WATCH: Referee call leads to Kentucky touchdown vs. Georgia defense
The Kentucky Wildcats joined an exclusive club late in the second quarter, becoming the third team to score a touchdown against the Georgia defense. Where Clemson, UAB, Vanderbilt and Arkansas failed, the Wildcats succeeded with an assist from the replay booth. Early in the drive, Kentucky had a controversial decision go their way when Will Levis faced pressure through the middle.
After Georgia’s defensive line broke through with a chance to sack Levis, the veteran quarterback swung his arm forward and dumped the ball toward his blocking tight end before hitting the ground. Initially, the play continued, leading to a Georgia recovery on what appeared to be a fumble.
However, after further review, the replay official determined that the quarterback’s arm was moving forward. That decision took Kentucky from a turnover to second-and-10. Levis capitalized on the second chance with a nine-yard completion on the following play.
Kentucky continued leaning on their versatile weapon Wan’Dale Robinson throughout the drive, calling his number twice before Chris Rodriguez Jr. took the Wildcats to the goal line. From there, Will Levis completed a one-yard touchdown pass to tight end Justin Rigg.
Kentucky trailed 14-7 against Georgia after the touchdown. The Bulldogs will receiver the second half kickoff, but the Wildcats have created a chance for themselves at the midway point.
Tim Tebow sees a chance for Kentucky
Kentucky’s pass offense is better this season than it was the past four seasons, when there was an extremely low bar. The Wildcats threw for a combined 4,913 yards in the past three seasons. Whereas SEC foes Alabama and Florida threw for 4,656 and 4,543, respectively, in 2020 alone.
“First of all they have to control the time of possession a little bit,” Tebow said. “Don’t let Georgia just Smash Mouth you and slowly beat you down, they’re really good at that. I will say this is where Wan’Dale Robinson has to be big. He is explosive just ask Florida. I mean he caught one screen and took it to the house. That was kind of the big play that changed the game besides the blocked field goal. I think he has to be big with the double moves down the field, play action and Will Levis has a big arm.”
He continued: “Maybe, if you’re Kentucky you do enough running to hold them accountable. But then where you think you have a chance to maybe make it a game is down the field on play action passes specifically to Wan’Dale Robinson. Because he’s one of the fastest guys in the SEC.”