First Glance: Tennessee needs a bounce back win over Kentucky in ‘Border Bowl’
The Record
Tennessee (5-2, 2-2 SEC) @ Kentucky (5-2, 2-2 SEC)
The Coaches
Josh Heupel (3rd season, 23-10), Mark Stoops (11th season, 71-61)
The Line
Tennessee opens as a 3.5-point favorite on the road with the total sitting at 51.5 on Monday (FanDuel).
What’s at Stake?
Tennessee needs a bounce back win following a second-half collapse at Alabama where the program was outscored 27-0 in the final two quarters after leading 20-7 at the halftime break. The Vols need to find some success on the road as the program has now dropped four of their last five true-road games dating back to November 2022. More than anything, Tennessee needs history to continue. The Vols need to pick up their 84th win over Kentucky in what will be the 119th playing of the ‘Border Bowl.’ The Wildcats are also hungry for a win after dropping their past two ballgames following a 5-0 start. Mark Stoops and his staff will have had two weeks to prepare for the meeting and the Josh Heupel offense as both teams are looking for some separation in the SEC standings, going into the matchup with identical records.
The Kentucky Overview
Kentucky took advantage of a weak schedule out of the gate to start 4-0 and then ran the football with urgency in a convincing win over Florida. Since the good start, the Wildcats have fallen on tough times with a blowout loss to Georgia and a two-score defeat at home to Missouri. Numbers wise, it’s an improved offense under new (and former) offensive coordinator Liam Cohen, but the defense has taken a slight step back after finishing behind only Georgia and Alabama in points and total yards a season ago. The Wildcats are also dangerous on special teams with Tennessee native Barion Brown as a return man.
Kentucky Scout – Offense
Offensively, Cohen hasn’t yet tapped into the 2021 version of NC State transfer Devin Leary at quarterback just yet, but the offensive numbers are better in most regards. The group is scoring nine more points per game on average (31 ppg) compared to finishing last in the Southeastern Conference with 22 points a game in 2022. The Wildcats also finished last with 336 yards of total offense on average a season ago, but that total has grown to just 352 yards a game so far this year. Cohen calls plays for a unit that passes for 196 yards through the air and 155 yards on the ground a game with better protection up front.
Leary has been underwhelming to this point in the seasons after being one of the better signal-callers in the country back in 2021. That season for the Wolfpack, the quarterback threw for over 3,400 yards with 35 touchdowns to just five interceptions. Last season prior to injury, Leary guided NC State to a 4-1 record with 11 touchdowns in five games. Thus far into 2023, however, the transfer quarterback is completing only 54 percent of his passes for 1,377 yards with 14 touchdowns to seven interceptions.
“We just go out there ready to compete. We have game plans, and we are ready to go out and face any challenge,” defensive tackle Elijah Simmons said on preparing for Kentucky. “I think Kentucky has a great running back and offensive line core. We go out and prepare the same way that we do every other week.”
Coming into the season, the passing game was hyped for the Kentucky offense because of the addition of Leary to go along with talented wideouts such as Tayvion Robinson, Barion Brown and Dane Key. The former, who mainly plays out of the slot, is tied for the team-lead with 23 receptions for 338 yards and three touchdowns. Brown also has 23 catches for 276 yards with one touchdown on offense while Key has found the endzone twice on 17 receptions for 282 yards. Jordan Dingle has reeled in seven receptions at tight end while Josh Kattus has scored a pair of touchdowns on his four receptions from the same position.
Cohen and Stoops will deploy multiple tight ends into the game at one time and use the H-Back often for a run-game that has been impressive for Kentucky in 2023. Despite losing Chris Rodriguez and his 32 career rushing touchdowns, Vanderbilt transfer Ray Davis has been dynamite this season. The workhorse is second in the league with 781 rushing yards and leads the conference with 13 total touchdowns with five scores coming through the air. Highlighted by a 280-yard performance against Florida, Davis averages 111 rushing yards per game on seven yards a tote.
“Well you got to stop them early at the line of scrimmage. But their offensive line, their tight ends, they’re extremely physical. They do a really good job getting a hat on a hat. We got to be violent, we got to be disruptive,” Josh Heupel said Monday during his weekly press conference. “You got to have gap integrity between all their different personnel groupings, their shifts, their emotions. Got to do a great job communicating and being gapped out. At the end of the day when you meet the ball carrier, you got to do a great job of tackling too. (Davis is) extremely physical.”
The offensive line is greatly improved after allowing 42 sacks in 2023. This group, that benefited from the additions of three offensive linemen from the transfer portal, has improved that number to just 11 sacks allowed through seven games and blocks for a run game that averages 5.8 yards per carry. Veteran right guard Kenneth Horsay returned to action the last time out for Kentucky after missing five-straight games with an injury sustained during the season-opener. Coming into the season, Horsay had made 33-straight starts on the Kentucky offensive line.
Kentucky Scout – Defense
Defensively, Brad White’s group allows 27 points per game with an average of 346 yards given up. It’s susceptible through the air (251 yards) but stout against the run (95 yards) and the group has forced 11 turnovers while corralling the quarterback for 16 sacks. Despite being a sound unit in 2022, Kentucky finished the year with only 19 sacks. Through seven games, this Kentucky defense is already three away from that total in the multiple, 4-2-5 scheme.
Linebackers D’Eryk Jackson and Trevin Wallace are good in the middle. The former is tied for the team-lead with 44 tackles while both middle-layer defenders have combined for seven tackles for loss, two interceptions and two forced fumbles. Up front, JJ Weaver is talented off the edge with three sacks and 4.5 TFLs. In the interior, Deone Walker is a force with a team-high 3.5 sacks and 6.5 TFLs. Veterans Octavious Oxendine and Josiah Hays are also bigger bodies to move on the front line.
Cornerback Maxwell Hairston is tied for the most interceptions in the country with five in seven games. He’s also tied for the team-lead with linebacker D’Eryk Jackson with 44 tackles. STAR player Alex Afari has logged 30 tackles and recovered a fumble on the season while versatile Keaton Wade has a sack from the edge as well.
“A young corner that has been opportunistic. Made plays, when it’s been up in the air he’s gone up got it. Really nice job as a young player,” Heupel said of Hairston and the Kentucky defense. “Their front (is) big, strong, physical. 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.”
Kentucky Scout – Special Teams
Barion Brown is a good player and one that Tennessee must be aware of on special teams this Saturday. Splitting time with fellow receiver Tayvion Robinson as the squad’s punt returners, Brown has returned three for an average of 17 yards and a long of 36 yards. He’s returned one kick for a 99-yard touchdown this season while averaging 30 yards a return. Kicker Alex Raynor has made all six of his field goals this season (50-yard LONG) while punter Wilson Berry has logged six punts of 50+ yards an trapped seven punts inside the opponent’s 20-yard line.
“Playing a really good Kentucky team that has had two weeks of preparation coming off of an extremely physical football team on both sides of the line of scrimmage offensively,” Heupel concluded. “You look at their ability to rush the football, their efficiency in the play-action pass, it’s huge challenge for us defensively. Offensively, they’re extremely good against the run and extremely physical up front. So it will be a huge test. And special teams will be a big part of it too.”
The post First Glance: Tennessee needs a bounce back win over Kentucky in ‘Border Bowl’ appeared first on On3.
