Kentucky Vs. Louisville: After Action Review 

An After Action Review, or AAR for short, is a militaristic format that’s executed to analyze a mission, operation, or action. KSR utilizes a similar method to break down Kentucky’s 38-31 win over Louisville.  

SITUATION 

Kentucky entered Saturday’s noon matchup with a 6-5 record and coming off a deflating road loss to 4-6 South Carolina. 10-1 Louisville was ranked 9th in the nation. The Cardinals earned the right to face Florida State in the ACC Championship Game. UofL also had an outside chance of being one of the four teams in the College Football Playoff.  

B.L.U.F (Bottom-Line-Up-Front) 

Kentucky beat Louisville 38-31. UK extended its four-game win streak to five over the Cardinals.  

OBJECTIVES VS. RESULTS 

Goals or objectives are provided in my Thursday post. An AAR is used to gauge or grade how the Wildcats fared against pregame expectations. Individual tasks or objectives are evaluated on a “GO” or “NO-GO” basis.   

Please note that I was assisted in writing this article by Alli Burton. The post was then edited by KSR’s Zack Geoghegan. I’d like to publicly thank both. 

OFFENSE 

This game went against seasonal trends and patterns. Kentucky was presented with ample opportunities to win football games with extended drives for scores or via an explosive play, but repeatedly failed to do so throughout the season. The Wildcats went 0-3 in fourth quarter, one-score games against Missouri, Tennessee, and South Carolina. In fact, UK failed to score a final period touchdown in all three contests.  

The Wildcats smashed that trend on Saturday by outscoring the usual situationally sound Cardinals 17-7 in the fourth quarter. The “Culture” quarter was an example of why many fans fell in love with the Wildcats’ Way and Marks Stoops’ teams of the past. That swagger, resolve, and determination reappeared. It was glorious. Coaching.  

The Governor’s Cup wasn’t exactly an offensive explosion, but it was explosive. Kentucky accumulated 289 total yards. This marked the fourth consecutive contest that the Wildcats failed to reach the 300-yard threshold. But, UK did enough at the right times and produced explosive plays to secure the coveted victory.  

Quarterback Devin Leary battled for 60 minutes. He completd 12 of 22 passing attempts for 206 yards. He also tossed three touchdown passes and one interception. The interception came at a bad moment and one that the QB would likely want back.  

Kentucky put up explosive plays early in the season. Those snaps were not as frequent in October and November. Saturday was different. Leary averaged over 17 yards per pass completion and 9.4 per attempt. Those numbers are exponentially higher than average.  

Ray Davis returned to doing Ray Davis things. The running back finished with 76 rush yards to go along with 51 through the air. Davis totaled three touchdowns. Barion Brown came under scrutiny following the South Carolina game in which he was targeted 11 times with not ideal results. Brown may have played his best game of the season with a couple of receptions for 48 yards and two rushes for 22 more. Two catches aren’t a great deal, but both were contested, crucial, and critical. This game called for moments and got wows.  

The offense made plays when plays were needed. A 17-point fourth quarter was the type of finish that the BBN had been clamoring for all season. It took 12 games to get there, but Saturday was fun. Kentucky ran just 47 plays compared to Louisville’s 76. The ‘Cats didn’t need high volume; they needed quality. Liam Coen dialed up a beauty and got the value snaps that led to a victory. Let’s get into goals.  

Be a Killer
RESULT: GO  

This objective called for “Kill Drives” to finish off an opponent or to secure momentum. The ‘Cats did both against Louisville. Kentucky hadn’t shown that typical Stoops killer instinct over the past couple of seasons. It resurfaced in the Derby City. A great example of this was a two-play scoring drive consisting of a couple of explosive passes. Culture.  

Account for and Block Number 9
RESULT: GO  

Ashton Gillotte is a game-killing defender. The defensive end is a future professional and has racked up high havoc numbers through 11 contests this season. He finished with four tackles, one tackle for loss, and one QB sack. Solid stats, but not the monster, game-changing performance that the Cards needed.  

DEFENSE 

Bottom line up front: Brad White’s unit held Louisville to seven fourth-quarter points. Much like the offense, the Wildcat defense hadn’t exactly thrived in crucial moments. It did so against Louisville when it mattered the most. The final period was a “Culture Quarter” and a style that we all grew to love and respect from Stoops’ teams of the past. Culture.  

I wrote in Thursday’s post that the linebackers had to play their most disciplined, physical, and best game of the season in order to secure a win. They did. Trevin Wallace and D’Eryk Jackson both finished with 11 tackles. JJ Weaver was named the Governor’s Cup MVP after posting eight stops, one TFL, one QB sack, one forced fumble, and tw fumble recoveries. Coaching.  

Deone Walker is a star. He starred on Saturday with seven tackles and was the best player on the field. Nose tackle Josaih Hayes pitched in four stops, one TFL, and one QB sack. The safeties had been criticized over the course of the season. That group played their best game of the season. The ‘Cats bent but didn’t break against 76 snaps that resulted in 403 yards and 23 first downs.  

Road games often rely on forcing turnovers for a win. UK did just that. Louisville gave the football back to the Wildcats three times. That, along with a strong tackling performance and a return to a physical nature helped to bring home the big trophy. In other words, for the first time in the 2023 season, Kentucky was the hunter instead of the prey. Culture.  

UofL overly targeted WR Jamari Thrash all season. He had 80 (with 56 catches) going into Saturday and was the sole focus of the Cards’ pass attack. UK limited the explosive playmaker to six catches for just 60 yards. 10 yards per catch against that athlete has to be considered a success. Let’s get into goals.  

Get Off the Field
RESULT: NO-GO  

Kentucky entered the Governor’s Cup allowing 43% on third down. The objective was 35% or less. This issue continued to hinder the Wildcat defense. The Cards converted 9/17 on third down (52.9%). However, forcing three turnovers made up for its chain-moving deficiency.  

Tackle  
RESULT: GO  

Was it perfect? No. However, remember this game was about situations and moments. One tackle stood out. Former UK quarterback turned Louisville TE Joey Gatewood caught a pass near the game’s end. Gatewood fought for extra yards. UK defenders assisted by keeping him upright in order for the clock to tick off valuable seconds. This moment helped to finish the deal. That tackle alone calls for a “GO.” Culture.  

SPECIAL TEAMS 

Great. Bad. Both can be used to describe Kentucky’s third phase in the Governor’s Cup. Porous kickoffs and coverage led to an advantageous field position for the home team. Other issues reared their ugly heads.  

But, Barion Brown’s 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown flipped the script and brought life back to the ‘Cats when it felt like the game was going to go the Cardinals’ way.  

Score or Produced Turnover
RESULT: GO  

See above. Barion Brown went untouched for a 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown.

WHAT DOES THIS ALL MEAN?

I didn’t expect Kentucky to win the football game. I based my theory on season trends and momentum. Both heavily favored Louisville. The wheels came off of UK in Columbia, South Carolina. I had a hard time getting past that one. The Wildcats played poorly on offense yet good enough on defense but lost to a bad football team. The team appeared to be spiraling in the wrong direction.  

My expectations were minimal at best. I’m just being honest. It felt like the culture was shifting. The culture had shifted.  

It wasn’t just 2023 that had me troubled.  

The prior season saw the ‘Cats leave wins on the field and show vulnerabilities in areas that previously were strengths. The program seemed as if it had lost a portion of its killer instinct or edge. Then, Saturday happened. If Mark Stoops can do one thing, he knows how to get his team ready to beat the in-state rivals. He did it again on Saturday.  

Louisville was 10-1 and ranked 9^th in the country prior to the Governor’s Cup. While I felt the talent was equal between the teams, the Cards had done something all season that UK had failed to do; win close games in the fourth quarter. UofL was 5-0 in these situations. UK was 0-3.  

The ACC factor should have carried more weight in my pregame anxiety. Well, maybe not the entire conference, but the opponents that UofL had defeated and played close games against. UK had competed against the best of the SEC. The Cards feasted on mediocre opponents with Notre Dame being the exception. Kinda. How good are the Irish? That’s for another debate.  

Kentucky faced Alabama and Georgia. Louisville escaped from playing Clemson, Florida State, and North Carolina. 10-1 is not a record that can be achieved by accident, but the quality of competition significantly slanted UK’s way. Simply stated, the Cards had played a soft schedule and it showed. But again, 10-1 is 10-1. That record is incredibly difficult to achieve.  

The Wildcats have now won five in a row against Louisville with a pending return game to Kroger Field in 2024. Recent history has shown a line-of-scrimmage advantage for UK. That has somewhat shifted to neutrality which is a credit to head coach Jeff Brohm and his predecessor. Who knows what the future will bring.  

What’s next? Kentucky finished the regular season at 7-5. For the second consecutive season, there were wins left on the field. Yes, UK played four Top-10 opponents. But, let’s break that down a little bit. Take ‘Bama and Georgia out of the equation. The Tide and Dawgs are likely the best two teams in the nation. I’d like to focus on two of the four: Missouri and Louisville.  

I’m sorry, I can’t, or refuse to accept, that Missouri was all of a sudden 20 points better than Kentucky during the course of one year. The Tigers beat the Cats by 17 — add in three for home-field advantage and a night game to get to 20. Don’t buy it. I just don’t. That game was an even matchup played at night at Kroger Field in front of a packed house of excited BBN folks. The result was a disappointing loss. If you think about it, I’d say that UofL fans are thinking the same today as UK fans were thinking following the Mizzou matchup, “We beat ourselves.”  

Mizzou was situationally better and executed when it mattered. Kentucky didn’t. UK had a 14-0 advantage and a chance to send the visitors packing but didn’t. If UK had just taken advantage of the game’s early momentum and setting, we could easily be sitting here talking about a 10-2 Kentucky team that’s preparing for a New Year’s Six Bowl. But, we are not. Mizzou is Top-10; UK is 7-5. Missed chance.  

Same with Tennessee. Are we supposed to just accept that the 2023 Vols were better than Kentucky? That’s your call. I don’t. But, I get it. This one is different. There’s a history of losses to Tennessee that’s hard to understand. That’s another winnable game that resulted in an L. So, 9-3 would be better than 7-5.  

We can’t overlook the South Carolina debacle. Last season’s Vanderbilt loss was considered the worst of the Stoops’ era. I’m not so sure that the USC loss wasn’t equally as bad. Winnable SEC road games don’t come around often. The Gamecocks are not good, at all.  Missed opportunity. 8-4 looks a great deal better than 7-5.  

Back to Top-10 opponents. I feel Louisville’s 10-1 record deserved a Top-10 ranking. But, by no means were the Cards one of the best 10 teams in the country. UK should have won the game and did. Much like it should have beaten Missouri, South Carolina, and Tennessee. Listen, the schedule will never be as agreeable as it has been in the past two seasons with Texas and Oklahoma coming to the conference. 2022 and 2023 were years to pounce.  

Where does that leave us today? Mark Stoops has some decisions to make about his staff and roster. I’m happy he’s going to be our coach and not going to Texas A&M. The Aggies have the money of a small country, the ego and expectations of Alabama, and get Missouri on-field results.  

It’s time to heal, evaluate, and make some adjustments. But, I can’t keep from looking back to 2022 and 2023 being littered with missed opportunities. I need to move forward.  

It’s time to celebrate and stop pondering the “What Ifs.” Kentucky is the King of the Bluegrass yet again. The Wildcats — and more importantly, the Big Blue Nation — earned bragging rights for the next year. The fans needed and deserved what happened on Saturday. In an up-and-down season, the BBN is the true MVP of the season. Fans enthusiastically filled Kroger Field and traveled to support this team by the thousands just as Stoops requested. I know it’s not easy. But, for real, much respect. You did your job. You did all you could.  

The next weeks are going to be intense and at times, uncomfortable. Business decisions are going to be made in this new world of college football. Please don’t take player and coaching moves personally. Easier said than done, I know, but the modern era mandates individuality over team. And, that’s ok. It’s the world we live in.  

The Transfer Portal starts on December 4. That day is going to bring on chaos at an unprecedented level. Let’s just call it what it really is, free agency. Who knows what UK’s two-deep will look like a month from now. Throw in Signing Day and staff decisions and we have the makings for a newsy end of November and December. Buckle up. Stay tuned to all things KSR.  

Thank you for reading my articles. I really appreciate it. But again, I must note that I am assisted through production and editing. I appreciate your support and patience.  

Go ‘Cats!