Kentucky’s football program would have been better off had the season ended in September. The Wildcats looked pretty frisky then. Now, they look quite docile.
Kentucky lost to Auburn 24-10 on Saturday, marking the third consecutive loss since upsetting Ole Miss, which was ranked No. 6 at the time, in Oxford. The Cats looked like surprise College Football Playoff contenders, for about one afternoon. Since beating the Rebels, things have gone terribly awry.
Kentucky lost to Vanderbilt 20-13. There’s no shame in that anymore given what the Commodores (5-3, 2-2) have accomplished this season. Kentucky then lost to Florida 48-20. The Gators are now 4-3 and 2-2 in the SEC. The Cats lost to Auburn 24-10 in Lexington on Saturday. Auburn (3-5, 1-4) was in woeful shape, just 0-4 in the SEC, before the feel-good trip to the Commonwealth.
The Wildcats have a couple of serious issues on offense as evident by the fact that the Cats haven’t scored 20 points in an SEC game this season. In turn, Tennessee hasn’t given up 20 points to any opponent this season. That could lead to a dominant showing by the Vols’ defense on Saturday, especially given where the Cats’ woes lie.
Kentucky has had problems at quarterback. Junior starter Brock Vandagriff’s job could be on the line as Kentucky has tried to work in junior backup Gavin Wimsatt. However, there might not be a quarterback in the country that would have success against the Vols on Saturday given one very important factor. Kentucky’s offensive line has struggled mightily this season.
Kentucky is 13th in the SEC in sacks allowed, giving up 2 1/2 per game. Tennessee averages just over two sacks per game, which isn’t exemplary statistically, just 15th in the SEC. However, that’s a bit misleading. The Vols can make plays behind the line of scrimmage as they rank third in the SEC with 8.4 tackles for a loss per game.
On the other side of the ball, Kentucky has been almost as woeful. The Wildcats are seventh best in the SEC, allowing just over 310 yards per game. However, tackling has been an issue for Kentucky, which gave up 98 yards after the catch against Auburn on Saturday. Some of those yards came on game-altering plays as the Tigers converted eight of 13 attempts on third down.
Kentucky also gave up over nine yards per carry against Auburn as the Tigers roared for 318 yards. Many of those yards came after contact as Kentucky struggled bringing ball carriers to the ground. That should be pretty exciting for Tennessee running back Dylan Sampson, who leads the SEC with 120 yards rushing per game, has 17 rushing touchdowns this season and is averaging nearly six yards per carry.
Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava could be challenged against the Cats, who actually rank third in passing defense, allowing 178 yards per game. However, the question has to be asked: Has anyone needed to throw against Kentucky with their porous offensive line and problems on offense?
