Kentucky Football Midseason Stat Snapshot

Kentucky has not quite reached the second half of the 2025 season, but in the middle of the second bye week, it’s worth taking the time to evaluate the numbers the Wildcats have put on the field so far.

The Cats are 2-3 and winless in SEC play. As you might suspect, the numbers aren’t great. Let’s take a deeper dive into the good and the bad from all three phases.

Good: Tight End Play

Josh Kattus and Willie Rodriguez each have 9 receptions for 141 yards, while the former has two touchdowns to Rodriguez’s one. The two have proven to be some of the team’s most reliable pass-catchers. They’re currently on pace to combine for about 40 receptions, 675 yards, and 7 touchdowns.

That type of production in the passing game has not been seen in the Mark Stoops era. It reached a peak in CJ Conrad‘s final season when he caught 30 passes for 318 yards and three touchdowns. This year’s tandem should approach the production we saw from Jacob Tamme in his final season at Kentucky, when he had 56 receptions for 619 yards and six touchdowns.

Bad: Kentucky Pass Defense

The Wildcats’ bend, don’t break operation has been way too malleable. Kentucky is allowing 8.3 yards per passing attempt, ranking last in the SEC. If you’re bad against the pass, it means you’re probably allowing opponents to convert on third down. Kentucky’s third-down defense (42.86%) ranks 13th in the SEC and 98th in the FBS.

Kentucky has given up nine passes of 30+ yards, ranked 15th in the SEC and tied for 105th nationally. If you prefer advanced stats, Kentucky ranks No. 81 in EPA and No. 89 in success rate against the pass.

Good: Alex Afari

The Kentucky linebacker ranks third in the SEC in tackles with 37. Alex Afari also has a sack and 3.5 tackles for loss.

Bad: Tackling

In five games, Kentucky has missed 57 tackles, according to PFF. That’s 11.4 missed tackles per game. Many of those missed tackles are in space, allowing opponents to turn short passes into big gains. Kentucky has allowed 692 yards after the catch, which is 55.6% of the receiving yards the Cats have allowed this season.

Advanced Stats Breakdown

Good: Seth McGowan

The Kentucky running back turned heads as soon as he stepped on campus. Seth McGowan has lived up to the hype. He’s currently ranked fourth among all SEC running backs with 431 yards (5.46 yards per carry) and seven touchdowns. He’s on pace to eclipse 1,000 rushing yards this fall.

Bad: The Kentucky Passing Attack

There are 136 FBS teams and Kentucky’s passing attack ranks No. 125 in EPA (-33.11) and No. 124 in success rate (36%). The Wildcats average 172.2 passing yards per game, which is dead-last in the SEC and No. 116 nationally. Kentucky has four passing touchdowns this fall. Only 13 schools have fewer. Cutter Boley is completing 57.1% of his passes, the lowest among all eligible SEC quarterbacks.

Good: Special Teams

Kentucky currently has the ninth-ranked special teams unit in the SP+ power rankings. The first significant blip was at Georgia when Jacob Kauwe missed his first field attempt of the year. The redshirt freshman placekicker is 8-9 with three makes of 40+ yards, including a 51-yarder. His kicking counterpart, Aidan Laros, ranks 12th nationally with an average of 46.33 yards per punt.

Bad: Red Zone Touchdowns

When your offense struggles to move the football, you cannot miss an opportunity to put six on the board when you reach the red zone. Kentucky has 12 touchdowns in 19 red zone appearances (63.16), which ranks 14th in the SEC.