LEXINGTON - The question nearly forced Kentucky football coach Guy Morriss to double over with laughter.

        “Coach, is it any easier for you this year?”

        “What do you think? You see all this gray hair,” Morriss said, running his hand through his silver mane during the team's annual media day news conference Saturday. “When you're in the football business, the bottom line is wins and losses.”

        That's one department in which Kentucky has struggled mightily the past two seasons. The Wildcats are 4-18 over that span with only one Southeastern Conference victory in their last 16 contests.

        Morriss finished with a 2-9 record in his first season as a head coach. His program also is handicapped by crippling NCAA sanctions stemming from recruiting violations under former coach Hal Mumme.

        Optimism abounds in Kentucky's camp, however, as a squad brimming with confidence after near wins over LSU and Tennessee last season looks to prove it is no longer the conference doormat.

        “I think those two games showed people that, "Hey. Kentucky can compete with the best teams in the SEC,”' said junior wideout Derek Abney, who led the team with 66 catches for 741 yards and six TDs last season. “This season, we want to pick up where we left off. We're going to work hard to create the breaks that would have allowed us to win games like that last year.”

        The offense returns six starters, including junior quarterback Jared Lorenzen, who threw for 2,179 yards and 21 TDs in six starts.

        “As the year went on and I got more and more time on the field, I just got more comfortable and the offense started to click.” Lorenzen said. “Can that carry on into this season? I sure hope so.”

        ALABAMA: Fullback Donnie Lowe, who has received three concussions since the start of the 2001 season, failed a physical and will not play this season.

        COLORADO: The NCAA interviewed University of Colorado officials and former coach Rick Neuheisel on Friday as it investigated 53 alleged recruiting violations by the school between 1995 and 1999.

        The meeting with the NCAA infractions committee was held in Philadelphia and lasted 11 hours. The NCAA is expected to rule on the allegations within six weeks, Colorado said in a release.The allegations include improper visits with recruits and violations of apparel policies.

        SOUTH CAROLINA: Coach Lou Holtz underwent outpatient surgery in Jacksonville, Fla., to clear a blocked tear duct. It is the second time in the past month Holtz underwent the procedure. The clogged tear duct has been irritating Holtz's eye, but he has not had any vision problems, athletics spokesman Kerry Tharp said.

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