Cat-ching up on Offense

It's no revelation that the cornerstone of Kentucky's breakthrough the past two seasons was an offense that moved the ball and put up points against everybody.

Just ask defending national champion LSU.

But if the Wildcats are going to make it three winning seasons in a row -- something that hasn't happened in Lexington (at least in football) since the mid-1950s -- they might have to find a different modus operandi.

The offense has struggled this spring, and that shouldn't come as a surprise with the likes of Andre Woodson, Keenan Burton, Rafael Little, Steve Johnson and Jacob Tamme all gone.

There still hasn't been any clear separation at quarterback, where Curtis Pulley and Mike Hartline are battling for the starting job. They have some big shoes to fill. Woodson threw an SEC-record 40 touchdown passes last season and tossed 71 over his final two seasons.

Kentucky coach Rich Brooks isn't expecting that kind of production from Pulley or Hartline, but he does want to see more consistency across the board. In Saturday's scrimmage, the defense kept the offense out of the end zone. The only points came on a 49-yard field goal from Lones Seiber.

The windy conditions skewed things, but Pulley finished 8-of-15 for 66 yards and an interception, and Hartline was 5-of-14 for 38 yards. Both are capable runners, which should give the Wildcats a different dimension. Pulley redshirted last season after playing receiver in 2006. Hartline backed up Woodson last season and was a top hurdler in high school.

One of the reasons Brooks has had such a difficult time evaluating his quarterbacks this spring is that the receivers have made very few plays around them.

"Our receivers don't understand the intensity of the game right now and what is required for them to be an SEC receiver," said Brooks, whose Wildcats will hold their spring game this Saturday. "Our whole receiving corps needs to step it up, and they've got to help the quarterbacks."

Kentucky's most experienced receiver, senior Dicky Lyons Jr., hasn't exactly caused everyone to forget about Burton and Johnson. His performance this spring has been so-so, and offensive coordinator Joker Phillips also wants to see more leadership from a player who caught 56 passes for 655 yards and seven touchdowns last season.

Don't be surprised if a few true freshmen break into the receiver rotation this fall, namely Aaron Boyd. Aaron is the younger brother of former Kentucky quarterback Shane Boyd and a top prospect from the state of Kentucky last year.

Berry on Offense for Vols

The book on first-year Tennessee offensive coordinator Dave Clawson when he took the job in January was that he specialized in getting his most dynamic playmakers the ball.

Clawson opened the Vols' scrimmage last Saturday with 11 different formations and personnel groupings. There was another new twist earlier this week in practice, as star safety Eric Berry took a few snaps at quarterback.

Berry, one of the top freshmen defensive players in the country a year ago, was joined at quarterback by sophomore receiver Gerald Jones. The Vols used the "G-Gun" package a few times last season with Jones at quarterback, but this was the first time Berry had been at quarterback since arriving in Knoxville. He played quarterback in high school in Fairburn, Ga., and is as electrifying in the open field as anybody on Tennessee's team.

Don't look for defensive coordinator John Chavis to hand him over full time, but the Vols would be wise to borrow him some on offense next fall. He's that good.

"We're just trying to get the ball in the hands of good players," head coach Phillip Fulmer said.

Jones also got a look at quarterback for the first time this spring on Tuesday and hopes to see even more time there this fall. He scored a pair of touchdowns last season while lining up at quarterback.

One thing Jones won't do is give Berry any advice.

"He don't need any advice," Jones said. "He's Eric Berry. If he gets the ball in his hands, he's going to do what he's going to do."

Weight Watchers

Vanderbilt coach Bobby Johnson thinks several factors have helped the Commodores close the gap the past few seasons with some of their SEC brethren.

They've been able to recruit higher-caliber players and, just as importantly, develop those players. As many as four ex-Commodores could be drafted by the NFL later this month.

Much of that development starts in the weight room, where Vanderbilt speed, strength and conditioning director John Sisk has made a profound impact on the program.

"Coach Sisk has done a fantastic job, and you can see it in the numbers. But that's what is great about coach Sisk. He's not a numbers pusher," said Johnson, whose relationship with Sisk dates to 1994 ,when Sisk was a Furman strength assistant in Johnson's first year as the Paladins' coach. "He doesn't care what you bench-press and how much you can squat. He's trying to find out what will make our guys better football players."

The Commodores have won 14 games over the past three seasons, their best three-year run since winning 14 from 1992-94. They've broken through and beaten Georgia, South Carolina and Tennessee along the way. And just as telling have been all the games they were in and lost in the final minutes -- Georgia and Tennessee last season, Alabama and Arkansas in 2006 and Florida and Kentucky in 2005.

"It's on us to keep it going and build on what some of these guys leaving accomplished," senior safety Reshard Langford said. "I think one of the biggest differences in where we used to be and where we are now is that we've been in better shape than most of the teams we've faced. That's an edge we've got to keep."

Chris Low is a college football writer for ESPN.com. Send your questions and comments to Chris at espnclow@aol.com.