Nov. 30, 2009
LEXINGTON, Ky. – With the regular season concluded, here’s a quick overview of the 2009 Kentucky football team. A more extensive notes package will be sent on Tuesday.
- Kentucky finished the regular season with a 7-5 overall record.
- Kentucky has earned at least seven wins in four consecutive seasons for the first time in nearly a century, since 1909-12.
- Kentucky extended its school-record non-conference winning streak to 18 games. It’s the nation’s second-longest current streak.
- Kentucky went 3-5 in the Southeastern Conference, tying for fourth place in the Eastern Division.
- It’s interesting to note that Kentucky exceeded the expectation of every preseason prediction of the national magazines and websites we saw. UK finished tied for fourth in league play, but was projected fifth or sixth by all national predictors.
- Kentucky notched three SEC road wins – at Auburn, Vanderbilt and Georgia – for the first time in 32 years, since 1977.
- Kentucky defeated Auburn for the first time in 43 years, since 1966.
- Kentucky won at Georgia for the first time in 32 years, since 1977.
- Kentucky’s 42-0 win over Miami (Ohio) was the Wildcats’ first shutout in 13 years.
- Kentucky’s win over Louisville was the third year in a row against the in-state rival.
- Three come-from-behind wins in the fourth quarter (Louisville, Auburn, Georgia), giving the Wildcats 12 such wins over the last four seasons.
- For the third-straight year, Kentucky fans broke the school record for average attendance at 69,594 per game.
- Kentucky will play in a bowl game for a school-record fourth-consecutive season.
Maxwell Gets National Mention:
Sam Maxwell was named honorable-mention National Linebacker of the Week for his effort against Tennessee.
The honor is given by the College Football Performance Awards, which are a scientific evaluation of game-day achievements.
Maxwell got the Wildcats off to a good start with a 56-yard interception return for a touchdown. The pickoff was his sixth of the season, most ever in one season by a Kentucky linebacker. He also made seven tackles during the game.
