What a difference a week makes.
After one of the worst performances by a Kentucky football team in the Mark Stoops era in last week’s 31-6 loss to South Carolina, the Wildcats lead the top-ranked Georgia Bulldogs, 6-3, at halftime at Kroger Field in Lexington.
What has changed for the Wildcats from Week 2 to Week 3? For starters, the play of quarterback Brock Vandagriff. The Georgia transfer started the night 5-for-5 for 42 yards after a woeful 3-for-10 performance for 30 yards a week ago.
Kentucky scored on its second possession when Alex Raynor made a career-long 55-yard field goal with 2:45 left in the opening quarter for a 3-0 Wildcats lead. It’s the longest field goal in Kentucky history, surpassing one from Austin MacGinnis in 2014.
The Wildcats’ defense has been nothing short of outstanding.
In the first quarter, the defense had held Georgia to 32 yards of total offense and out-gained the Bulldogs, 67-32. Georgia quarterback Carson Beck was held to 14 yards through the air on 3-of-6 attempts.
Just before halftime, the Wildcats got the running game going with tailback Demie Sumo-Karngbaye rushing six straight times for 32 yards. Sumo-Karngbaye finished the drive with 51 yards on the ground to give Kentucky a first down at the Georgia 14-yard line with 9 seconds remaining in the half.
With the Wildcats out of timeouts, Stoops sent Raynor back onto the field to connect on 32-yard field for a 6-3 halftime lead.
At the break, Georgia has been held to just 65 yards of total offense compared to 130 by Kentucky. Beck was 5-of-11 for 32 yards in the first half with running back Trevor Etienne limited to 26 yards on nine carries. The Bulldogs managed just three first downs to 12 by the Wildcats.
Vandagriff was 9-of-14 for 59 yards for Kentucky in the first half while Sumo-Karngbaye had 56 yards on 13 carries.