Kentucky is in Columbia, Mo., for Saturday's game against SEC East rival Missouri and the Wildcats are looking to win their third consecutive game following wins against Mississippi State and Tennessee.

Here's Cats Illustrated preview breaking it all down.

Vegas line: Kentucky -4

Coaches head to head: First meeting

Series streak: Kentucky has won five in a row

All-time record: Kentucky 7-3

Statistical comparison

How to watch

SEC Network, 4 p.m.

Taylor Zarzour, Matt Stinchcomb, Dawn Davenport

LINK: PFF grades

LINK: Who has the edge?

Wildcats to watch

RB Chris Rodriguez — It's still going to be a rotation in the backfield but Rodriguez seems to be getting a little separation as the Cats' top back. He helped Kentucky put the game on ice in the second half against the Vols last week and should arrive at Faurot Field with a lot of confidence. Mizzou's run defense has not been bad statistically but there's some vulnerability Rodriguez can exploit.

TE Keaton Upshaw — He did have the dropped touchdown pass in the endzone last weekend but the tight ends are getting increased opportunities and that's becoming a real part of the UK passing attack.

NT Marquan McCall — With Quinton Bohanna out it will fall on McCall to increase his workload. It remains to be seen how many snaps he'll be capable of playing, but when he's been in the game he's played very well.

NT Justin Rogers — See: Above. The true freshman is likely to get a baptism by fire in the SEC and will have to spell McCall. Whether that means 8-10 snaps or 18-20, the former five-star recruit only four SEC games out of high school will have the spotlight for the first time in his young UK career.

LB Jamin Davis — He's playing like one of the SEC's best defensive players leading the team in tackles (7th SEC) and returning a pick for a touchdown last week.

LB Boogie Watson — Watson has sacks in three straight games for Kentucky. He'll be pinning his ears back and trying to dip and turn that corner to get after a redshirt freshman quarterback.

CB Kelvin Joseph — Joseph has played like one of the nation's best cornerbacks the last two weeks, living up to the hype from before the season. Missouri does not have one receiver the caliber of Seth Williams at Auburn or some of the guys UK saw against Ole Miss, so it's a chance for Joseph to assert himself again.

Keys to a Kentucky win

Turnover margin ... This may be the most telling stat in college football when you're talking about determining wins and losses. Kentucky is +4 for the season. Missouri is -5 on the year. It's probably too early in the season to read too much into stats, but those are polar opposite numbers in the national rankings. Kentucky has picked off nine passes the last two weeks.

Play your game ... One of the advantages Kentucky has in this matchup is experience and continuity. Mark Stoops knows how he wants a Kentucky game to go. Kentucky fans know what we're talking about here. Some might call it sucking the life out of the game. UK would probably prefer to speak in terms of draining the life out of Kentucky's opponent. Control the ball, run between the tackles, do the little things. For a team with a first year coach and a first-year quarterback that could be a tough game to win.

Don't read your press clippings ... It's interesting that Kentucky is only a 4-point favorite. Then again, it's an SEC road game and those wins are tough to come by. The Wildcats have been totally dominant the last two weeks, at least on one side of the ball. One potential vulnerability could be coming in overconfident. Avoiding that and staying laser focused will be key to the team's success.

LINK: What's at stake?

LINK: Predictions and roundtable

Themes

— Kentucky has won five games in a row against Missouri. Barry Odom's inability to win a game in this series is widely believed to be one of the reasons he didn't last long in his position.

— This is Eliah Drinkwitz's first game against Kentucky. The former Appalachian State head coach (who succeeded Louisville's Scott Satterfield in that role) has coached just three games in the SEC. It's a tough year for any coach in his first year at a new job and the Tigers missed their last game because of Vanderbilt's COVID-19 issues.

— This game was originally supposed to be next weekend. UK was supposed to be taking on Georgia this weekend but the SEC flipped the games for Kentucky so Missouri didn't run the risk of potentially missing three weeks in a row through no fault of its own.

— Connor Bazelak was once targeted as a recruit by Kentucky's coaching staff. He ended up picking Missouri and is probably happy with that decision one game removed from a 29/34, 400 yard, four touchdown game in a win against LSU. We'll learn more about Bazelak this weekend against a Kentucky defense that is the hottest in the nation over the last two weeks.

— Speaking of that LSU game, it was a "signature win" for Drinkwitz; at least, that's what some around the Missouri program are saying. After consecutive losses to Alabama and Tennessee to begin the season, beating a name opponent like LSU reenergized the fan base and is something for Mizzou to build on.

— Kentucky's SEC fortunes have changed dramatically in recent years under Mark Stoops but three consecutive league wins will always be a significant accomplishment for the 'Cats in the SEC. That's what UK is going for this week.

— The last time Kentucky was at Faurot Field the 'Cats made a memory fans will never forget. Trailing 14-0 in the second half Lynn Bowden returned a punt for a touchdown and with UK trailing 14-9, Terry Wilson marched the offense down the field in the game's final minute. As the clock expired he hit CJ Conrad on an out to the sideline for a "walk-off win".

SEC standings

EAST

Georgia 3-1

Florida 2-1

Kentucky 2-2

South Carolina 2-2

Tennessee 2-2

Missouri 1-2

Vanderbilt 0-3

WEST

Alabama 4-0

Texas A&M 3-1

Arkansas 2-2

Auburn 2-2

LSU 1-2

Ole Miss 1-3

Mississippi State 1-3

Kentucky schedule

Auburn 29, Kentucky 13 (0-1)

Ole Miss 42, Kentucky 41 (0-2)

Kentucky 24, Mississippi State 2 (1-2)

Kentucky 34, Tennessee 7 (2-2)

Kentucky @ Missouri

Georgia @ Kentucky

Vanderbilt @ Kentucky

Kentucky @ Alabama

Kentucky @ Florida

South Carolina @ Kentucky