Kentucky football falls to Ole Miss, loses QB Zach Calzada to injury
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Gameday: No. 20 Ole Miss 30, Kentucky 23
Click below for more of the Herald-Leader and Kentucky.com’s coverage of Saturday’s Kentucky-Ole Miss football game at Kroger Field in Lexington.
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For the third straight meeting, Kentucky football kept Ole Miss’ normally high-octane offense largely in check.
But unlike the Wildcats’ upset win in Oxford a year ago, the UK that defensive performance was not enough to overcome a listless offensive showing in a 30-23 loss to the No. 20 Rebels.
Kentucky drove inside the Ole Miss 30-yard line twice in the fourth quarter but was stopped on fourth down both times. The second of those drives came with backup Cutter Boley leading the offense after Zach Calzada was sidelined by a shoulder injury. Boley was sacked on fourth-and-6 after gaining just 3 yards on an option keeper on third-and-9.
Considering Kentucky had all three timeouts remaining and 4:10 on the clock, there was hope for one more possession, but Ole Miss needed just four plays to reach the red zone. A 37-yard field goal with 1:10 remaining iced the victory.
Kentucky converted a 39-yard field goal with 8 seconds left but was unable to recover the ensuing onside kick.
Kentucky jumped out to a 10-0 lead in the first quarter after scoring twice on short fields resulting from Ty Bryant interceptions, but the offense totaled just 133 yards in the first half.
By halftime, Ole Miss had taken a 17-13 lead with points on all three of its second-quarter drives. Kentucky opened the second half with back-to-back three-and-outs but held Ole Miss to just three points on its first two drives to keep the game within one score.
Kentucky did tie the game with 5:38 left in the third quarter but never took the lead in the second half.
Calzada completed 15 of 30 passes for 149 yards before his injury and was lucky to avoid multiple interceptions. Seth McGowan led the way for the UK offense with 88 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries.
Turning point
Ole Miss dominated the majority of the game, but Kentucky managed to tie the game at 20 in the third quarter with its best offensive drive of the game. That hope proved short-lived, though, as Ole Miss answered with an eight-play, 75-yard drive to regain the lead. The big play on the drive was a 23-yard play-action pass to tight end Trace Buckler over the middle. Ole Miss quarterback Austin Simmons kept the ball on a 7-yard run for the touchdown.
Player of the game
Kentucky might have been blown out by the end of the first quarter if not for Bryant. He recorded interceptions on back-to-back drives to give Kentucky’s offense the ball inside the Ole Miss 32-yard line. The Wildcats turned the first into a touchdown and second into a field goal for an early 10-0 lead. Bryant finished the game with 10 tackles and one-half tackle for loss to go with his two interceptions.
Key stat
Kentucky has now lost nine consecutive home games against Power Four conference competition. The Wildcats have lost 12 of their past 14 SEC home games, dating back to the 2021 season.
This story was originally published September 6, 2025 at 7:26 PM.
