Florida’s ultimate goal is nearly in sight. With wins in the next two weeks, it will clinch an SEC East division title for the first time since 2016 and the opportunity to win its first conference title since 2008.
Games against Kentucky, Tennessee and potentially LSU stand in their way, but the Gators will be heavily favored in all of them. This week, the challengers are the Wildcats, who come into Gainesville looking to spring a victory in the series for just the second time since 1986.
UK teams under coach Mark Stoops have given UF headaches in the past, but this year’s team limps in at 3-5 sporting wins over bottom-feeders Vanderbilt, Tennessee and Mississippi State.
With that being said, this Kentucky team matches up well with the Gators. At least, it would if it was at full strength. The Wildcats have the SEC’s top passing defense, allowing just 223 yards per game.
But as a team, they’ll be without 18 players on Saturday, at least, due to COVID-19. It’s unclear at which positions they’ll be shorthanded, but given the challenge the Wildcats already faced with the No. 6 Gators, it’s not good news for UK.
Offensively, Kentucky certainly can’t afford to lose many players. That side of the ball has struggled enough already, as a quarterback musical chairs that went from senior Terry Wilson to Auburn transfer Joey Gatewood has now shifted back to Wilson. Regardless of who is under center, though, the Wildcats have struggled.
Wilson has at least been more of a factor in a run game that is quite good, averaging 178 yards (the fourth-best mark in the conference). But that isn’t enough to make up for an abysmal passing game that averages just 123 yards, a mark that brings UK down to the league’s worst team in total offense.
If Kentucky was at full force, this game could perhaps be a different story, as its secondary is one of the toughest Florida has faced this season. But given the players missing and the Wildcats’ lack of consistency at the quarterback position, this is about as mismatched a game this series has seen in years.
Florida bounces back from an ugly win over Vanderbilt with a convincing beatdown of the Wildcats.
Prediction: Florida 55, Kentucky 14
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