Big Blue Preview: Kentucky vs. Louisville

Preview

Kentucky wraps up the 2022 common season with the annual Governor’s Cup recreation towards in-state rival Louisville. It is going to be Senior Day at Kroger Discipline as 28 Wildcats can be acknowledged in pregame ceremonies. Recreation time is 3 p.m. and it will likely be televised on the SEC Community.

Kentucky enters the sport coming off a 16-6 residence loss vs. No. 1-ranked Georgia. Louisville has received 5 of its final six video games, together with a 25-10 residence win over RV/#25 NC State final Saturday.

Kentucky leads the all-time sequence, 18-15, and the Wildcats received the final three matchups in 2018, ‘19 and ‘21, with no recreation performed throughout the 2020 season. Louisville leads 15-12 for the reason that Governor’s Cup period started in 1994. UK enters the sport with a 19-game win streak towards non-conference opponents, the longest energetic streak within the nation.

Quarterback Will Levis leads the Kentucky offense, finishing 65.9 p.c of his passes for two,218 yards and 17 touchdowns. Operating again Chris Rodriguez Jr. averages 112 yards per recreation.

The Kentucky protection is ranked nineteenth within the nation in scoring protection and complete protection. Linebacker D’Eryk Jackson leads the workforce in tackles with 61 stops.

Cat Scratches: Composure Could Be Key for Cats, Playing cards on Saturday

Within the cites of Lexington and Louisville, there can be buzz phrases tossed about all week regarding the Kentucky-Louisville soccer rivalry. However UK defensive coordinator Brad White might have cited a very powerful phrase of the week.

“It’s going to be about composure,” White stated. “And that’s, whether or not it’s Senior Day, whether or not it’s rivalry, the workforce that may keep composed, keep centered on the job at hand and never let their feelings get the perfect of them, they will let these feelings gasoline them however not overtake them.”

The Cats and the Playing cards meet within the annual Governor’s Cup rivalry on Saturday at Kroger Discipline. It is going to be Senior Day for 28 Cats who’re enjoying of their last residence recreation. White has grown particularly near gamers like Tyrell Ajian, DeAndre Sq. and Jordan Wright, who’ve been with White for a very long time in Lexington.

“For me, these are guys who, as I grew on this protection, they grew with me,” White stated. “It is going to be an emotional day for me. For all of us, we sort of simply need to preserve it in test. You’ve emotional Senior Day, a rivalry recreation, there’s loads of feelings happening.”

The gamers understand how huge this recreation is. It’s brazenly talked about throughout the program…Learn Extra

Kentucky-Louisville Collection

• Kentucky leads the all-time sequence 18-15.
• The state rivals play for the Governor’s Cup trophy.
• The Cats have received 4 of the previous 5 conferences, together with three straight.
• UK has received the previous three conferences by a mixed rating of 153-44.
• In these three conferences the Cats have rushed for 1,219 yards, together with a school-record 517 within the 45-13 win in 2019. That’s a median of 406.3 speeding yards per contest.
• The 2019 assembly noticed Lynn Bowden Jr. rush for 284 yards on 22 makes an attempt. The efficiency ranks second on UK’s single-game speeding chart.
• In 2016, the Cats secured an exhilarating 41-38 last-second victory over the No. 11 Cardinals, ending a five-game dropping streak to Louisville within the course of.
• The fashionable model of the Governor’s Cup rivalry started in 1994 after a 70-year hiatus and has been performed 26 of the previous 27 seasons, with solely the pandemic-affected 2020 season inflicting a one-year pause.
• Largest UK win: 73 (73-0, 1922)
• Largest Louisville win: 31 (49-28, 2006)
• Video games determined by eight factors or much less: Kentucky leads 6-5

Kentucky-Louisville Connections

• The Kentucky roster has 12 gamers from town of Louisville TE Izayah Cummings, OLB J.J Weaver, CB Elijah Reed, DB Jackson Schulz, RB La’Vell Wright, FB Jack Varga, LS Jordan Morrow, DT Alex Bascom, DT Richard Bascom, OT John Younger, OL Kiyaunta Goodwin and WR Tae Tae Crumes.
• The Louisville roster has no gamers from Lexington, Kentucky

By the Numbers

3
Wins in a row by Kentucky towards Louisville

4
Speeding touchdowns by UK quarterback Will Levis in final 12 months’s win over Louisville

18
Wins by Kentucky within the sequence towards Louisville (the Playing cards have received 15 instances)

55
Yards passing wanted for Will Levis to maneuver into sixth place on Kentucky’s profession passing yardage record

350
Yards speeding wanted for Chris Rodriguez Jr. to maneuver into first place on Kentucky’s profession speeding yards record