EDITORIAL BY GRAYDON FOX

Overview:

On Saturday, October 27^th, the (6-1) Kentucky Wildcats will be on the road to take on the (4-3) Missouri Tigers.

The Crowd:

The Crowd projects a final score of Missouri 30.1 – Kentucky 25.8 with an over/under of 55.9.

Lou Holtz and Mark May:

Lou is predicting a final score of Missouri 27 – Kentucky 24.

Mark is predicting a final score of Missouri 42 – Kentucky 17.

2018-19 Statistics (130 total teams):

Passing offense: Missouri 301.0 YPG > Kentucky 127.3 YPG

Rushing offense: Kentucky 231.6 YPG > Missouri 200.1 YPG

Scoring offense: Missouri 38.6 PPG > Kentucky 27.1 PPG

Scoring defense: Kentucky 12.9 PPG > Missouri 30.9 PPG

Passing defense: Kentucky 189.9 YPG > Missouri 287.9 YPG

Rushing defense: Kentucky 112.0 YPG > Missouri 131.6 YPG

Turnover Margin Per Game: Kentucky +0.2 > Missouri -0.5

Summary:

Kentucky is (6-1) with wins over Central Michigan, #25 Florida, Murray State, #14 Mississippi State, South Carolina, and Vanderbilt.  Their lone defeat was a 20-14 overtime loss to Texas A&M in week six.  Kentucky, coming off their bye, narrowly defeated Vanderbilt 14-7 last week.  The Wildcats rank 80^th in points per game (27.1) and 2^nd in scoring defense (12.9 PPG).  Quarterback Terry Wilson has completed 63% of his passes for 721 yards with 4 touchdowns to 5 interceptions.  Wilson is also the team’s second leading rusher with 395 yards and 3 touchdowns.  Kentucky has arguably the best running back in the country in Benny Snell Jr. who has rushed for 868 yards and 9 touchdowns.  The Wildcats’ defense ranks 31^st against the pass (189.9 YPG) and 17^th against the run (112.0 YPG).

Missouri is (4-3) with victories over UT Martin, Wyoming, Purdue, and Memphis.  They were defeated by #2 Georgia, #1 Alabama, and South Carolina.  Missouri is coming off a 65-33 whooping of Memphis in which they compiled 646 yards of total offense.  The Tigers rank 20^th in points per game (38.6) and 91^st in scoring defense (30.9 PPG).  Quarterback Drew Lock is seen highly in many NFL circles but hasn’t put up monster numbers.  Lock has completed 61% of his passes for 1,979 yards with 16 touchdowns to 6 interceptions.  The backfield duo of Larry Rountree III and Damarea Crockett have combined for 966 yards and 11 touchdowns.  Emmanuel Hall is averaging a ridiculous 23.9 yards per catch to go along with 430 yards and 3 touchdowns.  The Tigers’ defense ranks 122^nd against the pass (287.4 YPG) and 36^th against the run (131.6 YPG).

Bottom Line:

Kentucky’s deficiencies in the passing game will not allow them to take advantage of Missouri’s porous secondary.  Kentucky’s best hope is to have success with Benny Snell Jr. running the football and keep Drew Lock off the field.  Missouri’s offense is coming off a huge performance against Memphis last week and should be full of confidence.  Kentucky’s defense is legit but they have yet to go up against an elite quarterback.

Missouri wins 27-23

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