Over their last few meetings, Kentucky and Ole Miss have played some great games. A year ago, Kentucky traveled to Oxford and upset the Rebels by three. Many thought the loss kept them out of the College Football Playoff. Fast forward a year, and the “Lane Train” invaded Lexington looking for revenge. The Cats had their chances on Saturday. However, many of the same issues we’ve seen for years cost the Cats another upset. Plus, they may have lost their starting quarterback. Let’s break it down as Ole Miss Gets Past Kentucky 30-23.
Familiar Tale Dooms The Cats
Taking Advantage Of Mistakes
For the members of the Big Blue Nation, you couldn’t have asked for a better start. Both teams traded punts, then the Rebels missed a field goal. On their third position, Kentucky’s Ty Bryant picked off Austin Simmons and ran it back to the Rebels’ 31-yard line.
From there, Zach Calzada took the Cats 31 yards in eight plays for the score. The last nine coming on a run by Seth McGowan, and it was 7-0 Kentucky. Another Bryant interception gave UK great field position again at the Ole Miss 32. However, this time they couldn’t punch it in, and a 33-yard Jacob Kauwe field goal made it 10-0.
Coming Right Back
It’s difficult keeping the Lane Kiffin offense in check, and that was certainly the case here. The Rebels scored 14 unanswered, coming on a one-yard Kewan Lacy run and the second on a one-yarder by Damien Taylor, and just like that, it was 14-10.
Both teams got field goals, and the Cats trailed by four just before the half. Unfortunately, one of the biggest issues in Mark Stoops’ time at Kentucky reared its ugly head. That is time management. The Cats had to burn all three of their timeouts due to late substitutions. The last one came after a kick-off. Throw in three penalties, and it was a recipe for disaster. It’s something Cat fans have grown used to seeing.
Poor clock management
Poor offensive execution
Poor decision making
Poor again under 2 minutes
Poor
Poor
Poor— Ryan Lemond (@ryanlemond) September 6, 2025
Still Had A Chance
Even with the struggles, Kentucky had opportunities. A 28-yard field goal by Lucas Carneiro put Ole Miss up by seven. To UK’s credit, they came right back to tie it up. McGowan took it in from eight, and it was 20-20.
A seven-yard Simmons run put Ole Miss back up by seven. On Kentucky’s next two possessions, they went for it on fourth down in Ole Miss territory. Kentucky looked to have caught a break on third down when the Rebels defender hit Josh Kattus early. However, no flag was thrown. On the ensuing fourth down, Calzada’s pass to Hardley Gilmore IV wasn’t close, and the Cats turned it over.
During the play, Calzada came off the field and went immediately to the injury tent. According to the ABC announcers, it was his shoulder. He’s had shoulder troubles throughout his career.
Kentucky’s defense held again, and Cutter Boley entered the game in hopes of orchestrating a tying score. On a third and nine, offensive coordinator Bush Hamdan drew up a quarterback draw that went nowhere. Boley was sacked on fourth down, and the Cats again came away with nothing.
One Final Shot
With Simmons hampered by an ankle injury, backup Trinidad Chambliss led a 50-yard drive resulting in a Carneiro 36-yard field goal, putting Ole Miss up by 10.
To his credit, Boley moved the Cats into field goal range with a little over a minute to go. Kauwe was true from 39, and the lead was seven. The ensuing onside kick was recovered by the Rebels, and that was it as Ole Miss Gets Past Kentucky 30-23.
Looking Ahead
The Rebels move to 2-0 overall and 1-0 in SEC play. Next week, they host Arkansas at home. As for the Wildcats, they drop to 1-1 and 0-1 in the league. They’ll host Eastern Michigan as UK gets its second dose of ‘MAC-tion” for 2025.
Final Thoughts
When the national broadcast announcers are openly questioning your time management skills, it’s not a good look. Kentucky fans have seen this time and time again, and it’s not just one offensive coordinator; it’s been pretty much all of them.
After the game, Stoops said whether Calzada is healthy or not, he’ll reevaluate the quarterback situation heading into next week.
With the loss the Kentucky’s inexplicable SEC home losing streak rolls on. They’ve now lost eight straight and 12 of the last 14. The last win came on September 30, 2023, when they beat Florida.
At the end of the day, the defense made enough stops to give the Cats a chance. Unfortunately, they couldn’t get it done. Hindsight is always 20/20, but had UK kicked field goals on either of those fourth downs, things may have been different. They didn’t, and it wasn’t, and Ole Miss gets past Kentucky 30-23.
Main Photo: Jordan Prather-Imagn Images
