Kentucky football vs. Vanderbilt: Betting line, 3 things to know before you pick the game

FB Coach Stoops - Pre-Vanderbilt Press Conference from UK Sports Video on Vimeo.

LEXINGTON — It once was unthinkable. But Kentucky now is a mainstay during bowl season.

Thanks to last week's 21-17 road win over Missouri, the Wildcats will play in a bowl for the seventh year in a row, all under the guidance of coach Mark Stoops. Prior to Stoops' arrival in 2013, UK only had played in 15 bowls in its history.

Given the difficulty of the SEC, Stoops said he doesn't view clinching a bowl berth as a birthright.

"There are very good, proud programs that we’re all fighting and we don’t take (bowl eligibility) for granted," Stoops said during his weekly press conference Monday. "Things can take a tick up or a tick down very easily, very quickly nowadays, so we don’t take it for granted."

At the same time, the Wildcats won't rest on their laurels, either.

"Complacency or any of that won’t cross our minds," Stoops said. "With three games left in November, we still have to be relentless in our improvement. We’ve got to finish strong. That old saying, ‘Remember November’ is no joke. You want to remember how you finish.”

With three-fourths of the 12-game regular season in the books, Kentucky holds a 6-3 record, with a 3-3 mark in Southeastern Conference play. The Wildcats close with three straight home games, starting this week with a noon kickoff versus Vanderbilt at Kroger Field.

How to watch Kentucky vs. Vanderbilt:Kickoff time, TV channel, livestream

Can offensive line show improvement in final stretch of the season?

Kentucky's offensive line, to put it lightly, has struggled this fall protecting the quarterback. Missouri notched six sacks last week. For the season, the Wildcats have allowed 35. Not only does that number lead the SEC, but it's the highest mark among all Power 5 teams, ranking 128th nationally. (The only teams with more: Tulsa with 39, Colorado State with 43 and Akron with 49, though the Zips have played 10 games, unlike the three teams ahead of them.)

For a quarterback as beat up as Will Levis right now — he said after Saturday's game he's at 75% health — the sack total isn't ideal.

Stoops conceded last week's offensive line performance could have been better.

"There were some mistakes, whether it be technique, or strain or finishing, just doing their job," he said. "There were a couple where they were doing their job and trying to do a little bit extra and it exposed us. There were times when the protection has been there, but maybe Will doesn’t trust it because he has been hit. There are plays and things that we could do better. We’re all in it together."

Perhaps the good news for the offensive line this week? Vanderbilt only has tallied 13 sacks in 2022, tied with South Carolina for fewest in the SEC.

Still, Stoops said it's on his line to show improvement.

"We need to be clean across the board," Stoops said. "That comes from coaching, teaching and making sure we get the ball out of the right spot. Having the right play calls — when we are max protection, slide protection, do it — do your job, and trust that the person next to you is going to do theirs.”

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Can linebackers put together another stellar outing if two starters are out again?

Kentucky didn't have starting linebackers Jacquez Jones or DeAndre Square available against Missouri. Into that void stepped Trevin Wallace and D'Eryk Jackson.

Wallace notched a game-high nine tackles (featuring three tackles for loss and a sack). Jackson was right behind him with six takedowns of his own.

No one was more excited about Wallace's showing, Stoops said, than the man in front of him on the depth chart: Square.

"That’s a special player, a special leader, very unselfish," Stoops said. "When you have guys like that, you’re excited for their (new player's) opportunity, because you want to let them go eat, let them go see what they can do. And sure enough, he was prepared. ... He was our defensive player of the game, and that just says a lot about him, as well.”

After earning rave reviews last week, what can Wallace and Jackson do for an encore if they're starting beside each other again come Saturday?

No change at kicker

Matt Ruffolo had two field goal attempts last week; he didn't make either one.

It's been a rough stretch for the sixth-year senior. After converting seven of his first eight field goal opportunities this season, he's made just two of his last seven.

Stoops is standing behind him, though.

“Matt is the starting kicker right now," Stoops said. "I think it is fair to say we constantly are working other guys and getting them ready."

Nor is Stoops worried about either of the errant kicks last week.

"I think the first miss, his operation was so fast. We have worked on getting the operation faster, it was just a fraction too fast," Stoops said. "The second one, he probably tried to get it up but it got up into that wind. He could have made that."

As Ruffolo tries to rediscover his early season form, Stoops said he still trusts the native of Centreville, Ohio. Much of that is due to Ruffolo's candor.

"He’s going to be honest. He knows me well enough," Stoops said. "He would tell me (if he wasn't confident). He told me point blank (last week), ‘I can go this way (and make it from) 50 (yards). No problem.’ You hit a gust, you hit a gust, and he hit it a little high. I can’t blame him for that. I thought it was a good kick."

What is the betting line on the Kentucky-Vanderbilt football game?

Kentucky is favored by 17.5 points, according to the VegasInsider.com consensus line.

Prediction: Kentucky 38, Vanderbilt 20

There's a reason the Commodores haven't beaten an SEC foe in more than three years: They simply don't have the same depth, nor talent, as other schools in the league. While Kentucky might not be on par with Alabama or Georgia in terms of NFL draft prospects, the Wildcats still have more than what the Commodores put forth. Levis and the Wildcat passing attack will feast Saturday on a Vandy defense that ranks 130th (out of 131 FBS teams) in yards allowed per game through the air, giving up 314 an outing.

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: Kentucky football vs. Vanderbilt: Prediction, keys to game