Every week we're talking about how big Kentucky's next game is, and there's a good reason for that. While this season will be judged differently it's a 10-game SEC slate, so they all mean something.

What exactly is at stake when Kentucky takes on Missouri this weekend?

If Kentucky defeats Missouri then it will mark the first time that Mark Stoops has been over .500 in Lexington, and thus as a head coach. That would be a significant milestone given the project he inherited at his arrival and the conference he's in. Considering he started 2-10 with a team that couldn't have been expected to do any better, it's been a long, grueling but surely rewarding climb.

Kentucky would be one of the hottest teams in the nation with three straight wins in SEC play, and that's the kind of thing that would really turn the heads of national media as well as recruits.

UK's defense has already started to get a lot of attention for what it has done the last couple of games. The more that continues, the better for the program.

The Wildcats have won five straight games against Missouri, stretching back through all of Barry Odom's tenure and the end of Gary Pinkel's career in Columbia.

Even before Mark Stoops took the Kentucky job one of the things people always said was a formula for success in Lexington was to win most games against the bottom tier of the SEC East and their share against the middle tier of teams in the conference. Mizzou, in spite of the LSU win, probably qualifies as a team toward the bottom of the pile so these are the games the Wildcats have to keep winning.

A loss could mean a shift in the rivalry, at least towards more balance, and that wouldn't be ideal considering it's an annual game.

If Kentucky wins this game to move to 3-2 there would be quite a bit of anticipation for a matchup with Georgia in Lexington.

This is a chance for Kentucky to win back-to-back SEC road games, no small accomplishment itself.

But let's not overlook the obvious. The number one reason this game is important is because it would be a solid achievement to win as many games as you lose in the SEC during a 10-game conference slate. If Kentucky loses to Missouri, it becomes tougher to see how the Wildcats make that happen.