After returning home and suffering a 24-10 loss at the hands of the Auburn Tigers, Kentucky football has fallen to 1-4 in SEC play.  

With lots to analyze after the loss, four takeaways stood out.  

D-Line makes impact known in first half

On a night where the secondary had a little trouble keeping things in front of it, the staple of Kentucky’s experienced defense stepped up against Auburn. 

In the first half, Auburn quarterback Payton Thorne faced pressure fast and often, rattling the QB, leading the Tigers to lean on the run game.  

Thorne was hurried twice in the first half and brought down for the sack on four separate occasions, moving the Tigers back a total of 25 yards.  

The biggest sack of the first half came with just 15 seconds on the clock as fifth year linebacker J.J. Weaver took Thorne down to prevent the Tigers from making a field goal attempt for the lead.  

After a stellar first half by the D-Line, the second half was a completely different story.  

The third quarter saw the Cats go sackless and allow two rushing touchdowns to put Kentucky down 24-10. 

If Kentucky stands any chance of picking up another SEC win, the Wildcats need the first half pressure on the QB to become a four-quarter affair. 

Gavin Wimsatt gets the nod  

Following a disappointing first half performance and going nine of 17 for 120 yards and one interception, Brock Vandagriff was benched for quarterback Gavin Wimsatt.  

Wimsatt went three-and-out on his first drive under center and almost did the same on his second, but a 15-yard pass interference penalty moved the chains once.  

A gunslinger, most of his pass attempts were 15+ yards down field with few looks for intermediate routes. 

On his third dive, Kentucky was finally able to manufacture some offense with a huge Dane Key reception plus yards on the ground from Jason Patterson and Wimsatt, but it ended in disaster.  

On 4th-and-goal, a pass intended for Key to the right of the endzone was picked off by Kayin Lee to squash the Cats’ hopes of a comeback.  

Between a rotating quarterback room and a constant fight to find any offensive momentum — and severe redzone failures — it may be time to start looking at Bush Hamdan for the struggles. 

Dane Key continues to validate spot as WR1

Coming into tonight’s game with the Tigers, it was clear that Key was Vandagriff’s go-to option through the air, hauling in 35 catches for 500 yards.  

That chemistry was on full display against Auburn as Key finished with 87 yards on four catches for the night, solidifying himself as the Cats’ wide receiver.  

Just in the first quarter, Key had two game-altering catches, the first being an underthrown ball up the left sideline where he had to go up and over the defender for a 21-yard gain. 

The second was a 34-yard leaping grab on 2nd-and-17 before falling out of bounds, a play that helped set the Cats up for a touchdown to finish the drive.  

Even with a different quarterback throwing him the ball, Key hauled in a third highly-important catch in the fourth quarter.  

Wimsatt hit Key on a 20-yard toe-tapping reception to move Kentucky into Auburn territory.

Although Key’s efforts weren’t enough to solve the offense’s issues, he has clearly defined himself as Kentucky’s most versatile wide out.  

Red zone failures 

For the third straight week Kentucky suffered in the red zone.  

First, against Vanderbilt for homecoming, inside its own five-yard line, Kentucky scored a touchdown for the lead, but it was called back by a holding penalty.  

Then, on the road at Florida, the Cats were stuffed on a fourth down and goal attempt where the Gators responded by marching the length of the field for a score.  

Now, in week nine, fans went through that same nightmare.  

On 4th-and-goal, needing just two yards for a touchdown, Wimsatt threw an interception to kill any chances of a Kentucky comeback.  

Finishing in the red zone has been a storyline all season long and has plagued most of the Cats’ losses.