The days of three yards and a cloud of dust are long gone in the SEC.
But Saturday’s matchup between Kentucky and Tennessee in Lexington is poised to be a battle of run first offenses that pride themselves on physicality.
Kentucky’s offense resembles a SEC offense from the three yards and a cloud of dust era. Offensive coordinator Liam Coen is back at Kentucky after leaving for a year in the NFL. The Wildcats use a pro style, under center offense. That doesn’t make it old school on its own but Kentucky’s passing game struggles have made them one dimensional and reliant on its down hill running game.
“Their offensive line, their tight ends, they’re extremely physical,” Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said on Monday. “They do a really good job getting a hat on a hat. We gotta be violent, we gotta be disruptive.”
While its passing attack has struggled mightily, Kentucky isn’t just dependent on its run game. Its run game is really good. According to PFF, the Wildcats boast the nation’s second best rushing attack behind only Oregon.
Kentucky’s offensive line has improved over last season but the success of the Wildcats rushing attack is largely due to star running back and Vanderbilt transfer Ray Davis.
“It’s one of the best rushing attacks in the country,” Tennessee inside linebacker’s coach Brian Jean-Mary said. “We thought Ray Davis was one of the better running backs in the conference last year when he was at Vanderbilt and he’s continued that over at Kentucky. They have a big, physical offensive line. Great blocking, athletic tight ends. They present a real challenge for us. By every measure you can imagine, they run the ball at a high clip and do it very very well. It’s kind of a perfect marriage with Ray Davis and their rushing attack. It’s a big challenge for us.”
Kentucky offensive line is physical and better run blocking than pass protecting. Davis’ style matches it. With 781 rushing yards in seven games this season, Davis is a “one cut, get down hill” runner according to Tennessee linebacker Aaron Beasley.
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Kentucky’s rushing attack versus Tennessee’s run defense is a battle of best versus best. According to College Football Graphs, Kentucky boasts the nation’s 10th best rushing attack and Tennessee boasts the nation’s 13th best run defense.
While under center, physical, run first offenses are rare in modern college football, Jean-Mary says the keys to slowing down Kentucky are the same as any other team.
“Even with the spread, I liken it to our offense. They (Tennessee) spread you out but you still have to meet and defeat blocks,” Jean-Mary said. “They (Kentucky) do it in a little bit of a different style because they’re a little bit more condensed and a little bit more downhill but at the end of the day we’re going to have to recognize formations and tackle well but the most important thing is we’re going to have to get off blocks.”
As Jean-Mary pointed out, Tennessee’s offense looks nothing like an old school offense. But these Vols pride themselves on physicality and running the football right at their opponents.
Tennessee’s offense has struggled finding consistency in its passing game this season. If the Vols’ rushing attack doesn’t get going, they’re prone for poor offensive performances.
Last week’s loss at Alabama was the first game this season that Tennessee couldn’t get its running backs going. According to College Football Graphs, Tennessee has the nation’s 17th best rushing attack and Kentucky has the nation’s 31st best run defense.
“Their front (is) big, strong, physical,” Heupel said of Kentucky’s defensive line. “They do a really good job of getting off the blocks, but their second level and third level fits are on point. So even if you block it clean inside the extra hats showing up quickly on you they’ve done a really good job of tackling that guy in space. We got to be extremely good up front. That’s the five guys. It’s the tight ends and we’re gonna have to run with a physical edge in this one.”
As Tennessee heads to Lexington looking for its first win. Physicality and the running game is extremely vital on both sides. It won’t look like 1994 but it might feel like it at times as two running teams collide.
Kickoff at Kroger Field is at 7 p.m. ET. Mike Monaco, Jesse Palmer and Katie Georgia are on the call for ESPN.
