Kentucky Heads into Much Needed Bye Week

The No. 19 Kentucky Wildcats head into their bye week 5-2 overall and 2-2 in the SEC. The Wildcats took down No. 16 Mississippi State on Saturday sending them into the bye week on a positive note.

Head coach Mark Stoops was pleased with his team’s bounce back performance against the Bulldogs.

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Perfect Timing

Stoops said the bye week comes at a good time for the team. They’ve played seven games in a row and could use a week to get healthy. The team opened the season winning four games in a row, including a win over Florida who was ranked at the time. Then, they dropped two in a row to Ole Miss and South Carolina but bounced back to beat Mississippi State.

Even though the Wildcats have two weeks to prepare for their next game, Stoops said they have a lot to focus on within their team before they turn to their next matchup. The Wildcats are third in the SEC East but still have yet to play Georgia and Tennessee, the top two teams in the SEC East.

What Kentucky has left

After the bye week, the team will travel to Knoxville to face No. 3 Tennessee. The Volunteers are undefeated this season and will most likely still be undefeated when the Wildcats come to town. Tennessee faces UT-Martin, an FCS squad, this week. Kentucky will need to be ready for Tennessee’s high powered offense. The Wildcats average just 26.4 points per game compared to the Volunteers who score 47.7.

After Tennessee, the Wildcats finish out the last month of the regular season with three SEC matchups in a row before taking on Louisville. They will travel to Missouri after playing Tennessee, and then host Vanderbilt and Georgia. If Kentucky manages to win out, they have a chance at winning the SEC East.