Kentucky players to watch against Ole Miss

Kentucky is hitting the road for the first time in 2024 and a big challenge awaits. Lane Kiffin has the Ole Miss football program rolling and the Rebels look like a legitimate SEC and national championship contender through four games. Thanks to some high-end transfer portal recruiting, one of the best rosters in college football can be found in Oxford.

The Wildcats find themselves as a three-possession underdog for the second time this season. Kentucky’s schedule also includes two other games against top-five competition later in the year versus Tennessee and Texas. Stoops and his team will get a chance to play spoiler at least three more times after coming up just short against No. 1 Georgia.

If Kentucky is to pull off a fourth consecutive outright upset in this series with Ole Miss, the Wildcats will need big-time performances from multiple individuals. KSR is taking a closer look at four players who will have a big challenge at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.

Protecting the interior

JJ Pegues is now in year three at Ole Miss. The defensive tackle who moonlights as a wildcat quarterback in short-yardage situations is an NFL player. Pegues is a former top-250 recruit who will get drafted in April. Texas A&M transfer Walter Nolen was the No. 1 overall recruit in the 2022 recruiting cycle and is a first-round talent. The big-ticket addition has helped create what might be the best defensive tackle duo in college football.

Ole Miss is posting absurd defensive numbers largely due to the defensive front. Pegues and Nolen are the head of the snake. Kentucky cannot allow this duo to wreck the game. If the Wildcats cannot run the ball efficiently or consistently protect, that would mean Pegues and Nolen are controlling the football game.

Saturday will be a big challenge for Kentucky’s interior offensive line. We know what Eli Cox will provide at center but we do not know who will start at left guard as Jager Burton returns from injury after missing the last two games. We do know that Jalen Farmer will be making his first career road start at right guard.

The redshirt sophomore is doing some really good things in the run game but pass protection has been up and down. Farmer will be challenged in both areas on Saturday afternoon. Kentucky needs him to hold up and play well. With some questions surrounding left guard, the offense needs the Florida transfer to hold his own.

Finding explosive plays

Kentucky will likely have a hard time winning the explosive play battle against Ole Miss on Saturday afternoon. The defense needs to limit the huge chunk plays when possible, but the offense needs to find some huge chunk plays. Finding a cheap touchdown on offense due to a big explosive play figures to be one of the best pathways to victory for Kentucky.

Could Barion Brown produce his first huge play of the season in Week 5?

The junior wideout is averaging only 7.5 yards per reception and 4.3 yards per rush. Kentucky needs some more big play pop from the speedy wideout. Kentucky must find explosive plays in this matchup against Ole Miss.

Brown had a huge game against the Rebels in 2022 with two receptions for 81 yards and three kickoff returns for 164 yards. We all know that the former top-100 recruit can flip a game with his big play potential.

Kentucky needs some of those big plays to arrive.

Winning the line of scrimmage

The Kentucky offensive line will have its hands full against the Ole Miss defensive front, but the Wildcats seem to have a line-of-scrimmage battle on the other side of the ball. Kentucky won the trench battle on defense against Georgia. The same thing needs to happen against Ole Miss for this team to enter the winner’s circle.

Deone Walker and the rest of the group at the point of attack need to win their matchup. Kentucky will be forced to play with some light boxes on Saturday and must keep this Ole Miss run game consistently behind the chains. On Jaxson Dart dropbacks, Kentucky must affect the pocket and create some incompletions.

Takeaways will be vital in this SEC game and Kentucky’s defensive front winning at the point of attack could help create a big turnover or two.

Preventing explosives

Due to the structure of the Ole Miss offense, Kentucky’s secondary will be put in some tough situations. Not only do the Wildcats need to win some one-on-one battles in coverage, but the group will have to communicate extremely well to prevent coverage busts and must make tackles in space.

Safety play will need to be very good on Saturday.

With Zion Childress shifting down to nickel, Jordan Lovett becomes Kentucky’s most experienced player at the position in the backend. Kentucky needs the redshirt junior to communicate well and make tackles. Coverage busts this week could lead to some big-time touchdowns.

Kentucky’s safety trio of Lovett, Ty Bryant, and Kristian Story must play well.