Quarterbacks

LEXINGTON - Freshmen quarterbacks Jalen Whitlow and Patrick Towles both did enough right at Wednesday's practice to impress coach Joker Phillips. “Physically they look good. They both can throw the ball and they both had bright eyes today. Those guys are excited about having an opportunity,” said Phillips. “We will put them out there and see what they can do.” The two will both play Saturday against No. 20 Mississippi State because Maxwell Smith is out indefinitely with an ankle injury.

LEXINGTON - Patrick Towles said everyone got a fresh start when the new Kentucky coaching staff came aboard, and he's hoping that will give him his chance to show he should be the Wildcats' starting quarterback this season. “It's what sport is all about. You want to come out here and prove to whoever you need to prove it to that you're better and you deserve to play. And we're all out here trying to show coach (Neal) Brown and coach (Mark) Stoops we deserve to play,” Towles said Wednesday after Kentucky's practice.

LEXINGTON - New Kentucky head football coach Mark Stoops is known for his background on defense, so a natural question at his introductory news conference was his thoughts on offensive philosophy. “We're going to have an offense that you are going to enjoy, I promise you that,” Stoops said.  “Where is (former Kentucky All-America quarterback) Tim Couch?  We're going to have an offense you're going to be proud of.  We'll get out there and rip it around a little bit, we are going to throw it.” Stoops made his first step in fulfilling that promise with Monday's announcement of Neal Brown, a former teammate of Couch who has guided one of the nation's most productive offenses at Texas Tech, as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at UK. “Neil is a young, hungry, dynamic coach who has had a lot of success in the Big 12 (Conference)

LEXINGTON - Kentucky's starting quarterback for next season will not be determined by what happens in Saturday's Blue-White Game. Yet what quarterbacks Mike Hartline and Curtis Pulley do in the intrasquad game that ends spring practice could tell a lot about who the starter will be when Kentucky opens the season Aug. 31 at Louisville. "It will give us an idea who the starter will be going into fall camp," said Kentucky coach Rich Brooks Wednesday. "The competition is close between Hartline and Pulley.

Editor's note: This is the third of a five-part series on Kentucky quarterback Andre Woodson. On Thursday, Woodson talks about the pressure he'll be facing this season. LEXINGTON - When he came to Kentucky, Andre Woodson readily admits he was somewhat in awe of veteran quarterbacks Jared Lorenzen and Shane Boyd. That's why the Kentucky senior understands the feeling redshirt freshman quarterbacks Mike Hartline and Will Fidler have going into this season as his backups.

LEXINGTON ? University of Kentucky offensive coordinator Joker Phillips plans on having fun with his stable of quarterbacks, but says the job belongs to incumbent starter Mike Hartline unless he loses it. Phillips says Hartline deserves to enter the fall as the starter after winning six games in 2008. But, Phillips and coach Rich Brooks say they'll give incoming freshman quarterbacks Morgan Newton and Ryan Mossakowski solid looks. Also, Randall Cobb will get some quarterback snaps in the Wildcat package, giving Kentucky multiple looks to throw at opponents.

He’s playing for one of Kentucky’s best teams and already has a Southeastern Conference scholarship, but Highlands quarterback Patrick Towles is not about to coast through summer workouts. Instead, he understands the need to improve not so much for his final high school season, but to start getting prepared for what he will face when he gets to Kentucky in 2012. “One thing I need to improve is my footwork,” said Towles, who threw for 2,471 yards and 21 touchdowns last year and ran for 882 yards and 18 scores.

LEXINGTON — Calling plays is something Joker Phillips enjoyed doing when he was offensive coordinator at Kentucky. He liked the challenge of having to look ahead, contemplate what defensive coordinators would be doing and putting his players in the right positions. However, now that he’s head coach, Phillips will have to step away from the play calling duties. “But I think the head coach has to intervene some. We will use everybody’s eyes on our football staff.

It's impossible not to compare quarterbacks Andre Woodson of Kentucky and Brian Brohm of Louisville going into Saturday's Battle of the Bluegrass. No, it's not a one-on-one matchup that will decide who wins the game. Both quarterbacks know that, and will tell anyone that who takes the time to listen. Yet it's impossible not to focus on them. They have both been mentioned as Heisman Trophy possibilities. Brohm was one of the nation's best quarterbacks last year, but Woodson got a nod as a preseason All-American.

It's impossible not to compare quarterbacks Andre Woodson of Kentucky and Brian Brohm of Louisville going into Saturday's Battle of the Bluegrass. No, it's not a one-on-one matchup that will decide who wins the game. Both quarterbacks know that, and will tell anyone that who takes the time to listen. Yet it's impossible not to focus on them. They have both been mentioned as Heisman Trophy possibilities. Brohm was one of the nation's best quarterbacks last year, but Woodson got a nod as a preseason All-American.

Drew Barker admitted six months ago that he didn't see any scenario where he would be coming to Kentucky after being ignored by former coach Joker Phillips and his staff. “But (Kentucky coach Mark Stoops and his staff) did a complete 180, and you can obviously see that by me committing to them today,” Barker said Friday after picking the Wildcats over South Carolina and Tennessee. Among the offers the Conner quarterback had were ones from Illinois, Louisville, Mississippi, Miami, Mississippi State, Purdue and Cincinnati.

He's still trying to “soak in the once in a lifetime experience” of being a national recruit, but Conner quarterback Drew Barker said Sunday he still plans to stick with his original timeline to make a college choice in the next few weeks. He's visited Kentucky, South Carolina and Tennessee this spring and likely will not take any other visits before probably deciding which of those three schools is right for him. “I would like to get this over probably in early May,” said Barker.

LEXINGTON - He's not ready to say who should be the starting quarterback, but even coach Mark Stoops could not deny that sophomore Jalen Whitlow did his best to stake his claim to that spot with his play in Saturday's Blue-White Game. “Jalen did a nice job. He has that dimension to run the football and pull it down and create,” said Stoops. “He did a nice job tonight. I was impressed with the way he played.” Whitlow easily had the best numbers in his continuing battle with Maxwell Smith and Patrick Towles.

LEXINGTON - Patrick Towles said everyone got a fresh start when the new Kentucky coaching staff came aboard, and he's hoping that will give him his chance to show he should be the Wildcats' starting quarterback this season. “It's what sport is all about. You want to come out here and prove to whoever you need to prove it to that you're better and you deserve to play. And we're all out here trying to show coach (Neal) Brown and coach (Mark) Stoops we deserve to play,” Towles said Wednesday after Kentucky's practice.

He's a four-star quarterback who has impressed recruiting analysts and will be one of the leading contenders for Kentucky's Mr. Football honors next season. Yet Kentucky was not one of the 10 schools that had offered Conner's Drew Barker a scholarship until offensive coordinator Neal Brown changed that after watching Barker throw during a recent morning workout. “It's not like he has just surfaced as a top quarterback. Louisville offered him last spring. He has 10 other others.

WILLIAMSBURG - Former NFL quarterback Chad Pennington likes the hire of Mark Stoops at Kentucky and also thinks the system new offensive coordinator Neal Brown employs will help UK be more competitive in the Southeastern Conference. “I know UK fans were really excited after the press conference. I think coach Stoops having the experience he does as well as being able to lean upon his brothers for advice when he comes to being a head coach and that type of thing, I think he will do just fine,” said Pennington, who spoke at the National Guard Border Bowl banquet Friday night and worked as a color analyst for Fox Sports South at the game Saturday when Kentucky rallied to beat Tennessee.

LEXINGTON - New Kentucky head football coach Mark Stoops is known for his background on defense, so a natural question at his introductory news conference was his thoughts on offensive philosophy. “We're going to have an offense that you are going to enjoy, I promise you that,” Stoops said.  “Where is (former Kentucky All-America quarterback) Tim Couch?  We're going to have an offense you're going to be proud of.  We'll get out there and rip it around a little bit, we are going to throw it.” Stoops made his first step in fulfilling that promise with Monday's announcement of Neal Brown, a former teammate of Couch who has guided one of the nation's most productive offenses at Texas Tech, as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at UK. “Neil is a young, hungry, dynamic coach who has had a lot of success in the Big 12 (Conference)

LEXINGTON - He grew up a Kentucky fan and once he got a chance to play for the Wildcats, he rewrote the passing records and became a No. 1 overall NFL draft pick because of his offensive prowess. Yet when former UK quarterback Tim Couch had a chance to be part of the selection process for Kentucky's new football coach, he was all-in with Florida State defensive coordinator Mark Stoops and was there Sunday to watch the press conference that actually was more of a pep rally when Stoops was officially introduced as the Cats' new coach.

He's played so well this season that he's found his name on the Alabama recruiting radar, but Chattanooga quarterback Reese Phillips insists he's still planning to honor his verbal commitment to Kentucky. “Alabama did come and see and talk to me,” said Phillips. “I did plan on going (to Alabama) this weekend, but I have not decided if I am going. I just want to make sure if they are serious or not. I don't want to waste my time. I¿am probably not going because I don't have an (scholarship)

LEXINGTON - Freshman quarterback Patrick Towles will return to the practice field today and then Kentucky coach Joker Phillips says his status for Saturday's game at Missouri will be evaluated. Towles was scheduled to be redshirted before an injury to starting quarterback Maxwell Smith gave him a chance to play against Mississippi State. He directed an 80-yard scoring drive on his first series and went 5-for-5 passing. However, he twisted his ankle four plays later and has not played the last two games.