Breaking Down Kentucky’s Bowl Possibilities
Under Coach Mark Stoops the Kentucky Wildcats finished the regular season 7-5 for a second consecutive year. That means the Cats are going bowling once again after staying home five straight seasons. While the 7-5 this year doesn’t feel quite as good as 2016 still for Kentucky a bowl game is a big deal. There are three games which seem as the most likely destination for the Big Blue Nation. As we begin Breaking Down Kentucky’s Bowl Possibilities let’s start with the most to least likely.
Bowling In Tennessee
Kentucky’s bowl game falls somewhere within the SEC’s Group of Six games. These include the Belk, Liberty, Music City, Outback, Taxslayer and Texas. Since the Wildcats played in the Taxslayer last season that one is out. The Texas bowl usually takes a squad from the SEC West. Kentucky didn’t win enough games to make the Outback so that leaves the other three.
Of the three remaining games the Music City Bowl in Nashville looks like the leader. The Cats would face either a team from the Big 10 or ACC. The most current projections has Kentucky playing Purdue. In addition to the Boilermakers two other squads being discussed are Iowa and Northwestern.
That would certainly make for an interesting match-up as Purdue head man Jeff Brohm formerly coached at Western Kentucky. Their are some in the UK fan base who hope he would be Kentucky coach sometime in the future. A game against the Hawkeyes is an intriguing one as Stoops played football at Iowa.
The Cats have played in Nashville four times with the last being 2009 losing to Clemson. Bowl officials hope the short drive from Lexington would entice many True Blue Fans to come.
The next most likely landing place for Kentucky is the Liberty Bowl in Memphis. The Wildcats last played there in 2009 beating East Carolina 25-19. Yes the Cats played in two bowl games in 2009 with the Liberty coming after the 2008 season.
If Kentucky lands in Memphis they would face a Big 12 team which now would be West Virginia. That also would be an interesting match-up as Cat fans from eastern Kentucky have long wished for a Wildcats-Mountaineers contest. However with their recent hot streak Missouri has also been getting a lot of attention from the Liberty Bowl.
Another Bowl Possibility
As we continue Breaking Down Kentucky’s Bowl Possibilities the third and least likely destination is the Belk Bowl in Charlotte. The contest with the best twitter game has been interested in Kentucky all season. Back in the summer Last Word On College Football predicted the Cats to the Belk Bowl. From a prediction standpoint having the Cats end up in Charlotte would be pretty cool.
Should the Wildcats end up in Charlotte their likely opponent would be Wake Forest. However their is one big drawback to Kentucky playing in this contest. Kick off for the Belk Bowl is December 29th at 1:00 pm which is the same time as the Kentucky- Louisville basketball game.
Many around the country are asking why one of college basketball’s best rivalry games is being played on a Friday afternoon. The simple answer is television. CBS Sports dictated the time and date for this year’s Cats vs. Cards clash. Kentucky’s athletic director Mitch Barnhart has stated the school would be hesitant to play in a football game at the same time.
On the other hand the Music City Bowl is also on December 29th, but at 4:30. School officials have talked about bringing in big screen televisions outside Nissan Stadium. Furthermore they are looking at showing the game on the screens inside the stadium creating a huge party atmosphere.
The Best Choice For A Game
We will find out officially on Sunday but as it stands right now Kentucky’s 17th all-time bowl game will be its fifth in Nashville. From a school and fan standpoint it makes the most sense and a game against Purdue is a very good match-up. Thanks for Breaking Down Kentucky’s Bowl Possibilities with us here at Last Word On College Football.
