comes down to is being precise with our execution. You know,everybody gets emotional. Our guys care and they want to win. They want to play well. It comesdown to executing. You know, and then you have to make competitive plays. There's going to bemoments in games and moments in the season where there is 50-50 plays and we have to makeour fair share to win.

Q Mark, you said you thought you learned something about your team. Do you think youcreated some sort of offensive identity or found something there to get twice as many firstdowns?

MARK STOOPS: You know, 23 first downs against Georgia is hard to do. Obviously, we needed tocap one of those o1 with a touchdown. That's where we needed to finish it o1 or one morepossession, one more field goal might have done it as well but we didn't get the stop. I think, youknow, that's how we want to be. We want to be balanced but it always starts with us with a physicalrun game. We dressed it up a lot and a lot of pre-snap motions and di1erent things and we tried toput a lot of pressure on the defenses pre-snap. There's a lot of formations and motions and shiftsand there is a lot going on there. But it comes back to blocking, pad level, not getting penalties,backs hitting the holes, running hard. And yeah, I was proud of the e1ort. I felt like it was a bigimprovement the way we played.

Q Brock was fighting out there tonight. Not only completing some good throws but runningtoo. What did he show you tonight?

MARK STOOPS: Yeah, he played again like we would expect him to do. I felt like we had a good planand we gave him a good opportunity. Today he did what he had to. There were several plays left outthere that Georgia really made some nice plays at some critical moments as well. That was one ofthe reasons why they are number one. We had some nice plays designed and maybe got open by ashort margin and they made some really nice plays. You know, it's a credit to them. I thought Brockplayed well.

Q – Raynor – his leg strength was in question and now he has the longest field goal in theprogram – what kind of weapon is he?

MARK STOOPS: Yeah it's very reliable. I feel very good. That's why you love that ball in your handgiving it a shot there at the end. But yeah, they were all long today. Weren’t they? It felt like it. Hehas been very steady and always had a calm demeanor and is very accurate in practice and justdoes his job.

Q Mark, how do you harness this effort so that there aren’t swings?

MARK STOOPS: That's it. Our guys have to understand that it takes that kind of commitment andthat kind of sacrifice to take care of themselves. I mean, all throughout the week these guys aregoing to be sore. Tomorrow. They're going to be sore Monday. We are going to put full pads onTuesday and they're going to hit each other and they are going to hurt. That's what we have to do. Ithink our guys need to understand that mentality. You know, I hope we learned some things throughthe first three weeks of the season. And we have to just continue to move forward.

Q You said no moral victory. Tonight, you guys held Georgia under 20 points on the road, threetimes in the last five years that's the only time that’s happened in those three times. Do youthink you guys get up and speed things. Why do they get up so well against the ball?

MARK STOOPS: You know, they are very e1icient. There are things you can't do to them. Some aresimulated pressures that we are good at and we got a lot of mileage out of and di1erent things.They pick everything up. They are very e1icient, as I said earlier in the week, I think they have a verycohesive o1ensive line and it's a very good group. You know, you got to play football. Yes, we mixedup looks but I think coach White and our sta1 did a really good job and put us in position. Actually,the one touchdown that we gave up was some movement. They blocked it and cut it back andthings get muddy in there. Some very talented players spit it out. I think he went to a touchdown; Ithink he went to a touchdown down to the one.

Q – Mark, Childress plays the way he did today. What can it do for the defense?

MARK STOOPS: Zion is a good player. He does a lot of good things. He usually plays well. He gets alittle overanxious sometimes, I think early in the season as I mentioned many times in here andthroughout the preseason. You know, do your job and then play football. I think Zion has a goodfeel for the game. He has done some things like any players. You know what I mean. Any mistakehe made, you know, he learns from them. It looks like he showed up pretty well today.