Last Saturday was yet another disappointing weekend for Kentucky Wildcats football, as they struggled to perform under pressure. There were several issues, including problems with the offense and misalignments in personnel, which resulted in a series of mistakes, just a cluster of messes.
Up next for Kentucky are the Eastern Michigan Eagles. On Saturday night, the Wildcats have a chance to demonstrate their competitive spirit and overcome their offensive struggles, which have been the biggest issues of the season so far.
The key to their success lies in finding plays down the field in the passing game. Despite the mistakes that cost them the game against the Ole Miss Rebels, the Wildcats competed fiercely for four quarters and had plenty of chances to win, a testament to their will and determination.
The one bright spot in the offense is the running back room: Seth McGowan.
The transfer from New Mexico State was one of the most talked-about players all summer. So far this season, he’s produced at a high level, rushing for two touchdowns and 93 yards on Saturday, and running for 18 carries, 78 yards, and one touchdown against the Toledo Rockets a week prior.
Zach Calzada has had a slow start to the season in his seventh year as a player. Now, Kentucky football will have the opportunity to see Cutter Boley as the starting quarterback and explore potential changes on the offensive side of the ball.
Eastern Michigan is 0-2 on the season and recently just lost to Long Island. The Wildcats have a crucial game on Saturday evening, where they need to drop the hammer and get some reps in for Boley to boost his confidence.
A win is vital, as it would set them up nicely for the South Carolina Gamecocks two weeks away following the bye week.
The main issue with the Kentucky offense is the inconsistent substitutions, which can slow down the flow of the game. This problem was evident during the game against Ole Miss on Saturday, where the team used three timeouts in the first half, leading to some costly mistakes.
The crucial mistakes will rear their ugly heads if these issues persist in SEC play. If they can’t resolve the problems, it will be an issue all season long.
Mark Stoops is hitching his wagon to Bush Hamdan, and many around the Commonwealth, as well as media members, are not happy with the direction it has been heading.
Either this goes smoothly, or it’s a trainwreck down the stretch, which takes down the head coach and the offensive coordinator.
Week one win over Toledo wasn’t pretty, but it was a step in the right direction. In week two against Ole Miss, you competed and had opportunities to win, showing significant progress. Now, you have a chance to work on the offense and see where you are heading into the bye week.
If Kentucky football wants to have a bowl season or even a good season, the offense needs to be fixed and in a hurry. You see signs of good and see signs of not so good at times, and it needs to be consistent.
Whether the Wildcats make a bowl game or not, I don’t see Stoops leaving unless he’s forced out or decides to leave on his own with the buyout.
At this point, you just hope the program pulls it together before losing the entire fan base, which would be a tough spot to recover from.
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