Kentucky football has entered the bye week with a 7-1 record and find themselves ranked 9th in the country. The Wildcats had a rough first quarter against Vanderbilt, but they got rolling in the second quarter and never looked back. Kentucky went three-and-out on their first two possessions, and after getting down 10 points they went on a 34-7 run to win the game 34-17. Now, Kentucky can get healthy over the bye week to gear up for the biggest four game stretch in the program history.
Kentucky did what they have done all season long, they played clean offensively and Kenny Minchey was incredibly efficient. Minchey completed 19-of-26 passes for 203 yards, a touchdown and no interceptions. There were a couple missed calls in my opinion, both were targets
to DJ Miller that I thought were clear defensive pass interferences. Minchey has lived up the long list of successful quarterbacks coached by Will Stein through the first eight weeks.
The run game got going as well, after CJ Baxter unfortunately got banged up on his first and only carry of the game. Jovantae Barnes led the way with 15 carries for 68 rushing yards and Jason Patterson also contributed with 12 carries for 44 rushing yards. I think the offense really got going when tight end Mikkel Skinner took a toss play 16 yards for a first down, once again showing the creativity of this offensive scheme. It was also awesome to see fourth string quarterback Brennan Ward get a 10 yard touchdown run, and Coach Stein pointed out how well Ward has done as the scout team quarterback giving the defense looks for mobile quarterbacks in practice.
With a better first quarter performance, this game would have gotten out of hand. After the first two possessions going three-and-out, Kentucky then had four touchdowns and two field goals on the next six possessions. They were in the red zone on the final drive and likely could've scored on the final drive but ultimately let the clock run out. For three quarters, this game went as I expected.
Kentucky had almost 400 yards of total offense, and they were a lot better on third down as they converted 8-of-13 on third downs. Kentucky played clean offensively, created two turnovers late on defense and that is what they have done all season. The Wildcats had just three penalties compared to Vanderbilt's nine penalties, these are areas Kentucky has dominated all season. There are so many signs of this team being extremely well-coached when you look at this Kentucky operation.
Kentucky took care of business and are now in full control of their own destiny. This destiny includes a potential SEC Championship and potential College Football Playoff berth, in year one of this new regime. This is an unbelievable ride that Will Stein has took the big blue nation on in year one and this sets up the biggest month in Kentucky football history. If Kentucky can find a way to win at least three of these final four games, they are basically guaranteed a College Football Playoff bid.
Kentucky's offense played their best three quarters of the season against Vanderbilt. Really since the Alabama game, this offense has taken consistent strides and keep improving weekly. It is worth noting, we have yet to see them put together a full four quarters on the offensive side of the football. I am not sure which game that happens, but I fully expect that to happen at some point over these last four matchups.
This article originally appeared on UK Wildcats Wire: Kentucky Offense Review: Wildcats got going after slow start
