After Saturday's second half implosion against Southern Miss, it's going to be tough to get fans to even watch the Cats take on Florida, let alone believe there's actually a chance to pull out a win in the Swamp. That being said,
I found a few promising tweets throughout the past couple of days that may make you feel at least a little bit better about the Cats heading to Gainesville this Saturday at 3:30 p.m.
https://twitter.com/Beisner_cn2/status/772823097107963904
10-1 on September 10, you say? In the past, UK has played some bunnies early on in the season, but a good chunk of those were against above-average competition. Certainly bodes well, doesn't it?
https://twitter.com/kbernhardKSR/status/773161064385114112
https://twitter.com/KySportsRadio/status/773224603514568704
This is a two-for-one special, as both essentially state the same thing. As we know, UK went into Columbia last season and knocked off South Carolina to start the year 2-0, moving that weird streak to 18 straight years with a win in the second game of the season. This test will be a little bit tougher than South Carolina was last year, but numbers don't lie, right?
Let's go for #19.
https://twitter.com/jenheraldleader/status/772276345183305728
Let's be honest here:
no one in their right mind is expecting a win over Florida this weekend, even those with a hint of optimism are getting scoffed at right now. So how "Kentucky football" would it be to lose at home in the season opener against a freaking Conference-USA team in Southern Miss, and then come back the next week and beat Florida for the first time in 9432324 years in the Swamp?
When you think about this game in retrospect,
Florida isn't the same formidable team it was just seven or eight years back, when 63-5 trouncings were absolutely normal, even considering their SEC Championship game appearance last season. UK has managed to keep it
ridiculously close with the Gators in past two years, including the time UK actually beat them in 2014:
And when a Dorian Baker drop in the end zone could've sealed a win the following year.
Last week, Florida only managed to put up 24 points on UMass, a team that has managed just an
8-41 record over its last four seasons. Their "star-studded" running back corps managed just 96 yards amongst four players, with no run reaching over eleven yards. At half time, the Florida lead was just 10-7, and their third quarter was eerily comparable to Kentucky's, where the Gators managed just 11 plays and 33 yards total with zero added points on the board. In fact, many analysts across the nation thought the game was an upset in the making until the Gators managed to put up 14 points in the fourth quarter to seal the victory.
It was a win nonetheless, but boy was it ugly.
If we take a look at UK's first half against Southern Miss, the numbers Kentucky managed to put up were astounding. 387 yards in the first half, Barker with 287 yards in the air with four touchdowns, Garrett "Juice" Johnson with two receiving touchdowns, etc. It was without a doubt the best half in the Mark Stoops era, as both sides of the ball managed to put a world of hurt on the Golden Eagles. If UK could manage to put up even
65-70% of that output for two consecutive halves, the
Wildcats would be able to knock off a whole lot of teams in the country, Florida included.
Am I calling for an upset in Gainesville this Saturday?
No, not exactly. But given the recent battles between UK and Florida, the talent gap closing ever-so-slightly, and the historic significance, I wouldn't be surprised to see the streak coming to an end in the most "Kentucky football" way possible.
A win would be incredible, but more than anything, I just want something to erase that second half against Southern Miss from my memory.
@JackPilgrimKSR
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