The Kentucky Wildcats fell to the Florida Gators in Lexington on Saturday night by a final score of 21-14.
The Cats came out ready to roll. They forced a Gator punt and then drove down the field on a 15-play, 86-yard drive for the game’s first score.
Unfortunately, things slowed down tremendously after that. To make matters worse, the offense didn’t make the defense’s job any easier. After an egregious holding call in the end zone, Florida added two points on a safety, leading to a 7-2 UK lead at halftime.
After the break, Kentucky did not come out as ready as you would expect. Kenny Minchey was sacked and fumbled the ball back to Florida on the opening drive of the second half. Florida was able to punch it in, but they decided to try an onside kick on the ensuing kickoff, which flipped all momentum back to the Cats after they recovered it.
Kentucky answered with a score of its own to retake the lead 14-10. Once again, however, the Gators were able to consistently move the ball when Kentucky was not able to do the same. A field goal cut the lead to 14-13, and another touchdown extended the Gator lead to seven. Kentucky’s offense couldn’t answer, getting turned over on downs in back-to-back drives, and that was that.
A special season has been flipped on its head. Two really disappointing games following an incredible run to start the season. That’s why we play the games. Florida isn’t a good football team, but Jon Sumrall showed why the Gators picked him in this one.
Next up, the Cats will travel to CoMo to take on the Missouri Tigers next Saturday night. Two more games to finish out the season, albeit with less to play for coming into this game.
The offense has been abysmal
Will Stein is widely known as an impressive play-caller, but whether it’s him or Joe Sloan (more likely), the offense has been pretty disappointing for a while now.
After scoring just six points on two field goals last week in an embarrassing performance against the Tennessee Volunteers, the Cats struggled for the majority of the night in this one.
The offense is somewhat gimmicky. It’s been lacking explosiveness, and when the run game is nonexistent, like it was in this game, Kentucky struggles to get consistent results. The offense doesn’t lack creativity, but it requires execution each time out, along with playmakers that can make some guys miss, which UK simply lacks.
Additionally, Minchey is, generally, pretty good at executing the offense, but when it breaks down, or it isn’t working, he really doesn’t do a good job improvising. He can’t really run, and he often panics. His strength through the first half of the season was an ability to protect the ball and manage the game, but he’s been turning it over at a high rate as of late, and the game manager role just isn’t cutting it right now.
I’m not sure what the issue is here, but this isn’t the same offense that scored 35 on South Carolina and LSU. The only real difference is Nic Anderson was out for this one, so maybe the wide receiver depth behind is so bad that it cripples the offense if he’s out.
Rodriguez is a special player
Kenny Darby gets most of the love, but Willie Rodriguez is this team’s most important player. He’s a great athlete and mismatch at the tight end position, but he’s also a really important safety net.
Rodriguez always seems to get the job done when the Cats need it most. He’s a good blocker and an even better receiver. You also never know when he might get under center for a quarterback sneak or Wild Willie formation.
He’s also Kentucky’s go-to on third downs, as Minchey knows he can always find Rodriguez somewhere, usually running away from a defender, when Kentucky needs it most. It’s difficult to understate his impact.
Where do we go from here?
If you asked me before the season what Kentucky’s record would be at this point, I think I honestly would’ve predicted 3 or 4 wins. I’m starting with that because this season has long exceeded my initial expectations.
However, expectations change, and they did for Stein after he beat South Carolina, LSU, Oklahoma, and Vanderbilt. The expectation was a College Football Playoff, and that isn’t happening anymore. It’s really disappointing.
The Cats were dismantled on the road in Knoxville and followed it up with a loss to a bad Florida team at home. Stein wanted these expectations, but he’s underachieved in the last couple of weeks. Just a really unfortunate string of games for a team with EVERYTHING right in front of them.
So, where do we go from here? The season isn’t over. The Wildcats aren’t playing for anything more than a bowl game, but that was a win a decade ago. Let’s build on the foundation established by Stein. I have a hard time believing Kentucky will beat Mizzou on the road, but they need to knock off Louisville to end the season on a high note.
