The Kentucky Wildcats go on their first road trip this weekend in front of 100,000+ fans at Kyle Field to take on Texas A&M. We have previewed the Aggies offense
and their defense, as well as listed X factors for both teams. However, as we mentioned it in the offseason, this is the toughest spot on the schedule for the Wildcats. There is a path to victory for Kentucky, but a lot of things need to go right for that to happen.Kenny Minchey is facing his first SEC road start, we saw Keelon Russell get rattled early in his first SEC road trip last week in Lexington. Minchey has to play better football if Kentucky has a shot at the upset, he never settled in against an elite Alabama defense. After watching the film back, Minchey really got away from
his mechanics as he was showing inconsistent footwork and making off platform throws that made easier throws more difficult. Minchey needs to have success early within the scheme, but he must take more shots down the field in this game.
Minchey did not get much help last week, the pockets started collapsing quickly in the second half. Wide receivers need to create more separation and they desperately need DJ Miller and Nic Anderson to get more involved. The tight end room has to be leaned on, Mikkel Skinner has to be on the field more after playing just eight snaps last week. We need to see signs of improvement from the offense this weekend, above all else.
Kentucky's defense against the Texas A&M offense is a matchup the Wildcats should feel comfortable with. Starting corner Terhyon Nichols is slated to make his season debut, and the coaching staff talked as if he was one of the best defensive players this offseason. True freshman corner Isaiah McMillian has impressed early and Hasaan Sykes had a solid season debut last week. We know the Wildcats safety tandem is as experienced as they come, and they will lean on that duo to make plays on Saturday.
The Aggies offensive line is one of the bigger question marks on the team, and the Wildcats defensive line had an impressive performance against the Crimson Tide. Quarterback Marcel Reed has been really good in play action concepts, but not as good in pure drop back concepts. Kentucky's defensive line has to dominate the line of scrimmage, slow down the run game and turn Reed into a true drop back passer. Kentucky has done a good job at limiting quarterbacks on the ground in their first two games against dual threat guys, but Texas A&M has also not leaned on Reed's rushing ability so far this season.
Kentucky has to control the line of scrimmage on both sides of the football. If they can consistently run the football on the Aggies, it will open up a ton for this offense. At this point in time, Kentucky needs to use the whole playbook to put together scoring drives. As we saw last week, putting Minchey in obvious passing scenarios is not the recipe for success right now.
The exciting part of this football game is that we get to see how a Will Stein led football team bounces back after a loss where they got punched in the mouth in the second half. The defense played well enough to put the Wildcats in position to get an upset, but the offense did not consistently move the football. We need to see this offense bounce back and create explosives. Kentucky is lacking explosives early in this season and it is an area that has to turn around quickly.
The confidence level is not extremely high, playing a high level defense on the road as Minchey gets his first road start. I do think the Wildcats defense has another chance to flex their strengths against the Aggies. To win this game, Minchey has to play better and Kentucky has to control the line of scrimmage. A lot needs to go right for Kentucky to get the victory, but it will be fascinating to see how this team bounces back in week three.
This article originally appeared on UK Wildcats Wire: How Kentucky bounces back and upsets Texas A&M on the road
