By Collan McCoy – Sports Writer

The Wildcats sought to avenge their loss in Austin from last year but fell short in a thrilling SEC overtime battle 16-13 to Texas.

Kentucky (2-4) put up a fight against the No. 21 Longhorns in a Saturday night thriller, outgaining Texas 395 yards to 179. Late field goals by both teams sent the game to overtime, where the Longhorns came out on top.

The story of the game was Kentucky redshirt freshman Cutter Boley. Boley passed for 258 yards on 31 completions in his fifth career start. He also was the team’s leading rusher with 45 net yards on 14 attempts. Preseason Heisman favorite Arch Manning had 132 yards on 27 attempts.

Running back Seth McGowan was the leading receiver for the Cats out of the backfield with 68 yards on seven catches. With McGowan’s 45 rushing yards, he accumulated 113 total yards for the game.

Kentucky’s defense also outplayed the Texas defense, holding the Longhorns to just 179 total yards compared with 395 for the Cats. Coming into Saturday night’s contest, Texas was ranked fourth in FBS defensive efficiency, while Kentucky ranked 40th.

The Cats play the Tennessee Volunteers next Saturday at 7:45 p.m. and will be looking for their first SEC win of the season and their first victory over the Volunteers since the COVID-shortened 2020 season.

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LEXINGTON — Cutter Boley might just be the future of Kentucky football.

The freshman quarterback put on a show Saturday night, guiding the Wildcats to a 48-23 win over Eastern Michigan inside Kroger Field. Boley stepped in after Zach Calzada’s injury last week and didn’t disappoint, throwing for 240 yards and two touchdowns on 12-of-21 passing.

Boley seemed most comfortable with his tight ends, finding Josh Kattus and Willie Rodriguez for big gains. He hit Kattus for a touchdown with just under two minutes left in the first half to give UK a 28-6 cushion.

There were some unnecessary risks with Boley. Boley took a couple hard hits late in the game, with the Wildcats choosing to keep him in the game despite a three possession lead. 

The Wildcats didn’t just get it done through the air. Seth McGowan hit the ground hard, running 18 times for 104 yards and three touchdowns as Kentucky racked up 252 rushing yards.

Defensively, Kentucky struggled in the first half. Eastern Michigan had success moving the ball, piling up 461 yards, including 330 through the air by the end of the night. But the UK defense stood tall on fourth down conversions, turning back three conversion attempts in the opening quarter. Later in the second half things seemed to come together better for the Wildcats. 

Overall, this was a good morale booster for the Wildcats and much needed experience for Boley as they prepare to hit the road and face South Carolina after a bye week. 

The win improves Kentucky to 2-1 for the season.

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