How dangerous is Tennessee Tech?

Earlier in the season when things looked very bleak for Kentucky football there were a lot of whispers about how tricky the Tennessee Tech game could be.

Now that Kentucky seems to be on a better footing with two straight SEC wins and the look of a much improved team there has been less talk of this as a trap game. But it’s still an extremely important game. While many have rightly pointed out the vast difference between 5-7 and 7-5, we can’t take for granted that the Cats will get to No. 5 this weekend.

Kentucky is currently a 21.5-point favorite with the game in Lexington and that’s much more in the Wildcats’ favor than it would have been if the last two weeks had been losses.

Cutter Boley has strung together enough quality performances over a period of time that it’s fair to expect him to play well enough to win the game. The offensive line had maybe its best game of the season against Florida and has done well against opponents outside of power conferences this year. Tennessee Tech is a division lower than those MAC teams.

But there is a reason some around the program would look to the Tennessee Tech game as a potential trap. They’re playing at a very high level and not just winning but doing so in dominant fashion.

The Golden Eagles were 7-5 last season but have raced to a perfect 10-0 record out of the gate.

Tech is winning games by an average score of 45.2 to 15.3. The team is outgaining its opponents 451-279 yards per game. At the same time, the last two weeks have been as tough as it has been for Tennessee Tech. The Eagles beat Gardner Webb 27-21 two weeks ago and battled to a 21-9 win at Eastern Illinois over the weekend. That’s an impressive season, no doubt, and teams favored by three touchdowns lose every season. But the standard for being a dominant team at a level below the power conferences is different than for being one that is prepared to win on the road against an SEC team.

Tech linebacker Theron Gaines won conference Defensive Player of the Week honors last week so he’s someone to watch. He had 11 tackles, two sacks, and scored a touchdown. He has been one of the top players on the defense this season.

Tech was in control against Eastern Illinois the entire time, carrying a 14-0 lead into the second quarter and a 21-3 lead up until the last minute of the game.

The win against Gardner Webb was much more difficult. Tech hadn’t been tested much to that point in the season and even at 8-0 found itself down 14-3 in the second quarter. But from that point forward Tech dominated the action. The defense shut down the Gardner Webb offense for a couple of quarters and gave the offense some short fields.

The defense is what has carried for the Golden Eagles this year. At their level of play, that defense has frequently been the best unit in the game. The offense has put up numbers at times but the bigger concern for Kentucky would be lackadaisical or sloppy play leading to turnovers that could create an uncomfortable game.

The single best thing Tennessee Tech does collectively as a team is stop the run. The Eagles allow only 60.9 yards per game on the ground so establishing the run will be a test. Opponents only convert 30% of third down opportunities against Tech.

Offensively Tech is balanced against its schedule and averages 215 yards per game on the ground. It’s not clear how much success former Eastern Washington quarterback Kekoa Visperas will have against an SEC defense that is playing as well as Kentucky’s is.

Tennessee Tech head coach Bobby Wilder is an experienced veteran in the profession having spent many years at Old Dominion and finding great success there many years. But given Mark Stoops’ record in games against non-power conference or FCS teams Kentucky is a decided favorite for good reason.

The worst case scenario that could make the game tricky would be if Tennessee Tech can execute efficiently enough to keep Kentucky’s defense on the field more than Stoops would like while a lackadaisical offense makes mistakes and allows the Eagles to capitalize with their scrappy defense.