Kentucky Defense Didn't Make Crucial Plays vs. Tennessee

by:Nick Roush•10/29/23•

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It was a rough night for the Kentucky defense. The Tennessee Volunteers scored on the fifth snap of the game and in each of their first five possessions. Brad White‘s group did not make Tennessee punt until the opening drive of the third quarter.

Holding opponents to 30 points or less was a point of pride for this defense. They had one of the longest streaks in the nation. They’ve now allowed 30+ points in three straight contests.

“We gotta keep fighting… Little plays in there, we gotta make and we didn’t tonight,” defensive coordinator Brad White said after the loss.

Josh Heupel‘s offense is averaging 40.6 points per game in three games against the Wildcats. This year the offensive explosiveness came on the ground. The Vols averaged 5.3 yards per carry to finish the night with 254 yards, most of which came after missed Kentucky tackles.

“That was frustrating. We had ’em,” said linebacker D’Eryk Jackson. “I was just shaking my head. There’s nothing you can really say about it. They were the better team tonight and they got the win.”

The strain is there. The work ethic is there. The Kentucky defense has shown it can be good, but right now they’re in a rut they can’t escape in crucial situations.

“This group wants to be good. They want to play good football. They want to make those plays,” said White. “Nobody’s going in there wanting to miss a tackle or wanting to fall down. The thing is in the game of football… it’s just a couple of plays. I think they’re all hurting because they all remember the plays they missed and they did poorly. We have to find a way to get it cleaned up and move on to next week.”

Next week Kentucky will travel to a place they have not won since 2008. They’ll face a quarterback, Mike Wright, that beat them a year ago in Lexington. The Kentucky defense must improve in a hurry or a similar story may unfold next Saturday in Starkville.

“The league’s crazy. We gotta keep building,” Jackson said. “Like coach said, we gotta be grown men and just keep going. We’re looking forward to next week.”