Kentucky is coming off a bye week and Vanderbilt is riding the momentum of the biggest upset in school history.
The two Southeastern Conference rivals meet Saturday at Kroger Field in a game that matters more after the Commodores stunned seventh-ranked Alabama last Saturday in Nashville. The Crimson Tide was ranked No. 1 at the time and it marked Vanderbilt’s first-ever win over a top-ranked team.
The Commodores (3-2, 1–1 Southeastern Conference) had their time to celebrate the milestone, but Vanderbilt coach Clark Lea is finished talking about the win over the Tide.
“We can’t live in a world where once we get some attention, we don’t know how to handle ourselves. It’s just discipline. And I told the guys on Sunday when we ended practice, internally we’re done talking about Alabama. It’s burned and released to our past.”
Kentucky coach Mark Stoops said earlier this week that Vanderbilt has his team’s full attention and wasn’t surprised by the Commodores’ performance against Alabama.
"The landscape in our league is nothing new to us,” he said. “I don't think anybody wants to hear the 'poor me' about us coaches (laughter). I don't think anyone is interested in that and we are not worried about that. We know how difficult it is in this league. It is ridiculous how hard it is. There are a lot of very good coaches in this league and a lot of very good teams. I guess nothing surprises us anymore."
Unlike last seaso,n when the Wildcats rolled to a 45-28 win over the Commodores in Nashville, Stoops and his squad will see a revamped offense designed by long-time veteran head coach Jerry Kill.
Led by veteran signal-caller Diego Pavia, Vandy converted 15 third-down opportunities against the Crimson Tide and Pavia threw for 250 yards. He’s completing 80 percent of his passes and is the driving force behind the team’s option-oriented offense. Vandy also held the ball for more than 42 minutes last week and converted 26 first downs.
“(He’s an) amazing player, he really is,” Stoops said. “He's also seeing things at a very, very high level and playing some very good football.”
Kentucky defensive coordinator Brad White said the revamped Commodore offense is “very unique in their own style.”
“it starts with the quarterback (Diego Pavia) and his ability to, one, handle the offense and what they do,” White said. “He’s been in that system, so he understands what they’re looking for. They stress you in a lot of different areas. They are one of the most efficient offenses because they know how to create space in the run game and in the passing game. Scheme-wise, really good, player-wise, really good.”
White added the Wildcats (3-2, 1-2) want to slow the Commodores’ momentum.
“The goal for any team is to try to break some of that rhythm of the opponent,” he said. “That’s going to be our task this week is to break some of that rhythm that they’ve got right now. Easier said than done. If we can do that, hopefully, that will create a rhythm for our offense.”
Mark Stoops after UK’s victory over Ole Miss - Courtesy of UK Athletics
