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Before this season, when most people thought of Kentucky football and its direction, there was not much to think about.
The Wildcats have been a negligible factor to the SEC for most of the past forty years, and there was no reason to believe anything could change this season.
At that time, most Kentucky fans eagerly await Midnight Madness and the start of another successful basketball season.
Arriving in the sixth season of the Mark Stoops era, focused primarily on the mediocre and mediocre events of the past two seasons, it would not have been an exaggeration to say that Stoops was training for his work, even if contract extension at the end of last season, which could keep him in school until 2022.
But Stoops has regularly accumulated talent, ranking among the top 40 recruiting categories in each of the past six years. It is finally taking shape, as Kentucky has been one of the biggest surprises of the season.
First, the Wildcats beat Florida in Gainesville to defeat 31 defeats against the Gators. Two weeks later, they closed a Mississippi team considered a competitor.
And now, after defeating South Carolina 24-10, in a sloppy and penalized affair, Kentucky is 5-0 for the first time since 2007 and got its first 3-0 start in SEC since 1977.
Offensive pre-season rider Benny Snell continued to climb his Heisman roster for 99 yards. The Cats used a dominant defensive performance to beat the Gamecocks for the fifth consecutive season.
South Carolina quarterback Jake Bentley had his worst game of the year with just 13 of 28 attempts for 148 yards, including 58 on a touchdown pass to Deebo Samuel. He was also kidnapped three times.
Kentucky succeeds in the most basic way: a good racing game and an opportunistic defense.
Snell is the protagonist of the attack, and opposing defenses have not yet found a way to shut him up despite the UK's limitations in the passing game. By participating in Saturday's game, the Wildcats placed at the bottom of the FBS standings in explosive games, with only 10 games for 20 yards or more.
Despite the start of the match at 5-0, Kentucky must show improvement in the game of passes and reduce the mistakes it wants to be a true contender for Georgia in the SEC East. The Wildcats had only 132 passing yards and were scored 11 times for 115 yards on Saturday, putting the attack in long downhill and distance position.
Although quarterback Terry Wilson is in good shape, the attack is not designed to come from behind and these limits could cause problems later in the season. Wilson completes more than 67% of his passes, but averages six meters per attempt.
Although Kentucky led the entire game against the Gamecocks, it had only 72 yards in the second half, including -3 yards in the fourth quarter. The Wildcats also failed to convert one of their six chances to third.
The defense has limited the big game so far this season, dropping only 13 games 20 yards or more. And Saturday, South Carolina was ranked 5th to 15th in the third place after coming into play after allowing opponents to convert 45% of those attempts.
The most revealing stat was the penultimate possession of South Carolina. He had the ball for 20 games and won 71 yards, chewing more than seven minutes of the clock, but Bentley was intercepted in the end zone three minutes from the end. The Gamecocks QB did not resume the game after sustaining a leg injury.
Kentucky has some possible pitfalls in its upcoming schedule, including trips to Texas A & M next Saturday and Missouri on October 27th. If that succeeds, Georgia, number 2, will come to Lexington the following week for what would be a huge fight. No matter what happens against the Bulldogs, do not get me wrong, these Wildcats are equipped to win double-digit games and compete for a major auction.
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