Vanderbilt hands Kentucky football worst loss in Mark Stoops era: 3 takeaways

LEXINGTON, Ky. — That was ugly. No two ways about it.

Even if Kentucky football had beaten Vanderbilt Saturday, it would have been a Pyrrhic victory. Barely topping a Commodore squad that hasn’t tasted triumph of the SEC variety in more than three years? It’s not acceptable for a Wildcat program that has distanced itself from the Commodores during Mark Stoops’ tenure. At the outset of every season, Kentucky (No. 24 in the latest College Football Playoff rankings) should pencil in a “W” beside the Vanderbilt contest.

But that didn't happen Saturday.

Saturday’s shocker, a 24-21 Vanderbilt victory, will go down as arguably the worst setback of Stoops’ decade-long stint as coach.

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Vanderbilt quarterback Mike Wright threw for just 184 yards on 12-of-23 passing — with an interception and only one touchdown. But that lone score proved to be the difference. Wright hit Quincy Skinner Jr. with 32 seconds left for an 8-yard score that put the Commodores up for good. UK's subsequent drive ended with quarterback Will Levis getting sacked on third down and throwing an interception on fourth down as time expired.

While the game-winning score came through the air, there was a bigger issue for the Wildcats’ defense. It was a sieve against the visitors’ ground game. Vandy finished with 264 yards. Two rushers eclipsed the 100-yard mark: Wright had 126 and a touchdown on 11 carries, while backfield mate Ray Davis had 129 yards on 26 attempts.

Kentucky kicker Matt Ruffolo had an up-and-down day. He took the field Saturday having made just two of his last seven attempts. Ruffolo made his first two Saturday — from 47 and 27 yards, respectively — but had his third kick (37 yards) blocked. He bounced back to make his final attempt, this one from 39 yards, to trim Vanderbilt’s lead to 14-9 with 3:42 to go in the third quarter.

But reread that last sentence.

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Through more than 40-plus minutes of play Saturday, Kentucky had managed just six points against Vanderbilt’s defense. The same defense that had given up 27 or more points seven times this fall. The same defense that had permitted 45-plus points four times, and 50 or more three times — all coming in consecutive games (55 to Alabama, 52 to Ole Miss and 55 to Georgia). The same defense that allowed an SEC-worst 36.8 points per game.

Yet the Wildcats managed only two touchdowns.

With top-ranked Georgia on tap next week, followed by a surging Louisville squad in the regular-season finale, Saturday’s performance means two more defeats are staring UK in the face later this month.

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Here are three takeaways from a perplexing loss:

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For the first time since Oct. 19, 2019, Vanderbilt walked into the locker room after a conference game on the right side of the scoreboard, stunning UK 24-21.

To say the result was unexpected isn’t going far enough: Kentucky was a 17-point favorite. The Commodores entered Saturday with one of the longest streaks in league history: a 26-game skid, the third-worst stretch in the SEC’s annals. (The only longer dry spells: Sewanee went 0-for-37 from 1933 to 1940, losing every conference game it ever played; Vandy lost 33 straight league games from 1976 to 1981, and 35 of 36. Of note: Vanderbilt lost 23 SEC games in a row between 2000 and 2003, and also suffered 22 straight conference setbacks between 1995 and 1998.)

For more than three years, the Commodores had no answers when they faced their SEC brethren; they had all the answers Saturday.

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Chris Rodriguez nearly bails out UK in second half

After two quarters, Rodriguez, the Wildcats’ star tailback, had just 24 yards on nine carries.

He finally got going after halftime — and Kentucky needed every yard he could muster. In the early portion of the fourth quarter, he dashed into the end zone for a 5-yard score to put the hosts on top 15-14. After Vandy kicked a field goal to retake the lead, 17-15, Rodriguez only took one snap to change the score again: He ran 72 yards for another touchdown.

In sum, Rodriguez ran for 162 yards and a pair of scores on 18 carries. But it wasn't enough to help the Wildcats avoid the most embarrassing loss under Stoops’ watch.

Despite Rodriguez's stellar showing, it will be lost to time. The only thing people will remember about this contest in the years to come is the Commodores' signature victory.

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Passing attack never gets off the ground

On paper, Saturday had the looks of a game where Levis and his complement of receivers should thrive. Vanderbilt had the SEC’s worst passing defense, giving up 314 yards per game. It’s an average that ranked 130th in the 131-team FBS, bettering only Ohio’s 316.2-yards-per-game mark.

Blame the weather. Blame the early kick. Blame the opponent.

Whatever the reason, Levis and his pass-catchers never got into a rhythm. Levis finished with just 109 yards and less than a 50% (11 of 23) completion rate.

Though Levis appeared to move as well as he has since injuring his foot in a loss at Ole Miss last month — keeping plays alive in the pocket and scrambling for yards when need be — his usually reliable arm wasn’t there Saturday.

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: 3 takeaways from historic loss