Why Kentucky Fans May Feel Deja Vu vs. South Carolina

by:Nick Roush•09/07/24•

RoushKSR

The South Carolina series has consistently produced memorable moments ever since the Cats turned the tide back in 2014 to begin a run of seven wins over the Gamecocks in eight years.

Kentucky won two games with defensive scores — a Bud Dupree pick six, and a Denzil Ware scoop-and-score on a 2-point conversion. Stephen Johnson secured a win with a run, then showed us his tongue. Even in the only loss during that run, the legend of Lynn Bowden was born.

All of these memories are fresh for most Kentucky football fans. When the two teams meet Saturday at Kroger Field, another memory may come to mind, but it’s not from a game in this series.

Kentucky Can Pull an Anthony Richardson on LaNorris Sellers

The storylines surrounding Kentucky’s 2022 road trip to Gainesville were much different. Will Levis vs. Anthony Richardson provided theater for the NFL Draft community who flocked to their televisions to see which player would be the next Sunday star. Fresh off a victory over Utah, the Gators were a popular pick to win the Top 25 duel.

This is not a game between Top 25 teams. There is not any clear and obvious NFL talent at quarterback. Kentucky is a double-digit favorite at home. Outside of that, there are quite a few similarities between UK’s opponents.

Like Richardson, South Carolina quarterback LaNorris Sellers is making his second appearance as his team’s full-time starter after spending the previous year in a Wildcat role. Sellers is an exceptional athlete without any pass-catching weapons. At least in Richrdson’s care, Ricky Pearsall developed into one later that season, but that’s highly unlikely for Sellers this fall.

Florida struck first and took early momentum. The Gators led 16-7 when the Kentucky defense put Richardson in a torture chamber. Jordan Wright only needed one hand to pick off Richardson’s routine throw to the flat. The Florida quarterback was never the same.

Kentucky scored a touchdown to get within three points before halftime. On the second drive of the third quarter, the befuddled Richardson threw a ball directly to the No. 1 on Keidron Smith‘s jersey, who returned the interception for a touchdown. The Gators never scored again.

Watching highlights from the Florida game last year and totally forgot about this insane play from Jordan Wright. pic.twitter.com/eDjBV0Fipz
— KY Clips (@KY__Clips) August 19, 2023

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Experienced Defense vs. Inexperienced Passer

Richardson and Sellers are both homegrown athletes with exceptional raw tools and very little experience playing the quarterback position at a high level. The inexperience is most evident when processing in the pocket. Reading a defense and moving from one route to the next is an acquired skill.

Against a bad Old Dominion defense, we learned that Sellers struggles to get rid of the football. In 30 dropbacks, Sellers scrambled seven times and took four sacks. When in doubt, he tried to make plays with his legs.

Indecisiveness equals vulnerability against an experienced Kentucky front seven. Not only will they provide pressure in the pass rush, the Cats have a pair of old linebackers — Jamon Dumas-Johnson and D’Eryk Jackson — who create chaos in passing lanes. In 33 week one snaps each player was responsible for creating an interception. Sellers’ top targets are his tight ends, who will be running routes near those chaos-creating linebackers. As we learned in that 2022 Florida game, it only takes one play to turn the quarterback’s world upside down.

The Kentucky defense has the most decisive advantage of any matchup we will see on Saturday at Kroger Field. Mark Stoops is at his best in early-season SEC games. The Cats will be ready to make plays, plays that could turn this game upside down for South Carolina in the blink of an eye.