First-year Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea finds himself in similar position to where Mark Stoops was when he inherited the reins at Kentucky in 2013. Lea’s Commodores, with just a single Southeastern Conference victory over their last 21 opportunities, needed an overhaul in some tangible areas — facilities at the top of the list — but also in attitude in order to field competitive football teams.
The former is slowly coming along — fresh locker rooms are in place, but most of Vandy’s planned upgrades probably won’t be ready ahead of the 2022 season — but an uptick in spirit is evident from watching the Commodores’ film, said Stoops, who suffered through a 2-10 season and winless SEC trek in his first year at Kentucky. Vanderbilt brings a 2-7 record and 0-5 mark against SEC foes into Saturday’s game.
“I can relate to it. It’s difficult,” Stoops said with a laugh. “… You can see they’re playing inspired, and that’s a sign of a well-coached team and results will ultimately come if they continue to do what they’re doing. You can see it with the product on the field.”
Kentucky opened as a 19-point favorite for the game, which the Commodores have designated for a fan “Black Out,” complete with alternate uniforms that will make their debut under the lights at Vanderbilt Stadium on Saturday. Stoops expressed ignorance to the potential magnitude of the contest from Vanderbilt’s perspective, which should view it as a chance to get a season-swinging win. The Commodores won’t get to play in a bowl game, but beating the Wildcats while they’re down would be a true indicator that things are headed in the right direction, as opposed to getting drubbed by program in the midst of a dispiriting slide in the second half of its season.
“Nobody likes being in this situation,” Stoops said. “How much does it bother you to make a difference, to make a change? How we react will determine the outcome.”
Vanderbilt would be 1-4 in league play had it not allowed South Carolina to drive for an go-ahead score with 37 seconds left in a 21-20 home loss. That game on Oct. 16 was the first time this season it scored against an SEC team; it since has lost to Mississippi State (45-6) and Missouri (37-28), and is coming off its open date.
Kentucky is coming off a game in which it set a school record for offensive plays in a regulation-length game — 99, bettering the 95 it had against LSU in 1995 — but got eviscerated by “explosive” plays offered up by the Volunteers. Vanderbilt doesn’t have the firepower that Mississippi State and Tennessee brought to the table, but at this juncture Kentucky’s defense isn’t in any position to underestimate any opponent; that’s a guaranteed way to get “blacked out.”
Beyond avoiding a fourth straight loss and national embarrassment, on the line for Kentucky is a winning record in SEC play, something it has only achieved 12 times over its entire history.
“We fear no one and respect everybody,” Stoops said.
Injuries
Stoops and his staff have been steadfast in their insistence that injuries can’t be used as an excuse for UK’s disjointed performances in its three-game losing streak. The number of sidelined Wildcats is hard to ignore, though, and on Monday only grew larger.
During his weekly news conference, Stoops announced that Eli Cox, UK’s starting right guard, will “more than likely” miss the remainder of the season after sustaining an undisclosed injury against Tennessee on Saturday. The sophomore from Nicholasville, a backup prior to starting every game this season, was a midseason All-America selection by the Associated Press in October.
Cox is the first member of UK’s offensive line to be ruled out for the season, though tackles Darian Kinnard and Dare Rosenthal have both missed snaps recently after getting “banged up” in games. Kinnard, a preseason first-team All-America selection, missed the last few snaps of UK’s loss to the Volunteers over the weekend.
“Hopefully he’ll be fine,” Stoops said Monday when asked about Kinnard’s health.
That was different from, “We’ll see,” which has become Stoops’ go-to response this season regarding players coming back from injury. That response has often been code for “not playing,” it turns out; neither Marquan McCall or Jordan Wright played against the Volunteers after having “we’ll see” status placed upon them in news conferences last Monday and Thursday.
McCall warmed up in the end zone and was in uniform against the Volunteers but was never actually considered available. Wright, listed in his usual spot on the depth chart last week and this week, wasn’t in uniform Saturday. Stoops wasn’t asked about either, specifically, on Monday, but while talking about UK’s struggles on defense in their last two games said something that didn’t bode well for their availability this weekend in Nashville.
“We’re going through a lot, we’re down three starting defensive linemen,” Stoops said. “Nobody cares. That’s not an excuse. It is what it is. Other people are down players too. When you’re inexperienced in the secondary and have three starting defensive linemen down, it’s really not a good combination. I’d like to have our best players and our best pass rushers out there, but they’re not.”
Austin Dotson, who started four games last year, will fill in for Cox at right guard with Quintin Wilson backing him up. UK also will look to get Jager Burton, a true freshman, involved there, keeping in mind his future eligibility; he could play in up to three more games and still preserve his redshirt season.
Notes
▪ Kentucky’s final home game, against New Mexico State on Nov. 20, will kick off at noon on SEC Network.
Next game
Kentucky at Vanderbilt
When: 7 p.m. Saturday
TV: ESPN2
Records: Kentucky 6-3 (4-3 SEC), Vanderbilt 2-7 (0-5)