If you’re going to be a good team, no matter the sport, you need to have an identity. There needs to be something that you do really, really well and can lean on when times get tough. For Mark Stoops and the University of Kentucky Wildcat football team, the 2016 football season has become all about the power running game. With Boom Williams, Benny Snell and the almost forgotten JoJo Kemp, the Wildcats have one of the more potent running attacks in the SEC.
Against the Missouri Tigers this past Saturday, the Wildcats ran the ball 59 times for 377 yards and 3 TDs. That’s an eye-popping 6.4 yard per carry average. While Mizzou isn’t the most stout defense in the conference, when was the last time Kentucky was that physically dominant over an SEC opponent? Snell rushed 38 times for 192 yards and 2 touchdowns. Williams had 19 rushes for 182 and a TD. Those performances led to the Cats converting 10 out of 18 third downs and led the Cats to win the time of possession battle by a nearly 2-to-1 margin (39:36 – 20:24). And that is how you win ballgames in the SEC.
The Wildcats are now 5-3 overall and 4-2 in the SEC, good for second place in the Eastern Division. With winless Austin Peay on the schedule, the Cats are poised to return to a bowl game for the first time in six seasons. Right now, Kentucky has a chance to really make some noise. The Georgia game (at home) and the Tennessee game (on the road) are both winnable. If Coach Stoops can win one or both of those games and finish the season in second place, the program can do more than just take a step forward. The Wildcats can take a quantum leap forward in their quest to move up the ladder in the vaunted SEC.
Since losing to Florida, the Cats have done something that has eluded Coach Stoops since he arrived in town: beating the teams that you should beat. And he’s done that. We can focus on the quality of the SEC teams that Kentucky has beaten this year with is a valid opinion. However, when was the last time Kentucky won 4 out of 5 SEC games? And when you factor in that the lone loss was to top-ranked Alabama, it’s hard to not think that this team has turned the corner. If the Cats can beat Georgia and rival Tennessee, Mark Stoops should be in the running for SEC Coach of the Year. After the first two games of the season, the fact that 8 wins is now possible is very close to miracle status. And it’s been a long time since college football has seen an in-season turnaround quite like this.
With Georgia coming to town this Saturday, Commonwealth Stadium should be packed. It’s a chance for the Big Blue Nation to support this team as it continues to grow. The famed UK Air Raid may be long gone, but if the Boom and Benny Show can get the Cats to the SEC Promised Land, I’m not sure the BBN will mind.
