Florida Hands Will Stein First Losing Streak as Head Coach at Kentucky

FINAL SCORE: Florida 21, Kentucky 14

Team Records and Series Information

– Kentucky is 7-3 overall, 5-3 in the Southeastern Conference. Florida is 6-4 overall, 4-4 in the league.
– Florida leads the series, 55-21, including 23-11 in games played in Lexington. (Series records do not include Kentucky win in 2021, later vacated by the NCAA.)
– Florida head coach Jon Sumrall, who played at Kentucky from 2001-04, is the fifth UK alumnus in the modern era to coach against his alma mater. Additional alumni and the schools they coached vs. UK are:
– Jerry Claiborne (UK 1946, 48-49), Virginia Tech and Maryland
-Charlie McClendon (UK 1949-50), LSU
– Howard Schnellenberger (UK 1952-55), Louisville and Florida Atlantic
– Doug Martin (UK 1981-84), Kent State and New Mexico State

Next Game

Kentucky has its final away game of the regular season and wraps up the SEC schedule Saturday at Missouri. Kickoff is set 7:30 p.m. Eastern time (6:30 p.m. Central time in Columbia) and will be televised on the SEC Network.

Team Notes

– On Kentucky’s first possession, the Wildcats drove 86 yards for a touchdown. It is the fourth time this season that UK drove for a touchdown on its first possession.
– Kentucky allowed only two points in the first half, fewest vs. Florida since 1988.
– Kentucky allowed 119 passing yards, fewest vs. Florida since 2011.
– Kentucky allowed 21 points or less in four straight home games vs. Florida. UK held the Gators to 21 or less in nine straight home games from 1917 to 1968.
– Kentucky tight ends totaled five catches for 62 yards.
– UK tight ends have totaled 69 receptions this season, the most in the first 10 games of a season since the tight ends caught 82 in the first 10 games of 2000.
– Turnovers telling the tale: during Kentucky’s six-game win streak, the Wildcats won or tied the turnover margin in every game. UK has lost the turnover margin the last two games.

Player Notes

– QB Kenny Minchey completed 15 of 26 passes for 181 yards and one touchdown.
He also burrowed one yard for a touchdown in the third quarter.
He is the first UK quarterback with a rushing and passing touchdown in the same game at home vs. Florida since Sawyer Smith in 2019.
– RB CJ Baxter rushed for 21 yards and also caught a 5-yard touchdown pass on Kentucky’s first possession. It is his first receiving TD of the season, second of his career.
– TE Willie Rodriguez caught five passes for 62 yards.
He is the first UK tight end in school history with at least five receptions in six straight SEC games.
He has caught at least five passes in the last six games. Last UK receiver to do that was Wan’Dale Robinson in 2021, who had an eight-game streak with at least five receptions.
He has caught 50 passes this season, most for a UK tight end in the first 10 games since James Whalen in 1999.
He has a reception in 22 of his last 23 games and in all 10 games this season.
– WR J. Miller snagged four passes for 80 yards. He averaged 20 yards per catch, best for a Wildcat vs. Florida (min. four catches) since Garrett Johnson averaged 25.7 yards per reception at Florida in 2014.
– WR Kenny Darby caught four passes for 25 yards.
He has 49 catches on the season, just one shy of the UK freshman record of 50 by Barion Brown in 2022.
He leads the Cats with 601 receiving yards this season. He needs 27 yards to tie Barion Brown for the UK single-season freshman record.
He has caught at least one pass in every game this
-LB Grant Godfrey led the Wildcats in tackles with a game-high 13 stops. It is his fifth double-figure tackle game of the season.
– CB Hasaan Sykes had three tackles and tied his career high for pass breakups with two.
– LB Lorenzo Cowan made four tackles, including his first quarterback sack of the season (-11 yards).
– Thomas O’Hara returned to punting duties tonight and kicked three times for a season-best 46.3-yard average, including a season-long 55-yarder.

Game Captains