Kentucky was roughly a 25-point underdog to Georgia going into Saturday's game between the two teams. UGA came close to covering, but that doesn't do justice to how close the game was for most of the contest.
Here are three reasons the outcome ultimately tipped in the Bulldogs' direction.
This won't revolve around specific plays, but themes that capture the course of the contest.
No margin for error ... Kentucky needed to play a very clean game and it also needed some help from Georgia. That will always be the case as a 25-point underdog on the road. Partly because of the weather it appeared there might have been an upset in the making. But as time would tell, it's just very difficult to win a game when there is literally almost no margin for error. In every game there are going to be penalties, mistakes, mental blunders, and near misses. Oftentimes teams overcome those things, maybe due to talent, scheming, or simple luck. But when you are that kind of underdog on the road, with UK's quarterback situation, it's hard to overcome untimely penalties on third downs (that would have been first down conversions) and an 18-yard punt that puts Georgia deep in your territory. UK avoided that for much of the first 35-40 minutes of the game on Saturday but it didn't last forever.
No alternative to Bowden at quarterback ... It makes sense that the staff would have stuck with Bowden for as long as the game was knotted up at zero. At that point, given the strength of Georgia's defense and the conditions, shortening the game, leaning on the defense, and avoiding crippling offensive mistakes was a strategy that made sense. But once Georgia scored, Kentucky was no longer able to try to run out the clock or hold onto a strategy of just waiting for a Georgia mistake. And there was apparently no viable alternative to Bowden at quarterback to give Kentucky a different look against a stout defense. Many fans have wondered why Sawyer Smith didn't see action. Apparently he was not ready. It makes sense that the UK staff would want to keep opposing coaches guessing in terms of Smith's readiness. But the lack of a viable alternative was a big reason Kentucky didn't have any margin for error in Athens.
The defense wore down ... Kentucky's defense turned in one of its best performances in some time for more than a half. It's hard to remember UK accomplishing anything akin to a first half shutout at UGA, weather aside. UGA had only 42 yards and two first downs in the first quarter. They finished the first half with 123 yards and six first downs. The boo birds were out. Some of that was conservative offense but a lot of it was Kentucky's defense flying around, staying in lanes, and tackling well. Over time, Kentucky's defense wore down. Injuries have tested the depth of the team in some spots but one could point out that neither team a lot of plays. Still, it's hard playing in those rainy conditions. UGA controlled the ball for 9:50 of the 15 minutes in the fourth quarter with 15 rush attempts in that frame. The Bulldogs passed the ball all of one time in the second half, allowing a more healthy D'Andre Swift to run behind one of the sport's biggest, most physical offensive lines.
