STARKVILLE — Josh Moore covers Kentucky for the Lexington Herald-Leader. He took some time to speak with The Dispatch ahead of Mississippi State’s matchup against Kentucky on Saturday.
In a conversation with The Dispatch that also will appear on the newspaper’s podcast, Bully Banter, Moore discussed the Kentucky offensive line, Terry Wilson and more.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Q: We’ve seen a lot of the Wildcats’ running game this year. What do you see from this rushing attack and what do you think makes it run so efficiently?
A: So much of it is they have a really good backfield. Eddie Gran and Darin Hinshaw, the Kentucky co-offensive coordinators, specialize in running backs. That’s obviously a lot of intelligence you get from those guys. But it’s the offensive line that makes it go. You can’t really run the way Kentucky does without that offensive line. You can tell they’ve been through some wars. Most of the guys that are starting up front have played going on four or five years. There’s around 60 combined starts between that unit.
Q: A guy who’s involved in both the run game and the passing game is quarterback Terry Wilson. Coming off an injury and taking back the starting job this season, where does he stand and what’s his fit in this offense?
A: I think we saw the first week he clearly has some rust to kick. He made some mental errors and cost them the game if you wanted to pin it on one person, he would probably be the easiest target. Then you look at the next game, and they didn’t win, but you could say last week’s performance against Ole Miss was his best game at Kentucky. Sometimes you get into a track meet and it becomes a product of that, but you also have to appreciate that when you get into a game like that you have a guy that can keep you in it. There’s always people lobbying for the guy that’s behind you. But there’s nothing Terry Wilson did last week that kept them from winning the game. I don’t want to say he’s a game manager, but he’s a guy that can do what you ask him to do as far as keeping the field short and take off while also taking care of things.
Q: There’s been a lot of calls for (backup quarterback) Joey Gatewood like you mentioned. Is there a fit for him in this offense or a way to get him on the field?
A: I thought against Ole Miss they might throw him out there in short yardage situations. I still think going forward, even if it’s not this week, that’s a possibility as the season goes along. I think with Lynn (Bowden) last year when he took over at quarterback, they still sometimes brought in Sawyer Smith in short yardage situations. I’m expecting they’re at least keeping that in the back of their mind to play around with. I’m sure they could get really creative if they want to. I know there’s some fans that think you’re going to plug in Joey Gatewood and think you’ll have an incredible running game and passing game, but I don’t know. I think you’re asking a whole lot out of one guy who let’s be honest, didn’t win the job.
To listen to the rest of the interview with Josh Moore, listen to Bully Banter, which can be found wherever podcasts are available.
Hodge is the former sports editor for The Dispatch.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 37 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.