By LARRY VAUGHT
His purpose is simple — put on an informative, entertaining football camp for youth ages 10-17 that costs the participants nothing.
“When I was growing up in Florida, I could not afford to go to camps. We couldn’t do it. I wanted to attend, but couldn’t because of money,” said Champ Kelly, a former University of Kentucky player and current assistant director of pro personnel for the Denver Broncos. “I said if I was ever in position to have a camp like that for kids, I would want to give them the most coverage and most instruction possible for no cost.”
He’ll do that again June 21-22 at Henry Clay High School from 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. each day.
“It’s going to again be a time for the kids to meet the star, but it is about more than that,” Kelly said. “It’s not about the guys coming back to help me. It’s about the campers. We come in and don’t make a big stink out of who is there to help and you are going to get awesome coaching.
“The kids are going to learn football. We are going to prepare them for success on and off the field. For younger campers, we will stress the basics while getting into more extensive training with older campers. We will have a variety of guest speakers delivering messages on life skills and the importance of making good decisions.
“I like a mixture of ages. Older kids are able to be leaders by example. I want younger kids there at ages 10 or 11 from now until they graduate and they know what that CHAMP Camp on the front of the T-shirt represents.”
Kelly had the camp at Bryan Station last year, but wanted to reach out to “a few different kids” by moving the camp to Henry Clay.
“Our plan originaly was to try every couple of years to move to a different area to reach more kids. We hope the kids in the Bryan Station area want to come to camp regardless of where we are.”
But he would like to have more than just Lexington campers. North Hardin High School has told Kelly it hopes to bring up to 44 players and at least 30. Kelly is hoping other high schools will do the same.
He’ll have a variety of former UK players like Derek Abney, Dougie Allen, Leonard Burress, Chris Demaree and more at camp again. Last year he had both Randall Cobb and John Conner, current NFL players, speak to the campers.
“It’s almost like a who’s who of Kentucky football,” Kelly said. “But these guys love to get together and help. They like to come back to Kentucky where we all met and give back for a great cause. It’s not like pulling teeth to get them back. They want to help. I just think it is awesome that a guy like Derek Abney, who lives in South Carolina and is very selective about camps he’s involved with, will come spend time and talk to kids and help the receivers out.”
He’s reached out to former UK quarterbacks Tim Couch and Jared Lorenzen about helping this year as well as former UK linebacker Jeff Snedegar. Cobb plans to be back if his schedule permits. Current NFL offensive lineman Garry Williams also plans to return. “He is awesome. He stays the entire day to help,” Kelly said.
He said current Bronco tight end Jacob Tamme also hopes to be at this year’s camp if his schedule allows.
“I try to not put names out there because I want kids to come for the idea of what the camp is about opposed to just the people that will be there,” Kelly said. “But I always want as many of the Kentucky guys there as possible not because of their names, but because they are great with the kids and teach them lessons about life and football.”
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By LARRY VAUGHT
Kentucky offensive coordinator Neal Brown considers Ryan Timmons an “elite receiver” who can play multiple spots. Former UK quarterback Freddie Maggard, who lives in Lawrenceburg, says he cannot “remember a more talented, explosive athlete from Kentucky” than what he’s seen from Timmons the last three years.
Timmons rushed for 1,306 yards and 25 touchdowns his senior season, averaging an amazing 15.7 yards per attempt. He caught 33 passes for 1,004 yards and 16 TDs, averaging more than 30 yards per reception. Opponents kicked off to him only three times and he returned them all for touchdowns. As a junior, he rushed 62 times for 1,382 yards, averaging 22.3 yards per carry, and 20 touchdowns and also had 38 receptions for 1,100 yards, a 28.9 average, and 18 touchdowns his junior campaign. He’s a four-star recruit and after verbally committing to UK Tuesday, he signed with the Wildcats Wednesday.
Here are some leftover thoughts Timmons shared at his press conference Tuesday after announcing he had picked UK over Florida, Ohio State and Illinois:
Question: Why do you think Neal Brown’s offense will work in the Southeastern Conference?
Timmons: “Just because if you saw that Alabama lost this year to Texas A&M and they ran the spread. There will be a lot of difficulty in the SEC because each team in one-dimensional and run first. If Kentucky brings in a different type of offense, it will shock the defense because they are not used to it.”
Question: Does staying home to play at Kentucky add any pressure for you?
Timmons: “Not really. I try not to pay attention to all that. I just try to do the best I can and hopefully I can improve and help the University of Kentucky football team improve. Good things are going to happen. We can turn this around. It is just a matter of when.”
Question: Have you always been a Kentucky fan and if so what Kentucky player did you admire/follow?
Timmons: “Yeah. Probably the best one and my all-time favorite UK player is Randall Cobb.”
Question: Do you remember when Craig Yeast of Harrodsburg played at UK and then went on to the NFL?
Timmons: “Actually I do. I actually met him last year. I talked to him a little bit and he gave me some input about Kentucky. I still remember that. He was coaching at Bryan Station and we played a seven-on-seven tournament. I was getting recruited by Kentucky then and he talked to me. I have not talked to him in a while and hopefully he finds out I am going to Kentucky and he will give me some advice to help me out.”
Question: What did he tell you at Bryan Station about Kentucky?
Timmons: “Nothing like playing for the University of Kentucky. That’s what he told me.”
Question: Do you know who coach Brown was even before he got the job?
Timmons: “Yeah I did. One of our assistant coaches, the offensive coordinator, works for Neal Brown at team camps every summer. Each summer he also will go down to coach Brown’s clinic and learn things from him. That is how we got the same offense as them. Our coach is good friends with Neal and who he works with (in the summer), Tony Franklin. We had a great connection as soon as he came and talked to me.”
Question: Did Brown almost become your best friend the last month or so with all the time he spent with you or talking to you?
Timmons: “He was. That is another good thing about it. It is not too far away and now I get to work and get up there and start studying.”
Question: Is it nice to finally have this decision made?
Timmons: “It is kind of a stress reliever. I can stop worrying. I can stop wearing all that other gear (from different teams). I can wear UK gear all the time. I need some more UK gear.”
Question: Do you feel Kentucky wanting you was even more important than Kentucky needing you?
Timmons: “Exactly. I just think it was important how much they wanted you and want you to be a good player. I think it is two different things. They want me and hopefully I can make things happen.”
By LARRY VAUGHT
Kentucky offensive coordinator Neal Brown considers Ryan Timmons an “elite receiver” who can play multiple spots. Former UK quarterback Freddie Maggard, who lives in Lawrenceburg, says he cannot “remember a more talented, explosive athlete from Kentucky” than what he’s seen from Timmons the last three years.
Timmons rushed for 1,306 yards and 25 touchdowns his senior season, averaging an amazing 15.7 yards per attempt. He caught 33 passes for 1,004 yards and 16 TDs, averaging more than 30 yards per reception. Opponents kicked off to him only three times and he returned them all for touchdowns. As a junior, he rushed 62 times for 1,382 yards, averaging 22.3 yards per carry, and 20 touchdowns and also had 38 receptions for 1,100 yards, a 28.9 average, and 18 touchdowns his junior campaign. He’s a four-star recruit and after verbally committing to UK Tuesday, he signed with the Wildcats Wednesday.
Here are some other thoughts Timmons shared at his press conference.
Question: Why do you think Neal Brown’s offense will work in the Southeastern Conference?
Timmons: “Just because if you saw that Alabama lost this year to Texas A&M and they ran the spread. There will be a lot of difficulty in the SEC because each team in one-dimensional and run first. If Kentucky brings in a different type of offense, it will shock the defense because they are not used to it.”
Question: Does staying home to play at Kentucky add any pressure for you?
Timmons: “Not really. I try not to pay attention to all that. I just try to do the best I can and hopefully I can improve and help the University of Kentucky football team improve. Good things are going to happen. We can turn this around. It is just a matter of when.”
Question: Have you always been a Kentucky fan and if so what Kentucky player did you admire/follow?
Timmons: “Yeah. Probably the best one and my all-time favorite UK player is Randall Cobb.”
Question: Do you remember when Craig Yeast of Harrodsburg played at UK and then went on to the NFL?
Timmons: “Actually I do. I actually met him last year. I talked to him a little bit and he gave me some input about Kentucky. I still remember that. He was coaching at Bryan Station and we played a seven-on-seven tournament. I was getting recruited by Kentucky then and he talked to me. I have not talked to him in a while and hopefully he finds out I am going to Kentucky and he will give me some advice to help me out.”
Question: What did he tell you at Bryan Station about Kentucky?
Timmons: “Nothing like playing for the University of Kentucky. That’s what he told me.”
Question: Do you know who coach Brown was even before he got the job?
Timmons: “Yeah I did. One of our assistant coaches, the offensive coordinator, works for Neal Brown at team camps every summer. Each summer he also will go down to coach Brown’s clinic and learn things from him. That is how we got the same offense as them. Our coach is good friends with Neal and who he works with (in the summer), Tony Franklin. We had a great connection as soon as he came and talked to me.”
Question: Did Brown almost become your best friend the last month or so with all the time he spent with you or talking to you?
Timmons: “He was. That is another good thing about it. It is not too far away and now I get to work and get up there and start studying.”
Question: Is it nice to finally have this decision made?
Timmons: “It is kind of a stress reliever. I can stop worrying. I can stop wearing all that other gear (from different teams). I can wear UK gear all the time. I need some more UK gear.”
Question: Do you feel Kentucky wanting you was even more important than Kentucky needing you?
Timmons: “Exactly. I just think it was important how much they wanted you and want you to be a good player. I think it is two different things. They want me and hopefully I can make things happen.”
Photos by Clay Jackson, and property of Schurz Communications, Inc., and vaughtsviews.com. All rights reserved; images may not be reprinted in print or online without permission of the owners. Reprinted images must be attributed to vaughtsviews.com and linked to the original site.
GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Green Bay Packers coach Mike McCarthy says leading receiver Randall Cobb is too valuable to take off of kick returns for safety reasons.
McCarthy says that if Cobb is healthy, he will be the Packers’ full-time punt and kick returner, even in the wake of the ankle injury he suffered in Sunday’s 55-7 rout of the Tennessee Titans. Cobb was injured when tackled by Tennessee’s Tracy Wilson while returning a punt with 8:38 left in the third quarter – a game in which Cobb set the franchise single-season record for all-purpose yardage. On his previous two punt returns, Cobb had gained 14 and 17 yards.
“I’ll be honest with you: I don’t have a really high tolerance for this (line of questioning) because I don’t understand how you play scared in the game of football. I don’t get that,” McCarthy said sternly. “I think it’s convenient questioning. I understand the risk involved in every single play. Some plays are higher risk than others, and I’m fully aware of that.
“But you can’t sit here and say special teams is important if you don’t put a guy like Randall Cobb out there as a returner. Now, if we’re sitting here next year, we might be having a different conversation. But the way our team is built for 2012, Randall Cobb is a huge part of our success on special teams.”
Even with quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ not-so-subtle post-game suggestion that Cobb is too valuable to risk on returns, McCarthy said Cobb remains the returner, including in Sunday’s regular-season finale at Minnesota if he’s available. After Cobb went down, first-year wide receiver Jeremy Ross had a 58-yard punt return that set up Ryan Grant’s 7-yard touchdown run on the next play.
After the game, Rodgers was asked about Cobb’s overall performance, and spoke of Cobb’s role on returns.
“He’s a big time player,” Rodgers said. “He’s fun to watch. Just trying to get him the ball in space. He makes some big plays. He’s got incredible preparation habits. He’s always ready to play, knows where he’s supposed to be. He’s like a seven or eight-year veteran out there, it feels like at times. I feel like we’ve played together for a while. He understands the concepts we’re running, where to get open. He’s a big-time player.”
Then, after a brief pause and with a slight grin, Rodgers added, “(I) hope we can get him off special teams soon.”
Although McCarthy responded in his post-game press conference with “We’ll see” when first asked about Cobb staying on returns, the coach wasn’t coy a day later.
“Randall Cobb is a big part of our success on special teams. Our special teams has been our most consistent unit of our football team from Week 1 to Week 15. You don’t establish the way you play, the vision of the way you play, and then all of a sudden change going into the last week of the season,” McCarthy said. “We’ll see what happens here with Randall and we’ll evaluate his injury and then we’ll make decisions as we go forward. The philosophy of him playing on special teams has not changed.”
As a rookie second-round pick last season, Cobb’s primary role was as the team’s kick and punt returner; he finished the season with a 27.7-yard kickoff return average (second in the NFL, including a team-record 108-yard return for a touchdown) and 11.3-yard punt return average (seventh in the NFL, including an 80-yard return for a touchdown).
But Cobb has unexpectedly emerged as the Packers’ No. 1 receiving threat this season, leading the team in receptions (80) and yards (954), while Nelson and Greg Jennings have been sidelined for lengthy spells with injuries. Cobb has returned 38 kickoffs for a 25.4-yard average with a long of 46, and he’s returned 31 punts for a 9.4-yard average, including a 75-yard touchdown.
Green Bay Packers’ Randall Cobb leaps over Detroit Lions’ Don Carey (32) as he runs back a kick during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 9, 2012, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps)
By LARRY VAUGHT
Vaughtsviews.com reader Sarah White of Nashville had a friend who works in the Alcoa (Tenn.) school system who shared this information with her about Randall Cobb that I thought certainly was worth sharing with everyone;
“Okay, so for those of you who haven’t kept up with it recently, Randall is still #1 in the NFL in all-purpose yards for this season. What I find odd is that nobody has been mentioning during games that he has a legitimate shot to break the ALL-TIME NFL RECORD!!! He is only 606 yards away from breaking (605 away from tying) the all-time record that was set by Darren Sproles last season.
“Since there are only 3 games left, that means he only needs 202 yards per game to break the record. To put that in perspective, he had 191 total yards Sunday night. And just in case he doesn’t get the NFL’s all-time record, he’s only 160 yards away from breaking Green Bay’s franchise record. He’s currently already 85th on the NFL’s all-time list ahead of names like O.J. Simpson, Emmitt Smith, Roger Craig, Walter Payton, Hershel Walker, and Eric Dickerson. I just wanted to make sure y’all know about what I’m now calling the ‘Randall Watch!’”
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UK coach Joker Phillips
By LARRY VAUGHT
During his appearance at the Louisville Quarterback Club in July, Joker Phillips told me that he would not go into another season with a Wildcat quarterback — something he could count on when UK had Randall Cobb.
With Maxwell Smith slated to be the starting quarterback and Morgan Newton his backup, Phillips is also trying to decide whether Patrick Towles or Jalen Whitlow, both true freshmen, will be the No. 3 quarterback.
“We’re working both those guys a little bit. I don’t think it’s important to do it today. If something happens, we’ll have to get a feel for what direction to go in. Right now, it would be a toss-up who goes in the game first,” Phillips said Wednesday.
He says no matter whether Towles or Whitlow is No. 3, he will find a way to play him.
“Why would you waste a kid’s redshirt year if you’re not going to play him. Again, we’ll make that decision in a couple weeks. You don’t want to get too deep into the season. But we are not going to go through this thing with two quarterbacks. Not going to do that. We all saw how that went last year. You can get caught, then late in the season you don’t want to use a guy’s redshirt year. So we’ll make that decision after a couple of games, which of those guys we decide to play,” Phillips said.
But wouldn’t the easy decision be to make Whitlow the Wildcat quarterback — after all, he’s one of the better athletes on the team and can run and throw like a Wildcat QB must do — and redshirt Towles to give him that fifth year of eligibility?
So will Whitlow be the Wildcat QB?
“I don’t know. You’ll have to wait to see that. I told you we’d have one; I don’t need to tell you who it’ll be,” Phillips told me when I asked him at the Wildcat QB. “When we’ve got some different personnel coming in and out of the game, I want some of it to be a guessing game – for everybody, not just you guys but everybody.”
What about more than one Wildcat guy? Perhaps redshirt freshman Bookie Cobbins could also fill the same role even though he’s been moved to receiver.
“We will have one (Wildcat),” Phillips said.
Just don’t ask him who.
Chuck Smith gets a hug from Jacob Tamme after a Cats win. (Clay Jackson photo)
By LARRY VAUGHT
He’s got a long list of celebrities again participating, but Jacob Tamme knows why the third annual Swings For Soldiers Classic July 16 in Lexington again looks like it is going to be a successful fundraiser for Homes for Our Troops.
“We have people who care about what we are doing,” said Tamme, the former Boyle County and University of Kentucky standout who now plays for the Denver Broncos. “There are so many things for people to be involved with that are good causes, but here you see the impact you can have on a family.”
Homes for Our Troops has a simple mission: To build specially adapted homes for wounded veterans as the needs grows because more servicemen and women are coming home without the mobility needed to operate in their previous home.
The golf scramble July 16 at Keene Run Golf Club will again have 8 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. rounds, the same format as last year after the first event in 2010 had only one set of tee times. Tamme has slightly reduced the number of teams playing in the morning and afternoon to make the rounds go faster. He also has a few spots left for four-member teams in the morning rounds (go to http://www.swingsforsoldiers.org for more information). There will be a 6:30 p.m. dinner and silent auction to conclude the fundraiser.
“We’ve had a few folks that have participated in the past that can’t for different reasons, but we’ve had new ones come in,” Tamme said. “We feel like we put on a neat event and it is for a great cause.”
His celebrity guest list can change but it will include UK football coach Joker Phillips for the first time as well as UK athletics director Mitch Barnhart. Kentucky offensive coordinator Randy Sanders will also play as well as Green Bay receiver Randall Cobb unless he has a late scheduling conflict. Former UK quarterbacks Shane Boyd, Bill Ransdell and Jared Lorenzen will play
Former UK basketball players Ron Mercer, Walter McCarty and Antoine Walker are all possibilities. Former UK All-American guard Kyle Macy will play along with Mike Pratt, a former UK basketball standout and current analyst on the UK Radio Network.
Tamme’s former Indianapolis teammate, quarterback Curtis Paynter, is also coming back. He’s now with the Baltimore Ravens.
County music singer John Michael Montgomery has also indicated he’ll play.
“We will have five or six military guests as celebrity golfers, too,” Tamme said. “Ken Preston, the new president for Home for Our Troops, will also play golf.”
Tamme is pleased that Kenneth Parker of Evansville will attend also. Proceeds from the event will be going to help fund his new home.
Tamme and his wife, Allison, will be going July 20-22 to go help with the construction. “Allison knows every bit as much about what to do as I do. Basically, they’ll just have to tell us what to do and we will try not to mess up,” Tamme said.
Little goes wrong at the Tammes’ event because of the volunteers, including numerous family members, that help. Tamme also credits Jamie Legate (859-913-9261, jamie@swingsforsoldiers.org) and Kate Ballard (502-294-0439, kate@swingsforsoldiers.org) for handling even more organizational details this year as he made the move from Indianapolis where he played for four years to Denver.
“It has been a crazy time, but we’ve had so much support for this event,” Tamme said. “Jamie and Kate have been unbelievable.
“We will have a lot of the same volunteers this year, and people enjoy that. We have become friends with several people we did not know before through this event. I also think people enjoy see the family members we have volunteering and working.”
* * *
Anyone wishing to make a donation can go to SwingsforSoldiers.org, click on the donate button and follow instructions. Or you can send a check payable to Homes for Our Troops care of me at Box 149, Danville, Ky., 40422, and I will get the checks to Tamme. I’ll even match the first $100 in donations for this worthy cause.
4 CommentsBy LARRY VAUGHT
Question: Did you still keep up with the Kentucky football program?
Cobb: “I do. I try to as much as I can. When I get the opportunity, I do. I had dinner with (offensive coordinator) coach (Randy) Sanders last night and talked a lot this morning. Just trying to keep that relationship. They have the athletes and players that can get it done. They just have to go out and do it.”
Question: What was your reaction to Kentucky beating Tennessee last year with your former roommate, receiver Matt Roark, at quarterback?
Cobb: “Did you see the video (of me celebrating)? That’s how it is. That was a big win not only for me but for this school, this state. For all of us. I think we were all impacted by it. It was great.”
Question: How proud are you of the Alcoa, Tenn., connection to Kentucky now that just keeps sending players to UK, including walk-on Cody Lewis this year?
Cobb: “It is five now. We had Kyrus Lanxter before me and me and Tyler Robinson, then Darrell (Williams) and now Cody. I am really excited to have Cody up here. He was like my little brother growing up. His sister and me were pretty good friends, so I was around him a lot. I am glad to see him up here.”
Question: Did you play a role in him ending up at Kentucky?
Cobb: “I don’t think I played a big role. I told him if he had the opportunity, I hoped he would go to Kentucky. But he did what he did on his own. I guess the coaches liked him.”
Question: Why did you know Williams would be such a good player and make a big impact even as a fullback during his first season last year?
Cobb: “He is still young. He still has a lot of growing and maturing to do. I know his mindset. I know his drive. I know his determination. I know his athletic ability. I know what he is capable of becoming and will become.”
Question: What’s it been like have former UK punter Tim Masthay at the Packers with you?
Cobb: “Tim helped me with the return game a lot right away. He explained to me what punters try to do in the NFL that’s different than college and enabled me adjust a lot quicker.”
By LARRY VAUGHT
Randall Cobb was named to the NFL all-rookie team for his kick-returning skills with the Green Bay Packers in 2011 — he was one of only three NFL players to return both a punt and kickoff for a touchdown last season — but he also showed in a limited role that he could be just as productive on offense.
The second-round pick out of Kentucky led all NFL wide receivers with a catch percentage of 80.6 in 2011 (Pittsburgh’s Hines Ward was a second at 76.7 percent). Cobb averaged 7.7 yards after the catch, which ranked third among all NFL wide receivers. Yet because of the players’ strike, Cobb did not get to work out in the offseason last summer with Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers and only 31 passes were thrown Cobb’s way and he ranked only 12th among rookie wide receivers with 25 catches for 375 yards.
That’s why Cobb knows his numbers should improve this season because he’s has more time this offseason to develop a chemistry with Rodgers, regarded by many as the NFL’s premier quarterback.
“It does help. Being a former quarterback and playing receiver for a while, you learn to understand the chemistry a quarterback and receiver must have. Not having an offseason to work and being thrown straight into training camp I did not have that opportunity to build that chemistry with Aaron last year and that is something we have been working on this offseason. I think we are looking for some big things,” Cobb said Thursday while attending Champ Kelly’s camp in Lexington.
“I think the biggest thing is making sure we’re on the same page and giving him the confidence to come to me whenever he needs to. We have to have that special chemistry a quarterback needs with a receiver. I think last year there were times he was not really confident in me knowing exactly what I needed to do. This offseason he’s giving me different calls and he’s checking to see if know what to do when he comes to me.”
Question: What did you want these kids to learn from you today?
Cobb: “Just live your dream and compete. I wanted to tell them how important competition is and how to push yourself to get better.”
Question: How are your parents enjoying having you play in Green Bay?
Cobb: “It is different. I am a little bit further than just up the road, so they can’t just drive up there. It’s different for them. I still keep in touch with them and they know I am doing what I always wanted to do, so I think they are proud of me.”
Question: What’s next with the Packers?
Cobb: “We start camp soon. So I am just studying and working hard and doing all I can.”
Question: How did you evaluate your first year with the Packers?
Cobb: “Not good enough. You know me. I had some ups and downs. I had some amazing experiences. I am just going to continue to learn and try to get better.”
Question: How eager is your team to get back out there and try to win the Super Bowl?
Cobb: “I think everybody is pretty focused. We are ready to go. Our attitude is different. We have a little chip on our shoulder. Everybody knows we have to improve. I think we will be even better than we were last year.”
Question: Weren’t you pleased with your yards after catch and your catch percentage which both ranked among the best in the NFL?
Cobb: “They were okay. Not good enough. I dropped too many balls and not enough yards after the catch.”
Question: But weren’t you first in catch percentage and third in yards after catch?
Cobb: “Not good enough. It was not the top in both.”
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