Governor’s Cup. In boxing parlance, Louisville was staggered by early haymakers, made a no-brainer change at quarterback, collected its wits and, while the Wildcats grew Fathead, the Petrinos rope-a-doped Kentucky the rest of the day.

At the end it was a Happy Chandler-style down-in-the-dirt on Satdee morning whuppin’. UofL brag rights spans an Obama Administration, UofL headed up I-64 leaving Mark Stoops to face funeral music again.

Mark Stoops: “We had guys in position and they made us look foolish at times.”

The latter was more persuasive than the former. In time and places this season Florida, Eastern Kentucky (OT escape), Auburn and Vanderbilt made Kentucky look foolish. The others. Mississippi State, Tennessee and Georgia simply beat the bejeepers out of Stoops’ team.

Kentucky finishes 5-7. To be merciful, we hope its season is finished. Grade for 2015? In bold face, a solid F.

Louisville (7-5) is bowl-bound, but the only thing special about this team will be a bowl game win. Six of UofL’s seven wins came against opponents with losing records.

MARCH TO MARCH BEGINS

Flyweights, and Dookies, inked into the left-hand column, it’s December – Kentucky and Louisville began their march to March this week. Best so far? Maybe these things.

• Kentucky’s swift boat move past Carolina to top of the polls. But our state’s gazillion assistant coaches know what too early means and know there are half dozen teams as good or better than the Wildcats.

• Louisville (media), reasoned earlier this week that sex scandal is why Cards have gotten no ranking from pollsters. Couldn’t have anything to do with departure of four starters and the scrimmage-caliber schedule, could it?

• Team magazine writers and talking head experts left out of preseason promos: Miami, Fla. Xavier and the Monmouth Hawks.

FIRE THE COACH? NADA!

Cardinal Nation … predictable tweet crowed out soon after 38-24.

“UK is just the third best football program in Kentucky,” it said. “The (Wildcats) are 0-5 against the Ville and 0-2 against WKU. They may be in the SEC but in name only, Kentucky plays like a MAC or Sun Belt team in football.”

For Kentucky fans, like a cowboy said once, “Smarts, don’t it?”

But, firing Mark Stoops won’t happen. Would be re-run of paying two head coaches at same time again. UK fans can stir sanity into their Patience cocktail, while watching wacko boosters at LSU and Georgia make fools of themselves.

Stoops signed on for five seasons and deserves at least four given slower-than-hoped pace of progress. Staff or re-staff changes are his call.

Next? Will be interesting to see the effectiveness of He who must hump the (recruiting) boulder up the mountain, and pitches his product.

Dividend for fans? A hike in ticket prices or fees to access them, Mitch Barnhart wouldn’t dare.

JUST WONDERING DEPT.

Mark Stoops had done his Man-Up session with media Saturday, trying desperately I imagine, to dance away from ugly words total collapse. Best he had was a word Kentucky fans have lived with since Stoll Field was standing and Harry Truman was President, Frustration.

I got wondering about UK players inside. Had they paused, rubbed steam off locker room mirrors and looked at themselves?

Total collapse indeed.

√ Josh Forest had heaved a football into the bleachers. Cost his team 15 yards. Was look-at-me selfishness, blatant disrespect for coaches, teammates and all but one fan.

Among player reflections we can be sure, can’t we, the players will own …

√ A season of poor passes thrown that drove one quarterback to pack his bags.

√ A season of dropped passes … holding penalties … illegal procedure … substitution and play clock issues, and poor secondary play.

√ And, Matt Elam is too fat, looks too satisfied. A nose guard, Elam is earning himself a place at offensive guard to pass protect.

BEST OF BEST

Our Commonwealth’s best college football team for 2015? Western Kentucky (10-2) by a mile. The Hilltoppers lost at Indiana by a hiccup, were shelled at LSU and nobody else was close. WKU hosts C-USA title game at home this week.

Dream bowl game match? One to make a hot ticket and SRO crowd?

Music City Bowl at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, December 30: Louisville (7-5) versus Western Kentucky (ideally 11-2).

PARTING SHOT

On set of Yuletide season brings to mind the nominees list for Kentucky Sports Person of 2015. Qualifications include, don’t they, level of media attention, fan interest? Atop my list: Brandon Doughty, WKU; 1A. Katina Powell (Louisville).

And so it goes.