Blue Preview: Your guide to the Belk Bowl between Kentucky football and Virginia Tech
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UK in the 2019 Belk Bowl
The University of Kentucky will play Virginia Tech in the 2019 Belk Bowl on Dec. 31. Read more about the Wildcats’ opponent and destination.
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Belk Bowl: Kentucky vs. Virginia Tech
When: Noon Tuesday (Dec. 31)
Where: Bank of America Stadium (capacity 75,412) in Charlotte, N.C.
TV: ESPN (play-by-play, Beth Mowins; analysis, Anthony Becht; sideline, Rocky Boiman)
Radio: WLAP-AM 630, WBUL-FM 98.1 (for UK Network broadcast); WLXG-AM 1300, WLXG-FM 92.5 (for ESPN Radio national broadcast)
Satellite radio: UK broadcast stream: XM Channel 374; Sirius Channel 374; Internet Channel 374; ESPN national broadcast stream: XM Channel 80; Sirius Channel 80; Internet Channel 80
Records: Kentucky (7-5, 3-5 SEC); Virginia Tech (8-4, 5-3 ACC)
Series history: Kentucky leads 11-6-2, but Virginia Tech has won three of the past four
Last meeting: Kentucky won 14-7 at Commonwealth Stadium on Oct. 31, 1987.
Line: Virginia Tech is favored by 2.5 points
The story line
Kentucky will seek to 1.) end a season on a four-game winning streak for the first time since the 1977 Wildcats won their final nine; 2.) reach eight wins in back-to-back seasons for the first time since the 2006 and 2007 teams each finished 8-5; and 3.) earn a bowl victory in back-to-back seasons for the first time since Rich Brooks’ Cats won three straight postseason games in 2006-2008.
The big threat
After a legendary career, Virginia Tech defensive coordinator Bud Foster, 60, is hanging up his coaching whistle after the Belk Bowl. Foster, a Somerset native, is considered one of the premier defensive minds of the current college football era. The Murray State alumnus will have had a full month to design a “D” to contain Kentucky star Lynn Bowden and the Wildcats’ one-dimensional, almost-all-run offensive attack.
On the spot
Eddie Gran. Since injuries made Kentucky into a read-option, ground-hugging attack at midseason, the UK offensive play caller has been creative in using formations to confuse defenses. That has allowed the Wildcats ground game to thrive even as the Cats have faced a steady diet of eight-men boxes. However, a Bud Foster-called Virginia Tech defense that has had a month to prepare for UK’s bag of tricks will be Gran’s biggest challenge of 2019.
The mood
Has been darned near giddy in the aftermath of UK’s 45-13 beat down of archrival Louisville in the regular-season finale and a subsequent run of recruiting successes that brought national acclaim to Kentucky. A season after UK beat Penn State in the Citrus Bowl, the task for Mark Stoops and troops in the Belk Bowl is to keep the good feelings rolling by vanquishing a respected college football brand in the postseason for a second straight year.
This story was originally published December 30, 2019 at 6:53 AM.
