Can Kentucky win its 1st SEC East title in division’s final season? Rivals also have flaws
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Preview: Kentucky at Vanderbilt
Click below to read more of the Herald-Leader’s and Kentucky.com’s preview coverage ahead of Saturday’s Kentucky-Vanderbilt football game at noon in Nashville.
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The Southeastern Conference’s football divisions are going away next season, leaving Kentucky with one last chance to make history.
The Wildcats and Vanderbilt, the opponent for UK’s SEC opener Saturday, are the only teams in the SEC East to never win a division title since the league split into two divisions in 1992.
The presence of No. 1 Georgia in the division combined with Kentucky’s inconsistent play in a 3-0 start against subpar non-conference competition makes it difficult to imagine the Wildcats prevailing in their final chance at an East title, but each of UK’s division rivals brings varying levels of questions into conference play too.
Here’s a closer look at how the other SEC East programs have played so far.
No. 1 Georgia (3-0, 1-0)
Georgia opened the season by blowing out UT Martin and Ball State by a combined 93-10 score but looked vulnerable in its SEC opener against South Carolina. The Gamecocks led 14-3 at halftime before Georgia righted the ship with a 21-0 second half on the way to a 24-14 win. Maybe that’s all the wake-up call the two-time defending national champions need, but Georgia had not scored three or fewer points in the first half since 2019.
Player to watch: Junior Carson Beck ranks sixth in the SEC in passing yards per game (282) in his first season as Georgia’s starter, but he has thrown just three touchdowns in three games.
No. 23 Tennessee (2-1, 0-1)
Tennessee’s hopes of taking down Georgia have already been dealt a significant blow with a 29-16 loss at Florida in its SEC opener. A year after leading the country in points per game and yards per game, Tennessee ranks 57th and 40th in those categories respectively. The Volunteers are averaging 78.2 fewer yards and 14.4 fewer points per game through three games compared to last season.
Player to watch: Quarterback Joe Milton has thus far failed to replace Hendon Hooker’s production, ranking 12th in the SEC in quarterback rating. The good news is he has thrown just one interception, but he ranks 10th among qualified SEC quarterbacks in completion percentage (63.9).
No. 25 Florida (2-1,1-0)
A 24-11 loss at Utah to open the season did little to increase enthusiasm about Florida’s chances of bouncing back from a 6-7 record in the second year of the Billy Napier era, but the win over Tennessee has provided some much-needed momentum. Florida has a chance to build on that performance against Charlotte this week before traveling to Kentucky to close the September slate.
Player to watch: Running back Trevor Etienne, the younger brother of former Clemson star and current Jacksonville Jaguars running back Travis Etienne, looked the part of a star with 172 yards and one touchdown on 23 carries against Tennessee. Florida will likely need strong production from the rushing attack moving forward to reduce pressure on quarterback Graham Mertz, who leads the SEC in completion percentage (75.3) but ranks 10th in passing yards per game (230.7).
Missouri (3-0, 0-0)
How you feel about Missouri likely depends on how you view last week’s win over Kansas State. After squeaking by Middle Tennessee 23-19 a week earlier, Missouri defeated Kansas State on an SEC-record 61-yard field goal from Harrison Mervis. Kansas State was ranked at the time of the game but has since dropped out of the Associated Press Top 25. Missouri faces Memphis on Saturday before opening SEC play at Vanderbilt on Sept. 30.
Player to watch: Former five-star recruit Luther Burden looks on the verge of a breakout season with 22 catches for 327 yards and three touchdowns in three games. Against Kansas State, Burden caught seven passes for 114 yards and two touchdowns.
South Carolina (1-2, 0-1)
The Gamecocks have played the hardest schedule of any SEC East team thus far but have little to show for it after losses to No. 17 North Carolina and No. 1 Georgia. Leading the Bulldogs at the half is something to build on, but moral victories will do little to change the SEC East standings. If South Carolina wants to stay in the race, a win over Mississippi State this weekend is essential before consecutive games against Tennessee and Florida.
Player to watch: Quarterback Spencer Rattler ranks second in the SEC in passing yards per game (318), but the inconsistency that has plagued most of his career remains. Against Georgia, Rattler was 16 of 18 for 152 yards and one touchdown in the first half and 6 of 24 with two interceptions in the second half.
Vanderbilt (2-2, 0-0)
The only SEC East team to play four games already, Vanderbilt enters SEC play after back-to-back losses at Wake Forest and UNLV. The UNLV loss came on a field goal with five seconds remaining on the clock. This team looks little like the one that upset Kentucky a year ago with running back Ray Davis now playing for UK and quarterback Mike Wright now at Mississippi State.
Player to watch: Freshman wide receiver London Humphreys has added a big-play target for quarterback AJ Swann. Humphreys has posted back-to-back 100-yard receiving performances and ranks second nationally in yards per catch (29.6).
Next game
Kentucky at Vanderbilt
When: Noon Saturday
TV: SEC Network
Records: Kentucky 3-0 (0-0 SEC), Vanderbilt 2-2 (0-0)
Radio: WLAP-AM 630, WBUL-FM 98.1
Series: Kentucky leads 48-43-4
Last meeting: Vanderbilt won 24-21 on Nov. 12, 2022, in Lexington
This story was originally published September 20, 2023 at 6:45 AM.
