'It's about what we do': Kentucky must play own game against No. 3 Texas

Texas checked in at No. 3 on Tuesday in the latest College Football Playoff Top 25 ranking. The Longhorns (9-1, 5-1) are playing for a national championship as the 2024 regular season winds down. This is a team with talent, depth, and balance. That has the attention of everyone at the Joe Craft Football Training Facility.

Steve Sarkisian‘s fourth team in Austin does not appear to have many weaknesses.

“A very skilled, dynamic group. They’re deep at a lot of positions. Coach (Sarkisian) does a phenomenal job in terms of what they are attempting to do. Stretching the ball down the field but also balancing with the run game and with the screen game,” Kentucky co-defensive coordinator Chris Collins told the media on Wednesday. “It’ll be a great challenge. Our guys are looking forward to it.”

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Kentucky is playing for something totally else with six losses and the school’s eight-year bowl streak in serious jeopardy entering the penultimate weekend of the season. But the big game stakes don’t necessarily matter for the three-touchdown underdog. Saturday afternoon is all about playing to a standard and meeting the program’s expectation in Lexington.

“Our guys understand the expectation in the building. To go out, and not just play hard, but continue to grow. Sometimes that growth is astronomical and you can see it right away. Sometimes that growth it’s really small steps but that’s the challenge every week,” Collins explained. “So they understand what the expectation is.”

“At the end of the day, it’s about what we do, and our guys going out there and executing it at a high level.”

In top-10 matchups against Georgia and Ole Miss, Kentucky’s defense looked like the best unit on the field for large stretches of the game. Playing short-handed against Tennessee, UK held their own until giving up a 90-plus yard touchdown drive in the fourth quarter. Before that, the Wildcats kept creating stops and got of the field in multiple red zone situations. To have a chance to win in the fourth quarter against a top-10 opponent again, Kentucky’s defense must meet a high standard.

The expectation is that Kentucky will be much more healthier in the matchup against Tennessee with Jamon Dumas-Johnson, J.J. Weaver, Deone Walker, and Maxwell Hairston all returning to the lineup at or near 100 percent health. Those players will be playing together for the first time since the Week 4 game against Ohio. That could make a big difference for a defense that has had some issues stopping the run against Florida, Auburn, and Tennessee.

Texas is clearly one of the best teams in college football, and Sarkisian has built another top-10 offense with a potential NFL starter at quarterback. But that’s nothing new in this conference. Kentucky must be ready to go in Austin. That means a strong defensive performance to give the team a chance to win in late November.

“It’s going to be a challenge, but it’s a challenge every week,” said Collins.