Kentucky vs. Ole Miss prediction: Can Wildcats upset Rebels for second straight year?
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Kentucky prepares for SEC opener against No. 20 Ole Miss at Kroger Field.
- New NCAA rule penalizes timeouts for injuries during pace-driven offensive drives.
- UK defense seeks repeat of past success slowing Lane Kiffin’s high-tempo offense.
READ MORE
Preview: Ole Miss at Kentucky football
Click below to read more of the Herald-Leader and Kentucky.com’s preview coverage ahead of Saturday’s Kentucky-Ole Miss game at Kroger Field.
Expand All
Kentucky football opens SEC play Saturday against No. 20 Ole Miss. Here are some final thoughts and predictions about how the game might play out at Kroger Field.
Revisiting the high point of 2024 season
The second half of last season went so poorly for Kentucky that it is difficult to remember the excitement that was present after the Wildcats upset then No. 6-ranked Ole Miss in Oxford, Mississippi, last season. With what appeared to be a manageable schedule coming after a bye week, it was even possible to imagine Kentucky working its way into the playoff discussion after that win.
Of course, nothing went according to plan after the bye. Kentucky lost six of its final seven games with the only win coming against FCS Murray State.
But is there some confidence to be gained this week from the fact that Kentucky beat Ole Miss as an even bigger underdog last season?
“We don’t think about it,” linebacker Daveren Raner said. “It’s a new year. They’re a new team. We’re a new team. Three years ago, Ole Miss beat us. Last year, we beat Ole Miss.
“So, you don’t really think about it, what happened the year before, because anything can happen.”
It is important to note the roster Kentucky will field this weekend will look vastly different to the one that beat Ole Miss a year ago. More than half the scholarship players on the current team were not in the program at the time of that game.
Tight end Josh Kattus is back, though. He made one of the biggest plays of that game, recovering the Gavin Wimsatt fumble in the end zone that resulted in the game-winning touchdown.
“I hope that (it) doesn’t get to that point, but if it does, I’m ready for it,” Kattus said. “Right place, right time.”
Rule change reminder
The major rule change in college football this season did not come into play in the Toledo win, but it could Saturday against Ole Miss’s tempo offense.
In order to prevent teams faking injuries to slow down opponents, teams are now charged a timeout if a player presents as injured after the official spots the ball. If the team has already used all its timeouts, it will be assessed a delay of game penalty. The player must then remain on the sideline for at least one down and cannot return until approved to do so by medical personnel.
“You do have to discuss it (with players) because let’s be honest, that’s tough sometimes, because those players got a bunch of adrenaline in their bodies and these guys are hyped up and they want to get up and go but they may not be able to,” UK coach Mark Stoops said last week when asked about the rule change. “I think you saw that in the game (in week zero) where a player was legitimately injured, and they got charged with a timeout. I don’t think that was the intent for that rule.
“I think the officials do have some discretion, but we do have to educate our players on it, yes.”
The penalty for dubious injury claims makes it all the more important to have a strategy for managing the pace at which Ole Miss wants to play. The Rebels ran 81 plays in their season-opening win over Georgia State.
“It’s going to really wear on the D-line,” defensive coordinator Brad White said. “It’s going to really stress the conditioning level. We’re going to have to do our best to try to keep those guys fresh as we can.
“But there are going to be times that they just have to stay out there. We told the guys, like, if you want to get off (the field), then get off. You can do it within three downs.”
Kentucky football injury report vs. Ole Miss
Entering the week, the main injury concern for the Wildcats centered on defensive end Mi’Quise Humphrey-Grace, who left the Toledo game early with an ankle injury. Humphrey-Grace was listed as probable on the first SEC-mandated availability report Wednesday then removed from the report in Friday’s update, indicating he will play.
The news was not as good elsewhere on the report. Starting cornerback DJ Waller was declared out on Saturday’s game day availability report. Sophomore Terhyon Nichols will likely start opposite JQ Hardaway against the high-octane Ole Miss passing game in place of Waller.
UK will be without three wide receivers: sophomore David Washington, and freshmen Preston Bowman and DJ Miller. Miller was a consistent standout in preseason practices but also missed the opener. Washington and Bowman were not expected to open the season in the primary receiver rotation.
Freshman defensive lineman Nic Smith, who was not expected to play a major role this season, is also listed as out. Redshirt freshman offensive guard Aba Selm was listed as probable on Friday then upgraded to available on Saturday.
It should be noted the availability report does not specify the reason players are unavailable. The reason for their inclusion does not have to be an injury. That’s why sophomore running back Jamarion Wilcox was listed as questionable on Wednesday and Thursday after being suspended for the opener then downgraded to out on Friday. A protective order was issued against Wilcox in late August after after a woman alleged he sexually assaulted her. Wilcox has not been charged with any crime, according to court records.
Kentucky vs. Ole Miss prediction
Based on the week-one results, this game should not be close, but the same could have been said last season, when Ole Miss entered its matchup with Kentucky averaging more than 600 yards of offense in its first four games. Kentucky has found a recipe that works against Lane Kiffin’s Ole Miss offense recently. In both 2022 (a 22-19 win) and 2024 (a 20-17 loss), Ole Miss posted one of its worst offensive showings of the season against Kentucky. The hope for the Wildcats this week is a similar defensive performance, but scoring even 20 against an SEC team might be a stretch for this UK offense right now. Ole Miss 28, Kentucky 14.
The final word
“I think our mistakes are and my mistakes are very fixable. So that’s what we focus on this week.” — QB Zach Calzada
This story was originally published September 5, 2025 at 6:30 AM.
