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Coming off embarrassing defeats, Kentucky and Florida will look to avoid a two-game skid when they square off in a primetime SEC matchup on Saturday, November 14th, at 6:15 PM ET at Kroger Field in Lexington, Kentucky.
The Wildcats were dismantled 34-6 at Tennessee last week, while the Gators suffered a 23-7 home loss to Oklahoma. Both teams must regroup quickly as the SEC schedule offers no respite.
Florida will make the trip to Lexington for a November night game for the second consecutive year. In last season's meeting, Kentucky cruised to a 38-7 victory. However, with new coaches on both sidelines, a repeat blowout seems unlikely. Both programs are desperate to steady their seasons and prevent one loss from snowballing into two.
Adding intrigue: Florida head coach Jon Sumrall and defensive coordinator Brad White will return to Lexington with victory on their minds. Meanwhile, Kentucky aims to erase the sting of the Tennessee loss and keep its College Football Playoff hopes alive.
Florida's Inconsistency
The Gators (5-4, 3-4 SEC) have been maddeningly unpredictable. They dominated Ole Miss by 24 points and edged Texas by 3, yet were blown out by Missouri (28 points) and Oklahoma (16 points). Florida has scored under 10 points in back-to-back games while juggling quarterbacks.
Trammel Jones started against the Sooners and struggled mightily, completing 10 of 22 passes with two interceptions. A game earlier, Aaron Philo started 5-of-7 but threw interceptions on both incompletions and was benched before halftime. The Gators' quarterback situation remains uncertain, so Kentucky must prepare for both signal-callers.
Defensively, Florida is equally volatile. The Gators allow 425.3 total yards per game for the season, but in their last three games, they surrendered 278 yards to Texas, 318 to Georgia, and 351 to Oklahoma. That recent improvement suggests defensive coordinator Brad White has his unit playing better, but the key question remains: which Florida team will show up—the one that upset Texas or the one that lost at home to Oklahoma?
How to Watch
Location: Kroger Field – Lexington, Kentucky
Date: Saturday, November 14th
Time: 6:15 PM ET
TV: ESPN
Streaming: WatchESPN
Radio: UK Sports Network
Odds and Prediction
Opening odds: FanDuel Sportsbook lists Kentucky as a 3.5-point favorite with an over/under of 51.5. ESPN's FPI gives the Wildcats a 54% chance of winning.
This game has all the makings of a weird one. Both teams are coming off ugly losses, and both fan bases are hurting. The team that handles adversity better will likely emerge victorious. If Kentucky can return to clean football, its talent and home-field advantage should be enough to send Florida home with a loss. However, the Gators have shown they can beat anyone when motivated—as evidenced by their win at Texas.
The biggest concern for Kentucky is right tackle Malachi Wood, who has struggled against speed rushers this season. Florida's Emmanuel Oyebadejo, a 6-foot-6, 300-pound force with a team-leading 4.5 sacks, will be eager to exploit the right side of Kentucky's offensive line, which had issues at Tennessee.
Ultimately, the Wildcats should clean up their mistakes and, despite pressure off the edge, knock off the Gators.
Final score prediction: Kentucky 33, Florida 21
Originally reported by yahoo.