Kentucky football held scoreless in Music City Bowl game vs Iowa: What we learned in loss
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Without Will Levis and Chris Rodriguez, Kentucky’s offense already was down its two most important players. Their absences were conspicuous.
For the first time in 22 bowl appearances, UK failed to score a single point, falling to Iowa, 21-0, in the Music City Bowl at Nissan Stadium.
It’s not as if the Wildcats (7-6) were an offensive juggernaut when Levis and Rodriguez actually did play this fall. Kentucky was the SEC’s most pitiful offense in both points and yards per game during the 2022 regular season. But Levis and Rodriguez deciding to focus on their professional futures, instead of bowl prep, meant the challenge in front of Kentucky’s offense became even greater.
And that’s not even mentioning UK working without its full-time offensive coordinator. (Coach Mark Stoops dismissed Rich Scangarello after just 12 games.)
Making a change:Kentucky football cuts ties with offensive coordinator Rich Scangarello
Iowa (8-5) feasted on a foe lacking much punch offensively. Not that the Hawkeyes’ offense lit up the scoreboard, either: Two of their three touchdowns came via interceptions taken to the end zone.
Kentucky finished with only 185 yards of total offense, while Iowa tallied 206.
Saturday also marked the largest margin of defeat the Wildcats have suffered in a bowl.
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Forgettable debut for Wade — but don't be too hard on him
With Levis deciding to turn his attention to the NFL — and turn the page on his college career — Kentucky was guaranteed to have a player under center Saturday with little, if no, experience as a starter. Wade beat out third-year sophomore Deuce Hogan (who ironically began his career at Iowa) and redshirt freshman Kaiya Sheron for that honor.
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No one ever said Wade's job was going to be easy, however.
For starters, Rodriguez joined Levis in opting out of the bowl. That removed the Wildcats' top offensive option from the proceedings — and also took away a player who would have been a safety valve of sorts for Wade, who could have turned around and handed off the ball to one of the greatest running backs in school history.
Then there was the Wildcats' much-maligned offensive line, a unit that gave up 42 sacks in 12 games. (The Wildcats allowed four additional sacks Saturday.)
To top it off, Wade saw his first action as a collegian against Iowa, of all teams. A program that routinely fields one of the best defenses in all the land. And the Hawkeyes looked the part Saturday.
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All that being said ... it's hard to say exactly what Wade will take out of this one in terms of positive reinforcement.
He started off hot, completing his first two attempts, and four of his first five. But he fell off a cliff after that. He connected on only 14 of his final 28 passes. Those completions, of course, don't account for the two receptions by Iowa defenders, both of which were returned for touchdowns. Wade also showed a tendency to hold on to the ball far too long, simply lacking game reps to know when to throw out of bounds to avoid sacks.
Perhaps better days are ahead for Wade. If so, Saturday becomes a distant memory.
The good news for him is that he can use next year to learn from, Devin Leary, the former North Carolina State quarterback who was considered the best signal-caller available in the transfer portal.
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Future still bright for defense
Even before Saturday's game kicked off, the UK defense was missing a pair of starting defenders: linebacker DeAndre Square (injury) and cornerback Carrington Valentine (opt-out).
Their absences didn't dent a unit that ranked among the country's best all fall.
The Wildcats ended the regular season ranked 11th nationally (No. 3 among SEC teams behind Georgia and Alabama) in points allowed per game at 19.08; they were 15th nationally (and third among conference squads behind the two superpowers) in yards permitted per contest at 320.2.
The final numbers Saturday: 21 points. 206 yards.
The point total is misleading. Fourteen of Iowa's points came with Kentucky's defense on the sideline. Blame Wade's two errant throws for the Hawkeyes' success reaching the end zone.
Still, the performance is encouraging for Kentucky's defense.
Even if every Wildcat eligible for the NFL draft moves on, the group will bring back a wealth of talent in 2023.
Five of the unit's starters Saturday were underclassmen: defensive end Tre’vonn Rybka, defensive tackle Deone Walker, linebacker Trevin Wallace, cornerback Andru Phillips and free safety Jordan Lovett. That's not even including fourth-year junior linebacker J.J. Weaver, who went through senior day ceremonies last month but has yet to announce whether he'll return to Kentucky or put his name into the draft. Fellow junior Justin Rogers didn't participate in senior day, but he's considered the Wildcats' top draft prospect aside from Levis.
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Ray Davis can’t enroll soon enough
A theme in the four games Rodriguez sat out to begin the season was an inability to establish the run.
That continued Saturday: Kentucky ran for 68 yards on 32 carries. JuTahn McClain led the way, carrying 10 times for 40 yards.
McClain, while a nice change-of-pace option, won’t be Rodriguez’s successor.
That will be Ray Davis, the former Vanderbilt star who committed to Kentucky on Dec. 20.
Reach Kentucky men’s basketball and football reporter Ryan Black at rblack@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter at @RyanABlack
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: UK vs Iowa football: Wildcats held scoreless in Music City Bowl game
