Tag: Kentucky Wildcats

Improved toughness, intelligent defense keys to beating Kentucky on Saturday

The Gators are coming off a blowout loss to Alabama. Here’s how they can use their matchup against the limping Wildcats as a get-right game.

Florida is scheduled to tip off against Kentucky on Saturday afternoon in a game that should be downright fascinating. The Gators came away from their last SEC contest with a stinging 15-point loss to Alabama, and in previous seasons, this would feel like jumping out of the frying pan and into the fire. However, this year’s Kentucky squad is a shadow of its former self and could even serve as a get-right game.

It’s been a rough start to the year for the Wildcats, to say the least. They entered the year with understandably high expectations. As one of the more dominant teams in the conference, they have annually impressive recruiting classes and one of the most reputable coaches in college basketball. Prior to the season, they were even ranked as the nation’s tenth-best college team by CBS Sports.

However, after an opening day win against the hilariously outmatched Morehead State Eagles, they fell into a skid and ate six consecutive losses before getting a pair of W’s against Mississippi State and Vanderbilt.

The Gators will enter this contest as the betting favorite on all the books and the ESPN Basketball Power Index gives them a 76.2 percent chance of victory. Clearly, though, Florida will have to play better than they did against Alabama. Here are three things they can do to lock in a win on Saturday.

Kentucky CB Brandin Echols declares for 2021 NFL draft

Kentucky cornerback Brandin Echols is leaving school early to enter the 2021 NFL draft

Kentucky’s cornerback prospect Brandin Echols announced via social media Monday afternoon that he will be entering the 2021 NFL draft.

Echols is a former JUCO product that was recently invited to participate in The East-West Shrine Bowl.

“I’m excited about the next step and I will continue to learn, mature and excel as a responsible and upstanding citizen,” Echols wrote in a message posted to social media.

Echols recorded 52 tackles (fourth on the team), a team-high nine PBUs, two forced fumbles (tied for second on the team), 2.5 TFL and a sack in 2019.

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Kentucky Wins Gator Bowl Over NC State 23-21: Reaction, Analysis, 5 Thoughts

Kentucky wins the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl over NC State 23-21. Five thoughts and analysis of the game, and what it all means.

Kentucky wins the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl over NC State 23-21. Five thoughts and analysis of the game, and what it all means.

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Kentucky wins the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl

Final Score: Kentucky 23, NC State 21
CFN Prediction: NC State 27, Kentucky 23
Line: Kentucky -3, o/u:50.5

5. This TaxSlayer Gator Bowl has become a solidly under-appreciated bowl

It always seemed to get lost on New Year’s Day, and it’s always been a bit of a land of misfit teams, but the last two Gator Bowls have been decided by a grand total of three points.

Now, the games aren’t always pretty – more on that in a moment – but they’ve finished strong, including last year’s wild Tennessee finish over Indiana.

NC State got ripped up by Texas A&M in the 2018 version, but that’s three of the last four and six of the last nine decided by a touchdown or less. Now the ACC has to start winning these.

 

It’s been a disastrous bowl season in every way for the ACC with Miami’s D’Eriq King suffering a torn ACL, Clemson and Notre Dame getting trucked, and Wake Forest getting picked off again and again by Wisconsin.

This was one the conference could’ve had, but with the NC State loss, that makes it three loss in the last three appearances since Georgia Tech beat Kentucky in 2016.

NEXT: That was a war of attrition for the NC State lines

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Start times, channels set for Auburn’s SEC men’s basketball games

Times and TV channels have been announced for Auburn’s SEC basketball games for the 2020-2021 seasonn. 

Times and TV channels have been announced for Auburn’s SEC basketball games for the 2020-2021 seasonn.

The Tigers will open conference play on Dec. 30 against Arkansas at Auburn Arena.

Auburn will face off with Alabama for the first time on Jan,. 9 before traveling to Tuscaloosa on March 2 to close out the season. Both games will air on either ESPN, ESPN2 or ESPNU.

The Tigers won’t play Tennessee until Feb. 27 (ESPN or ESPN2) at home and will play Kentucky on Jan 16 (ESPN) at home before traveling to Rupp Arena on Feb 13 for a showdown on CBS.

Full Auburn Tigers 2020-21 basketball schedule

Note: All times are CT

  • Dec. 30: vs. Arkansas (6 p.m., ESPN2)
  • Jan. 2: at Texas A&M (7:30 p.m., SEC Network)
  • Jan. 6: at Ole Miss (8 p.m. SEC Network)
  • Jan. 9: vs. Alabama (11 a.m. or 1 p.m., ESPN, ESPN2 or ESPNU)
  • Jan. 13: at Georgia (6 p.m., SEC Network)
  • Jan. 16: vs. Kentucky (1 p.m., ESPN)
  • Jan. 20: at Arkansas ( 8 p.m., SEC Network)
  • Jan. 23: at South Carolina (11 a.m., ESPN or ESPN2)
  • Jan. 26: vs. Missouri (8 p.m., ESPNU)
  • Feb. 2: vs. Georgia (6 p.m., SEC Network)
  • Feb. 6: vs. Ole Miss (3 p.m., ESPN2)
  • Feb. 9: at Vanderbilt (7:30 p.m., SEC Network)
  • Feb. 13: at Kentucky (noon, CBS)
  • Feb. 16: vs. Mississippi State (8 p.m., ESPNU)
  • Feb. 20: at LSU (3 or 5 p.m., ESPN or ESPN2)
  • Feb. 23: vs. Florida (8 p.m., ESPN, ESPN2 or ESPNU)
  • Feb. 27: vs. Tennessee (11 a.m., ESPN or ESPN2)
  • March 2: at Alabama (6 p.m., ESPN, ESPN2 or ESPNU)

Florida’s Kyle Pitts only FBS player to catch 3 TDs or more per game this season

Florida Gators star tight end and pass-catcher Kyle Pitts is the only player to catch three TDs or more in every game they appeared in.

Kyle Pitts‘ return to the gridiron was a big one after missing two weeks while suffering from a concussion sustained against the Georgia Bulldogs on a hit that drew a targeting penalty. If there were any concerns that there would be lingering effects of his injury this weekend, those doubts should have been soundly put to rest by the time the game concluded.

Florida’s star tight end started off strong, catching the second targeted pass from quarterback Kyle Trask in the first quarter to score a 56-yard touchdown and give the Gators the early 7-0 lead. He was quiet for the rest of the half but would come on strong in the final 30 minutes.

Pitts was at the receiving end of both second-half touchdowns — a 2-yard toss at the 12:35 mark of the third quarter as well as another almost exactly nine minutes later from 7 yards out — giving him his three for the game.

The most prolific pass-catcher in college football finished off the day with five catches for 99 yards and the aforementioned three touchdowns. He now has 29 catches for 513 yards and 11 touchdowns over his junior campaign. Had he not lost time to injury, Pitts would likely be mentioned in the Heisman Trophy race, though he would probably lag far behind his fellow Kyle teammate who currently stands as the front-runner for the award.

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Dan Mullen surpasses Spurrier, Meyer for most wins to start UF career

Florida Gators football win over Kentucky Wildcats made head coach Dan Mullen the winningest coach in UF history to start his career.

Florida Gators head coach Dan Mullen passed a significant milestone on Saturday when his team beat the Kentucky Wildcats in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium to give him his 28th victory at the helm of UF’s football team in 34 total games.

In a coincidence of unimaginable proportions, Steve Spurrier, Urban Meyer and Mullen — the two former responsible for bringing national championships to Gainesville — all began their coaching careers on The Swamp’s sidelines with 27-6 records. Before the clock expired this weekend, no Florida football coach had ever gone 28-6.

That all changed on Saturday.

The victory was not the prettiest and did not inspire utmost confidence in the team moving forward toward a meeting with the Alabama Crimson Tide in the Southeastern Conference Championship Game, but a win is a win and the record books will forever show that the third-year sideline skipper was the quickest to 28 victories… and counting.

Every consecutive win from here on sets a new Gators record. Godspeed, Dan Mullen — show us how far you can go.

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Five takeaways from Florida’s sluggish win over Kentucky

Florida Gators football’s dynamic duo of Kyle Trask and Kyle Pitts continues to roll along on Saturday as UF overcame a rough 1st half vs UK

The Gators pulled off another three-score win on Saturday, but not without struggling early once again. Florida was trailing with less than a minute remaining in the first half, but eventually, Kentucky’s sturdy defensive play broke down, and UF was able to pull away to win 34-10 in The Swamp.

With the victory, the Gators could clinch the SEC East tonight if Georgia loses to South Carolina. Should the Bulldogs win, beating Tennessee next week would also seal a division title for Florida.

But like past opponents have, the Wildcats exposed weaknesses within a flashy UF team. To make the College Football Playoff, Florida will almost certainly have to beat Alabama, and it still has a ways to go if that’s going to be a realistic possibility.

Here are five things we learned from the Gators’ chalky win on Saturday over the Wildcats.

WATCH: Toney scores on perfectly executed punt return fake-out

Florida Gators all-around athlete Kadarius Toney scored a special teams touchdown against Kentucky with a run on a fake punt return play.

Florida managed to avoid a halftime deficit to Kentucky with a little bit of trickery from the special teams unit. Trailing 10-7 with less than a minute remaining in the first half, the Gators prepared to return a punt from the Wildcats, who were pinned deep in their own territory.

When the ball was punted, the blockers ran back toward Xzavier Henderson, the apparent returner. But Henderson was on the left side of the field, and the ball was punted to the right. It didn’t land in his hands, but instead in the hands of speedy receiver Kadarius Toney, who was unguarded.

UK completely bought the misdirection, and Toney exploded upfield through the seam, and no one on the Kentucky team was able to catch him. Fifty yards later, he scored a go-ahead touchdown as Florida managed to head into the locker room with a 14-10 lead after a first half that was closer than many expected.

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Halftime report: Six takeaways as Florida leads Kentucky heading into the locker room

The Florida Gators hold a tenuous lead over Kentucky at the half, 14-7, after two quarters of underwhelming offense and some big plays.

The first half of the Florida Gators football game against the Kentucky Wildcats in The Swamp is in the books and it did not quite go as well as many had expected, but had no shortage of excitement either. After the first 30 minutes of play, UF leads UK by a score of 14-10 heading into the locker room.

Florida’s offense sputtered while the defense continued to look suspect against the Wildcats so far — without two big plays this game could be a lot uglier for Gators fans. Everything seemingly went Kentucky’s way, as they controlled the ball and the clock throughout the first two frames of play. If not for a big catch by Kyle Pitts and an amazing punt return for a touchdown by Kadarius Toney, it would be a sad day for the Gator Nation.

Here is a look at six major points from the first half of play.

WATCH: Kyle Pitts scores touchdown on first catch back

Florida Gators vs Kentucky Wildcats saw the first score come on a pass from Kyle Trask to Kyle Pitts for the nation’s best passing offense.

The Florida Gators have been without their star tight end and one of the highest-rated skill-players in the nation, Kyle Pitts, after he was knocked out of the game against the Georgia Bulldogs on a targeting call and subsequently missing two weeks with a concussion.

However, the star pass-catcher made his presence felt quickly in his return from the injury, scoring the first touchdown of the game on a 56-yard pass from quarterback Kyle Trask on his first catch and second targeted throw of the game. It was Pitts’ ninth TD reception and Trask’s 32nd of the season as the two have fueled the nation’s top passing offense.

The touchdown came on a six-play drive that began at Florida’s 17 yard line after the Gators forced a punt on the Wildcats’ opening possession of the game. The drive was extended by a fake punt on 4th-and-two that saw running back Dameon Pierce gain 15 yards to keep things going. Kadarius Toney also made a 5-yard reception on the march down field.

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