Kentucky does a lot of things very well; basketball, cheerleading, bourbon and horses all come to mind. But football? Not usually.

This year, however, football joined the list. The Wildcats took their first bowl victory since the 1984 Hall of Fame Bowl with an impressive 28-20 victory over Clemson in the Music City Bowl.

Normally in Lexington, the football team serves to be a disappointing distraction to keep the Wildcats faithful entertained until it’s time for basketball season. But this year was different.

How different? Entirely. Start off with an 8-5 record, their first winning season since 1999 and the days of No. 1 NFL draft pick Tim Couch.

The Wildcats seemed to have an entirely different mind-set. Normally, Kentucky has no shot against the elite of the SEC, but this year, legitimate disappointment followed a loss in the regular season finale, 17-12 at No. 19 Tennessee. The Wildcats beat Georgia, and nearly beat South Carolina. They were – for the first time in a long time – a force in the SEC East.

It didn't look like it would be anything like this at the start of the season, however. Kentucky opened with a 59-28 pasting at in-state rival Louisville, and the Cats held just a 3-4 record after seven games, the last of which had been a 49-0 mauling by LSU.

Unlike previous years, however, the perennial SEC bottom dwellers decided not to hold their hands up; they decided this year would be different.

And different meant reeling off four victories in a row, the highlight of which was a huge 24-20 victory over Georgia. Kentucky hadn't beaten Georgia since 1996, and understandably the Kentucky faithful went rather wild. Storming the field after the game and ripping down the goalposts for the first time since a 1997 win over Alabama. Despite a $5,000 fine from the SEC and the $3,000 costs for replacing the goalposts, no one seemed to mind. The program looked to have turned the corner, and all that anyone talked about in college for a week was the downing of the posts, and of course, everyone was there when it came down.

So what were the reasons for the massive turnaround? The biggest of them was the rise of junior quarterback Andre Woodson. The phrase
“what a difference a year makes” could have been invented for Woodson's '05 and '06 seasons. In 2005, Woodson threw six touchdowns and six interceptions for a total of just over 1,600 yards. This year saw Woodson throw 31 touchdowns and just seven interceptions. He threw three more touchdowns without interception in the win over Clemson.

Woodson threw for more than 3,000 yards, good for ninth in the nation in passing yards, but his wasn’t the only remarkable performance of the season.

Another sensation was junior wide receiver Keenan Burton who had more than 1,000 yards on 77 receptions and 12 touchdowns. Burton's partner, sophomore wideout Dicky Lyons. Jr, had more than 800 yards on 50 receptions while adding nine touchdowns of his own. Junior running back Rafael Little had more than 1,000 yards of total offense, despite missing four games in the middle of the season.

There are many more success stories. Cornerback Trevard Lindley was named freshman All-America. Head coach Rich Brooks earned a new contract. They’d came from behind after three quarters in three straight games. The list could go on.

For next year things are looking promising, the big three, Woodson, Little and Burton, have decided to forego the NFL draft and return for their senior years. Brooks finally has a little job security. Recruits are going to start taking Kentucky seriously. However, the schedule looks tough with Florida and LSU among the home games and plenty of tricky away games.

So what is the aim for next season? How about a place in the top 25? It would have sounded beyond far-fetched at the start of this season. Now it sounds plausible, if unlikely. However, any team that loses by less to Florida in Gainesville than Ohio State lost to them in the championship game can't be too far away.