Carrington Valentine Made His Presence Felt Against Youngstown State

The junior snagged his first career interception on Saturday
Carrington Valentine Made His Presence Felt Against Youngstown State
Carrington Valentine Made His Presence Felt Against Youngstown State /
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There are plenty of positives to take away from the defensive side of the football in No. 9 Kentucky's 31-0 shutout of Youngstown State. Carrington Valentine should be at the top of the list for his second-straight lights-out performance. 

The junior cornerback locked down the Youngstown wide receivers, notching a pair of pass breakups and his first career interception, all of which proved to be vital in keeping UK's first shutout since 2009. 

"I think it's kind of who he is. He's a super competitive guy. Just really tough," head coach Mark Stoops said of Valentine after the win. "He got beat on one and we were talking on the sideline about a technique issue. He tried to really be aggressive. He used momentum against him, gave up that one shot. But he came back with a great response, comes right back and he did that. He’s a very competitive young man.”

Valentine was lined up in front of top Youngstown WR and Kentucky transfer Bryce Oliver on Saturday, giving the matchup a bit more importance to the corner. He would go on to get the better of Oliver on two occasions, breaking up a would-be touchdown reception via ripping the ball out of his hands, then tipping a pass in the endzone, eventually making a bobbling catch for the pick. 

"I haven't seen Bryce since my freshman year and he hadn't seen me since, so he didn't know what to expect, I didn't know what to expect as well," Valentine said. "I definitely had a little chip on my shoulder. Nobody was helping me. You know, we had our little relationship when he was here."

Denying touchdowns on two plays is a good feeling for any corner, even more-so when it preserves a shutout. Valentine had no idea about the latter, however: 

“I’m out there and I kind of lose myself in the game. I just tried to not give up a touchdown," he said. "It’s always the defense’s goal. I wasn’t really too worried about the shut out part because I kind of just wanted to win my one-on-one. I came away with the interception.”

There were many questions surrounding the Kentucky secondary in the beginning of the season, and Valentine was at the front of the stage when it came to pointing fingers at who was to blame. He's done nothing but silence doubters through three games.

"We're still looking to strive. So we hear the media, but you know, we don't really take it personally. You know, we keep in the back of our head," Valentine said. "They have doubts about us, but at the end of the day, you know, you got to go out there and play."

Whether the noise gets to Valentine or not, the junior should enjoy seeing his past two performances praised as Kentucky improved to 3-0 with a stout defensive outing. 

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Hunter Shelton
HUNTER SHELTON

Hunter Shelton is a writer for Sports Illustrated-FanNation's Wildcats Today, covering football, basketball, baseball and more at the University of Kentucky. Hunter is a Lexington native and has been on the UK beat since 2021.