Sep 5, 2013

The University of Kentucky football team takes the field at Commonwealth Stadium for the first time this season on Saturday to square off against Miami (Ohio) at Noon ET.

Kentucky vs. Miami (Ohio)
Sat., Sept. 7 – 12:00 p.m. ET Lexington, Ky. Gameday Information Game Notes: UK | MU
Coverage
TV: FSN Radio: UK IMG Gameday Live: Live video, stats, blog, and social media Text Updates
UK	2013 Team Stats	MU
26.0	Scoring/game	14.0
15.0	First downs/game	9.0
419.0	Total offense/game	239.0
216.0	Rushing yards/game	74.0
203.0	Passing yards/game	165.0
24.7	Kickoff returns (avg)	19.0
27.0	Punt returns (avg)	9.5
33.3	Punting (avg)	40.2
24:58	Time of possession/game	28:13
40.0	Third down conversion	15.0
100.0	Fourth down conversion	0.0
+1	Turnover margin/game	0
35.0	Points allowed/game	52.0
487.0	Total yards allowed/game	591.0
216.0	Rush yards allowed/game	304.0
271.0	Pass yards allowed/game	287.0

Kentucky is opening the 41st season of football in Commonwealth Stadium. UK has won seven-consecutive home-openers since the 2006 season, adding to its all-time record of 93-23-6 in home debuts. This is the third time in school history that Kentucky has opened its home schedule against Miami (Ohio), holding a 2-1 record in those games.

The Wildcats are coming off a 35-26 loss to WKU last Saturday in the season opener at LP Field in Nashville, Tenn. Eleven Wildcats made their first career starts, including five on offense and six on defense against WKU, which is a school record for most first-time starts in a game dating back to records kept since 1993.

Kentucky has played Miami 12 times in a series that dates back to 1894. UK has a 7-4-1 advantage in the all-time series. The Wildcats will face the RedHawks for the third time in Commonwealth Stadium, and UK is 5-3-1 overall against Miami in Lexington. Kentucky won the last meeting between the two teams during the 2009 season at Paul Brown Stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Miami dropped its season opener to Marshall last weekend as the RedHawks gave up 38 unanswered points to fall 52-14 after being tied 14-14 at halftime.

Cat Scratches: Cats eager to show improvement in home opener

After a long offseason, the Kentucky Wildcats were eager to kick off the 2013 season. A week later, the Cats might be even more anxious to return to the field for their second game.

Not only will Saturday mark UK’s home opener, it will also represent a chance for the Cats to erase some of the frustration lingering from their week-one defeat and, just as importantly, the way they played.

“I think we’re all disappointed because we know we could have done better,” head coach Mark Stoops said. “So that’s where we’re looking to make that improvement this week.” … read the full preview

Scouting Miami (Ohio)

Miami (Ohio) is coming off a 52-14 season-opening loss on the road to the Marshall Thundering Herd. The two teams were tied at 14-14 going into halftime before the Herd scored 38 second-half points to take control of the game and claim the win.

The RedHawks, which return 47 letterwinners from 2012, including 16 starters (5 offense, 7 defense, 4 special teams), were led offensively in the game by quarterback Austin Boucher, who went 10-for-22 for 165 yards and a touchdown. Steve Marck and Rokeem Williams were the top receivers with Marck catching four passes for 41 yards and a touchdown, while Williams had three catches for 77 yards. Austin Gearing was the leading rusher for the RedHawks carrying the ball six times for 27 yards, while Dawan Scott had two carries for 21 yards.

Jay Mastin lead the team on the defensive side of the ball with 12 tackles and an interception, while Kent Kern had 13 tackles and 0.5 tackles for loss. J’Terius Brown caused some problems in the backfield with 3.5 tackles for loss and one sack, while Dayonne Nunley had three pass breakups to go along with six tackles.

The RedHawks went 4-8 last season, including a 3-5 mark in the MAC. This is the third season for MU under head coach Don Treadwell, who has an 8-16 record.