QUICK TAKES: Georgia 35, Kentucky 14
In our regular postgame feature, the Cats Illustrated staff offers its first impressions from Kentucky’s 35-14 loss on Saturday at Georgia…
JUSTIN ROWLAND:
This was a lackluster, depressing day for the Kentucky football program. An early game in Athens where the stadium was less than its best, but Kentucky never really tested UGA. The passing game produced a little bit, but that’s a moral victory when you look at the score. Kentucky’s offense never fares well against Georgia, and today was no exception. Defensively, they weren’t good enough to make it one of those ugly games in a phone booth that at least make it more interesting. Kentucky football is just in a flat-out bad spot. This team doesn’t have an identity and doesn’t have enough standouts. There’s no solution in sight, and running it back next year comes with its own set of challenges and problems. This week, we’ll get into some of the small positives they could try to build on, but Texas and Tennessee, the next couple of games probably won’t be forgiving.
JEFF DRUMMOND:
This game was a foregone conclusion before it ever kicked off. Only the final score remained in question, and that brings us to where the Kentucky program currently finds itself: completely uncompetitive in the SEC. The Wildcats have won only one league game in their last 13 attempts. Unlike last season, when UK went 1-7 in the SEC, the Cats do not have the defensive personnel to keep games close and give themselves a chance to win if the offense finds a way to score 20-plus points. It takes 30-plus now, and the UK offense just isn’t equipped to do that. We saw a few flashes of potential from Cutter Boley, the tight ends had a nice day, and Cameron Miller emerged as a wide receiver who deserves more reps, but it’s not enough to give Big Blue Nation any hope of winning a P4 game this season. Texas and Tennessee are up next, and you may very well see more orange at Kroger Field than blue.