Cats vs Gamecocks Preview

Kentucky enters October with something that has been missing far too often in recent seasons: momentum.

The Wildcats are 3-1 in the first season of the Will Stein era, already own an impressive road victory over then-No. 9 Texas A&M, and are coming off a 45-21 victory over South Alabama in which the Kentucky offense absolutely exploded on the ground.

Now comes another SEC road test.

Kentucky travels to Columbia on Saturday afternoon to face South Carolina at Williams-Brice Stadium, where the Gamecocks will be trying to stop a two-game losing streak while Kentucky tries to end a four-game skid in this series.

On paper, this looks like one of the more important swing games on Kentucky's schedule. Win it, and the Cats would move to 4-1 overall and 2-1 in the SEC heading into a home matchup with LSU. Lose it, and Kentucky gives a struggling South Carolina team new life.

The biggest development coming out of Kentucky's win over South Alabama wasn't simply the final score. It was how Kentucky moved the football.

The Wildcats piled up 390 rushing yards on just 42 attempts, an incredible 9.3 yards per carry. It was Kentucky's biggest rushing performance since putting up 408 yards against Ole Miss in 2020.

Even more impressive, Kentucky had three different running backs go over 100 yards:

It was only the second time in Kentucky history that three players rushed for at least 100 yards in the same game — and the first time UK has ever had three running backs accomplish it.

Kentucky finished with 567 yards of total offense, its highest total against an FBS opponent since 2021.

That's the formula Kentucky would love to bring to Columbia: run the football, stay ahead of the chains, control the clock and prevent the South Carolina crowd from becoming a major factor.

The emergence of Kentucky's running game could make life much easier for quarterback Kenny Minchey.

Minchey completed 19 of 25 passes for 177 yards and a touchdown against South Alabama. Those numbers weren't spectacular because they didn't need to be.

We've already seen what Minchey can do when Kentucky needs more through the air. He threw for 301 yards and four touchdowns in the opener against Youngstown State and followed that with 252 passing yards and two touchdowns in Kentucky's road win over Texas A&M.

If Kentucky can establish Baxter, Patterson and Barnes early Saturday, Minchey should get opportunities to attack South Carolina off play-action rather than being forced into obvious passing situations.

That's exactly where Kentucky wants this game.

Don't let South Carolina's 2-2 record make you think this will be easy.

Williams-Brice Stadium is one of the SEC's loudest environments, and quarterback LaNorris Sellers remains the kind of dual-threat player capable of changing a game by himself.

But there are reasons for Kentucky to feel good about this matchup.

After opening the season with wins over Kent State and Towson, the Gamecocks have dropped their first two SEC games. South Carolina blew an early 16-0 advantage in a 41-34 home loss to Mississippi State, then traveled to Tuscaloosa and lost 49-18 to Alabama.

Against Mississippi State, Sellers completed 25 of 40 passes for 282 yards and two touchdowns, but he also threw two interceptions.

Against Alabama, Sellers passed for 185 yards and a touchdown while adding 72 rushing yards. Running back Matt Fuller was another bright spot, rushing for 112 yards and a touchdown.

South Carolina therefore presents Kentucky with two very clear defensive priorities: keep Sellers contained and don't allow the Gamecocks to establish a consistent running game.

For several years, Kentucky owned this series.

The Wildcats won eight of nine meetings between 2014 and 2021. Since then, the rivalry has completely flipped.

South Carolina has won four straight against Kentucky beginning with a 24-14 victory in Lexington in 2022.

The Gamecocks won again in 2023 and 2024 before beating Kentucky 35-13 in Columbia last season. South Carolina now leads the all-time series 22-14-1.

That's another reason Saturday matters. This isn't just about getting Kentucky's fourth victory. It's an opportunity for Will Stein's first team to change the direction of a series that has become increasingly frustrating for Big Blue Nation.

Four games into the Will Stein era, Kentucky is beginning to establish an identity.

The Cats have scored at least 31 points in three of their first four games. They have already gone on the road and beaten a top-10 opponent. And now they've shown the ability to physically overwhelm an opponent with the running game.

Meanwhile, South Carolina has surrendered 90 points over its first two conference games and enters Saturday searching for its first SEC victory.

None of that guarantees Kentucky anything. South Carolina is talented, Sellers is dangerous, and winning at Williams-Brice is never simple.

But this isn't a Kentucky team that should travel to Columbia hoping to steal a victory.

The Wildcats have every reason to expect to compete for one.