Sophomore running back Stanley “Boom” Williams rushed 13 times for 115 yards on Saturday but it wasn’t enough as Kentucky fell to Vanderbilt 21-17 in an SEC matchup in Nashville.
Williams had rushes of 66 and 38 yards in his return from an elbow injury.
Kentucky (4-6, 2-6 SEC) lost its fourth game in a row and is still two wins short of becoming bowl eligible with home contests still on the schedule against Charlotte and Louisville. The Cats got on the board first in the game, as Austin MacGinnis hit a 38-yard field goal in the first quarter.
But Vandy took its first lead later in that period when Kyle Shurmur hit Kyle Anderton for a four-yard touchdown to give the Commodores a 7-3 lead.
In the second quarter, Kentucky got into the end zone when redshirt freshman quarterback Drew Barker, in for starter Patrick Towles, connected with Ryan Timmons on a seven-yard pass to make it 10-7 Kentucky. That marked Barker’s first career touchdown pass.
On Kentucky’s next possession, Barker was intercepted by Oren Burks, who returned the pick 30 yards for a touchdown to give Vanderbilt a 14-10 lead before the half.
Vanderbilt (4-6, 2-4 SEC) tacked on another touchdown before the half when Shurmur connected with Caleb Scott on a 37-yard pass when Kentucky missed on a fourth-down conversion pass, giving the Commodores a 21-10 lead at the break.
Vandy 21, Kentucky 17 boxscore
The second half was largely dominated by the defenses. In fact, the only score after the break came when Kentucky running back Jojo Kemp found the end zone from two yards out with 1:06 left in the third quarter, pulling Kentucky within four points.
Kentucky starting quarterback Patrick Towles was 10 of 26 through the air for 67 yards with an interception, his second straight game with less than 100 yards. Barker, who was relieved in the third quarter as Towles played the rest of the way, hit on 5-of-8 passes for 60 yards, with a touchdown and an interception.
Kentucky wide receiver Dorian Baker caught seven passes for 42 yards in the game, while teammate Jeff Badet caught two passes for 50 yards.
Kentucky returns to action on Saturday, Nov. 21 against Charlotte at Commonwealth Stadium. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m.
From UK Athletics