First look at UK's 2018 schedule: Murray State

Occasionally an FCS team just looks like it has the potential to pull an upset over an FBS team, or at least provide more discomfort than the casual fan would expect.

Murray State, in 2018, does not appear to be one of those teams.

Cats Illustrated's series of 2018 opponent previews continues with a deep dive on the Racers, Kentucky's third opponent in the fall.

Murray State at Kentucky, September 15, 2018 (Lexington, Ky.)

2017 Overview: Murray State played a single game against an FBS/Power Five school in 2017 and that was Louisville, with the Cardinals winning that game 55-10. Overall the Racers finished 3-8. Undoubtedly the high point of their season was a 13-10 road win against UT Martin, then ranked the No. 25 team in the nation at the FBS level. Murray State showed a lot of character in that game as it was just one week after they had been beaten badly on the road at Louisville.

There were some competitive losses, such as a 28-21 defeat at Missouri State and a 27-24 double overtime loss against Eastern Illinois. But, as was the case with Kentucky at the Power Five/SEC level, Murray State struggled mightily against most of the best teams on their scheduled and suffered its share of blowouts.

Murray State's secondary did a good job of forcing turnovers last year. The Racers picked off 17 passes in 2017.

Big picture, Murray State was very poor at running the ball and thus one dimensional with a passing game that relied heavily on receiver Jordon Gandy, but that didn't produce a lot of yards and points. The Racers were not nearly as good at stopping the run as they were at running themselves, allowing 209 rushing yards per game, but they did have a pretty stingy pass defense. However, success is relative and that was one of Murray State's better defenses in recent history.

The Racers were not penalized very much and generally played fundamentally sound football.

Offseason Questions and Storylines: While Murray State should return its starting quarterback, the offense will sustain the loss of senior receiver Jordon Gandy. How will they replace his production? Gandy had 65 receptions and 954 yards with 10 touchdowns. That is stunning production compared to the rest of the receiving corps. The receiver with the next most catches had 31. No other receiver had even 230 receiving yards. No other receiver had more than three touchdown receptions. In short, Murray State went from having one of the better receivers at the FCS level to having a bunch of names who haven't proven they're go-to pass catchers.

If the Racers don't find a way to move the football on the ground with more success it could be a very long year for the offense.

The good news is D.J. Penick appears to be someone they can build around. As a freshman running back in 2017, Penick led the team with 431 rushing yards (3.7 YPC), and he was the team's second-leading wide receiver. The 5-foot-10, 195-pound Illinois native should get plenty of touches as the Racers look to replace Gandy's production..

Murray State returns its starting center, right guard and right tackle but has to replace the left side of its offensive line, so that will be something to watch with Kentucky's pass rushers

The task of replacing defensive back D'Montre Wade could be just as difficult as replacing Gandy. Wade had six interceptions. Not only that, but he had a penchant for returning those picks and putting his team in a good position.

Murray State will also be replacing outgoing linebacker Marico Paige, the team's leading tackler (84) in 2017, outgoing defensive lineman Bishop Woods (second on the team in tackles, and a guy who married his girlfriend after a Murray State practice in 2017), linebacker Sean Rodriguez and others. That's their top three leading tacklers from a year ago.

Previewing Murray State's 2018: The Racers should be quarterbacked by redshirt senior Shuler Bentley, an experienced pro-style quarterback who will not test a defense with his legs (51 carries, -97 yards last year). Bentley was at Old Dominion before transferring to Murray State. He usually airs it out more than 30 times per game but sometimes slings it even more than that, as his 53 attempts against Eastern Illinois and 40 attempts against Eastern Kentucky in consecutive weeks underscores.

Bentley does a good job of protecting the football. He threw only four interceptions on 328 pass attempts last year. But, as has been the case with Kentucky football in recent years, he doesn't throw a lot of touchdown passes.

The Racers line up frequently in a 4-2-5 defense with the front consisting of a 'Stud,' a defensive tackle, a nose and an end, and an additional defensive back in the form of a nickel in the secondary on most plays.

Murray State has recruited players from across the country but its roster has a heavy southern flavor. Its 2017 team had 17 players from the Commonwealth, 20 from Tennessee and 17 from Alabama, which serves to illustrate where the Racers have invested and deployed a lot of their recruiting capital and manpower.