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SEC Kickoff: Everything you need to know about Kentucky vs. Ohio

Published: Sep 5, 2014 · 11:35 AM EDT

Here’s everything you need to know about Saturday’s showdown between Kentucky and the Ohio Bobcats in Lexington.

When: Saturday
Where: Lexington, Kentucky
Game Time: 3:30 PM ET
TV: ESPNU
Current Line: Kentucky (-14.5)

Game Buzz: Kentucky enters this contest one week removed from opening the 2014 season with a resounding 59-14 win over UT Martin. The Cats amassed 656 yards of total offense, had four players combine for six rushing touchdowns and even returned a UTM fumble 89 yards for its first defensive touchdown of the year. Ohio, meanwhile, narrowly edged past Kent State 17-14 despite dominating in most statistical categories. The Bobcats lost four fumbles, allowing Kent State to hang around on the scoreboard, but it’s unlikely a Frank Solich team will beat itself two weeks in a row. UK will have to out-play Ohio at home in this matchup, which should be more than reasonable with the athleticism the Cats displayed a week ago.

SATURDAY DOWN SOUTH PREVIEWS

KENTUCKY WILDCATS

Players to watch:

QB Patrick Towles
RB Jojo Kemp
WR Demarco Robinson
WR Ryan Timmons
DE/LB Bud Dupree
DE Za’Darius Smith
LB Khalid Henderson
S A.J. Stamps

Keys for Kentucky:

Run the ball, even without Braylon Heard. Heard started at tailback last week and brought Cats fans to their feet with touchdown runs of 73 and 43 yards on his first two carries in Blue & White. He hurt his ankle at the end of his second run, and hasn’t played since. He’s unlikely to play against Ohio, but that shouldn’t stop Kentucky from establishing its rushing attack early with backups Jojo Kemp, Boom Williams and Mikel Horton. Those three backs combined to carry the ball 19 times for 86 yards and three touchdowns last week, proving UK has plenty of depth at running back behind Heard. A strong rushing attack should open up the Air Raid offense, allowing quarterback Patrick Towles to spread the ball around like he did a week ago against the Skyhawks.
Let the defensive line loose. The Cats will need to play aggressive up front against an Ohio offense that showed great balance against Kent State. That balance begins and ends with dual-threat quarterback Derrius Vick, who threw the ball 24 times in addition to eight rushing attempts. UK has struggled with dual-threat quarterbacks in the past, but Mark Stoops’ defense should be able to contain Vick if it can get a strong push up front. Defensive ends Bud Dupree and Za’Darius Smith must be disruptive on the edges to contain Vick in the pocket and throw off the timing of the Bobcats’ pass attack. It’s unlikely UK will give many vanilla looks on defense early in the game, beginning with the defensive front.

Wildcats’ glaring weakness to watch: Over-confidence. Kentucky is a young team coming off a lopsided home win in its season opener, and it cannot afford to simply assume this game is a victory. Solich is familiar with how to approach teams from the power conferences, and his veteran-laden squad could take advantage of the Cats if they are over-aggressive or not playing at full-speed due to unwarranted hubris two weeks into the season. The Bobcats have been to a bowl game in five straight seasons, and they expect a victory on Saturday just as much as UK does. If the Cats enter over-confident and subsequently under-perform, Ohio will be prepared to take advantage.

Most interesting part of the game: Towles’ play at quarterback. After finishing 20-of-29 passing for 377 yards, a passing touchdown and a rushing touchdown, all while committing zero turnovers in his first career start, it will be fascinating to see how he follows that performance in Saturday’s showdown with the Bobcats. Will offensive coordinator Neal Brown open up the offense and give Towles more shots down the field? Will he call for more designed quarterback runs after Towles’ 23-yard touchdown scamper against UTM? Will Towles top his exceptional number in this weekend’s contest, or will he regress back to the mean? Answering these questions could be the most interesting element to this game.

Team Buzz: Kentucky will play its first game against an FBS opponent when it takes the field to face-off with Ohio, and the expectations and hype surrounding the program are as high as they’ve been in years. If the Cats can follow-up their impressive season-opening win with another one-sided victory at home Saturday afternoon, it would grow that hype even more. But if UK struggles, even in a victory, it could be a sign this team is improved, but not ready to compete in the daunting SEC.

OHIO BOBCATS

Players to watch:

QB Derrius Vick
RB Daz’mond Patterson
WR Landon Smith
WR Brendan Cope
LB Jovon Johnson
LB Quentin Poling

Keys for Ohio:

Take the leash off Derrius Vick. This is not to say Solich has kept his quarterback bottled up to this point, but it is a suggestion he might give Vick even more control of the Bobcats’ offense Saturday. Kentucky has not fared well against running quarterbacks in recent years, and if Vick can assert himself as both a runner and a thrower on Ohio’s first few drives, it could put the Kentucky defense in a major bind. Vick must make the Cats defense adjust to him, rather than the other way around. If he can do that, it could be a game-changer for both teams.
Subdue the Cats rushing attack early in Saturday’s game. Kent State had no success running the ball on Ohio, but it hardly even tried with just 22 attempts as a team in a game that was tied until the final moments. Kentucky has a deep stable of running backs, and it won’t be as quick to ditch the run against the Bobcats. Thus, Ohio must make Kentucky become a one-dimensional offense through the air. Ohio may be able to slow down the Air Raid in obvious passing situations, but if UK maintains the threat of the run throughout the game, it should be able to pick the OU defense apart.

Bobcats’ glaring weakness to watch: Lack of a traditional rushing attack. Ohio may have racked up 175 yards on the ground against Kent State, but it took 44 carries to reach that mark, and no Bobcat managed more than 61 yards by himself. For comparison’s sake, UK’s Braylon Heard needed just two carries to reach 116 yards against UT Martin. Ohio’s leading rusher, Daz’mond Patterson, managed only 61 yards on 17 carries against Kent State, a mere 3.6 yards per carry, and UK’s defense will be much faster and more athletic than the Golden Flashes’ defense was a week ago. Ohio likes to stay balanced on offense, and it will be tough for Vick to get into a rhythm against the Cats without a rushing attack to complement his dual-threat skill set.

Most interesting part of the game: On a weekend with just one SEC matchup and a number of mismatched contests between SEC teams and mid-major programs, this game may be one of the most appealing in the conference. The Cats made a statement last week and look to be a team on the rise, while Ohio is looking to prove its five-straight bowl appearances are more than just a product of playing in the MAC. UK is favored, but not by as much as most other SEC teams. This game has a greater potential to be close in the second half than perhaps any other on Saturday’s slate, which could pique fans’ interest as the day progresses.

Team Buzz: Ohio played well enough to win by 20 points last week, but instead won on a field goal as time expired to escape with the win. The Bobcats will not likely be as turnover-prone on Saturday as they were last week in losing four fumbles. Ohio committed just one penalty for five yards against Kent State, proving it is not an inherently sloppy team. Bobcats’ fans want to know how well this team can play when it protects the football, and Saturday could be their first opportunity to see it.

Ethan Levine

A former newspaper reporter who has roamed the southeastern United States for years covering football and eating way too many barbecue ribs, if there is such a thing.