Kentucky is now bowl-eligible for the seventh consecutive season after picking up the win over Missouri. It was a nail-biter, however, the Wildcats now sit at 6-3 with Vanderbilt, Georgia, and Louisville still left on the schedule. So, after picking up a much-needed win, what is the current state of Kentucky football going forward?
The defense is still upper-class
After facing the best offense in the country, the Wildcats faced a struggling Tiger offense and showed why they are still elite. Just for the record, the Tennessee game was really not an indictment on the defense. Missouri struggled against Brad White’s unit as the Tigers could not find a way to get the ball in the hands of their top playmakers. Kentucky kept the heat on throughout the entire game and the Tigers were never able to get any consistent offense going, outside of one or two drives. The future is very bright for this defense as well with guys like Trevin Wallace, Jordan Levitt, Tyreese Fearbry, Deone Walker, Alex Afari, and a host of juniors who should return next season.
The offense scored more points today, but there is still a lot to improve upon.
The Wildcats were able to put some points on the board, however, with the skill players this roster possesses, twenty-one points is still not enough. Here is the thing, this offense is loaded with young, physically gifted playmakers. Barion Brown and Dane Key are bonafide stars and future All-SEC performers. Tayvion Robinson is electric. Jordan Dingle is a weapon at tight end. Chris Rodriguez is one of the best running backs in the country and Will Levis is still a first-round NFL prospect at quarterback. Despite this, the offense is still lacking.
One reason is the play-calling. Running a draw play on third down against a top tier Tigers defense is not going to get it done. I am not one to call for a man’s job, however, Rich Scangarello has to find a way to be more creative with his play-calling. To his credit, the pace was a bit quicker today, however, there are far too many deficiencies with this much talent.
The offensive line is still a disaster. This might be a hot take, but maybe running an outside-zone run scheme is a bad idea. Yes, you can break off some big runs with it, but at what price? Besides, the scheme can take years to develop and it can cost you in pass protection. It is difficult to find smaller, more athletic yet effective blockers up front and the scheme requires so much technique in the run game, it takes away from pass protection. There is no shame in running good ole fashion power gap and inside zone run schemes where size and power matter. Just something to think about.
Special teams are a disaster
Listen, at the end of the day, these are kids who are doing the best they can. That being said, this special teams unit is hard to watch. Long snapping is a major issue, and as much as it pains me to say it, it may have come at the cost of a kicker’s confidence. Mark Ruffalo has had a solid career as a Wildcat, however, this season has been a struggle and I would argue that it goes back to the long-snapping issues from early in the season. Punting now remains to be seen as Goodfellow is out for the rest of the season, at the very least as we wish him the best in a full recovery.
Conclusion
At the end of the day, the Wildcats are bowl-eligible once again, and for seven straight years which in itself is an impressive feat. Eight regular season wins are still very much on the table and a win over Georgia in Lexington would be a season changer. There is still plenty to be excited about for the big blue nation. There may be kinks to be worked out, however, if Mark Stoops has proven one thing, he is more than capable of getting the job done.
Larry Spicer will produce a weekly column covering both the University of Kentucky Basketball and Football programs for the L4 Security 13th Region Media Network. He is a resident of Corbin, and is married with two daughters. He is a communications major at Eastern Kentucky University and has covered football from the NFL to College since 2017.
