Big Blue Preview: Kentucky vs. Georgia

Info to Know

Preview

Kentucky wraps up Southeastern Conference action by playing host to No. 1 Georgia on Saturday, as the Wildcats look to knock off a top-ranked team for the fourth time in school history. Game time is set for 3:30 p.m. ET and it will be telecast by CBS.

UK is 3-15 all-time against No 1-ranked opponents, with the last triumph being the triple-overtime thriller over eventual national champion LSU in 2007.

The Wildcats are coming off a 24-21 home loss to Vanderbilt, while the Bulldogs kept their undefeated train rolling with a 45-19 win at Mississippi State.

UK will continue to lean on its pro-style offense, which ranks 10th in the country in time of possession, led by starting quarterback Will Levis, who has thrown for 2,012 yards and 16 touchdowns, and Chris Rodriguez Jr., whose 122 yards per game is top among SEC running backs.

The Wildcats await two key players to get healthy on the other side of the ball in super seniors and linebackers Jacquez Jones and DeAndre Square, yet the Cats still rank t

Cat Scratches: Kentucky Offense Looking for Better Efficiency in Red Zone

Kentucky offensive coordinator Rich Scangarello saw his unit struggle again on Saturday in a 24-21 loss to Vanderbilt at Kroger Field. While the offense seemed to move the ball, scoring points in the red zone was a problem for the Cats.

Scangarello knows that he’s in a bottom line business and he also knows that the bottom line, for offenses, is to put points on the board.

“The reality of it is, we need to score more points,” Scangarello said. ”(UK head coach Mark Stoops) is not happy with that, I’m not happy with that, there’s not a player in the locker room that’s happy with that. It’s time to get it fixed.”

How do Scangarello and the rest of the offensive staff go about fixing the issues that ail them?…Read More

Kentucky-Georgia Series

• Kentucky trails the series against Georgia, 61-12-2, and the Bulldogs have won the last 12.
• Georgia leads the series at Lexington 29-7.
• Kentucky has not won against Georgia since 2009, a 34-27 win in Athens.
• UK’s last win in Lexington against the Bulldogs dates back to 2006, in a 24-20 win.
• UK is 3-28 all-time in games played against a ranked Georgia squad, with the last win coming in 1988.
• All three of the wins were in Lexington (1947, 1965 and 1988).
• The two teams played nine times from 1939-49, and after a six-year lull, have played annually since 1956. The Wildcats won that initial game 13-6.
• Biggest UK win: 33 (33-0) in 1977 in Athens
• Biggest Georgia win: 45 (62-17) in 2004 in Lexington
• Games decided by 7 points or less: Georgia leads 17-8-2

Kentucky vs. No. 1-Ranked Teams

• Kentucky is 3-15 all-time against No. 1-ranked opponents, including a 0-1 record against top-ranked Georgia.
• The Wildcats No. 1-ranked triumphs are as follows:
• Oklahoma, 13-7, in the Jan. 1, 1951, Sugar Bowl, breaking the Sooners’ 31-game win streak
• 27-20 at Ole Miss (in Jackson) in 1964
• A 43-37 triple-overtime thriller at home vs. eventual national champion LSU in 2007

By the Numbers

3
Wins by Kentucky against top-ranked teams (1951 vs. Oklahoma; 1964 vs. Ole Miss; 2007 vs. LSU)

5
Wins by Kentucky this season, against no losses, when allowing less than 20 points

6
Wins by Kentucky this season, against just one loss, when scoring 20 or more points

33
Largest margin of victory in the series in a Kentucky win (33-0 in 1976)

261
Yards passing needed for Will Levis to move into sixth place on Kentucky’s career passing yards list