Cats Aim to Reach Bowl Eligibility for Fourth Straight Year
Kentucky returns home for the final two weeks of the regular season needing just one victory to become bowl eligible for the fourth consecutive season. The first opportunity comes in the form of UT Martin on Saturday afternoon. The game is set for a 3:30 p.m. ET kickoff and will air on the SEC Network.
The Cats are riding a wave of momentum after grinding Vanderbilt to a pulp in a 38-14 victory in Nashville that saw the rushing attack pile up 401 yards. Moreover, UK erased a 14-3 first quarter deficit in doing so, scoring the game’s final 35 points to secure it’s largest SEC road win since 2001.
Lynn Bowden Jr. continued his onslaught on defenses with his fourth 100-yard rushing game in five starts at quarterback, tying Mike Fanuzzi for the most by a QB in school history. His 723 rushing yards in UK’s last five SEC games this season are the most by a Wildcat in the last five SEC games of a season in school history.
The UK defense also has shown stark improvement and continues to give the team a chance to win despite its inexperience on that side of the ball, particulary in the secondary. It has held five consecutive SEC opponents to 305 total yards or less, the best such stretch since 1977, and allowed just 198 total yards to Vanderbilt.
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| Kentucky vs. UT Martin | ||
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| Sat., Nov. 23 – 3:30 p.m. ET Kroger Field Lexington, Ky. Game Notes: UK  | UTM Digital Gameday Program Gameday App |
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TV: SEC Network |
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| UK | Team Stats | UTM |
| 5-5 | Record | 7-4 |
| 3-5 | Conference Record | 6-2 |
| 22.1 | Scoring/game | 27.3 |
| 369.8 | Total offense/game | 343.6 |
| 231.4 | Rushing yards/game | 120.8 |
| 138.4 | Passing yards/game | 222.8 |
| 24.3 | Kickoff returns (avg) | 18.5 |
| 8.6 | Punt returns (avg) | 16.9 |
| 48.3 | Punting (avg) | 35.0 |
| 32:54 | Time of possession/game | 28:29 |
| 38.6% | Third down conversion | 38.6% |
| 45.0% | Fourth down conversion | 36.4% |
| 20.1 | Points allowed/game | 22.6 |
| 333.7 | Total yards allowed/game | 374.9 |
| 159.0 | Rush yards allowed/game | 134.7 |
| 174.7 | Pass yards allowed/game | 240.2 |
Cat Scratches: UK Faces ‘Unique’ Challenge in UT Martin
Three years ago, almost to the day, Kentucky was on the precipice of bowl eligibility for the first time of the Mark Stoops era.
The Wildcats needed but one win as they lined up opposite Austin Peay on Nov. 19, 2016. The Governors were winless and UK was expected to roll en route to its sixth win.
Instead, the Cats had to dig their way out of a 13-0 second-quarter hole before winning 49-13.
“I remember it just being a very aggravating game,” Stoops said.
Aggravating as it might have been back then, the game is instructive today.
The Wildcats (5-5), just as they did in 2016, find themselves a win away from bowl eligibility with an FCS opponent coming to town. This time, Kentucky will host UT Martin at 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday. Stoops expects the Skyhawks’ approach to be similar to the Governors’….Read More
Last Saturday
• Kentucky dominated Vanderbilt, 38-14, in Nashville for the first road win of the season.
• The Cats erased a 14-3 first half deficit by scoring the game’s final 35 points.
• The Cats completed their SEC portion of the schedule with a 3-5 record despite multiple injuries at quarterback throughout the campaign.
• It was UK’s largest SEC road win since in 18 years. The Cats defeated Vanderbilt 56-30 in Nashville in 2001. It is the third-largest since 1979.
• UK had a season-high 528 yards total offense, best since compiling 601 at Louisville last season.
• UK had 401 rushing yards, most since rushing for 443 at Tennessee in 2016.
• UK allowed just 198 yards, the fifth consecutive SEC game that UK has limited the opponent to 305 or fewer yards. It is the fewest offensive yards allowed since limiting Vanderbilt to 139 yards in 2014.
• Redshirt freshman running back Chris Rodriguez rushed 15 times for a career-high 129 yards and one touchdown.
• Redshirt freshman running back Kavosiey Smoke ran 15 times for a career-high 95 yards. He had 123 all-purpose yards.
• Sophomore safety Yusuf Corker snagged his first career interception in the third quarter, setting up a UK touchdown drive.
Scouting UT Martin
• UT Martin is 7-4 on the season, including a 6-2 mark in Ohio Valley Conference play.
• This will be the SkyHawks’ final game of the regular season.
• The teams have one common opponent – Florida. The SkyHawks lost 45-0 in Gainesville, while UK lost 29-21 in Lexington.
• Quarterback John Bochus has thrown for 2,392 yards and 18 touchdowns against just eight interceptions this season. He also has rushed for three touchdowns.
• Running back Peyton Logan leads the team with 78.4 rushing yards per game and six scores on the ground.
• UT Martin has a pair of dangerous receivers in Terry Williams and Colton Dowell. Williams has hauled in 50 passes but may be even more of a threat in the return game where he has taken two punts back for scores and averages over 23 yards per kick return. Dowell is averaging nearly 21 yards per catch.
• Linebacker T.J. Jefferson stands just 5-foot-8 but he’s a monster on the field. He has 91 total tackles, 8.5 TFL, 4.5 sacks, 11 quarterback hurries, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.
Series vs. UT Martin
• Kentucky leads the all-time series 1-0, defeating UT Martin 59-14 to open the 2014 season.
• The victory opened UK coach Mark Stoops’ second season at the helm.
• It remains the second-largest margin of victory during Stoops’ tenure.
• UK quarterback Patrick Towles passed for 377 yards in that game, the second-highest total of the Stoops era and second-most since 2007.
• Former Wildcats Za’Darius Smith and Bud Dupree are tearing up the NFL these days but both players were on the field in blue that day. Dupree logged two sacks among his four tackles while Smith tallied five tackles.
• Former UK running back Braylon Heard rushed two times for 116 yards, scoring on both rush attempts, including a 73-yarder.
Don Franklin Auto Countdown to Kickoff Show
All-Southeastern Conference defensive end Jeremy Jarmon and former quarterback Dusty Bonner will be alongside host Christi Thomas for the Don Franklin Auto Countdown To Kickoff, the two-hour pregame show that airs prior to each UK football game in 2019.
A live video broadcast of Countdown to Kickoff will air on UKAthletics.com, the UK Athletics mobile app and the Kentucky Football Facebook page.
For home games, Countdown to Kickoff will broadcast live in front of Nutter Field House outside Gate 1 of Kroger Field with special guests and giveaways. The set of the show is conveniently located near the Coke Fan Zone in Nutter Field House and the Cat Walk presented by Chevy.
