KENTUCKY PASS OFFENSE vs TEXAS PASS DEFENSE
Simply put, Kentucky’s pass offense has been pretty bad all year. It ranks second-to-last in the SEC, ahead of only Oklahoma (haha!). There was some optimism coming into the season because there are some talented individual components on the roster, including former 5-star QB Brock Vandagriff, but things have never come together. Vandagriff wasn’t great, but wasn’t necessarily awful at times either, yet the coaches pulled him for Gavin Wimsatt for a stretch and there have been some sightings of freshman Cutter Boley recently Vandagiff should start again this weekend but he comes in with a 122.6 passer rating. Dane Key is the guy to watch in the passing game. He’ll likely be in the NFL next year or on someone else’s roster. Barion Brown is an explosive straight line runner but not a polished receiver in terms of route running and the nuances of the position.
Edge – Texas ****
KENTUCKY RUN OFFENSE vs TEXAS RUN DEFENSE
For the first time in a long time, Kentucky hasn’t had a very successful running back. The Wildcats went into the season knowing it was a weakness and it’s shown to be true. Demie Sumo-Karngbaye is a good all-around player and does a lot of the little things well, but he’s not an explosive player. He leads the team with 505 yards and 5 touchdowns. Jamarion Wilcox is promising as a runner and is very talented, but the coaches have been reluctant to giving him a lot of snaps and he doesn’t always do the little things necessary to gain more trust. Kentucky ranks 10th in the league in rushing yards per game.
Edge – Texas **
KENTUCKY OFFENSIVE LINE vs TEXAS DEFENSIVE LINE
The pass protection from this group has been pretty bad. Kentucky has given up 27 sacks on the year but that doesn’t tell the full story of how much duress the QBs have been under. Eli Cox at center is experienced. Marques Cox at left tackle has a lot of experience as well. But right now, Kentucky has zero depth at tackle and has gone with freshman Malachi Wood earlier than planned and he’s struggled in pass protection.
Edge – Texas **
TEXAS PASS OFFENSE vs KENTUCKY PASS DEFENSE
Kentucky ranks third in the SEC in pass defense, giving up just 188.5 yards per game, but the Wildcats are actually 12th in the league in pass efficiency so the numbers are a bit mismatched. Losing cornerback Max Hairston to injury for a big chunk of the season was a big blow. Safety Jordan Lovett had a couple of picks last weekend. Kentucky’s strategy is to keep things in front and, take away the explosive plays. That same approach worked pretty well for Arkansas and Vandy against Texas, but the problem is that Kentucky hasn’t taken away enough explosive plays.
Edge – Texas *
TEXAS RUN OFFENSE vs KENTUCKY RUN DEFENSE
Kentucky’s run defense has kind of cratered towards the end of the season as as the team has gone downhill. The Wildcats are really big up front and have shown that they can stop the run if they’re dialed in but they haven’t always been locked in of late. Kentucky is banged up at linebacker, including losing D’Eryk Jackson, one of their best players, for the year.
Edge – Texas *
TEXAS OFFENSIVE LINE vs KENTUCKY DEFENSIVE LINE
Deone Walker hasn’t had great stats this year, but he has to be accounted for. He can have splash plays and create havoc on any given snap. Tre’vonn Rybka has had a strong season and could get looks in the NFL. Kentucky is very experienced along its D-line, but running a base 3-4 alignment, the linemen aren’t really designed to put up a ton of stats. Regardless, this is a group with a lot of talent.
Edge – Texas *
SPECIAL TEAMS
Kicker Alex Raynor has been perfect and he’s been good for the past few years so it’s not a fluke. He’s 15-15 this year, including two over 50 yards and four over 40 yards. Kentucky gets the edge at punter while the return games are basically a wash overall, although Brown is an electric return man capable of breaking a big one if given a crease.
Edge – Kentucky *
