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What Mark Stoops said after Kentucky’s win against Vanderbilt
By Mark Kern
Published:
Last season, Vanderbilt got the victory against Kentucky in Lexington. The Wildcats exacted some revenge on Saturday, as they won 45-28 on Saturday to move to 4-0 on the season.
Maxwell Hairston and the defense set the tone for the day. Hairston took 2 interceptions back for touchdowns, and the Wildcats had 3 interceptions total on the day.
The offense was up-and-down, as quarterback Devin Leary was 15-of-29 for 205 yards and 1 touchdown. However, he threw 2 interceptions.
After the game, Mark Stoops talked about the defense contributing to the scoring, as well as Leary continuing to work through some struggles.
On Leary’s response through the game: “Devin wants to perform for his team. It was a rough couple of series. Misses the throw, slips, steps on a foot… let’s just settle down. We are a team; defense responded & got stops when we needed it”
— BBN Tonight (@BBNTonight) September 23, 2023
CONT: “I still have a ton of confidence in him. You’re going to go through tough times playing QB in the SEC. He wont be rattled”
— BBN Tonight (@BBNTonight) September 23, 2023
Mark Stoops: ‘Feels good to go on the road and get that first SEC win.’
— Mark Story (@markcstory) September 23, 2023
Stoops lauds continuous improvement. Stressed importance of winning first road game with early kickoff. Praise defense again. Solid special teams. Frustrated with offensive mistakes.
— John Huang (@KYHuangs) September 23, 2023
On SEC Network, Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops says "obviously, we're not functioning very well" about the Wildcats' offense.
Says UK needs consistency and balance on offense, and cited blocking as another concern.
UK leads Vanderbilt, 31-13, to start the 4th quarter.
— Cameron Drummond (@cdrummond97) September 23, 2023
Former Vanderbilt running back Ray Davis had a big game for Kentucky, rushing the ball 17 times for 78 yards and 2 touchdowns. He also spoke to reporters after the game, and said this was a Kentucky win, and not about him.
“Kentucky got the win; Ray Davis didn’t get the win” -Ray Davis https://t.co/5IEA8rHwpT
— BBN Tonight (@BBNTonight) September 23, 2023
One area that Stoops will look to fix is the penalties. The Wildcats were penalized 10 times in the game for 106 yards.
The Wildcats will be in action next week as they host the Florida Gators next week. Last year, these two teams played in Week 2, and Kentucky won in Gainesville, 26-16. This is the third consecutive year the Wildcats have started 3-0.
