Decorated Senior Class Says Goodbye in Home Finale
Kentucky will host Senior Day on Saturday, honoring 16 young men who will play their final game at Kroger Field when Middle Tennessee comes to town. The game is set for a noon kickoff and will air on the SEC Network’s Alternate channel.
This class will leave the program as one of the most decorated in its history, having already won 26 games and appeared in two bowl games with a third straight all but assured this season. In their career, the group has ended the albatross of the losing streak to Florida, knocked off Tennessee, upset a ranked Louisville team on the road, and went a combined 8-0 vs. Missouri and South Carolina. They also finished .500 or better in the SEC three straight seasons and this year recorded the first winning record in league play for the program in 41 years.
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| Kentucky vs. Middle Tennessee | ||
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| Sat., Nov. 17 – 12 p.m. ET Kroger Field Lexington, Ky. Game Notes: UK  | MT Digital Gameday Program Gameday App |
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TV: SEC Network Alternate |
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| UK | Team Stats | MT |
| 7-3 | Record | 7-3 |
| 5-3 | Conference Record | 6-1 |
| 22.9 | Scoring/game | 30.4 |
| 346.9 | Total offense/game | 380.8 |
| 187.3 | Rushing yards/game | 140.4 |
| 159.6 | Passing yards/game | 240.4 |
| 20.6 | Kickoff returns (avg) | 15.6 |
| 10.8 | Punt returns (avg) | 17.2 |
| 45.2 | Punting (avg) | 41.7 |
| 30:44 | Time of possession/game | 29:38 |
| 41.1% | Third down conversion | 40.1% |
| 55.6% | Fourth down conversion | 59.1% |
| 16.2 | Points allowed/game | 26.5 |
| 320.8 | Total yards allowed/game | 407.0 |
| 140.4 | Rush yards allowed/game | 165.1 |
| 180.4 | Pass yards allowed/game | 241.9 |
The UK defense is led by senior pass rusher extraordinaire Josh Allen, who has a 11 sacks and 15.5 TFL this season. Allen is the most visible player on a unit stacked with seniors, including linebacker Jordan Jones, safeties Mike Edwards and Darius West, cornerbacks Derrick Baity, Jr., Chris Westry and Lonnie Johnson, Jr., lineman Adrian Middleton and more.
Cat Scratches: Even as They Say Farewell, Seniors Have Work to Do
If you’re trying to keep from getting emotional this week, it’s advisable to unfollow @UKFootball on social media.
Ahead of Senior Day, the account is posting a series of graphics honoring the players who will play their final game at Kroger Field on Saturday. At the top of each one is a quote from the family of the 16 seniors.
That’s where things might get a little dusty.
“Your dedication to your family and friends as well as school and the UK football team is inspiring,” Josh Allen’s mom said.
“I know your mother is looking down from heaven, smiling and saying, ‘You made it, son. I love you!’ ” Bunchy Stallings dad said.
“If I had a chance to do it all over again, I would have a son just like you a million times,” George Asafo-Adjei’s mother said.
“You did it the right way,” said Darius West’s family.
“To witness you grow into the person you are today has been a blessing and an incredible journey,” C.J. Conrad’s family said.
The messages are all coming from people who have known these seniors for their entire lives, giving some insight into the quality of the young men who make up this class. Mark Stoops might have only had the privilege of coaching them for four or five years, but that’s been more than enough time for him to build the same kind of affection and appreciation….Read More
Scouting Middle Tennessee
• Middle Tennessee is 7-3 on the season overall and have won four in a row.
• The Blue Raiders lead the Conference USA Eastern Division with a 6-1 record.
• MTSU is coming off a 48-32 win at UTEP.
• Blue Raiders coach Rick Stockstill is in his 13th season and is third on the school’s all-time wins list. The teams has been bowl eligible 10 times in those 13 seasons, including 2018.
• MTSU Quarterback Brent Stockstill is the coach’s son and also is one of the winningest QBs in the program’s history. He holds school career records with 11,249 passing yards and 98 passing TDs.
• Stockstill made the watch lists for the Davey O’Brien, Maxwell, Johnny Unitas Golden Arm and Wuerffel Trophy.
• Two receivers – Ty Lee and Patrick Smith – each have at least 40 receptions, 400 yards and five touchdowns.
• Three running backs — Chaton Mobley, Terelle West and Tavares Thomas — have rushed for at least 200 yards this season
• The defense can cause havoc up front with 66 tackles for loss, including 26 quarterback sacks.
Series vs. Middle Tennessee
• Kentucky leads the all-time series 2-0 with both wins coming in Lexington.
• The Cats won 44-22 in 2002 and 20-14 in 2008.
• In the 2008 win, the Cats trailed 16-10 entering the fourth quarter but used a Mike Hartline to Derrick Locke six-yard touchdown pass and a 25-yard Lones Seiber field goal to take the lead.
• UK defensive back Robbie McAtee tackled MTSU’s Eldred King at the one-yard line as time expired to secure the wild victory. The play gained 61 yards but came up one yard short.
• Wildcats receiver Dicky Lyons Jr. caught 12 passes for 79 yards that day.
• Kentucky missed three field goals and had one blocked in that game.
• MTSU coach Rick Stockstill was in his third season in his now 13-year tenure in that game.
• In 2002, UK piled up over 500 yards of total offense as Jared Lorenzen passed for 305 yards and three touchdowns.
• Running back Artose Pinner plowed his way for 163 yards and three scores on just 24 carries as part of 182 yards from scrimmage.
• Receiver Aaron Boone caught six passes for 111 yards and a touchdown.
• MTSU rushed for over 200 yards in that game.
Kentucky-Middle Tennessee Connections
• Kentucky has five players on its roster from the state of Tennessee: DL Quinton Bohanna (Cordova), OT Darian Kinnard (Knoxville), LB Harold Lacy (Memphis), DB Jaylen Scott (Clarksville), DB Domonique Williams (Knoxville).
• MTSU has four players from the Commonwealth on its roster: RB Landon Board (Owensboro), WR Peyton Burke (Lexington), CB Joseph Freeland (Hopkinsville) and OL Cole Kirby (Franklin).
• UK co-offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Darin Hinshaw spent spent three seasons at Middle Tennessee from 2003-05 as the running backs coach.
• Hinshaw also served as the wide receivers coach at Memphis (2007-09) under head coach Tommy West, who currently is MTSU’s defensive line coach.
• Middle Tennessee offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Tony Franklin is a familiar name with UK Football. He was the running backs coach from 1997-99 and the offensive coordinator in 2000. He also coached the Lexington Horsemen, an arena football team, in 2003.
• Franklin and UK assistant head coach for offense Eddie Gran spent a year together in 2008 on Auburn’s staff.
A Kentucky Win Would…
• Improve Kentucky to 8-3, the best 11-game start to a season since 1984 (8-3).
• Be just the fourth time the Cats have won eight regular season games in the past 57 years, also 1976 (eight regular-season wins), 1977 (10) and 1984 (eight).
• Improve Kentucky to 17-8 over its last 25 regular-season games, best 25-game regular-season stretch since Nov. 6, 1976 through the end of the 1978 season (17-7-1)
• Give the current senior class (2015-18) the most wins (27) in their career since the class from (2007-10) won 28. The class from 2006-2009 won 30 total games.
• Kentucky would be the fourth SEC school to defeat Florida in Gainesville and Tennessee in Knoxville in the same season since 1987 (2013 Vanderbilt, 2014 Missouri, 2017 LSU).
Cats Ranked in National Polls, CFB Playoff Poll
• Kentucky entered the national polls on Sept. 23 after defeating Mississippi State. It is the first time the Cats have been ranked since the 2007 season.
• The Cats now are No. 20 in the Associated Press poll and No. 21 in the coaches’ poll.
• UK has been ranked eight consecutive weeks for the first time since the 1977 team appeared in the polls for 10 consecutive weeks from Oct. 3 through the final AP Poll of the season on Jan. 3, 1978.
• The Cats were ranked ninth in the first College Football Playoff poll released on Oct. 30.
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 2018.
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.
When the Wildcats are on the road, the show will broadcast from Kroger at the Tates Creek Centre in Lexington.
