Kentucky vs Tennessee
When: Saturday, Nov. 12th
Where: Knoxville, Tenn. (Neyland Stadium)
Kentucky at a glance
Head coach: Mark Stoops (4th year, 17-31)
Conference: SEC
All-time record: 592-606–44
2015 results: 5-7
Record against Tennessee: 24-78-9; Last meeting was a 52-21 victory for Tennessee in Lexington last season
2015 Overview: It was more of the same last season for Kentucky. The Wildcats got off to a hot start, beginning the season 4-1 with two conference victories mixed in. Then the wheels fell off, and Kentucky lost six of its last seven games to finish a game shy of bowl qualification for the second straight season.
The Wildcats had a decent offense last season, and they return some key contributors from that unit, specifically at the skill positions. Kentucky ran the ball effectively and had some dangerous weapons in the pass game. But the Wildcats’ passing attack was inefficient and turned the ball over far too often. Throw in an overall weak defense, and it’s easy to see why the Wildcats struggled.
The 2016 team will return many of the same pieces from last year with some notable exceptions. Kentucky will be starting a new quarterback in Drew Barker after Patrick Towles transferred to Boston College, and the defense will have to fill a few holes as well.
Will 2016 be different for the Wildcats? Or will they fail to make a bowl yet again? If it’s the latter, Mark Stoops’ job may be in trouble.
Three questions for this game:
1. How beat up will Kentucky be?
If you remember back to 2014, the Vols defeated Kentucky 50-16 in what was an unexpected blowout in Neyland Stadium. The two teams seemed more evenly matched than the final score indicated. But the beatdown made more sense when you looked at each team’s schedule and realized the Vols had just come off a bye week and Kentucky was playing its 8th consecutive game. This year the Wildcats will have just played games against Mississippi State, Missouri, and Georgia before taking on the Vols. How healthy or worn out they are should play a factor again. The Vols have a manageable stretch with a bye, South Carolina and Tennessee Tech proceeding this game, so they may hold the edge in this area this year.
2. Can the Wildcats keep up?
The Vols have put up 50 or more points on the Wildcats the last two meetings, and that could very well happen again this year. Kentucky’s defense doesn’t look very much improved from last year, and Tennessee’s offense could be even better than last year. Throw in the fact that this game is in Neyland, and it could be ugly quick. Kentucky’s likely only shot at pulling out a victory in this one will be to make it a shootout. But Tennessee’s defense will have something to say about that.
3. Will the Vols keep the streak alive?
Aside from that disastrous 2011 loss, the Vols haven’t suffered a defeat at the hands of the Wildcats since 1984. The 1984 season was also the last time the Vols lost to Kentucky in Neyland. The Vols currently have a four-game winning streak built up over Kentucky, and they’ll want to extend that to five by the time the Wildcats visit Neyland this year. Tennessee doesn’t make it a habit of losing to Kentucky, and they don’t want to start this year.
How do we expect it to play out?
It’s really tough to pick this one to go any other way than Tennessee’s based on what we know right now. The Wildcats may or may not have improved, and the Vols certainly look like they have. Unless the Wildcats have some hidden gems up their sleeve on defense or the offense turns into a juggernaut, it’s hard to see this going their way at all.
What’s more likely is that the Vols end up with another one-sided victory that furthers their win streak over the Wildcats. Unless the Vols have sustained some major injuries at this point, it should end with Tennessee picking up its 31st win in 32 attempts over Kentucky.
