I don't know about anyone else, but I'm still on cloud nine today after Saturday's win over Missouri.
It was a huge, season-defining win for the Kentucky Wildcats over the 25th-ranked Tigers. Hopefully it was also a win that talks some fans off the ledges and silences any haters after the loss to THAT team last week.
There were so many positive things on the offensive side of the ball to focus on, beginning with the play of Patrick Towles. Going 22-27 for 249 yards and 2 touchdowns with a rushing touchdown on top of that, faith was restored (for those who may have had any doubts) in the fact that Patrick is our guy.
Garrett Johnson was the leading receiver with 119 yards, including some huge drive sustaining receptions. Dorian Baker and CJ Conrad each got their first touchdowns of the season, and Jojo Kemp stepped up in a big way and led the team with 66 rushing yards.
The defense was also huge again this week as UK finally had Ryan Flannigan and Jason Hatcher back and at 100%, and it was fun to watch. With the two of them combining for 16 tackles and Cory Johnson throwing in his own team leading 11, the defense held the Missouri offense to only 10 points. I couldn't narrow it down to just one player for this week's Unsung Hero.
I went with a group of players who showed a lot of improvement from last week, the offensive line. After allowing six sacks last week, the line stepped up this week against another stout SEC defense, allowing just two sacks, but more importantly, providing substantially better pass protection and giving Towles enough time to make those good, accurate throws. One of those was a coverage sack, and for the most part, they kept Towles clean throughout the game.
So here's to you, Jon Toth, Jordan Swindle, Cole Mosier, Nick Haynes, Ramsey Meyers, Zach West, Kyle Meadows, and big George Asafo-Adjei! Nice work this week!
Go Cats!