Kentucky Vs. Georgia: After Action Review

An After Action Review, or AAR for short, is a militaristic manner to evaluate a mission or action. KSR utilizes this method to break down Kentucky’s 51-13 loss to the Georgia Bulldogs.

B.L.U.F. (Bottom Line Up Front)  

The top-ranked Georgia Bulldogs whipped Kentucky in every facet of the football game by embarrassing the Cats 51-13 in Athens.  

SITUATION 

Georgia and Kentucky both entered the night with a 5-0 record. National television programmed the game in the primetime slot. The winner of the contest would gain control of the SEC East. The homesteading and top-ranked Bulldogs hadn’t lost a football game in 672 days.  

OFFENSE  

The Wildcat offense faced a UGA defense that wasn’t as dominant in years past, but still very good. The game’s situation took the Cats out of their preplanned intentions after the Dawgs’ offense absolutely and completely destroyed the UK defense by scoring points on six consecutive possessions out of the gate.  

Kentucky was averaging 37 points per game but managed just 13 points for the night. One of its touchdowns was set up from an interception by Maxwell Hairston. That’s not exactly a winning formula when facing the nation’s number-one-ranked team at their place at night. UK rushed for 55 yards including a low 2.3 yards per attempt. This result came after running for 328 against the Florida Gators a week ago. But, Florida isn’t Georgia and Georgia isn’t Florida. Credit the Dawgs. UGA exploded out to a quick lead that steadily grew for four quarters.  

Ray Davis produced 59 yards of 15 attempts on the ground. His 3.9 yards per carry could have improved throughout the course of the game, but UGA forced the Cats into certain pass situations by jumping out to such a quick and authoritative advantage. Dane Key resurfaced with three receptions for 65 yards. A banged-up Barion Brown pitched in one catch while UK’s other unhealthy pass catcher, Tayvion Robinson, recorded two. TE Josh Kattus grabbed a four-yard TD from Devin Leary while Davis scored on a 26-yard run after catch as well. That was about it. UK got in its own way on far too many possessions.  

Leary completed just 38% of his passes. The signal caller had some bad misses to wide-open pass catchers. This seemed to frustrate Mark Stoops who had a “discussion” with his quarterback on the sideline. The head coach said after the game, “There’s no excuse to not hit some of those passes.” His take was indeed true and accurate.  

Leary was known for his accuracy at NC State which led the signal caller to be considered one of, if not the, top QB in the portal. That has not translated to his time as the Wildcats’ starting quarterback. Passes were also dropped. However, the overwhelming lack of success in the passing game falls onto #13’s shoulders due to his lapses in accuracy in certain completion downs. In addition, it doesn’t seem as if he’s processing the game well. The Cats had given up four QB sacks prior to Saturday. UGA registered 3.5. Protection wasn’t clean which only added to the frustration.  

The Cats also stopped themselves with two untimely and unnecessary penalties by guard Jager Burton. Again, can’t expect to beat the top-ranked, two-time defending champs at home at night with uncalled-for flags. The game’s flow felt as if the Cats could have gained offensive momentum but was limited due to first-half self-inflicted errors. The contest got out of hand in a hurry. Let’s get into goals vs. results.  

Average 5-Yards Per Play in the First Quarter
RESULT: GO 

Kentucky averaged 5.38 yards per play in the first quarter. The problem was that Georgia ran 17 plays for 183 yards in the opening period. UGA’s 11 yards per play average towered over UK’s 5.3. This category is a perfect example of not playing complementary football.  

Score Touchdowns in the Red Zone
RESULT: GO 

TE Josh Kattus caught a four-yard TD pass from Devin Leary. The Cats were 1-1 in this objective. Kattus and Jordan Dingle were bright spots for the offense. Both of the sophomore tight ends need to be more of a factor in the Wildcats’ plans going forward.  

DEFENSE 

Head coach Mark Stoops said it best in his postgame press conference, “They kicked our butt from the beginning to the end.” The Kentucky defense was the most challenging unit that the UGA offense had faced through six games; on paper. That was it, on paper. The reality wasn’t different. Coordinator Brad White added about his unit’s performance — or lack thereof: “It’s not our standard. There’s no way to sugarcoat it. We got whipped.”  

UGA’s offensive coordinator, Mike Bobo, won the night. I questioned his creativity through five contests. I was wrong. I was very wrong. The play caller dialed up some fun ball plays that schemed open his All-American tight end Brock Bowers and outside receivers Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint and Rara Thomas. Bobo won the game within the game against the highly thought of Kentucky defensive coordinator White and the Wildcats’ defense. UK didn’t tackle or cover the Dawgs. The UGA offense was the more physical unit and played with more “want-to” than the Cats. Those results were uncharacteristic.  

Quarterback Carson Beck had quite the night after completing 28 passes out of 35 attempts for 389 yards and four touchdowns. Beck completed his first 12 throws. The Kentucky pass rush had been a problem for opponents prior to Georgia. UK failed to record a QB sack or a QB hurry against the Dawgs. Beck had more than ample time to dissect the Cats in what was in reality a glorified 7-on-7 pass skeleton drill in front of a rowdy home crowd on national television.  

The UK pass defense was carved up for four quarters. Stoops went on to say, “I saw a lot of missed tackles. We were uncharacteristically undisciplined with dirty eyes.” That was on display on multiple plays from scrimmage when Bulldog pass catchers were running free for explosive receptions. Bowers was left unguarded at times. That was especially frustrating. Bowers is the best tight end in the land and for him to be running free in the UK secondary was hard to watch, but again, credit Mike Bobo. UGA had given up just four QB sacks through five outings. Pass protection was nearly perfect on the night.  

Georgia jumped out to a quick 14-0 first-quarter advantage and never looked back. The Dawgs led the Cats 34-7 at the half before scoring 10 additional in the third period. Smart called off his Dawgs in the final 15 minutes of game action. Beck was phenomenal. So was running back Daijun Edwards who contributed over 100 total yards. The Dawg offensive line whipped the Kentucky defensive front seven as well. Let’s get into goals vs. results.   

Account for 19
RESULT: NO-GO 

The best football player in the country played like the best football player in the country outside of a dropped touchdown. Bowers blocked, caught, and led like an All-American by recording seven receptions for 132 yards and one touchdown.  

Force the Dawgs into Certain Pass Downs
RESULT: NO-GO  

Georgia is a pass-first team in 2023. But, the Dawgs ran for 173 yards against the Cats for a 5.6-YPC average off 33 attempts. It really didn’t matter which direction Bobo went on Saturday night. The run and pass were equally prosperous. UGA rolled up 608 total yards for the night for an 8.3 YPP average. That’s getting it done by the Dawgs. It’s also, in UK’s perspective, getting entirely dominated.  

SPECIAL TEAMS 

Special teams didn’t lose or win the game. Saturday was not the third phase’s best outing by any stretch of the imagination. Both returners were injured and it showed. The punt team was a problem.  

Play Clean
RESULT: NO-GO 

UK punted eight times for a 31-yard average. This number was equally as inefficient and concerning as those on offense and defense.  

OUTCOME  

Georgia played their best game of the year. Kentucky played their worst game of the year. The result was a good ole fashioned, 51-13 butt whoopin’ between the hedges. This was not the result that I expected when analyzing the two teams. But, games are played on grass or turf, not on a computer screen or paper. Georgia is a championship program with big-game experience and played with a chip on their proverbial shoulder. Kentucky was not up for the challenge and got embarrassed on national television. UGA out-played and out-coached UK in all three phases.  

Mark Stoops said after the contest, “Good news is that it counts for one game. We have to bounce back.” One loss can’t turn into two. Mizzou is coming to Kroger Field after a heartbreaking home loss to LSU. The Tigers are vastly improved and have a quarterback that is really spinning the football and some Dudes that can go get it. Things don’t get much easier down the stretch. This is life in the SEC and Louisville is still out there winning games.  

Stoops added, “We have to respond this week.” The UK head coach was not happy after Tuesday’s practice last week. No team can waste a day’s work and expect to beat Georgia. Simply can’t happen. Stoops, Vince Marrow, Liam Coen, and Brad White have to grab the locker room and rebound from a horrible night in Athens. They’re going to have to do so with an injury list that is growing. But, that’s every team in Week 7. Football is a game of attrition.  

Full disclosure, I expected UK to compete with Georgia. I anticipated Stoops’ squad to at minimum push the outcome to be settled in the fourth quarter. Heck, I even talked myself into a Wildcat win. I was wrong. I was very, very wrong. Lesson learned.  

Georgia is a championship team that played like a program that hadn’t met expectations through the season’s first five weeks. I still feel that UGA is a very good team. Not great, but again, I don’t use that term very often. SEC foes are going to have to beat Kirby Smart straight up. The Dawgs are figuring it out at the right time in the season and won’t give up the title without a fight. I greatly respect Kirby Smart and the Bulldog program. I now have higher reverence for Mike Bobo and Carson Beck.  

The Kentucky Wildcats have work to do. This especially applies to the passing game on both sides of the football. Offensively, UK must show improvement in the throwing game. This includes mandatory advancement for Devin Leary. Additionally, the Cats’ pass defense is now on notice. Kentucky was exposed against Georgia. Missouri will present a similar challenge next Saturday.  

How will this game impact UK’s season? That’s the real question of the day. It can go in two different directions. The first is for the Georgia butt whoopin’ to bleed over to another subpar outing against the visiting Tigers. In other words, one loss could lead to two.   

An embarrassing defeat can significantly impact players between the ears. Doubt is a dangerous emotion inside a locker room and can lead to finger-pointing. There aren’t enough hands for the fingers that need to be pointed regarding the UGA humiliation. Saturday was also a mirror game meaning everyone in the building needs to self-assess. 

Mark Stoops has his hands full while balancing a strongly worded butt chewing which is completely warranted and will take place on Monday. The head coach is also tasked with building his team back up after getting destroyed on national television. There’s a fine line when handling both.  

Execution and personnel matters are also a challenge for Stoops and company. Again, UGA did things to the UK defense that were disturbing to watch. Is the Wildcat pass rush really impactful or has competition played a major role in early-season success? Can the DBs cover? Were preseason secondary concerns legitimate? There’s also concern about the offense. Is Devin Leary the answer? Why has he struggled? Can UK pitch and catch? Will the Wildcats be more disciplined going forward? Is UK a run or pass team? I have a lot of questions.  

The second pathway following the Wildcats’ 51-13 thumping to Georgia could be a wake-up call for the entire program. Nothing grabs attention like a blowout loss. Humility can be necessary at times. Trust me, I’m also looking in the mirror.   

Leaders will need to lead this week. Self-accountability will also need to be at a premium. Practices will be required to be spirited, precise, and intentional. Next Saturday’s outcome will be decided on Monday through Friday. Saturday will merely be a reflection of the work put into preparing for Eliah Drinkwitz’s team.  

My go-to answer for all these questions is simply “We’ll See.” I’m curious to watch how this team responds.