Old Rocky Top finally came tumbling down.
Chalk another one up to Mark Stoops' streak-busters, who keep drawing a line through Kentucky football's most painful losing streaks. Two years ago in Gainesville, down went the Florida Gators for the first time since 1986. Saturday, down went the Tennessee Volunteers for the first time at Neyland Stadium since 1984.
Final: Kentucky 34, Tennessee 7.
These Cats didn't just beat the streak, they crushed it, administering a beatdown to the Big Orange thanks to an opportunistic defense in the first half and a smash-mouth running game that closed the deal in the second half for UK's largest margin of victory over the Vols since 1935.
"I don't think that's fair to be put on these players," said Stoops of Kentucky's 17 consecutive losses in Knoxville.
Indeed, just three of the 17 were listed next to Stoops' name, but the third one, a 24-7 no-show in 2018, was obviously a thorn in his pride. Seeking to stop the insanity, the coach hatched a plan to break up the long bus ride down I-75, stopping in Williamsburg, Virginia, for a Friday afternoon practice at the University of the Cumberlands.
"We broke it up, went to the (University) of the Cumberlands and had a good practice," said Stoops, who had used a similar strategy last year when the team practiced in the NFL's Tennessee Titans facility in Nashville before ripping Vanderbilt 38-14 the next day. "Fortunately, it was a beautiful day. We really appreciated their hospitality."
"I think it helped us get our legs up and under us," linebacker Jamin Davis said. "It was definitely worth it in my opinion."
Worth its weight in gold, you might say, given UK's first-half heist. After picking off six Mississippi State passes in last Saturday's 24-2 win, the Cats picked right up where they left off.
Kelvin Joseph, the cornerback transfer from LSU, got the fun runs started by pouncing on a Jarrett Guarantano pass and returning it 41 yards down the sideline for a picturesque pick-six, putting the Cats in front 7-0 with 12:47 left in the second quarter.
"Getting that pick-six was big," Stoops said. "It flipped the pressure on them."
Just two minutes and 14 seconds later, Davis replicated Joseph's feat, picking off another errant Guarantano throw before rumbling and stumbling _ "I thought I was going to pass out for a second," the junior said afterward _ 85 yards for UK's second defensive touchdown of the quarter.
Ah, but Kentucky fans have seen 14-0 leads over Tennessee vanish before. Even bigger leads. Gone, in no time flat. And by halftime, the Volunteers had pulled to within 17-7 thanks to a punishing 14-play, 75-yard touchdown drive.
"The second half," said Davis, "we wanted to show that we could finish a game."
The Cats did that and then some. The defense forced a quick UT three-and-out. Then quarterback Terry Wilson engineered an 11-play, 76-yard touchdown drive, capped off by his perfect 1-yard pass to Allen Dailey for a 24-7 lead. Book closed.
It was the fewest points UK had allowed in an SEC road game since a 31-3 win at Florida in 1979, the last time the Cats won in Gainesville before 2018. Tennessee Coach Jeremy Pruitt used not one, not two, but three quarterbacks to no avail. And after giving up 42 points to Ole Miss on Oct. 3, the Kentucky defense has allowed all of one touchdown while intercepting nine passes over eight quarters.
In the postgame Zoom call, the Herald-Leader's Josh Moore asked Stoops if this might end up being his best defense. "Easy, Josh, easy," said the coach. "We can't let them read those things. We've got to stay hungry."
After all, in this 10-game All-SEC triathlon of a pandemic season, six games remain. But, as "Voice of the Cats" Tom Leach remarked in the postgame, after so many sad bus rides back to Lexington, finally toppling Tennessee in Tennessee sure makes for an enjoyable one.
Replied, Stoops, "You're damn right."
