Kentucky
Kentucky is 7-2, No. 11 in the CFP rankings, and No. 33 of 138 in the machine's ratings, 10.3 points better than an average FBS team. Last game: lost 34-6 at Tennessee in Week 10. The machine gives Kentucky a 45% chance to make the playoff.
Week 11: vs Florida, Saturday, Nov 14: the matchup, unit by unit
Why Kentucky is No. 33
- Kentucky's rating is 10.3: the machine's estimate that Kentucky is 10.3 points better than an average FBS team on a neutral field. That is No. 33 of 138. For scale, 0 is an average FBS team: right now the closest to it is No. 68 Arizona State (0.2).
- It started the season at 5.4, ESPN's preseason Football Power Index from July. Its results since have moved it up 4.9.
- The biggest weekly moves: +4.5 after Week 3 (W 31-21 at Texas A&M) and −2.8 after Week 2 (L 17-45 vs Alabama).
- Its record is 7-2. The 2 losses were to No. 2 Alabama, No. 10 Tennessee, by 28.0 points on average. The 7 wins came by 13.3 points on average; the best was over No. 3 LSU. The rating weighs how much a team won or lost by and against whom, not just the win-loss count.
- Its FBS opponents so far average No. 27 in the machine's ratings.
- Just above is No. 32 Florida State (10.3); just below is No. 34 Boise State (10.0).
The rating, week by week
Strengths and weak spots
Head coach
Will Stein is in his 1st season at Kentucky. This season: 7-2.
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Team stats
Season totals and averages over 9 games, each with its national rank among 138 FBS teams (No. 1 = best). The game-by-game story is in the season, week by week.
Passing
| Completions-attempts | 186-268 |
|---|---|
| Passing yards | 1979 |
| Touchdowns-interceptions | 14-2 |
| Yards per attempt* | 7.4No. 70 of 138 |
| Explosive pass rate | 10.5%No. 69 of 138 |
| Sacks allowed (rate) | 6.6%No. 97 of 138 |
Rushing
| Carries-yards | 315-1473 |
|---|---|
| Yards per carry | 4.7No. 48 of 138 |
| 10-plus-yard runs (rate) | 14.7%No. 53 of 138 |
| Stuffed at or behind the line (rate) | 16.4%No. 56 of 138 |
Scoring
| Points per game | 29.9No. 56 of 138 |
|---|---|
| Yards per play | 5.96No. 54 of 138 |
| Third-down rate | 34.9%No. 111 of 138 |
| Red-zone TD rate | 62.5%No. 58 of 138 |
| Giveaways | 8No. 26 of 138 |
Defense
| Points allowed per game | 25.8No. 76 of 138 |
|---|---|
| Yards per play allowed | 5.47No. 63 of 138 |
| Yards per pass attempt allowed | 6.8No. 51 of 138 |
| Yards per carry allowed | 3.9No. 57 of 138 |
| Sack rate | 5.7%No. 72 of 138 |
| Takeaways | 18No. 6 of 138 |
| Third-down rate allowed | 47.7%No. 132 of 138 |
Totals are the official box score. * Yards per attempt and the rates come from the play-by-play, where passing yards count on completions only, so they can differ from the box score by a play or two.
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Player leaders
The top 3 in each category over the same games. Passing yards count every completion (official box score).
Passing
- Kenny Minchey186-266, 1979 yds, 14 TD, 2 INT
Rushing
- CJ Baxter Jr.99 carries, 541 yds, 8 TD
- Jason Patterson78 carries, 473 yds, 3 TD
- Jovantae Barnes50 carries, 272 yds, 1 TD
Receiving
- Kenny Darby45 catches, 576 yds, 3 TD
- Willie Rodriguez45 catches, 405 yds, 3 TD
- DJ Miller22 catches, 244 yds, 1 TD
Tackles
- Grant Godfrey78
- Jordan Castell68
- Ty Bryant68
Sacks
- Mi'Quise Grace6
- Jamarrion Harkless3
- Tavion Gadson3
Interceptions
- Jordan Castell4
- Ty Bryant4
- Antwan Smith1
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Who's playing
Based on who has actually played this season, from the box scores, not the team's published depth chart. Each bar is that player's share of the team's attempts, carries (quarterbacks left out), catches or tackles. The box score lists no positions, so there is no offensive line here.
Throwing
- Kenny MincheyMost passes in the last game9 games266 attempts100%
Carrying
- CJ Baxter Jr.8 games99 carries39%
- Jason Patterson9 games78 carries31%
- Jovantae Barnes7 games50 carries20%
- Mikkel Skinner5 games10 carries4%
Catching
- Kenny Darby9 games45 catches24%
- Willie Rodriguez9 games45 catches24%
- DJ Miller5 games22 catches12%
- Nic Anderson7 games20 catches11%
Tackling
- Grant Godfrey9 games78 tackles13%
- Jordan Castell9 games68 tackles12%
- Ty Bryant9 games68 tackles12%
- Elijah Barnes8 games60 tackles10%
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
The season, week by week
- Week 1 W 45–13 vs Youngstown State. Youngstown State is an FCS team, so there is no FBS baseline to grade this one against.
- Week 2 L 17–45 vs Alabama. The passing game struggled: 4.7 yards an attempt, 3.5 less than Alabama usually allows. Its fewest yards an attempt of the season.
- Week 3 W 31–21 at Texas A&M. The passing game was the strength: 14.0 yards an attempt, 6.4 more than Texas A&M usually allows. Won the turnover battle by 2.
- Week 4 W 45–21 vs South Alabama. The run game was the strength: 9.3 yards a carry, 4.4 more than South Alabama usually allows. Its most yards a carry of the season.
- Week 5 W 35–34 at South Carolina. The run defense gave ground: South Carolina got 6.3 yards a carry, 1.6 over what it usually gains. The machine had South Carolina by 7.3 (68%), so this was a win it did not see coming; Kentucky won the turnover battle by 2.
- Week 6 W 35–34 vs LSU. The run game was the strength: 4.8 yards a carry, 2.5 more than LSU usually allows. The machine had LSU by 15.0 (82%), so this was a win it did not see coming; Kentucky won the turnover battle by 2.
- Week 7 W 21–13 at Oklahoma. The passing game struggled: 5.6 yards an attempt, 1.6 less than Oklahoma usually allows. The machine had Oklahoma by 9.6 (73%), so this was a win it did not see coming; Kentucky won the turnover battle by 4.
- Week 8 W 34–17 vs Vanderbilt. The run defense was the strength: Vanderbilt got 0.9 yards a carry, 2.4 under what it usually gains. Won the turnover battle by 2.
- Week 10 L 6–34 at Tennessee. The pass defense gave ground: Tennessee got 9.9 yards an attempt, 3.6 over what it usually gains. Lost the turnover battle by 3.