Since taking over as head coach, Mark Stoops has transformed Kentucky football into a program competing for more than six or seven wins per year, but recent home performances against power-conference opponents show there is still work to be done.
Kentucky has lost its last nine home games against major SEC programs or against ACC opponent Louisville, including close contests against Georgia (12-13) and Tennessee (27-33), as well as larger defeats against Alabama (21-49) and Louisville (14-41).
Since
November 1, 2021, Kentucky has posted only two SEC home wins at Kroger Field, matching Vanderbilt, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Georgia for the top mark in that period, but still highlighting inconsistency against top-tier competition. Other programs include: Ole Miss, Missouri, Alabama, Auburn, and Louisville, all of which have managed one win in Lexington during the same stretch.
A key statistic under Stoops’ tenure: Kentucky is now 6-63 when trailing entering the fourth quarter. Additionally, in six of the eight home losses against SEC opponents, the Wildcats either lost a one-score game four times or led by double digits three times, highlighting struggles to close out competitive contests.
These numbers highlight Kentucky’s challenges in maintaining leads and finishing games against elite opponents. While Stoops has had moments of success and built a solid foundation for Kentucky football, he has struggled to win games at Kroger Field recently, and hopefully, this doesn’t lead to fans not turning out like it did in 2012 against Vanderbilt under Joker Phillips.
