The Florida Gators are back in the Swamp Saturday night as they will host the Kentucky Wildcats. This will be Florida’s first conference game this season and it will also be the first SEC game in the Dan Mullen Era. The Gators got their season off with a 53-6 rout against the Charleston Southern Buccaneers. As for Kentucky, they struggled but ended up defeating the Central Michigan Chippewas 35-20. The Florida Gators are currently on a 31-game winning streak against the Wildcats but was almost snapped last season in a 28-27 nail biter. Here is the Florida Gators vs. Kentucky Wildcats Preview-Kentucky game preview.
Florida Gators vs. Kentucky Wildcats Preview
Kentucky Wildcats
The Kentucky Wildcats come into this game with a high-powered rushing attack led by Benny Snell. The junior running back had 20 carries for 125 yards and two touchdowns in their win against Central Michigan. Kentucky’s quarterback Terry Wilson is also a very solid runner as he was one of the top JUCO QB’s last recruiting class. The Wildcats’ game plan will likely try to beat the Florida defense on the ground. Wilson had his struggles through the air so Kentucky will likely run a lot of run-pass-option plays to try to confuse Florida’s defense. Sophomore running back A.J Rose is another back that should get some touches versus Florida. Rose had eight carries for 104 yards and two touchdowns including a 55-yard rushing TD. The Wildcats will likely run the ball 65% of the time unless they’re down early in the game.
On defense, the Kentucky Wildcats showed up against Central Michigan and limited the Chippewas to 20 points after their offense had four turnovers. The Wildcats defense is led by linebacker Josh Allen. The senior linebacker had ten tackles last Saturday with one sack and three tackles for a loss. Allen is one of the top linebacker in the 2019 NFL Draft and will need to be all over the field since Florida will likely lean on their running backs. Another senior linebacker Kentucky is high on is Jordan Jones. He had eight tackles with half a sack and 1.5 tackles for a loss versus Central Michigan.
Florida Gators
The Florida Gators will be in front of their home crowd for their first SEC game of the season. Last time they played against Kentucky, it was a very close one and almost snapped their winning streak. In order for Florida to extend the streak to 32 games, they must attack the Kentucky defense on the ground. Mullen and the Florida offense are loaded at running back with Jordan Scarlett, Malik Davis and others. Davis had a great game against the Wildcats last season and would like to duplicate his performance from last season. Feleipe Franks started against the Wildcats last season but was pulled in the second half. Franks had a great season opener throwing 219 yards with five touchdown passes. This is a talented Florida offense that will look to put it all together like last Saturday.
The Florida Gators defense is also very talented with a strong defensive line and secondary. Florida’s defensive game plan should be very simply as everyone knows what Kentucky’s strength is. The defensive line needs to pin their ears backs and go right after Benny Snell. Terry Wilson is also a threat with his legs and will likely try to use his legs more often. The Gators defense will likely try to keep Wilson in the pocket and force him throw on Florida’s secondary. If the run game is unavailable for the Wildcats, Florida might force multiple turnovers with defensive backs like Marco Wilson, C.J. Henderson and Chauncey Gardner-Johnson.
5 Players to Watch: Kentucky Wildcats
- RB Benny Snell
- LB Josh Allen
- RB A.J. Rose
- LB Jordan Jones
- QB Terry Wilson
5 Players to Watch: Florida Gators
- RB Jordan Scarlett
- DE Jachai Polite
- RB Malik Davis
- CB Chauncey Gardner-Johnson
- LB Jeremiah Moon
5 Predictions:
- Florida Gators have two or more running touchdowns.
- Benny Snell rushes for over 75 yards.
- Florida’s defense forces at least two turnovers.
- Josh Allen leads both teams in tackles.
- Florida defeats Kentucky 30-17.
