UK football beats a ranked opponent for the first time since 2010

 

 

By Jordan Ondrof

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The first top-25 win in the Mark Stoops era was also the first win against a ranked opponent the since beating No.10 South Carolina on Oct. 16, 2010.

In a game where his position as starting quarterback was in question, Patrick Towles played with confidence going 22-27 for 249 yards.

“But Patrick, you know, it’s not going to be perfect week-to-week, but we have a great staff that really puts good plans in place and, again, I think we stayed aggressive and made plays and that’s what you have to do if you want to be a good football team,” head coach Mark Stoops said.

After UK’s first possession, people were calling for Towles to be taken out of the game. Knowing he had something to prove, he came back and drove the Cats down the field for a touchdown.

“I was telling the team in there that I’m pretty stingy with game balls, but I think he deserved one tonight. 22-for-27, two 2 TD’s, so I gave him a game ball. I thought he played a really good game and made some really good plays with his feet and was aggressive down the stretch,” Stoops said.

The Tigers have won eight-straight SEC road games, but that streak came to an end tonight thanks in part to the dominant UK defense shutting down the offense of the defending SEC East champions.

Junior Jason Hatcher had a career-high eight tackles while freshman Denzil Ware had his first-career sack, helping the UK defense hold the Tigers offense to only 338 yards.

Returning from injury, senior Ryan Flannigan made a noticeable impact, totaling eight tackles in his first game of the season.

“I think that we need guys to win some one-on-one’s and get some pressures at times and some sacks,” Stoops said. “So, I think having Jason (Hatcher) back and having Ryan (Flannigan) back it was certainly helpful. We’re getting more and more depth. We’re trying to play more and more guys to build or our depth and build for our program and as you get better you feel more and more comfortable getting some other guys in.”

In a game that was 7-7 at halftime, things didn’t look promising for the Cats, going three and out in their first two possessions.

But that all changed when the running game for the Cats became a factor. JoJo Kemp exploded in the 3rd quarter, changing the game. His impact lead to a touchdown and the Cats gaining the lead for the first time in the game.

“There were some tough runs in there,” Stoops said. “We were grinding it out, not getting some, but at the end of every victory we got some critical runs. That’s a big part of — that’s how you win close games. If you’re not able to do that, you would lose more than half of them. And that’s where we’re getting better.”

Despite the feeling that the Cats have trouble closing close games, the Cats are 7-0 when leading at the end of the third quarter since Mark Stoops became head coach.

“I know that my first two-plus years, that it (closing games) was difficult, Stoops said. “I just think that the margin for error is always small. We’re a better football team so we could overcome some things now. I do think belief is part of that. In making plays, when the game’s on the line.”