2020 Kentucky Wildcats football team

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2020 Kentucky Wildcats football
Gator Bowl champion
Gator Bowl, W 23–21 vs. NC State
ConferenceSoutheastern Conference
DivisionEastern Division
Record5–6 (4–6 SEC)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorEddie Gran (5th season)
Co-offensive coordinatorDarin Hinshaw (5th season)
Offensive schemeSpread
Defensive coordinatorBrad White (2nd season)
Base defense3–4 or 4–3
Home stadiumKroger Field
Seasons
← 2019
2021 →
2020 Southeastern Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
East Division
No. 13 Florida x   8 – 2     8 – 4  
No. 7 Georgia   7 – 2     8 – 2  
Missouri   5 – 5     5 – 5  
Kentucky   4 – 6     5 – 6  
Tennessee   3 – 7     3 – 7  
South Carolina   2 – 8     2 – 8  
Vanderbilt   0 – 9     0 – 9  
West Division
No. 1 Alabama x$#^   10 – 0     13 – 0  
No. 4 Texas A&M   8 – 1     9 – 1  
Auburn   6 – 4     6 – 5  
LSU*   5 – 5     5 – 5  
Ole Miss   4 – 5     5 – 5  
Arkansas   3 – 7     3 – 7  
Mississippi State   3 – 7     4 – 7  
Championship: Alabama 52, Florida 46
  • # – College Football Playoff champion
  • ^ – College Football Playoff participant
  • $ – Conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • * – ineligible for postseason due to self imposed ban
    Note: Due to COVID-19, the SEC played a conference-only schedule.
Rankings from AP Poll.

The 2020 Kentucky Wildcats football team represented the University of Kentucky in the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Wildcats played their home games at Kroger Field in Lexington, Kentucky, and competed in the East Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). They were led by eighth-year head coach Mark Stoops.

Preseason

SEC Media Days

In the preseason media poll, Kentucky was predicted to finish in fourth place in the East Division.[1]

Media poll (East Division)
Predicted finish Team Votes (1st place)
1 Florida 624 (53)
2 Georgia 613 (43)
3 Tennessee 434
4 Kentucky 405
5 South Carolina 287
6 Missouri 224
7 Vanderbilt 101

Schedule

Kentucky had games scheduled against Eastern Illinois, Eastern Michigan, Kent State, and Louisville, which were all canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[2][3] This will be the first season since 1993 that the Wildcats do not play Louisville. As of 10/16/2020, the SEC swapped two teams and the dates of when they will play the Wildcats. This is because of an outbreak of COVID-19 among other competing SEC football teams. Missouri will be an away game on October 24, instead of an away game on the 31st and Georgia, at home, on October 31 instead of the 24th.

DateTimeOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendance
September 26, 202012:00 p.m.at No. 8
Jordan–Hare Stadium
  • Auburn, AL
    		• SECNL 13–2917,490
    October 34:00 p.m.Ole Miss
    • Kroger Field
    • Lexington, KY
    		SECNL 41–42 OT12,000
    October 107:30 p.m.Mississippi State
    • Kroger Field
    • Lexington, KY
    		SECNW 24–212,000
    October 1712:00 p.m.at No. 18 Tennessee
    		SECNW 34–722,519
    October 244:00 p.m.at Missouri
    • Faurot Field
    • Columbia, MO
    		SECNL 10–2011,738
    October 3112:00 p.m.No. 5
    Lexington, KY
    		SECNL 3–1412,000
    November 1412:00 p.m.Vanderbilt
    • Kroger Field
    • Lexington, KY (rivalry)
    		SECNW 38–3512,000
    November 214:00 p.m.at No. 1 Alabama
    		SECNL 3–6319,424
    November 2812:00 p.m.at No. 6 Florida
    		ESPNL 10–3414,453
    December 57:30 p.m.South Carolina
    • Kroger Field
    • Lexington, KY
    		SECNW 41–1812,000
    January 2, 202112:00 p.m.vs. No. 23
    TIAA Bank Field
  • Jacksonville, FL (Gator Bowl
    • )    		ESPNW 23–2110,422

    [4]

    Rankings

    Further information: 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings
    Ranking movements
    Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
    RV = Received votes
    Week
    PollPre1234567891011121314Final
    AP
    		RVRV*2323RV
    CoachesRVRV*20RVRV
    CFPNot releasedNot released

    Game summaries

    At Auburn

    See also: 2020 Auburn Tigers football team
    No. 23 Kentucky vs. No. 8 Auburn
    Period 1 2 34Total
    No. 23 Wildcats 7 0 6013
    No. 8 Tigers 8 0 71429

    at

    Auburn, AL

    • Date: September 26, 2020
    • Game time: 12:00 p.m.
      EST
    • Game weather: Cloudy • Temperature: 75 °F (24 °C) • Wind: 5 mph W
    • Game attendance: 17,490
    • Referee: Steve Marlowe
    • TV announcers (SECN): Tom Hart (play-by-play), Jordan Rodgers (analyst), Cole Cubelic (sideline reporter)
    • Pregame line: Auburn –6.5 • Odds to win: Auburn 84.9% • Game summary: ESPN[5]
    Game information
    First quarter
    • (6:44) UK – Kavosiey Smoke 35 yd rush, Matt Ruffolo kick (Drive: 11 plays, 93 yds, 6:23; Kentucky 7–0)
    • (4:30) AUB – D. J. Williams 1 yd rush, John Samuel Shenker pass (Drive: 7 plays, 70 yds, 2:07; Auburn 8–7)
    Second quarter

    No scoring

    Third quarter
    • (5:42) AUB – Seth Williams 11 yd pass from Bo Nix, Anders Carlson kick (Drive: 9 plays, 76 yds, 4:19; Auburn 15–7)
    • (1:00) UK – Akeem Hayes 8 yd pass from Terry Wilson, Terry Wilson pass failed (Drive: 11 plays, 73 yds, 4:34; Auburn 15–13)
    Fourth quarter
    • (10:21) AUB – Seth Williams 4 yd pass from Bo Nix, Anders Carlson kick (Drive: 5 plays, 23 yds, 2:13; Auburn 22–13)
    • (8:17) AUB – Eli Stove 21 yd pass from Bo Nix, Anders Carlson kick (Drive: 2 plays, 27 yds, 0:50; Auburn 29–13)
    Statistics UK AUB
    First downs 21 16
    Plays–yards 78–384 57–324
    Rushes–yards 40–145 30–91
    Passing yards 239 233
    Passing: comp–att–int 24–38–1 16–27–0
    Time of possession 36:29 23:31
    Team Category Player Statistics
    Kentucky Passing Terry Wilson 24/37, 239 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
    Rushing Kavosiey Smoke 7 carries, 62 yds, 1 TD
    Receiving Josh Ali 9 receptions, 98 yds
    Auburn Passing Bo Nix 16/27, 233 yds, 3 TD
    Rushing Bo Nix 5 carries, 34 yds
    Receiving Seth Williams 6 receptions, 112 yds, 2 TD

    Ole Miss

    See also: 2020 Ole Miss Rebels football team
    Ole Miss vs. Kentucky
    Period 1 2 34Total
    Rebels 7 7 72142
    Wildcats 14 7 71341

    at

    Lexington, KY

    • Date: October 3, 2020
    • Game time: 4:00 p.m.
      EST
    • Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 64 °F (18 °C)
    • Game attendance: 12,000
    • Referee: David Smith
    • TV announcers (SECN): Taylor Zarzour (play-by-play), Matt Stinchcomb (color), Taylor McGregor (sideline)
    • Pregame line: Kentucky −7 • O/U: 63 [6]
    Game information
    First Quarter
    • (12:38) MISS – Jerrion Ealy 1 yard rush, Luke Logan kick
      Ole Miss 7–0; 8 plays, 75 yards, 2:22
    • (7:36) UK – Terry Wilson 4 yard rush, Matt Ruffolo kick
      Tied 7–7; 4 plays, 29 yards, 1:54
    • (1:33) UK – A. J. Rose 2 yard rush, Matt Ruffolo kick
      Kentucky 14–7; 8 plays, 80 yards, 4:25
    Second Quarter
    • (13:19) MISS – Kenny Yeboah 14 yard pass from Matt Corral, Luke Logan kick
      Tied 14–14; 10 plays, 75 yards, 3:14
    • (0:29) UK – Terry Wilson 22 yard rush, Matt Ruffolo kick
      Kentucky 21–14; 9 plays, 83 yards, 3:25
    Third Quarter
    • (10:41) UK – Chris Rodriguez Jr. 22 yard rush, Matt Ruffolo kick
      Kentucky 28–14; 10 plays, 75 yards, 4:19
    • (9:17) MISS – Jonathan Mingo 24 yard pass from Matt Corral, Luke Logan kick
      Kentucky 28–21; 4 plays, 75 yards, 1:24
    Fourth Quarter
    • (13:37) MISS – Jonathan Mingo 16 yard pass from Matt Corral, Luke Logan kick
      Tied 28–28; 5 plays, 54 yards, 1:30
    • (8:23) MISS – Snoop Conner 1 yard rush, Luke Logan kick
      Ole Miss 35–28; 3 plays, 53 yards, 0:47
    • (2:04) UK – Chris Rodriguez Jr. 1 yard rush, Matt Ruffolo kick
      Tied 35–35; 12 plays, 75 yards, 6:19
    Overtime
    • UK – Terry Wilson 10 yard rush, PAT missed
      Kentucky 41–35; 3 plays, 25 yards
    • MISS – Elijah Moore 3 yard pass from Matt Corral, Luke Logan kick
      Ole Miss 42–41; 4 plays, 25 yards
    Statistics MISS UK
    First downs 26 26
    Total yards 459 559
    Passing yards 320 151
    Rushing yards 139 408
    Penalties 5–33 8–81
    Turnovers 0 1
    Time of possession 23:55 36:05
    Team Category Player Statistics
    Ole Miss Passing Matt Corral 24/29, 320 yards, 4 TD
    Rushing Matt Corral 13 carries, 51 yards
    Receiving Jonathan Mingo 8 receptions, 128 yards, 2 TD
    Kentucky Passing Terry Wilson 14/18, 151 yards
    Rushing Chris Rodriguez Jr. 17 carries, 133 yards, 2 TD
    Receiving Josh Ali 7 receptions, 88 yards

    Mississippi State

    See also: 2020 Mississippi State Bulldogs football team
    Mississippi State vs. Kentucky
    Period 1 2 34Total
    Bulldogs 0 0 202
    Wildcats 0 14 01024

    at

    Lexington, KY

    • Date: October 10, 2020
    • Game time: 7:30 p.m.
      EST
    • Game weather: Cloudy • Temperature: 67 °F (19 °C) • Wind: 5 SE mph
    • Game attendance: 12,000
    • Referee: Ken Williamson
    • TV: SECN
    • [7]
    Statistics MSST UK
    First downs 18 10
    Total yards 295 157
    Rushing yards 20 84
    Passing yards 275 73
    Turnovers 6 1
    Time of possession 34:49 25:11
    Team Category Player Statistics
    Mississippi State Passing K. J. Costello 36–55, 232 yards, 4 INT
    Rushing Kylin Hill 7 rushes, 17 yards
    Receiving Kylin Hill 15 receptions, 79 yards
    Kentucky Passing Terry Wilson 8–20, 73 yards, TD
    Rushing Terry Wilson 13 rushes, 50 yards
    Receiving Josh Ali 2 receptions, 22 yards

    At Tennessee

    See also: 2020 Tennessee Volunteers football team and Kentucky–Tennessee football rivalry
    Kentucky vs. No. 21 Tennessee
    Period 1 2 34Total
    Wildcats 0 17 10734
    No. 21 Volunteers 0 7 007

    at

    Knoxville, TN

    • Date: October 17, 2020
    • Game time: 12:00 p.m.
      EST
    • Game weather: Sunny, Temperature: 85 °F (29 °C)
    • Game attendance: 22,519
    • Referee: Marc Curles
    • TV announcers (SECN): Tom Hart (play-by-play), Jordan Rodgers (color), Cole Cubelic (sidelines)
    • [8]