Each and every week prior to a Kentucky football game, Cat Scratches will talk with head coach Joker Phillips about his of plan of attack. Without giving away too much of the game plan, Phillips will tell us his keys to the game, a key matchup and who Kentucky has to look out for on the opposing team.Offensive keys – Continue to run the ball, even without Derrick Locke: “We need to establish some kind of running game. We need to get positive yards. We cannot have negative yards. We have to protect the football. We have to try to keep the same game plan that was working with Derrick in there. We also have to do a little bit more Wildcat to try to manufacture some type of run game and then throw the football. We have guys outside making plays for us. These guys will load up the box and try to stop the run. They held Alabama to 36 yards rushing, so there should be some one-on-one matchups and we need to throw the football some. It works when guys can scramble around and run for 41 yards when they think they have them in the backfield, but we will have to get in it and see what they are giving us. If they are giving us the throw we will throw it and if they are giving us the run we have to try to call it. We need the ball in (Randall Cobb’s) hands because he can create things that many can’t.”

Cat Scratches’ take: Phillips informed reporters Thursday that Locke is “probably” out for Saturday’s game. As UK’s leading rusher with 574 yards and seven touchdowns, the loss will obviously hurt the Cats. Having said that, UK must march on without him in the same fashion it did in the second half against Auburn. Even when Locke went down, UK continued to emphasize the run, rushing the ball 17 times in the second half for 66 yards. The stats weren’t fantastic, but the running game helped UK get back into the game and kept the Auburn offense honest. Defensive keys – Attack on first and second down: “We have to be sound in our gaps. You cannot get out of the gaps and try to do other people’s jobs. You also need to wrap up and tackle their big running back (Marcus Lattimore). He is a load and you have to wrap him up. We have to get them into third-and-longs. They have been in third-and-mediums and third-and-shorts and that is how you come to be 55 percent successful on third downs. We need to get them to some third-and-longs and make sure that they do not have success on first and second downs.”

Cat Scratches’ take: South Carolina’s bread and butter this year has been third- down conversions. The Gamecocks rank first in the Southeastern Conference and third in the nation with a 55 percent third-down-conversion rate. Behind a downhill running game and Lattimore, the Gamecocks have picked up huge chunks on first and second down, allowing for manageable third-down situations for quarterback Stephen Garcia. Say what you want about big plays, but the game of football comes down to moving the chains. Kentucky’s defense has only allowed 37.8 percent of opponents’ third downs to be converted into first downs.Key matchup – UK’s offensive line vs. the USC front four: “I love the matchups there. We play a team every week that has just had a big sack week (the week before). We played Florida and they got one and Auburn had one in the Wildcat formation. We will be fine up front and we like the matchup with the offensive line as long as we communicate and play with good technique. (Our young running backs) understand our blocking schemes and when they play with good technique, they can hold up. Like anybody else, if they don’t play with good technique, they will struggle. They just need to be patient and allow the defenders to come to them and not be in attack mode.”

Cat Scratches’ take: The line battle might be the best line battle fans will see all season. South Carolina’s front four beat up Alabama quarterback Greg McElroy last week to a tune of seven sacks. Alabama had only been sacked 10 times prior to the game. What does that mean for a UK offensive line that has given up just three sacks all season? We’ll have to find out Saturday. But this will clearly be the Cats’ toughest test to date. Keep an eye on how backup tailbacks perform in picking up blocks. Fullback Moncell Allen could also be a big factor.Joker’s biggest concern- Tackling Lattimore: “In every game we have been giving up a lot of rushing yards. We have to stop the run, period. Give up the passing yards if needed, but we have to stop the run. (Lattimore) is one of those guys that gets stronger as the game wears on. In the Georgia game he carried the ball something like 40-something times. We have to limit his touches by holding them to minus plays. I think when you keep stopping the run early, people tend to get away from it quicker than with the pass, so we need to make sure we stop the run and limit his touches. Every week tackling is important, but it is even more important with a guy like him who can get into your secondary and create problems.”

Cat Scratches’ take: Not to say Lattimore’s style is similar to future NFL Hall of Famer Jerome Bettis, but the way he finishes games can be comparable. Because of Lattimore’s bruising, run-you-over style, he gets better as the game goes on. Lattimore has been called the best freshman running back since Adrian Peterson by some national pundits, and if he keeps pin-balling off runners like he has in South Carolina’s first five games, he might prove them right. Lattimore has rushed for 459 yards on 107 carries through five games. Against Georgia, he carried the ball 37 times in his second collegiate game. His running style will certainly concern a team that is still trying to improve on tackling.

South Carolina player to watch for (other than Lattimore) – Wide receiver Alshon Jeffery: “He’s very impressive. We’ve got to mix up our coverages. We’ll have to play some man-to-man on him with some help over the top. Alshon is one of the best receivers in the league as a true sophomore. He’s a big-time talent. The taller you are, you don’t have to be as fast. Alshon is not a blazer, but he’s fast enough and he’s got a big body and understands how to post up.”

Cat Scratches’ take: Jeffery has inserted himself into the discussion as being one of the nation’s top receivers by leading the SEC in catches (34), receiving yards (625) and receiving touchdowns (four). Even more impressive is he has four 100-yard receiving games in his five games this season. If you can remember back to last year, it was Jeffery who torched UK for three touchdowns in his freshman coming-out party. Jeffery, standing at 6-foot-4, will have a decisive height advantage over Kentucky’s starting cornerbacks, Randall Burden (6-0) and Martavius Neloms (6-1). Look for consistent help from UK’s safeties to make sure Jeffery doesn’t have a repeat performance this year. Kentucky’s secondary deserves credit this season for giving up the fewest passing yards per game in the SEC.UK players that must step up – Backup tailbacks Donald Russell and Raymond Sanders: “We need one of our young running backs to step up. I feel confident in Donald Russell and Raymond Sanders to do the job that we ask them to do. We’ll probably do a little bit more of the Wildcat and see what we can do out of that. We’ve got to find a way to manufacture a run game, and we expect those guys to go in there and do the job for us.”

Cat Scratches’ take: Without Locke, it will be on the shoulders of Russell, a sophomore, and Sanders, a freshman, to carry the load. Both are “bracketed” on the depth chart, so expect the two to split carries for most of the game. Russell has carried the ball 27 times for 124 yards while Sanders has 88 yards and three touchdowns on 18 rushes.

Final injury report: In addition to Locke, defensive end DeQuin Evans is also “probably” out for Saturday’s game. Evans has been battling an ankle injury for the last few weeks. Freshman linebacker Qua Huzzie will also be limited as he continues to recover from a thumb and ankle injury.