Kentucky football, your mission, should you choose to accept it, is simple.
Save the reputation of SEC football.
(This tape will self-destruct in five seconds.)
Not really, but you get the idea. When Mark Stoops' Wildcats take the field at Camping World Stadium outside Orlando on Saturday to face the Iowa Hawkeyes in the VRBO Citrus Bowl, Kentucky needs to buck a disturbing postseason trend for the conference that lives by the motto "It Just Means More."
The "it" doesn't refer to bowl games, apparently. The SEC is off to an 0-4 start. That's right. Four games, four losses. The list: Missouri lost to Army 24-22 in the Armed Forces Bowl. Florida lost to UCF 29-17 in the Gasparilla Bowl. Auburn lost to Houston 17-13 in the Birmingham Bowl. And Mississippi State was embarrassed 34-7 by Texas Tech in the Liberty Bowl.
It's not like these SEC teams are losing to powerhouses, either. Army, UCF and Houston aren't even Power Five conference teams. UCF and Houston reside in the American Athletic Conference. (Both are scheduled to hop on over to the Big 12 in the not too distant future.) Army is an independent. And Texas Tech went 3-6 in the Big 12 before roughing up its former coach, Mike Leach, in Memphis on Tuesday night.
Adding insult to injury, Houston Coach Dana Holgorsen openly complained about how long Auburn was taking in its post-Birmingham Bowl press conference. Waiting in the hallway to take the podium, the impatient Holgorsen was heard yelling "Hurry up!" as Auburn Coach Bryan Harsin was answering questions. No respect for the losers, apparently.
Maybe the conference can start turning things around Thursday when South Carolina competes with ACC member North Carolina for a postgame mayonnaise bath in the Duke's Mayo Bowl. Later that same day, Tennessee takes on Jeff Brohm and Big Ten member Purdue in the Music City Bowl. Friday, the big dogs take center stage. SEC East champ Georgia plays Big Ten champ Michigan in one College Football Playoff semifinal. SEC champ Alabama faces AAC champ Cincinnati in the other.
Kentucky is one of three SEC teams in action Saturday. Arkansas plays Big Ten member Penn State in the Outback Bowl. Ole Miss plays the Big 12's Baylor in the Sugar Bowl. With Texas A&M opting out of the Gator Bowl because of COVID, LSU is the last of the 12 league teams to play in the postseason. The Tigers face Kansas State out of the Big 12 in the Texas Bowl next Tuesday.
Back to the Cats and their reputation-saving directive. Just how can Kentucky give its head coach a win over his alma mater and save the nation's best football conference from additional embarrassment on New Year's Day?
Bottom line: The Cats can't beat the Cats. Iowa won 10 games and the Big Ten West Division by feasting on opponents' mistakes. The Hawkeyes lead the nation in interceptions with 24. They are tied for second nationally with Cincinnati behind Nevada in turnover margin. Kentucky is tied for 127th. If you're scoring at home, only 130 teams play Division I football.
Kirk Ferentz, in his 23rd year as Iowa coach, is known for producing teams that play good fundamental football. Nothing flashy. Nothing tricky. Just a smart, sound team that wants to limit unforced errors. It's the recipe behind the 66-year-old Ferentz's 178-109 record in Iowa City.
Iowa also boasts a defense ranked 15th nationally in yards allowed, even after that 42-3 spanking by a red-hot Michigan in the Big Ten title game. Kentucky's defense is no slouch either, of course. The Cats are 25th nationally in total defense. They'll face a struggling Iowa offense that produced 28 offensive touchdowns this season. Kentucky produced 49.
Ah, but bowl games are often decided by motivation. Iowa will no doubt be motivated to show it is a better team than the one that got waxed by the Wolverines on Dec. 4. A week ago, Kentucky's primary motivation was achieving the program's second 10-win season since 1977.
Now it has another mission: Save the reputation of the SEC.
This story was originally published December 29, 2021 12:24 PM.
