(By Keith Taylor)

Kentucky football coach Rich Brooks has said all along that he has “good” football team.

Two wins to open the season verified Brooks’ statement. Three losses coupled by injuries to defensive whiz Trevard Lindley and starting quarterback Mike Hartline led many to write off the rest of the season.

Then a win over Auburn, which wiped away a 15-game losing streak to the Tigers has the naysayers having second thoughts, while Brooks is standing firm on his “good” word – the same one he used to describe his team long before the season began.

“I have said all along that I thought that we were a good football team and we still were a good football team even though we weren't healthy and didn't have all of our parts - and we still don't,” he said. “Having said that, the fact that we can go on the road and break one of the infamous streaks in Kentucky football history, speaks to the fact that this is still a good football team.“

Brooks is right. It wasn’t long ago when the loss of the starting quarterback and the top cornerback on the team meant disaster and chaos. An improved depth chart and a mental adjustment have been one of the top two reasons these teams coached by Brooks are clearly better than the first two he inherited.

The fact that Kentucky has won close games also has been a factor. All three ingredients have provided a recipe for success.

“Some people like to dwell on our shortcomings in the games that we have lost, but if you look over the last three and a half, four years, we have won probably more close games that we have lost,” he said. “We have come back in the fourth quarter numerous times over the last three or four years as well. There is a belief in our team and in our locker room that we can make it happen. The old attitude that is so hard to shake, that you can't get it done, no longer prevails on our football team.”

Brooks said the win over Auburn is an indicator of how far the team has progressed in the past five years.

“All you have to do is look historically at how difficult it has been for Kentucky to win under any circumstances with any type of team regardless if you think Auburn is a good team or an average team this year,” he said.

“There have been other average teams that Kentucky hasn't beaten down there. This year this team found a way to do it missing their starting quarterback and best defensive player by most estimations.”