Catastrophic second quarter leads to humbling loss for Kentucky

There was no hiding from the significance of Saturday’s game at Williams-Brice Stadium for the Kentucky football program. The Wildcats needed a win in a big spot in the worst way. Instead of leaving Columbia in celebration, this football team will be leaving with another double-digit loss in league play. Disaster struck on Saturday night.

Should four turnovers in a quarter of football even be possible? Should two of those turnovers turning into defensive touchdowns even be possible? Probably not but is what happened on Saturday night in a humbling 35-13 loss in front of 79,266 fans.

What’s next? This program could be looking at another very long season, but we have time later to address some of the big picture problems that come into focus now following the 2-2 (0-2) start for the Cats. For now, we’re reacting to what we saw play out at Williams-Brice Stadium.

Kentucky looks like a football that just isn’t good enough, and is definitely not good enough to overcome a minus-four turnover margin.

Kentucky’s fast start disappeared in the second quarter

Kentucky’s offense had two possessions in the first quarter. They went extremely well. The Cats scored 10 points, rolled up 141 yards (8.8 yards per play), posted a 56.2 percent success rate, and were in position to go win this football game.

Then everything crumbled.

Kentucky ran 26 plays across five possessions in the second quarter and gained just 55 yards on 2.1 yards per play. Those drives ended in a sack fumble, interception, turnover on downs, interception, and lost fumble. South Carolina turned the first two takeaways into a scoop-and-score fumble and a pick-six. The Gamecocks ultimately scored 19 points off the takeaways. This essentially ended the game.

SCOOP 'N SCORE pic.twitter.com/Brt3HW8ODK

— South Carolina Football (@GamecockFB) September 28, 2025

Kentucky went from a great position to trailing 28-10 at halftime. Things didn’t get much better in the second half with UK rolling up just 36 yards on 18 plays. The Cats did not respond well after adversity hit and it all started with a turnover avalanche.

Under offensive coordinator Bush Hamdan, Kentucky has scored two offensive touchdowns or less in 11 consecutive power conference games. They are simply not playing winning football despite Seth McGowan (17 carries, 112 yards, 1 touchdown) continuing his 1,000-yard pace. This group has a lot of problems right now that a quarterback change did not fix.

Kentucky could not slow down LaNorris Sellers

South Carolina quarterback LaNorris Sellers is showing up on mock drafts for a reason. The redshirt sophomore will be a first-round pick whenever he decides to leave college football for the NFL Draft. With the offense struggling under new offensive coordinator Mike Shula, Sellers has been asked to do more. He thrived on Saturday night.

Kentucky really didn’t have an answer for No. 16.

South Carolina’s offense scored 21 points in eight possessions with a nine-plus minute drive that nearly milked the entire game clock to end the fourth quarter. The Gamecocks struggled in the traditional run game (34 carries, 97 yards, 2.85 yards per rush) but this offense was able to move the football and post 5.4 yards per play because of Sellers.

The star quarterback completed 11-of-14 passes for 153 yards to go along with 98 non-sack rushing yards on 12 carries. Sellers extend numerous plays as he broke multiple tackles in the pocket to turn likely sacks into positive plays. The quarterback was superb in third down situations throughout the game as the Gamecocks finished 10-of-19 on third/fourth down. Sellers was responsible for five explosive plays and made things happen when South Carolina needed a play.

Kentucky’s defense was not responsible for giving up the two non-offensive touchdowns in the second quarter, but they lost in some key critical situations. The Cats did not force a takeaway and lost on third/fourth down more than they won. This unit also have some things to correct.

LaNorris Sellers was a star on Saturday night.

Kentucky’s bad streaks continue

Both teams in this Week 5 matchup entered this game with some bad streaks. South Carolina snapped their own ugly trend by scoring three offensive touchdowns in a game for the first time this season. Kentucky extended all of their bad trends.

• UK has not scored more than two offensive touchdowns in 11 consecutive power conference games.
• UK has lost eight consecutive power conference games with six losses by double-digits.
• UK is 1-11 in its last 12 games against power conference competition.
• UK has lost four consecutive games to South Carolina.
• UK has not scored more than two offensive touchdowns in this series since 2020.

The home losing streak was not extended, but this program has now lost four consecutive SEC road games all by double-digits since beating Ole Miss last season. Everything for Kentucky feels like it is heading in the wrong direction currently. Now the Cats will face three teams in October who are all in the College Football Playoff hunt.

Kentucky and South Carolina entered Week 5 with their backs against the wall. Both teams needed a win to prevent the season from spiraling. The Gamecocks ran away with a double-digit victory in a game that featured what many believe are the two worst teams in the SEC. The Cats are in a bad spot.

Mark Stoops and his program is in a hole? Can they climb out of it. A winless campaign in the SEC is certainly on the table now. This has always been the disaster scenario.

Disaster arrived for Kentucky football in Columbia in the biggest spot of the season. Is more disaster on the way?

Stay tuned.