Advertisement
football Edit

RECAP: Kentucky defense shuts down Vanderbilt in gritty 14-7 win

The Kentucky defense swarmed to bring down Vanderbilt running back Khari Blasingame.
The Kentucky defense swarmed to bring down Vanderbilt running back Khari Blasingame. (Jeff Drummond/Cats Illustrated)

LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Defense continues to deliver for the Kentucky Wildcats.

The nation's fourth-ranked scoring defense improved its numbers once again with a dominant performance Saturday night against Vanderbilt as the No. 14 Cats claimed a hard-fought 14-7 win over the Commodores at Kroger Field.

Kentucky (6-1, 4-1 SEC) allowed only 284 total yards, recorded eight tackles for loss and four sacks on the night.

"Love the way the defense played really all night," UK head coach Mark Stoops said. "We gave up the one play early... (then) really played a good game the rest of the game. Just appreciate their effort."

Twice in the fourth quarter when Vanderbilt was threatening, two of the Cats' star defenders came up with a huge play.

After the Commodores reached the UK 16 early in the fourth quarter, junior linebacker Kash Daniel stuffed a 4th-and-1 play and combined with defensive tackle Quinton Bohanna to force running back Jamauri Wakefield to fumble.

Then, with less than two minutes to play and Vanderbilt driving to midfield in search of a game-tying score, senior linebacker Josh Allen delivered his second sack of the game and eighth of the season to force Commodore quarterback Kyle Shurmur to fumble and seal the victory.

Said Allen, who inched closer to UK's all-time sacks record: "We just have to play SEC football, the best defense on the field is going to win the game, so we pride ourselves on being the best team out there and making big plays and that’s what we do and that’s what we’re going to live by."

"We said that to the defense today, going into the game, that every yard and every point was personal," Stoops said. "It means something to us."

Meanwhile, Benny Snell Jr. gave the UK offense just enough to get over the top. The junior running back had 169 yards on 32 workhorse carries. His 7-yard touchdown run with 8:04 remaining gave the Cats their first lead of the night.

"To put it on Benny's back there where, once again, everybody knew he was running the ball..." Stoops said. "When we sat there and told you all week that we need to get back to being who we are, I think everybody knew what we were talking about -- being a physical football team."

Kentucky quarterback Terry Wilson had just 18 yards passing as the UK air attack continued to misfire, but he did connect with Lynn Bowden on a 5-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter to get the Cats on the scoreboard after a mistake-plagued start to the game.

Vanderbilt (3-5, 0-4 SEC) surrendered 280 yards rushing while recording only 68 of its own. the Commodores played without starting running back Ke'Shaun Vaughn due to injury.

*****

In this Cats Illustrated "Rapid Recap" feature, we touch on some quick-hitters from the UK victory...

THE GOOD:

If there were still skeptics on the UK defense, this game may have chased any remaining doubters. The Cats have allowed only 60 points in five league names now, 40 less than their next closest competitor in the East. Run defense, pass defense, sacking the quarterback, forcing turnovers -- it's all been what UK Athletics Director Mitch Barnhart envisioned when he hired Mark Stoops to be the head coach in 2013. No player in the country is having a better defensive campaign than UK linebacker Josh Allen. There may be a few on par with his season, but none better.

THE BAD:

Kentucky's passing game is really scaring Big Blue Nation right now as thoughts turn to a truly special season. There may not be a game remaining on the schedule that the Cats can win with 18 yards through the air. Will UK need more from its passing game, Stoops was asked after the game. "Yes, for sure," he replied.

THE UGLY:

Persistent wind of close to 20 miles per hour and gusts above 40 miles an hour made kicking a nightmare at times. Both teams missed relatively short field goals -- a 31-yarder for Vandy and a 39-yarder for UK -- that may have loomed large in the game's outcome. Stoops acknowledged after the game that the Cats will consider going to freshman Chance Poore in place of the struggling Miles Butler, who is now 3-for-7 on field goals this season and 1-for-3 on kicks in the 30- to 39-yard range.

GAME BALL:

Kash Daniel, Kentucky -- The junior linebacker from Paintsville had a career-high 11 tackles and two tackles for loss to spearhead the defensive effort for the Cats. He made perhaps the biggest play of the night, combining with defensive tackle Quinton Bohanna to stuff Vanderbilt's drive on fourth down in the UK red zone early in the fourth quarter.

BY THE NUMBERS:

2nd - Earliest date in school history that UK has secured its sixth win of the season.

2.2 - Yards per rushing attempt for Vanderbilt.

3 - Straight years with four SEC wins for the first time in UK program history.

16 - Career 100-yard rushing games for Benny Snell Jr., two shy of the program record held by Sonny Collins.

20 - Points or less against the UK defense in all seven games this season, the first time since 1955 that has occurred.

25 - Wins by Mark Stoops at Kroger Field/Commonwealth Stadium, tying Rich Brooks for the most by any UK head coach.

10:28 - The Cats' time of possession in the decisive fourth quarter.

QUOTABLE:

"I'm not going to lie. I was concerned coming off (the open date). It felt like a long two weeks. Our team needed it in certain ways, but other ways, you know, I had to be very intentional about putting the team in a better position than I did a year ago. We didn't play very good coming off the bye." -- UK head coach Mark Stoops, whose team lost 45-7 at Mississippi State last season coming off the open date.

UP NEXT:

Kentucky hits the road for Missouri next week. The Tigers (4-3, 0-3 SEC) recorded a 65-33 win over Memphis today. The Cats have won three straight games in the series. Kickoff is slated for 4 p.m. ET on the SEC Network.

Advertisement