UK Football: Corey Peters' only regret not winning final game for Coach Brooks
By LARRY VAUGHT
[email protected]
December 28, 2009
NASHVILLE ? For four years Kentucky coaches and players have praised the play of defensive tackle Corey Peters.
?The thing about Corey is that he has always been a hard worker in practice and always a dependable, solid player who made plays. This year he started to make plays where you noticed him more,? said Kentucky defensive coordinator Steve Brown.
?He has always been that kind of player but started to do things to catch your attention even more. I am proud and happy for him. He has a great chance to play in the NFL. He has always been a phenomenal young man. He is a very thoughtful person. He is a deep thinker and when he speaks it usually puts a smile on your face and makes you feel good.?
Peters ended his Kentucky career here Sunday night when the Wildcats lost to Clemson 21-13 in the Music City Bowl.
It was the first loss in four bowl tries for Kentucky since Peters had been on the team. That was bad enough, but he felt even worse because Kentucky coach Rich Brooks announced after the game that he likely was going to retire after seven years at Kentucky.
?Knowing this was possibly the last game for him makes this even worse,? Peters said as he wiped away tears. ?That?s when it hit me that it was really over and made me regret a lot of things (about the game). This is not how I wanted my last game to end.?
Peters earned all-Southeastern Conference honors for his play and ended the season with 55 tackles, including 11 tackles for loss and four quarterback sacks. He had three tackles and one assist against Clemson.
Peters took a gamble when he signed with Kentucky and not Ohio State, Michigan, Auburn or hometown Louisville following his prep career at Louisville Central where he also qualified for the state wrestling tournament four straight years and was also on the baseball and track teams.
