The Kentucky Wildcats are 2-0 after a 27-16 win over the EKU Colonels, which is probably the nicest way to recap the game.
Here are three things to know from what was largely an ugly performance:
Worst 1st Quarter Ever
Ok, that may be exaggerating, but it was pretty bad, and all Mark Stoops did was dump gasoline on the trash fire.
Let’s just hope that was a one-time thing that UK got out of its system against an opponent it could afford to do so against. If that happens in any SEC game or vs. Louisville, game over.
No More QB Competition
That doesn’t mean Drew Barker shouldn’t start if Stephen Johnson has a bad stretch of games, but for now, there needs to be no more talk of a competition. Johnson has done enough to keep his job without having Barker leaning in over his shoulder.
Part of that is due to the makeup of this offense. The offensive line has stunk, so a more mobile QB like Johnson is necessary, and his arm stretches the field more than Barker anyhow.
Anyone who doubted Stephen Johnson should be Kentucky’s quarterback should hush after today.
— Tyler Thompson (@MrsTylerKSR) September 9, 2017
Indeed.
Time To Reassess Expectations
All those eight-win predictions and SEC East title hopes need to disappear from our minds like Drew Barker’s hopes of starting. The losses of Jon Toth, Boom Williams, Cole Mosier and other key players from last year have turned out to be bigger than we realized.
This team still has the potential to get to a bowl, but if the first two games are any indicator, getting to just six wins is going to be a lot of work. Seven is probably the ceiling, and eight is just a pipe dream.
That’s life in the SEC. Sometimes, a good team ends up getting just five or six wins. We’re not even sure this is a good UK team yet, so let’s not get our hopes up for seven-plus wins going forward.
STEPHEN FREAKING JOHNSON! pic.twitter.com/wWITs6fYR7
— Scott Charlton (@Scott_Charlton) September 9, 2017
Now that the game is over, let us hear your comments and concerns in our postgame thread.