KENTUCKY
› Last season: 10-3 (5-3 SEC)› 2019 opener: Aug. 31 vs. Toledo in Lexington (noon; SEC Network)› Fun fact: Last year marked Kentucky’s first season with 10 or more wins and a bowl triumph since Bear Bryant’s Wildcats capped an 11-1 season in 1950 with a Cotton Bowl downing of Oklahoma.› Coming Saturday: LSU
To hear Kentucky senior middle linebacker Kash Daniel tell it, there is a cool way and there is an accurate way to explain his unique first name.
"The realistic story is that my aunt was supposed to name my cousin Kash but ended up not using it, so my mom took it," Daniel said last week at SEC Media Days. "My dad always tells people that he named me after Cassius Clay, who became Muhammad Ali. I like that one more, because he's a Kentucky legend."
Ali, who died three years ago, grew up boxing in Louisville on his way to becoming a national and global legend.
Daniel may have only state-wide recognition right now after Kentucky's 10-3 season that ended with a 27-24 upset of Penn State in the Citrus Bowl on New Year's Day, but he has an incredible passion for his roots, specifically the tiny town of Paintsville. Located in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, Paintsville has roughly 3,500 people, with some 30% of those residents below the poverty line.
"I put pressure on myself to succeed for my family, for my hometown and for my home region," Daniel said. "Where I'm from, there is not a lot of positive light that is shown on it. Whenever there is light, it's usually negative, so for me to be able to use this as a platform and make eastern Kentucky proud is a dream come true for me.
"I want every Kentucky fan to be proud of every snap that we take every Saturday."
The 6-foot-1, 226-pounder racked up 84 tackles and 7.5 tackles for loss last year on a defense that ranked second in the Southeastern Conference in fewest points allowed with 16.8 per game. Mississippi State led the league in that category with 13.2 points per game, so the Wildcats finished ahead of the likes of Alabama (18.1), Auburn (19.2) and Georgia (19.2).
Daniel's grit came through down the stretch, when he played despite breaking a hand during the Oct. 20 win over Vanderbilt that required two screws two days later. His spirit came through repeatedly last season and again last month, when he called oddsmakers who set Kentucky's over/under win total this year at six games "a bunch of jackasses."
"What you love about Kash is that what you see is what you get," seventh-year Kentucky coach Mark Stoops said. "He's a guy who's very passionate about things, and you've got to love that. He's passionate about being from Kentucky and being from eastern Kentucky and having a tough, blue-collar background that I can certainly relate to.
"He's selfless. He cares about his team. He cares about winning. Sure, he wants to do good for himself, but he's passionate about his brothers in that locker room, and I think that's why a lot of people relate to him very well."
Daniel is also a member of the school's bass fishing team and showed up at SEC Media Days resembling "Game of Thrones" lead character Jon Snow, all the way down to a "House of Stark" pin on his jacket. His fun-loving nature is contagious, but Daniel knows much of his legacy could be crafted by how the Wildcats fare with running back Benny Snell and outside linebacker Josh Allen now NFL rookies.
Snell rushed for 1,449 yards last season with defenses keying on his every move, and Allen was drafted No. 7 overall in April.
"You can't replace Josh," Daniel said. "The guy was built like Superman, for crying out loud, and what he did on the football field was second to none. If we can be able to twist our defense around to utilize and free up everybody we have, it's going to be a special and fun time."
Which is why Daniel is warning those who are doubting Kentucky to do so at their own peril.
"Obviously there are still a lot of naysayers and doubters for us," he said. "People are saying that we're not going to be a contender for this year or be up to par to where we were last year. Those people didn't see what we had in the afterburner behind Josh and behind Benny.
"We have guys who will be able to step up and make plays for us. There are going to be some people who are really surprised, but our true fans will have known the whole time that we can do this."
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.