Kentucky Hosts New Mexico State on Senior Day
Kentucky takes to Kroger Field for the final time in 2021 this Saturday when New Mexico State comes to town for Senior Day. Game time is noon ET and it will air on SEC Network and the UK Sports Network. Twenty-two seniors will be recoginzed in a special Senior Day ceremony before the game.
The Wildcats are looking to extend their non-conference winning streak to 14 games, which is the second-longest active streak in the country. A win also would make four straight Senior Day victories for one of the most accomplished classes in school history.
Offensively, the Wildcats have been guided by quarterback Will Levis, who is completing 65.6 percent of his passes for 2,025 yards and 19 touchdowns. Levis’ top target has been Wan’Dale Robinson, who is among the leading receivers in the Southeastern Conference with 77 catches for 886 yards and six TDs. The ground game has been paced by Christopher Rodriguez Jr., who has rushed for 1,032 yards and six scores, and he ranks second in the league in rushing with 103.2 yards per game. Last week, he became the 10th player in school history to reach 1,000 yards rushing in a season.
The Kentucky defense has been exceptional at times in 2021, with linebackers DeAndre Square and Jacquez Jones leading the team in tackles, while safety Yusuf Corker and defensive end Josh Paschal are among the SEC leaders in pass breakups and tackles for loss, respectively.
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| Kentucky vs. New Mexico State | ||
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| Sat., Nov. 20 – 12:00 p.m. ET Kroger Field Lexington, Ky. Game Notes: UK | NMSU Digital Gameday Program Gameday App |
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| Coverage | ||
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TV: SEC Network |
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| UK | Team Stats | VU |
| 7-3 | Record | 1-9 |
| 5-3 | Conference Record | N/A |
| 29.2 | Scoring/game | 21.1 |
| 395.5 | Total offense/game | 353.8 |
| 186.3 | Rushing yards/game | 90.3 |
| 209.2 | Passing yards/game | 263.5 |
| 14.5 | Kickoff returns (avg) | 17.2 |
| 12.8 | Punt returns (avg) | 3.9 |
| 46.1 | Punting (avg) | 40.4 |
| 31:42 | Time of possession/game | 30:46 |
| 49.2% | Third down conversion | 37.7% |
| 41.7% | Fourth down conversion | 38.9% |
| 22.8 | Points allowed/game | 40.2 |
| 340.9 | Total yards allowed/game | 474.0 |
| 116.7 | Rush yards allowed/game | 183.1 |
| 224.2 | Pass yards allowed/game | 290.9 |
Cat Scratches: Kentucky Defense Ready for NMSU Pass Attack
When the Kentucky defense faced Mississippi State in October, the Cats had trouble stopping the Bulldogs and their Air Raid attack. MSU piled up 344 yards passing as quarterback Will Rogers connected on 36 of his 39 passes, leading to the Bulldogs to a 31-17 win in Starkville.
So when UK defensive coordinator Brad White compared New Mexico State to those same Bulldogs this week, he certainly got the attention of his defense.
“If you ask who they’re probably most like, probably most like Mississippi State,” White said. “They are primarily some 10 personnel, they will get into some 11. Primarily four wide receivers. They do tend to pass quite a bit but they are committed to the run game as well.”
NMSU, coached by former Kentucky quarterback Doug Martin, is not quite as pass heavy as Mississippi State, although they definitely pass more than they run. The Aggies have thrown the ball 449 times this season for 2,635 yards in 10 games. They have rushed 308 times for 903 yards on the ground. White knows that New Mexico State has playmakers at several positions…Read More
Cats Continue to Climb SEC Ladder
• Kentucky is 7-3 for the first time since 2018 and has clinched a winning record for the 2021 season.
• Kentucky is 5-3 in the SEC and will finish in second place in the SEC Eastern Division.
• It is the first time since the league split into divisions in 1992 that UK will end the season in sole possession of second place of the East.
• UK also has finished in a tie for second in the division on two other occasions, 2016 and 2018.
• All three second-place East finishes have been in the last six seasons under Mark Stoops.
• This is the second time since 1977 that UK has posted a winning record in league play, 5-3 this season and also in 2018.
Series vs. New Mexico State
• Kentucky leads the all-time series 1-0.
• The Cats piled up the points in a 62-42 victory on Sept. 17, 2016 in Lexington.
• That game proved a turning point in the recent fortunes of Kentucky’s program, as the Cats began the 2016 season 0-2 before the win over the Aggies started a stretch of five wins in six weeks on the way to the first of what will be six straight bowl trips in 2021.
• That game also served as the introduction of Benny Snell Jr., who rushed for 136 yards and four touchdowns on just 17 carries. He would go on to become the school’s leading career rusher.
• It also was the breakout of Stephen Johnson, who relieved an injured Drew Barker and passed for 310 yards and three scores while also rushing for 51 yards in the win. He never relinquished the starting job for the remainder of 2016 and all of 2017.
• Stanley “Boom” Williams rushed for 181 yards and a score in the game as part of 381 yards on the ground for the Cats.
• Tight end C.J. Conrad caught five passes for 133 yards and three scores.
A UK Win Would…
• Be Kentucky’s 14th consecutive non-conference victory, the second-longest active streak in FBS, dating to the beginning of the 2018 season.
• Give Coach Mark Stoops 57 career victories at UK, putting him just three wins shy of tying Paul “Bear” Bryant for the school’s all-time winning coach.
• Give UK eight wins for the third time in Stoops’ tenure as head coach (2018, 2019, 2021).
• Be just the third time UK has won eight games in the regular season since 1977 (1984, 2018, 2021).
• Be UK’s fourth consecutive win on Senior Day.
• Give UK a 6-1 record in home games this season.
Kentucky-New Mexico State Connections
• New Mexico State head coach Doug Martin was a four-year letterwinning quarterback at Kentucky from 1981-84 and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in history in 1985.
• Martin was part of the back-to-back Hall of Fame Bowl teams, including the 1984 squad that defeated Wisconsin.
• Martin served as a graduate assistant at UK in 1986 and 1987.
• Martin also coached against UK when he brought his Kent State squad to Lexington in 2007.
Senior Day at Kroger Field
• Kentucky will honor 22 seniors on the field before the game as part of Senior Day festivities:
Abule Abadi-Fitzgerald, DL (Lakeland, Fla.)
Tyrell Ajian, DB (Mansfield, Ohio)
Marquez Bembry, LB (Stone Mountain, Ga.)
Zac Berezowitz, DB (Lexington, Ky.)
Yusuf Corker, DB (McDonough, Ga.)
Cedrick Dort Jr., DB (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.)
Austin Dotson, OG (Belfry, Ky.)
Darren Edmond, WR (Norman, Okla.)
Isaiah Epps, WR (Jenks, Okla.)
Colin Goodfellow, P (Cleveland, Ohio)
Collin Hartmann, DL (Somerset, Ky.)
Zach Johnson, S/KR (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Darian Kinnard, OT (Knoxville, Tenn.)
Tyler Markray, RB (West Bloomfield, Mich.)
Marquan McCall, NG (Detroit, Mich.)
Quandre Mosely, DB (Brunswick, Ga.)
William Nalty, ILB (Metairie, La.)
Josh Paschal, DE (Prince George’s County, Md.)
Davonte Robinson, S (Lexington, Ky.)
Matt Ruffolo, K (Centerville, Ohio)
DeAndre Square, ILB (Detroit, Mich.)
Jordan Wright, OLB (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.)
• Three “super seniors” were honored on the field on Senior Day 2020, including WR Josh Ali, OL Luke Fortner and TE Justin Rigg.
