Ramsey shares his story — and the values his parents instilled in him — in his new book: "They Call Me “Mr. Secretary” with Dr. John Huang.
Ramsey grew up in Hastings, Fla., and says he “owes everything to my parents” who taught him that coming from humble beginnings did not negate a path to future success.
“My mom got pregnant at age 15 but my parents were together for 56 years until my mom passed away,” Ramsey said. “My father always had great advice for me. I still remember him telling me that ‘you either get to the table or whatever scraps fall off is what you get.’”
Ramey learned that if he could “get to the table” he could be part of the decision-making process.
“I never forgot those words. All my life, I’ve been trying to get to the table,” Ramsey said.
Ramsey left his home in Florida to play his final two high school seasons in Camden, N.J., before coming to Kentucky to play for coach Fran Curci. He led Kentucky to its first bowl bid in 25 years in 1976 and then in 1977 the Cats were unbeaten in SEC play and won 10 games — something UK didn’t do again for 41 years.
At Kentucky he ran 446 times for 1,764 yards and 25 touchdowns and completed 130 of 273 passes for 1,653 yards and 14 scores. He went on to play tight end in 122 NFL games in 10 seasons with Oakland, New England and Detroit with 38 starts. He caught 188 passes for 2,364 yards and — 12.6 yards per catch — and 21 touchdowns.
So why did Ramsey decide to write this book and share his life story?
“It has been coming for a while. I had been thinking about what I was going to say and how I would say it,” Ramsey said. “There were a lot of people I wanted to thank but in particular my parents for raising me the way they did.
“What I was able to accomplish as an AD, deputy secretary and then secretary (of commerce), those things were not supposed to happen. But thankfully at our family table there was never a shortage not only of inspiration but also expectation. My mom got her GED after I graduated from UK.”
Ramsey has a lot of great memories from playing at Kentucky, including a phone call from the legendary Vito “Babe” Parilli that he almost missed. Parilli played for Paul “Bear” Bryant at UK was a consensus All-American in 1950 and 1951 and led UK to consecutive New Year’s Day bowls. He also played professionally for 18 years.
“In 1976 after we got our bowl bid and tied for the SEC championships, I got a call from Babe Parilli. I hung up the phone. He called back and I hung up again. I thought it was one of my buddies messing with me,” Ramsey said. “He called back and I said, ‘Santa Claus’ and hung up. He called again and asked me to please not hang up. I told him I really thought it was a teammate playing a joke on me because they knew how high esteem I hold you.
“He just wanted to congratulate me on getting UK to a bowl game for the first time in 25 years. I told him I just hoped it would not be another 25 years before UK went to another bowl game. But in three more years it will be 50 years since Kentucky has gone unbeaten in SEC play and I’m afraid our record is going to stand for a while.
“We had 10 guys drafted in the NFL and CFL (Canadian Football League) and that did not include (linebacker Jim) Kovach who came out the next year because of an injury. I was blessed to have coach (Perry) Moss come in (as offensive coordinator) or my career might have gone a different direction. I was set to transfer because I was not happy in the system we were using because I was God-awful running the veer offense. I needed coach Moss’ offense to spread my wings.”
Ramsey also takes great pride in being one of the few quarterbacks in college football at the time who called the majority of plays.
“They would send in plays from the sideline but I had veto power as well and often did say, ‘We are not running that because it won’t work as well as this play.’ The coaches trusted me to make those calls and so did my teammates.”
The book is available at https://www.amazon.com/They-Call-Me-Mr-Secretary/dp/B0CMPN9W8P. Ramsey also hopes to have future book signings across the state.
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Junior tight end Jordan Dingle of Bowling Green played has played in 27 games with 13 starts and made 33 catches for 472 yards and three touchdowns. His receptions dropped from 20 in 2022 to 11 this season and he put his name into the transfer portal. However, after being linked to Tennessee and a lucrative financial offer from the Vols, he took his name back out of the portal to stay at UK.
Kentucky coach Mark Stoops called that an “important” decision for UK football.
“Jordan is definitely a guy we want in the program. Here's a young man who does everything right. He's darn near perfect in his grades and he's been just a great teammate. He loves it here,” Stoops said.
“He, I don't think, wanted to leave. Just going to stop there before I get myself in trouble. You know what I mean? Because I don't want to whine and cry. There's a lot of money involved.”
Kentucky associate coach Vince Marrow also coaches tight ends and felt like a “son was leaving” when Dingle put his name into the transfer portal. Marrow said sophomore tight end Josh Kattus was upset Dingle left.
“If Kattus was selfish, he would have been glad he was leaving (because it would have meant more opportunities for Kattus),” Marrow said. “There was a school that poked him (Dingle) a little big and they did want him and offered him a lot.”
Marrow believes once Dingle looked at what was best with relationships and the offense, he decided it “fitted him more staying” at Kentucky.
“There are no hard feelings. We definitely did not want to lose him. He is a big part of our football team,” Marrow said. “Our room is not selfish. We have got to be involved in the run game and pass protection.”
Marrow said NFL scouts are looking at both Dingle and Kattus because of their blocking skills and in today’s NFL if a tight end cannot block it’s hard to make the league.
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After Kentucky beat North Carolina senior Tre Mitchell gave sophomore Adou Thiero a hug immediately before the players left the court.
“He accepted whatever Cal said and he came in there and made an immediate impact,” Mitchell said.
Thiero had been a starter until 7-foot freshman Aaron Bradshaw had recovered from his foot injury. However, Thiero provided the same energy off the bench he did last season when he had seven points, five rebounds, two assists and a steal in a road win at Arkansas or had four points and two steals in an upset win over Tennessee. He led the team in steals four times and blocked shots three times.
“He literally lifted us (when he came in the game),” Mitchell said after the North Carolina win. “The energy he brought and the plays he made were second to none. He gave it his all every second he was out there.”
None of that surprised Kentucky assistant coach Bruiser Flint. Bradshaw’s return will likely continue to reduce Thiero’s minutes but his versatility will also be especially valuable in some games.
"There's gonna be games he's going to play a lot just because of the matchups. There's gonna be games that he doesn't just because of the matchups," Flint said. "Adou's been good. He's given us some great minutes. I think with the other guys coming back, it gives us a little bit more length on our bench.”
Thiero is averaging 7.6 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game. He is Kentucky’s best perimeter defender and is capable of playing anywhere from point guard to power forward.
FoxSports Radio national host Aaron Torres has become a huge Thiero fan.
“I’m gonna get dragged for saying this, but Adou Thiero is college Draymond Green (minus, the violence). Can guard virtually all five positions. Elite defender, above average rim protector for 6-6/6-7. Enough offense you have to respect him. Cannot believe how good he’s gotten,” Torres posted on social media.
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Kentucky offensive lineman Marques Cox will complete his sixth year of college football in the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl and then return to UK in 2024 for a seventh season.
The starting left tackle has been a mentor to true freshman Malachi Wood, a 6-8, 280-pound true freshman tackle from Madison Central.
“Malachi has improved night and day. I worked with him at least a couple of times a week where me and him were just going and talking technique,” Cox said. “He is improving well beyond his measure. There is still so much he can improve on. I am really proud of him for just one year in college.
“I didn’t know him in high school but I love him to death. He is starting to get that mean streak. Once he gets his technique down, he can add meanness and aggressiveness after that.”
Offensive coordinator Liam Coen said Wood continues to get better because he has dedicated himself to changing his body and his craft.
“He works at it post practice. He is doing the right things to get better,” Coen said. “He’s a great kid. No issues. He’s the type of kid you look forward to working with in the spring when the bullets are flying more live for him and you can put him in position against better competition.”
Wood was a consensus three-star prospect who helped Madison Central and coach Mike Holcomb win a Class 6A regional title in 2022.
“He is a different one. He is built in a lot of ways that you are looking for at the highest level of football,” Coen said. “When you are that long, it’s hard to get in and out of a stance fast. But length is something we can’t truly coach. That makes it exciting to work with him going forward.”
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How do you rate Kentucky football’s recruiting for the 2024 season?
Coach Mark Stoops had a top 25 class with his high school signees but how do the transfers Kentucky has added minus the players UK lost in the transfer portal off its 2023 team factor into the real ranking.
“I think if you did a combined high school and transfer portal recruiting class it is probably a top five class that we had. I really do,” said Kentucky recruiting coordinator Vince Marrow. “We were top five or six in the portal in some cases and we were top 25 in high school signees.”
Marrow knows the “new wave” of recruiting makes it even harder to accurately predict future success.
“This is the NFL draft now. (High school) signing day was the NFL draft and the portal is just unrestricted free agency,” Marrow said. “You got to be very careful just going out and getting a whole bunch of portal guys. High school football is still the key to building what you need to get done and I really think we got a good class that bodes very well for our future.”
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Quote of the Week: “I’m here to win, win at the highest level. Compete and win championships. That’s why I’m here and what I do, but not at the expense of kids. When you’re coaching, you just can’t get caught up in the wave of up and down. Other people want to ride the wave, that ain’t me,” Kentucky coach John Calipari on handling expectations others have for the UK program.
Quote of the Week 2: “Aaron Bradshaw is Kentucky's best long-term prospect. Cats can now play big or small. No team in the SEC has a higher ceiling,” CBS Sports analyst Jon Rothstein on Kentucky’s basketball prospects.
Quote of the Week 3: “He is a terrific kid. He was so willing to sign autographs, shirts, papers, programs. I even saw him signing shoes. He stayed and stayed and stayed,” Wayland major Jerry Fultz on Lyon County star Travis Perry signing autographs after playing in King Kelly Coleman’s gym.
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Larry Vaught
141 North Alta Ave.
Danville, Ky., 40422
@vaughtsviews on Twitter
Writer for TopsInLex, vaughtsviews.com, centrecolonels.com, yoursportsedge.com
Radio show host, syndicated state-wide columnist
859-236-9465, home
859-583-8630, cell
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