Are Kentucky football’s hopes of extending bowl streak finished after loss to Auburn?

Kentucky football’s disappointing 2024 season hit a new low Saturday with a 24-10 home loss to an Auburn team that entered the day 0-4 in Southeastern Conference play.

Now, to even extend the program’s eight-year bowl streak Mark Stoops’ team will have to win three of the final four games of a daunting November slate. Here’s a look at what the loss means beyond the field.

Chances of extending bowl streak look slim

Entering the night Auburn looked like a must-win if Kentucky was to keep its bowl streak alive. While the loss does not mathematically eliminate UK from bowl contention, it certainly makes the path to six wins and bowl eligibility much harder to imagine.

Even if we assume UK wins its annual FCS game against Murray State on Nov. 16, the Wildcats now have to win two of three against No. 7 Tennessee, No. 5 Texas and Louisville. Only the Louisville game from that trio is at home. Kentucky’s only win at Tennessee since 1984 came during the pandemic-altered 2020 season when fan capacity was significantly limited. UK has played at Texas just once, a 1951 loss. Both Tennessee and Texas could need to beat UK to remain in playoff contention.

Kentucky last missed a bowl game in 2015 (though it did have a losing record after playing an SEC-only 2020 schedule when all teams were eligible for bowls due to the pandemic that season). The Wildcats are one of just nine teams in the country to have reached a bowl in at least eight straight seasons. Only three SEC teams have longer active streaks.

Instead of keeping the bowl streak alive, Kentucky looks in real danger of reverting back to the 2014-2015 struggles where disastrous second halves of seasons doomed postseason hopes. UK lost its last six games in 2014 and five of its last six in 2015.

Kentucky could finish 2024 losing six of seven if it only beats Murray State down the stretch.

Home woes continue

Kentucky has now lost seven consecutive home SEC games and 11 of the last 13 conference games played in Kroger Field.

The loss at Florida means it is no longer as simple as saying UK plays better on the road than at home — Kentucky is struggling regardless of the venue right now — but the loss to Auburn means this narrative will carry over into 2025. The Wildcats still have a chance to end the home schedule on a high note with archrival Louisville, who Kentucky has beaten five straight, closing the regular season in Lexington, but even a win in that game would not silence the worries about the SEC record at home.

The bad news is the home SEC schedule looks even more difficult next season with Texas, Tennessee, Florida and Ole Miss set to play at Kroger Field. That’s the type of slate where it would be reasonable to expect Kentucky to struggle at home.

The problem has been the home losses against teams like Auburn, Vanderbilt and South Carolina this year. There’s no scenario where Kentucky remains relevant in the new-look SEC if it can’t beat that caliber of teams at home.

This story was originally published October 26, 2024 at 11:06 PM.

Jon Hale

Lexington Herald-Leader

(859) 414-6776

Jon Hale is the University of Kentucky football beat writer for the Lexington Herald-Leader. He joined the Herald-Leader in 2022 but has covered UK athletics for more than 10 years. Hale was named the 2021 Kentucky Sportswriter of the Year. Support my work with a digital subscription