Kentucky’s 2021 football schedule is out. These three games are most compelling.
Kentucky’s 2021 football schedule was unveiled Wednesday on the SEC Network.
A bout with Louisville is back on the docket after a one-year hiatus. The “cupcakes” are back in the oven. The six Southeastern Conference East Division foes and intra-division rival Mississippi State were joined by LSU, which will be about two years removed from its national-title run in the 2019 season.
What games jump out as the most intriguing on this year’s slate? Let’s pick three that stand out, in schedule order.
1. Louisiana Monroe (Sept. 4)
Yeah, the Warkhawks were 0-10 last season and hired a new skipper in the offseason (former Auburn head coach Terry Bowden, son of Bobby, was named to the position in December). They ranked 122nd (of 127 FBS programs) in scoring (16.3 points per game) and were worse in scoring defense (42 points allowed per game, good for 124th in the nation). Even if Bowden is able to orchestrate a quick turnaround, expecting incredible leaps from those spots in a road debut at an SEC school would be foolish.
Still, from the Kentucky-centric point of view, there will be great intrigue due to a single position: quarterback. Will Beau Allen, set to be a redshirt freshman, or Joey Gatewood, a junior-to-be who has three years of playing eligibility remaining thanks to the NCAA’s COVID-19 waiver, get the nod? Even if the starter is named ahead of the game and not revealed at kickoff — based on Stoops’ history, we’ll probably know who “the guy” is before kickoff — there’s so much excitement about what the offense might look like under new offensive coordinator Liam Coen that it makes an otherwise ho-hum opener one that’s must-see TV for anybody interested in the Wildcats.
2. Florida (Oct. 2)
Normally the annual showdown with Florida is worth bemoaning from the UK side — Kentucky seldom gets the benefit of hosting the Gators in sub-60 degree weather — but if Kentucky’s offensive overhaul yields the results desired by Stoops and the fan base, getting the defending SEC East champs when they do (Oct. 2) could prove beneficial. Chill could be starting to set in, and UK should have found an offensive groove ahead of what, on paper, appears to be its toughest opponent through the first five games.
The Gators’ secondary was beyond suspect in 2020 (they ranked 96th in pass efficiency defense and 88th in yards allowed per pass attempt), prompting two firings in that area of the coaching staff. Florida hired away Wesley McGriff from Auburn and brought in Jules Montinar, who got his coaching career started as a linebackers coach at Eastern Kentucky (2008-2009) and was a graduate assistant under Nick Saban at Alabama for a couple seasons (2012-2013).
Despite a still-significant gap in talent acquisition — Florida’s 2021 recruiting class ranks 11th nationally; Kentucky’s is 40th — UK in recent seasons has played the Gators more tightly than not. The spectre of a decades-long losing streak no longer hangs over the program, but after a few close calls at home didn’t go Kentucky’s way in 2019 and 2017, and a lopsided defeat hanging heavy in the minds of several returnees who’ve beaten Florida before, this one sets up as a massive opportunity early in the season to show off some new tricks under Coen and send a message that the program isn’t satisfied with being just another middle-of-the-road team in the SEC.
3. LSU (Oct. 9)
The Tigers’ last visit to Lexington was as memorable as it gets: UK toppled then-No. 1 LSU, 43-37, in triple overtime. That was just the second win against a No. 1 team in UK’s history (in 17 opportunities as of 2020).
LSU won’t be ranked No. 1 this time around, but it has won two straight meetings against Kentucky and neither was close (35-7 in 2011 and 41-3 in 2014, Stoops’ second season). It also comes to Lexington one week after Florida visits.
The Tigers took a step back last season but still boast one of the premier programs in the conference and country; if Kentucky maintains the level of play on defense that it’s shown the last few seasons and is more explosive on offense, this could end up as one of the most significant wins of the season and of Stoops’ tenure in Lexington. Its significance would grow larger if it is able to sweep the Gators and Tigers in consecutive weeks.
Honorable mention
Missouri (at home Sept. 11): It’s UK’s conference opener and a chance to rectify the end of a five-game win streak following last year’s trip to Columbia.
At Louisville (Nov. 27): The battle for the Governor’s Cup is back on after a one-year breather. Kentucky has won three of the last four meetings, has taken two straight and leads the overall series, 17-15.
2021 UK football schedule
(Home games in all capital letters)
Sept. 4: LOUISIANA MONROE
Sept. 11: MISSOURI
Sept. 18: CHATTANOOGA
Sept. 25: At South Carolina
Oct. 2: FLORIDA
Oct. 9: LSU
Oct. 16: At Georgia
Oct. 23: No game
Oct. 30: At Mississippi State
Nov. 6: TENNESSEE
Nov. 13: At Vanderbilt
Nov. 20: NEW MEXICO STATE
Nov. 27: At Louisville
This story was originally published January 27, 2021 at 2:38 PM.
