By Keith Taylor
Kentucky Today
Kentucky kept its slim bowl hopes alive on Saturday with a 48-6 win over Murray State.
The Wildcats (4-6) ended a four-game losing streak and now must win their final two games of the year to reach the postseason for an unprecedented ninth straight season.
Kentucky closes out the Southeastern Conference schedule at Texas on Saturday, followed by the home finale against instate rival Louisville on Nov. 30. The Longhorns defeated Arkansas 20-10 on Saturday, while the Cardinals were stunned at Stanford, 38-35, on a last-second field goal.
Coming off a bye week, Kentucky had little trouble disposing of the Racers (1-10). Kentucky signal-caller Brock Vandagriff threw for 183 yards and two touchdowns, with one interception. Vandagriff, coach Mark Stoops said, didn’t get fully cleared to play until Friday afternoon when he passed all pre-game protocols.
“He is one tough son of a gun,” Stoops said. “… he’s just such a team guy, and a lot of people wouldn’t have (played). I commend him for that, grinding through it and playing. He’s been doing that all year.”
Most of Vandagriff’s completions were to Hartley Gilmore, who started in place of injured receiver Barion Brown. Gilmore hauled in two passes for 72 yards and one touchdown.
Vandagriff set the tone for true freshman Cutter Boley, who played the entire second half.
Boley threw for 130 yards and two touchdowns. He rushed for 21 more, including a 30-yard carry on the team’s second series of the second half.
“I liked everything about (his performance),” Stoops said. “The poise that he had — nothing rattled him at all. He was very patient in the pocket and moved when he had to. He threw the ball very well and made good decisions.”
Boley and Vandagriff combined for 313 yards and four touchdowns and 31 first downs.
Boley threw his first career touchdown with a 22-yard strike to Anthony Brown-Stephens with 10 minutes remaining. Brown-Stephens hauled in three passes for 51 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
Behind the play of Boley and Vandagriff, Kentucky’s offensive output was the most since the Wildcats tallied 52 in a win over Louisville three years ago.
Kentucky received another stellar performance from running back Jamarion Wilcox, who rushed for a career-high 123 yards and one touchdown. Wilcox rushed for 102 yards in a 28-18 loss at Tennessee on Nov. 2.
Overall, the Wildcats finished with 582 total yards, while the team’s defensive unit limited the Racers to just 256 yards and collected three interceptions. Kentucky defensive back Jordan Lovett had two interceptions — both in the first half — and held Murray to just one third-down conversion on 12 attempts.
Murray State avoided the shutout with a 32-yard field goal with 47 seconds remaining in the third quarter. The Racers added a 36-yard field goal to open the fourth quarter.
The two teams were penalized 24 times for 199 yards, including six straight penalties during the Racers’ successful scoring drive in the third quarter.
“It was sloppy at times, but we did what we had to do for the majority of the game,” Stoops said. “…. We scored on every drive in the second half, and obviously, that was good to see with Cutter (Boley) under center, moving the team, operating and getting some substantial playing time.”
Gametracker: Kentucky at Texas, 3:30 p.m., Saturday. TV/Radio: ABC, UK Radio Network.