Kentucky shocked No. 6 Ole Miss after recovering a fumble in the end zone which was instrumental in the 20-17 victory on Saturday. The Wildcats converted a 4th and 7 pass in the closing minutes for a key 63-yard gain and then forced Ole Miss to attempt a game-tying field goal, which was wide left.
Ole Miss struggled early, but used a key 4th down conversion to take the lead. Tre Harris's 48-yard touchdown catch from Jaxson Dart in the final seconds of the third quarter gave the Rebels the lead before Kentucky answered.
Kentucky entered the game at 2-2, but had played No. 2 Georgia tough in a 13-12 loss two weeks ago. Meanwhile, Ole Miss had sailed through the first month of its season without any real test. Rebel QB Jaxson Dart led the nation in passing after Week 4 action with 1,554 yards and 12 TDs.
Kentucky's defense had been impressive through four weeks, not allowing more than 262 total yards in its first four games. But Kentucky was 0-2 in SEC play and entered Saturday as a substantial underdog, although it didn't really play out that way for the Wildcats.
Ole Miss vs. Kentucky Box Score
Ole Miss Passing Stats
Ole Miss Rushing/Receiving Stats
Ole Miss Kicking Stats
Kentucky Passing Stats
Kentucky Rushing/Receiving Stats
Kentucky Kicking Stats
Kentucky vs Ole Miss Game Summary
After Ole Miss took the opening kickoff straight down the field for a touchdown drive, the Rebels, favored by three touchdowns, seemed likely to roll to victory. But Kentucky answered with a drive that consumed nearly eight minutes off the clock. From there, Ole Miss struggled to maintain offensive momentum.
Kentucky scored late in the half to take the lead, and then the teams traded field goals to open the second half of play. Ole Miss's key 4th down pass was answered by the Wildcats' big 4th down play to set up the winning score.
Kentucky has an off week to begin October and then will face Vanderbilt in a game to draw even in SEC play.
The Rebels rarely resembled the juggernaut that had ripped through an FCS foe, two Sun Belt teams and Wake Forest. The Rebels struggled to maintain offensive rhythm, although admittedly, Kentucky helped create that situation by simply keeping Ole Miss on the sideline.
Ole Miss will continue SEC play by traveling to South Carolina and LSU in the next two weeks. For a team that had looked all but untouchable, the Rebels now look strangely mortal heading into the remainder of league play.
- · Ole Miss: Henry Parrish, Jr., 1 yard TD run (Davis XPT) 7-0, 12:51 left in 1st
- · Kentucky: Alex Raynor 27 yard field goal, 7-3, 5:13 left in 1st
- · Kentucky: Dane Key, 10 yard pass from Brock Vandagriff (Raynor XPT) 10-7, 0:27 left in 2nd
- · Ole Miss: Caden Davis 31 yard field goal, 10-10, 9:44 left in 3rd
- · Kentucky: Alex Raynor 48 yard field goal, 13-10, 6:31 left in 3rd
- · Ole Miss: Tre Harris, 48 yard pass from Jaxson Dart (Davis XPT) 17-13, 0:10 left in 3rd
- · Kentucky: Josh Kattus fumble recovery TD (Raynor XPT) 20-17, 2:25 left in 4th
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