This Week in UK Football History: Reliving Big SEC Wins
On Thursdays throughout the 2015 season we will take a trip down memory lane and look back at past great plays, players and games associated with University of Kentucky football for that given week. So be sure to check back with us each and every Thursday to relive the moments that make this football program so special.
Oct. 11
• 1930: Shipwreck Kelly rushed for 280 yards, the most by a Kentucky player prior to World War II, as Kentucky shutout Maryville, 57-0.
• 1947: Kentucky upset No. 9 Georgia 26-0, the largest shutout win over a ranked opponent in school history.
• 1969: Dave Hardt certainly flipped the field with his special teams play, booting a 71-yard punt, tying a then-school record for longest punt, as the Wildcats squeaked out a victory against Virginia Tech 7-6.
• 1975: Sonny Collins rushed for 109 yards, his 17th career 100-yard rushing game and fifth 100-yard rushing game in a row, but it wasn’t enough as Kentucky lost to Auburn 15-9.
• 1997: Craig Yeast returned a punt 85 yards for a touchdown, at the time the fifth-longest punt return in school history, in a 38-24 defeat for Kentucky against South Carolina. The offense was led by Derek Homer’s 107 rushing yards, his first career 100-yard rushing game.
• 2014: Quarterback Patrick Towles connected with wide receiver Javess Blue on an 83-yard touchdown pass, the seventh longest pass play in school history, as Kentucky erased a 14-3 deficit by scoring the game’s last 45 points in a 48-14 victory over Louisiana-Monroe. The offense was led by Blue’s 109 receiving yards, his second career 100-yard receiving game, and Stanley “Boom” Williams’ 104 rushing yards, his first career 100-yard rushing game.
Oct. 12
• 1935: Bob Davis had a 75-yard run, at the time the longest rushing play in school history, as the Wildcats defeated Georgia Tech, 25-6.
• 1963: Bob Kosid had an 82-yard rushing touchdown, at the time the fifth longest rushing play in school history, as Kentucky defeated Detroit, 35-18. Kosid finished the game with a career high 112 rushing yards and Darrell Cox had a career high 123 receiving yards.
• 1968: Kentucky squeaked out an upset victory over No. 20 Oregon State, 35-34
• 1974: Sonny Collins rushed for 127 yards, his 10th career 100-yard rushing game, as Kentucky lost to Auburn, 31-13.
• 1985: The offense had a trio of great performances in the Wildcats’ 33-19 victory over the Mississippi State Bulldogs. Cornell Burbage had a career high 131 receiving yards and there were two 100-yard rushers, Mark Higgs (125) and Marc Logan (115).
• 1996: Sophomore Craig Yeast had a 95-yard kickoff return for a touchdown, the first of his career, as the Wildcats lost to South Carolina, 25-14.
Oct. 13
• 1906: The true origin of the Air Raid at the University of Kentucky took place as quarterback Earl Stone attempted the first forward pass in school history in the Wildcats’ 48-0 shutout victory over the Eminence Athletic Club.
• 1951: Kentucky defeated Mississippi State 27-0, their largest shutout victory against the Bulldogs in school history.
• 1973: Sonny Collins rushed for 128 yards, his fifth career 100-yard rushing game, in a 16-10 defeat for Kentucky at the hands of North Carolina.
• 1979: The Wildcat offense was led by a pair of 100-yard rushers, Chris Jones (122) and Shawn Donigan (120), in their 14-3 victory over the Ole Miss Rebels.
• 2007: Kentucky had a program-defining victory, defeating No. 1-ranked and eventual national champion LSU 43-37 in an instant classic that lasted three overtimes. Kentucky’s offense was led by Stevie Johnson’s career-high 134 receiving yards, but it was Braxton Kelley’s stop on fourth down on defense that sealed the victory for the Wildcats. This was the program’s third win against a top-ranked opponent in school history, and the first since 1964.
Oct. 14
• 1893: Kentucky set a then-school record for most points scored in their 80-0 shutout against Georgetown.
• 1916: Kentucky was shutout by Vanderbilt, 45-0, but it was still a momentous day for the campus. The field for which the game was played on was officially dedicated and named Stoll Field. It was named in honor of the late Judge Richard C. Stoll, a prominent alumnus, trustee and benefactor of UK.
• 1922: Kentucky shut out its intrastate rival Louisville 73-0, the most points scored and largest margin of victory ever for the Wildcats against the Cardinals.
• 1950: The Wildcats came out firing on all cylinders coming out of halftime against the Cincinnati Bearcats, scoring a then-school record 28 points in the third quarter of their 41-7 victory. Kentucky was led on offense by Babe Parilli’s 338 passing yards, the first 300-yard passing game in school history, and Al Bruno’s career high 155 receiving yards. This was also Kentucky’s largest margin of victory ever against Cincinnati.
• 1967: Joe Jacobs had a career high 110 receiving yards as Kentucky lost to Virginia Tech, 24-14.
• 1978: Larry Carter returned a punt 73 yards for a touchdown, at the time the fourth-longest punt return in school history, that provided the difference in Kentucky’s 24-17 victory over Ole Miss.
• 1989: Ken Willis set then-school records for most points scored by a kicker (15) and most field goals made (4) as the Wildcats defeated Rutgers, 33-26. Kentucky was led on offense by Alfred Rawls’ 124 rushing yards, his fifth career 100-yard rushing game.
• 1995: Raymond McLaurin rushed for a career high 107 yards as Kentucky defeated LSU, 24-16.
Oct. 15
• 1977: Dallas Owens returned an interception 81 yards for a touchdown, at the time the seventh-longest interception return in school history, as Kentucky defeated No. 16 LSU, 33-13. The Wildcats were led on offense by Randy Brooks’ career high 121 rushing yards.
• 1983: George Adams rushed for 100 yards, his third career 100-yard rushing game, as Kentucky defeated LSU, 21-13.
• 1988: John Bolden had a career high 100 receiving yards as the Wildcats lost to the LSU Tigers, 15-12.
Oct. 16
• 1976: Kentucky defeated No. 16 LSU, 21-7, in its first victory over a ranked LSU squad.
• 1993: Moe Williams rushed for 106 yards, his second career 100-yard rushing game, in a convincing 35-17 win for Kentucky over LSU.
• 1999: Kentucky committed sixteen penalties, third most in school history, but it didn’t faze the Wildcats as they still handily defeated LSU, 31-5.
• 2010: Chris Matthews had a career-high 177 receiving yards, the fourth-most receiving yards in school history, as Kentucky upset No. 10 South Carolina, 31-28, in the Wildcats’ first victory over a Steve Spurrier-coached team and their first victory over South Carolina since 1999. The offense was also led by Mike Hartline’s 349 passing yards, his second career 300-yard passing game.
Oct. 17
• 1914: Kentucky defeated Mississippi A&M, now Mississippi State, 19-13 in the first-ever meeting between the two schools.
• 1953: Kentucky defeated No. 20 Mississippi State, 32-13, in its first victory over a ranked Mississippi State squad.
• 1964: Rodger Bird had 104 rushing yards, including a 76-yard touchdown run, as the Wildcats lost to LSU, 27-7.
• 1992: Kicker Doug Pelfrey successfully made a 52-yard field goal, at the time tied for the third longest made field goal in school history, that provided the difference in Kentucky’s 27-25 victory over LSU.
• 1998: Kicker Seth Hanson made a 33-yard field goal as time expired in Kentucky’s 39-36 upset win over No. 21 LSU in Baton Rouge. The Wildcat offense was led by Tim Couch’s 391 passing yards, his 16th 300-yard passing game of his career, and Craig Yeast’s 122 receiving yards, his sixth career 100-yard receiving game. This was Kentucky’s first road win over a ranked opponent since 1977.
• 2009: Kentucky defeated Auburn 21-14 in their first victory over the Tigers since 1966, and their first victory against the Tigers in Auburn since 1961. The offense was led by a pair of 100-yard rushers, Derrick Locke (126) and Randall Cobb (109).
