A little time off, a bit of a lesser opponent, and a lot more of CoShik Williams was all Kentucky needed to snap its four-game football losing streak.
The time off came in the form of an open date last Saturday. The opponent was Football Championship Subdivision visitor Jacksonville State. The spark plug was a 5-foot-9, 178-pound scatback who had rushed for all of 62 yards this season before the Georgia native popped loose for 148 yards on 22 carries to lead Kentucky to a 38-14 win over the Gamecocks before an announced crowd of 54,098 at Commonwealth Stadium.
"We're trying to play this as the second season," said head coach Joker Phillips, his team now 3-4. "We were 2-4 in the first season, and we've got to take it one game at a time in the second season. We're 1-0."
Williams had a lot to do with getting that one. After Josh Clemons was lost for the season with a knee injury in the last game, Williams had practiced well enough to hold off contenders for backup running back behind Raymond Sanders. Then when Sanders left Saturday because of a sprained ankle, Williams had the show to make it go.
He danced, darted and hit the holes with quickness, amassing 109 yards in the first half as the home-standing Cats built a 24-7 lead over the No. 8 team in the FCS.
"The yards kind of snuck up on me; I didn't know I had that many," said Williams, whose previous high was 95 yards last year against Charleston Southern. "It's been a long time. It's finally here, and it felt good for me."
And he wasn't the only one feeling that way.
"It was good to see him get some results out of his hard work," Phillips said.
Quarterback Morgan Newton agreed: "There's a lot of 'Shik fans on our team and from the coaching staff. It's really good to see him play well."
The UK running game produced 340 yards, its highest total since the win over Vanderbilt last season, which appeared to open up the passing game for Newton, who completed 10 of 16 passes for 105 yards and two touchdowns. He also gained 75 yards rushing on 12 carries.
"For the most part, Morgan did a great job checking plays and getting us to the right runs," offensive coordinator Randy Sanders said. "After the first couple of series, we had 10 guys around him playing pretty well."
Junior receiver La'Rod King caught five passes for 84 yards and two touchdowns. The first was an impressive grab while being blanketed by a Jacksonville State defender, who was called for interference, for a 29-yard score.
"Talk about it?" King said afterward, when asked to describe the play. "I did it."
The second came on a fade pattern from Newton in the second half.
"He's 6-8, so I expect him to go make that play," Newton joked about King, who is listed as 6-foot-4. "That's his job. I'm glad that he did his job."
The UK defense contributed a touchdown and set up two other scores. Safety Martavius Neloms got the ball rolling by sacking Jacksonville State quarterback Coty Blanchard, knocking the ball loose, recovering the fumble and continuing 40 yards for a touchdown with 3:33 left in the first quarter.
A Danny Trevathan interception set up the second Newton touchdown pass to King. And in the fourth quarter, Luke McDermott's interception set up a 9-yard touchdown run by Jonathan George.
"They are an SEC team, they have SEC players, they deserve all the credit," said Jacksonville State Coach Jack Crowe, whose team upset Mississippi last year in Oxford. "Their offensive line is a very big, athletic offensive line."
And the guy running behind it was pretty good, too.
"I think our offensive line came together as a group," Williams said. "They peeled off their blocks good. They pass-blocked good. After every play, I tried to congratulate those guys."
Sept. 10 was the last time Kentucky was congratulated for a victory.
"We've got five more games we have to win to turn this season around," King said.
Williams called it a relief: "It's a big burden off our chest. It just feels real good coming out with a win."
