The 2024 college football season will be an uphill battle for the Kentucky Wildcats, who have one of the most bruising schedules in the nation.
Mark Stoops’ team will face four SEC teams ranked in the preseason Top 15 in both the AP Top 25 poll and US LBM Coaches Poll — three of which are ranked in the top six alone.
With the official start of the season three days away, ESPN analysts Mark Schlabach and Pete Bonagura unveiled their 2024 bowl game and College Football Playoff projections on Wednesday. Kentucky was projected for a lower-tier bowl with SEC ties.
Schlabach sees the Wildcats squaring off against West Virginia in the Liberty Bowl in Memphis, Dec. 27 at 7 p.m. ET. For his part, Bonagura forecasts Kentucky to play in the Birmingham Bowl against James Madison (also scheduled for Dec. 27).
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Despite a strong history between the SEC and Liberty Bowl, Kentucky has made only one appearance in the postseason event. That was after a 6-6 regular season in 2008 when the ‘Cats defeated East Carolina, 25-19, in that year’s Liberty Bowl.
Kentucky has made one appearance in the Birmingham Bowl, a 27-10 loss to Pitt following the 2010 regular season. The Wildcats have played two others times in Birmingham for bowl games. Those were in the Hall of Fame Classic in back-to-back years in 1983 and ’84 — a 20-16 loss to West Virginia in ’83, followed by a 20-19 win over Wisconsin in ’84.
Kentucky opens the season against Southern Miss at Kroger Field, Aug. 31 at 7:45 p.m. ET on SEC Network.
SEE ALSO: Where Kentucky football lands in The Athletic’s preseason ranking of all 134 FBS teams