QUICK FORECAST: UT Martin at Kentucky
By Editor Jamie H. Vaught
Here's my quick prediction for Saturday's 12:00 noon college football matchup at Commonwealth Stadium:
The UT Martin Skyhawks, who are coming off a 7-5 campaign, have played respectable football in recent years under coach Jason Simpson, competing in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision. A former Mississippi State QB, Simpson has a coaching record of 52-39 in eight years at UTM.
UT Martin has a senior QB by the name of 5-10, 195-pound Dylan Favre, the nephew of ex-NFL star Brett Favre. Dylan, who spent two years at Mississippi State under coach Dan Mullen, has recently been named to the College Football Performance Awards as one of 36 quarterbacks on its national watch list for the 2014 season. He is one of the four players from the Ohio Valley Conference to earn a spot on the prestigious list.
Another Skyhawk player to watch out for is Tony Bell, a senior linebacker who has been named a 2014 Preseason All-American by various media outlets, including Sporting News and Athlon Sports.
UT Martin also has former Alabama signee and ex-West Virginia wide receiver Ronald Carswell, who recently joined the program. He will have two years of eligibility for the Skyhawks.
This contest will serve as a homecoming of sorts for seven Skyhawk players who hail from the state of Kentucky as Ben Axline (Shelbyville), Matt Axline (Shelbyville), Nick Brown (Louisville), Corey Rogers (Winchester), Tyler Sweeden (Louisville), Anthony Topps (Fort Campbell) and Dean Wathen (Henderson) all grew up in the Bluegrass State. That list does not include William Tanner, a redshirt senior wide receiver who joined the Skyhawks last spring after walking on for three years at Kentucky.
UK by 17.
