No. 25 Kentucky Tops No. 10 LSU in Overtime
Kenny Minchey ran a quarterback draw for a two-point conversion in overtime as No. 25 Kentucky beat 10th-ranked LSU 35-34 in overtime on Saturday at Kroger Field.
Kentucky (5-1, 3-1 Southeastern Conference) led at the half but had to rally to force overtime. There, Kentucky won in extra time for the second consecutive week.
Minchey passed for 246 yards and C.J. Baxter rushed for 123 yards and two scores for the Cats, who have now won four games in a row.
LSU (4-2, 1-2) got the ball first and the Tigers used a hurry up offense to quickly get into UK territory. The Tigers would get into the red zone, but the Kentucky defense held and forced LSU into a field goal attempt. Scott Starzyk connected from 24 yards out and the Tigers led 3-0 with 8:45 left in the first quarter.
Kentucky needed just two plays to respond. Baxter rushed untouched through the middle of the line and scampered 77 yards to the LSU three yard line. On the next play, Baxter went around right end for a touchdown to give the Cats the lead. Adam Zouagui added the point after and Kentucky led 7-3 with 8:09 to play in the first.
The Tigers would respond with another long drive to take the lead back. LSU used 11 plays to cover 75 yards, ending with a 22-yard touchdown pass from Sam Leavitt to Zach Grace. Starzyk added the PAT and LSU led 10-7 with 1:39 left in the first period.
As the second quarter began, Kentucky crossed midfield, but the drive stalled and the Cats were forced to punt. LSU took over at its own 16 with 14:03 left in the first half.
The Kentucky defense forced a three-and-out and LSU was forced to punt. UK’s Brock Coffman fielded the punt at the UK 45 yard line, danced away from some tackles and broke free down the right sideline. He weaved through traffic and raced his way into the end zone for a touchdown. Zouagui added the PAT and UK led 14-10 with 13:06 remaining in the first half.
LSU would assemble another long scoring drive on its next possession. The Tigers went 75 yards again, this time using 14 plays. LSU scored on a 10-yard touchdown pass from Leavitt to Jackson Harris to regain the lead. Starzyk added the point after and LSU led 17-14 with 6:11 to play in the first half.
Kentucky would finish the half with a long, sustained scoring drive. Minchey completed passes to multiple players on the drive as the Cats got into LSU territory. Baxter rushed for 36 yards on the drive to get the Cats in scoring range. On the final play of the half, from inside the one yard line, Minchey scored on the “tush push” play to give UK the lead back. Zouagui added the point after and the Cats led 21-17 at the half.
The Cats got the ball first in the third quarter. However, the Cats went three-and-out and were forced to punt. LSU took over at its own 38 with 13:21 to play in the third quarter.
On LSU’s first play of the second half, UK’s Ty Bryant intercepted Leavitt and returned it to the LSU 36, where the Cats would take over.
However, the Cats were unable to convert the turnover into points. UK got to the LSU 22 yard line, but on fourth-and-two, Minchey’s pass intended for Kenny Darby was broken up and the Tigers took over with 10:53 left in the third quarter.
The UK defense forced another three-and-out on the ensuing possession and the Tigers punted. Kentucky took over at its own 30 with 8:28 remaining in the third quarter.
Kentucky would return the favor, going three-and-out and punting the ball back to the Tigers, who took over at their own 21 with 6:46 to play in the third.
LSU would answer with a scoring drive. The Tigers went 73 yards in 11 plays, but the UK defense held and forced LSU into a field goal attempt. Starzyk connected from 24 yards to cut the Kentucky lead to 21-20 with 2:13 remaining in the third quarter.
Kentucky got the ball back and crossed midfield when Minchey found Darby wide open over the middle for a 35-yard gain. The quarter would end with the Cats leading 21-20.
As the fourth quarter began, the Cats continued to get further into LSU territory. However, the drive eventually stalled and Zouagui came on for a 28-yard field goal, which was good, and Kentucky extended its lead to 24-20 with 11:54 to play.
LSU would respond with a scoring drive to take the lead back. The Tigers needed just six plays to cover 75 yards, ending with a 41-yard touchdown pass from Jackson Harris to Roman Mothershed. Starzyk added the point after and LSU led 27-24 with 9:42 remaining.
On the next possession, Kentucky got a 20-yard completion to D.J. Miller and another 20-yard completion to Ja’Kayden Ferguson to get to the LSU 24. However, the Tigers stopped the Cats and Zouagui’s 42-yard field goal missed wide left. LSU took over at its own 24 with 4:57 to play.
The UK defense came up huge on the ensuing possession. On LSU’s second play, Leavitt dropped to pass but was hit by Jamarrion Harkless, who caused a fumble that was recovered by Tavion Gadson at the LSU 13.
Kentucky was able to get to the eight yard line but LSU stopped the Cats, forcing a 26-yard field goal. Zouagui missed to the right, and LSU remained ahead 27-24 with 3:11 to play.
LSU would attempt to run out the clock, but the UK defense forced a punt. The Cats got the ball back at their own 19 with 1:37 remaining.
The Cats would get a 16-yard completion to Miller, followed by a 15-yard reception from Ferguson. A 19-yard completion to Darby got the Cats to the LSU 23. Kentucky would get into the red zone but were forced into a 33-yard field goal. This time, Zouagui connected, tying the game at 27-27 with 12 seconds left in regulation.
In overtime, LSU needed just two plays to get into the end zone. Leavitt scrambled 15 yards for a touchdown to give the Tigers the lead. Starzyk made the extra point and LSU led 34-27.
Kentucky appeared to be going nowhere with its drive until Minchey found Darby for 22 yards, getting the Cats to the LSU one yard line. Two plays later, Baxter scored to get the Cats within one.
As they did last week at South Carolina, the Cats went for the two-point conversion. Kentucky went with five wide receivers, spreading out the LSU defense, then Minchey ran up the middle and scored, sealing yet another overtime victory.
Kentucky returns to action next week, visiting Oklahoma in Norman. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. and the game can be seen on the SEC Network.
