Cats Hit Road Again, Visiting Missouri on Saturday
Coming off a pair of the most complete defensive performances in more than four decades, Kentucky looks to extend its winning streak this Saturday when it travels to Missouri. Game time is 4 p.m. EDT and it will be televised on the SEC Network.
The showdown in the Show Me State comes a week earlier than originally scheduled as the Southeastern Conference adjusted the game dockets for the coming weeks after Covid-19 protocols forced the postponement of a pair of games last week, including Missouri’s game against Vanderbilt. The league flipped UK’s games against Missouri and Georgia, as the Bulldogs now will travel to Lexington on Halloween.
With a resounding 34-7 victory at No. 18 Tennessee last weekend the Cats scored their first win in Knoxville since 1984, their first win over a ranked Vols squad in Knoxville and tallied their largest margin of victory on the road over an Associated Press-ranked team ever. The nine total points allowed the past two weeks are the fewest in consecutive games vs. SEC teams for UK since 1976 (nine vs. Florida, UT).
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| Kentucky at Missouri | ||
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| Sat., Oct. 24 – 4 p.m. ET Memorial Stadium Columbia, Mo. Game Notes: UK | MU Digital Gameday Program Gameday App |
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TV: SEC Network |
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| UK | Team Stats | MU |
| 2-2 | Record | 1-2 |
| 2-2 | Conference Record | 1-2 |
| 28.0 | Scoring/game | 25.3 |
| 348.5 | Total offense/game | 417.3 |
| 206.0 | Rushing yards/game | 125.0 |
| 142.5 | Passing yards/game | 292.3 |
| 21.2 | Kickoff returns (avg) | 21.8 |
| 8.0 | Punt returns (avg) | 2.3 |
| 47.8 | Punting (avg) | 44.0 |
| 32:56 | Time of possession/game | 29:11 |
| 50.0% | Third down conversion | 46.3% |
| 00.0% | Fourth down conversion | 57.1% |
| 20.0 | Points allowed/game | 38.0 |
| 341.2 | Total yards allowed/game | 438.3 |
| 106.2 | Rush yards allowed/game | 130.7 |
| 235.0 | Pass yards allowed/game | 307.7 |
Mizzou enters the game off a home win over defending national champion LSU that required a last-second goal line stand. Ironically, UK’s last trip to Columbia saw the Cats stage a fourth quarter rally that culminated in a game-winning TD pass on the final play of the game.
Cat Scratches: Cats Hope to Carry Offensive Momentum into Missouri Contest
It was the Kentucky defense that garnered much of the attention during, and after, Saturday’s win at Tennessee, and rightfully so. It was the UK defense that accounted for the Cats’ first two touchdowns in the 34-7 victory, with Kelvin Joseph and Jamin Davis each returning interceptions for touchdowns. And it was the defense that held Tennessee to just 84 total yards in the second half.
But the UK offense got things clicking in that second half, too. Perhaps the offense even helped the defense, maintaining the ball for chunks of time while the defense was allowed to rest on the sidelines.
Kentucky’s offense had 219 total yards in the second half of the win at Tennessee, including 159 yards on the ground. That allowed Kentucky to keep the ball for more than 21 minutes during the second 30 minutes of play at Neyland Stadium.
The Cats now hope they can take that offensive momentum and rhythm into Saturday’s game at Missouri. Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops was pleased with his offense’s play on Saturday, especially after halftime…Read More
Series vs. Missouri
• Kentucky leads the all-time series 7-3, including 3-2 in Columbia
• The SEC East rivals have met every year since 2012 with Mizzou winning the first three meetings and UK the past five
• Two of the past three games came down to the closing minutes – even final play, with UK hanging on to a 40-34 win in 2017 and 15-14 in 2018 on one final untimed down.
• Last season, Kentucky defeated Missouri in the rain, producing a 29-7 victory at Kroger Field
• The game was played in a steady rain from start to finish, marking the second consecutive week the Cats played in the rian from start to finish.
• Biggest UK win: 22 (29-7) in 2019 in Lexington
• Biggest Mizzou win: 31 (48-17) in 2013 in Lexington
• Games decided by eight points or less: UK leads 5-0
• UK’s last trip to Columbia was an instant classic, as Terry Wilson connected with C.J. Conrad for a touchdown on the final play of the game to give the Cats the victory
• UK trailed 14-3 with under six minutes remaining when the comeback started with Lynn Bowden Jr. returning a punt 67 yards for a score to cut the deficit to 14-9
• The Cats got the ball back on their own 19-yard line with 1:24 remaining and quickly made their way down the field. With four seconds left, Wilson lofted a pass to the back corner of the end zone where Ahmad Wagner caught it but couldn’t stay in bounds. However, Missouri was flagged for pass interference, setting up the final untimed down
• UK coach Mark Stoops is 5-2 vs. Missouri during his tenure
Kentucky-Missouri Connections
• Former UK kicker Grant McKinniss (2016-19) is a graduate transfer at Missouri. He graduated from UK in May of 2020 with a degree in psychology and is currently working on a master’s degree in sport and exercise psychology at Mizzou
• UK offensive coordinator Eddie Gran spent a season at Southeast Missouri State in 1989, his third year of coaching
A UK Win Would…
• Extend UK’s winning streak over Missouri to six games
• Be the Cats’ third consecutive win in Columbia
• Improve the Cats to 4-2 all-time vs. Missouri in the Show Me State
• Be the first time UK has won consecutive SEC road games since 2009. The Cats won three straight road games that season (at Auburn, Vanderbilt and Georgia)
• Give Stoops 47 career victories, tying Fran Curci (1973-81) for second on the school’s all-time list
• Improve Terry Wilson to 15-5 as UK’s starting quarterback
