LIVE BLOG: Kentucky vs. South Carolina

That’s All Folks!

Make it Stop!

This fourth quarter is dragging. South Carolina is in cruise control. Let’s get this game over and get the hell out of the Palmetto State.

Touchdown, South Carolina

That oughta do it. South Carolina went 84 yards on 8 plays, sparked by a 59-yard reception, to score their third offensive touchdown on the night. The Gamecocks lead 35-10 with 12 minutes to play.

Just a Field Goal

Jacob Kauwe stayed perfect with his second made field goal of the day. Some may wonder why Kentucky elected to kick a field goal when trailing by 18, but instead of going for it on fourth and 6, the Cats made it a two-possession game. The fourth quarter is about to begin and the offense still has a lot of work to do.

FAKE PUNT!

The defense isn’t quitting. A South Carolina penalty and a Tavion Gadson sack backed up the Gamecocks by a mile, but Shane Beamer stayed aggressive.

On fourth and 12, they called a fake punt pass. The receiver was wide open, but Kentucky was prepared for it. The player was tackled right near the sticks. Initially, it was ruled a South Carolina first down, but the review showed that the ball never reached the line to gain. Kentucky gets it at the 40-yard line.

Pressbox Drama!

Kentucky got a couple of first downs, then tried a reverse flea-flicker that was snuffed out immediately. It got them behind the sticks, where Boley was sacked on a 3rd and 12.

After the sack, somebody sitting in the pressbox applauded. That’s something you’re not supposed to do. The South Carolina SIDs responded immediately and asked the couple to leave. “No cheering in the pressbox” is a rule you rarely see enforced to this degree, but the guy didn’t look like he was a working journalist.

Kentucky gets a Stop!

Things looked dire when the South Carolina tight end hurdled a Kentucky defender on the first play of the second half. That’s when Mi’Quise Humphrey-Grace blew up a running play. The Cats got a pair of TFLs that set up a third and long. Sellers’ pass was thrown behind the target and dropped. Kentucky gets the ball at the 20-yard line.

Halftime Stats

South Carolina gets the ball first. Let’s see if this team shows some resolve.

That Might be the Dagger (and it’s not halftime)

LaNorris Sellers somehow spun out of a tackle and ran 17 yards down the field. He’s a projected first round draft pick for a reason. Faison scored from six yards out on the next play.

Kentucky is trailing 28-10, and South Carolina gets the ball first to start the second half. If the Fat Lady hasn’t started singing, she’s warming up her vocal cords.

Cutter is Spiraling

It’s plain as day. Cutter Boley is rattled. That sequence of defensive touchdowns has him shook. On third and long, he held onto the ball too long. By the time he released it, he was getting rocked. The ball floated up in the air, and South Carolina’s Brandon Cisse ran under it to give the ball to the Gamecocks near midfield.

Boley is now 4-11 for 80 yards and two interceptions. He hasn’t completed a pass further than 6 yards down the field.

Humphrey-Grace Takes Points Off the Scoreboard

Adam Luckett told you that Mi’Quise Humphrey-Grace was going to make an impact on this game. He just took three points out of South Carolina’s hands.

On third and long, Brad White dialed up the blitz, and Humphrey-Grace was the first to get to Sellers. Not only did he get his hands on him, he didn’t let go and drove him back what felt like 20 yards. It took the Cocks out of field goal range and forced them to punt the ball away.

The defense lent the offense a hand. They have 5 minutes to try to go 95 yards to stop a leak in the dam.

Stopped on 4th Down

South Carolina is getting aggressive on first down, bringing the blitz to stymy the Kentucky running attack, and it’s working well. It’s going to force UK to throw the football, and that’s where things are incredible shaky right now.

On third and short, Cutter Boley lost the ball in his back-swing. He was able to catch it, but Kentucky had to go for it on fourth down. His first read wasn’t open, and the second was caught by Fred Farrier out of bounds.

Kentucky is in the danger zone and the offense is running out of options after two game-changing turnovers.

Another Catastrophe

Cutter’s next pass attempt had a similar result. This time his wide receiver tipped the ball, and it went directly to the South Carolina safety, who returned it for a touchdown. Gloom. Despair. Agony.

There’s the Catastrophe

You could feel the importance of the 3rd and 7 play-call. It went even worse than anyone could’ve possibly expected.

South Carolina dialed up a blitz. Dylan Stewart was untouched on the twist inside and the future NFL draft pick teed off on Boley. The ball popped loose and Shiyazh Pete couldn’t fall on it. The Gamecocks ran 41 yards down the field for the touchdown.

We knew this game would feature couple of huge swing plays. This is the first.

Kentucky Avoids Catastrophe

The Cats forced South Carolina into a place where nobody wants to be: third and long. Brad White dialed up a blitz and it was perfect, until it wasn’t.

Jordan Lovett had Sellers dead to rights but couldn’t tackle him. Two others were there, but Sellers escaped. Fortunately, JQ Hardaway was patient and forced Sellers to prematurely slide before reaching the first down marker. The Gamecocks elected to punt and the ball was shanked after only flying 16 yards down the field.

The Cats are in Gamecock territory after two plays. South Carolina’s top DT is down with an injury.

First Quarter Ends: Kentucky 10, South Carolina 7

The Gamecocks will begin the second quarter with the ball on their own 38-yard line, second-and-10.

Bush Got in his Bag

The Wildcats were in dire straits. Facing a 3rd and 2, it felt like South Carolina was going to steal the momentum of the game with a stop. That’s when Bush Hamdan took the gloves off.

Kentucky got into a big set, then hurried quickly from the huddle to the line of scrimmage. The defense was expecting a run up the middle. Instead, the play-action fooled everyone and Willie Rodriguez was WIDE OPEN. Unfortunately, he couldn’t win the foot race, but gained 53 yards before getting tackled just outside of the red zone.

Kentucky got into a goal-to-go situation. Cutter had two opportunities to find the end zone. On the first, he couldn’t find a man open. On the next snap, pressure got to him, forcing the Cats to make a chip shot field goal.

Touchdown, South Carolina

The Gamecocks’ opening script has been solid all year. They’ve struggled once they get out of it.

Kentucky had a chance to terminate the drive when the Gamecocks went to it on 4th and 3. UK dropped 8, but LaNorris Sellers found an open man 10 yards down the field. A Sellers scramble got them inside the red zone on a third down. Carolina fans booed after every single run play, except the one that worked, a 12-yard touchdown by Rahsul Faison.

WATCH OUT!

It looked like McGowan was trying to launch the ball into the bushes. Instead, he beaned a fan with the ball.

Run the Damn Ball for a Touchdown

The Cats wanted the ball because they wanted to run all over South Carolina. Kendrick Law took a pop pass 11 yards. Every other yard on that drive was on the ground. Dante Dowdell converted on a third and short, while Seth McGowan provided the electricity on runs of 4, 18, and the 20-yard touchdown. He celebrated his seventh touchdown of the season by throwing the ball into the stands.

Kentucky Did Something Unusual

Kentucky won the coin toss and asked for the ball first. I can’t remember Mark Stoops ever not deferring to the second half. He’s confident in his offense. Let’s see what Cutter’s got.

New Start Time

The game is being moved up to a 7:49 PM ET start on ESPNews. You can also watch it on the ESPN app. Adjust accordingly.

Hootie Time!

Don’t remember this being a thing during previous trips to Williams-Brice, but with just a little more than 20 minutes prior to kick off, the lights dimmed and Darius Rucker came through the speakers. They got the whole crowd singing along to “Hold My Hand!” as the rain starts to fall. The pregame festivities are officially rocking and rolling. Time to lock in.

Looks Like Kickoff is Delayed

The clock will not expire for 35 minutes. That means we’re looking at a 7:55 PM ET kickoff while we wait for Tennessee and Mississippi State to reach a conclusion.

The Wait is the Hardest Part

How do we still have more than 30 minutes until kickoff??!?!? The specialists are on the field, but full warm-ups have yet to commence. The way this game in Starkville is trending, the action might not even begin on the SEC Network.

Fortunately, the folks at South Carolina took care of us upstairs. Had some Carolina Gold BBQ with green beans, mac and cheese, and some banana pudding for desert. Shout out to banana pudding. It deserves respect for its consistency.

Final Availability Report

Quarterback Zach Calzada was removed from the availability report ahead of tonight’s game against South Carolina.

Poop Mane!

Former Kentucky Wildcat CJ Johnson returned to his hometown, “The armpit of the SEC,” to watch the Cats take on the Cocks. Johnson cut his teeth in the JUCO ranks before transferring to Kentucky ahead of the 2014 season. He became a viral sensation, thanks to an interview with Alan Cutler, where he attributed his offseason weight loss to taking multiple poops a day.

The Poops paid off. Defensive tackles shouldn’t lead a defense in tackles, but he did just that with 67 in 2015. His teammate, Farrington Huguenin, spent years on NFL practice squads. Now they’re back to where they helped Stoops secure his first SEC road win.

Live from the pregame scenes and tailgate

KSR went live from outside Williams-Brice Stadium to capture the pregame atmosphere around the Cat Walk.

Welcome to Williams-Brice

Tailgaters were surprisingly greeted with sunshine when they arrived at Williams-Brice Stadium. Forecasts called for a greater than 90% chance of rain. Downpours have been delayed, so far. Instead, it’s just hot and muggy.

Admittedly, it feels like a lighter crowd than normal for this matchup before Kentucky and South Carolina. Three hours before kickoff, the outside of the stadium is typically full of traffic. It’s much thinner than normal, even though we’ve got a sell-out for tonight’s game. The team will arrive shortly. I’ll see y’all after the Cat Walk.