Can Chris Rodriguez get away from the Missouri defense today and lead UK to victory? (Vicky Graff Photo)
Kentucky football came into this season thinking it could compete with Georgia for the SEC Eastern Division championship with a future first-round NFL draft pick at quarterback in Will Levis, a superstar running back in Chris Rodriguez and a veteran, deep linebacker group.
Instead, going into today’s game at Missouri the Cats are now 5-3 and just 2-3 in SEC play after getting destroyed 44-6 at Tennessee.
“We have to respond. It is a tough, competitive league. We know that going into it,” Kentucky coach Mark Stoops said. “The last time we lost a game (at Ole Miss), we lost two (South Carolina and we didn’t have our best effort after that (Ole Miss) loss.”
“There’s no hiding. It is what it is. Nobody is going to feel sorry for you. Missouri is hungry and we better be ready to play. There are a bunch of schools here not interested in going backwards. We are all interested in going forward.”
Kentucky had over 600 yards of total offense and scored 42 points against Tennessee in 2021. Last week it had 205 yards and scored just six points, a continuing trend of trouble generating offense against SEC foes this year.
“Obviously it has not been good enough at times,” Stoops said about the offense. “It is too inconsistent. We all know we need to play better and coach better and have a better competitive spirit about us.”
