Kentucky football: Mark Stoops' team looks for answers after SEC loss

LEXINGTON — After a third loss in as many games, and with the potential of missing a bowl for the first time since 2015 staring Kentucky football square in the face, quarterback Gavin Wimsatt didn't sugarcoat his description of the locker room's frustration level.

"It's pretty high, I would say, for everybody," he said. "As competitors, you hate to lose, but it's part of the game. All we know is, 'How do we get better?'"

A question that goes far beyond simply coaching. Or X's and O's.

"Man, look yourself in the mirror. Look yourself in the mirror," said cornerback JQ Hardaway, who recorded an interception in the first quarter. "Find out what you can do better, because everybody can do something. Don't just try to point fingers at the next guy. Just stay whole, man. Like, it is rowdy. (Things are) not going our way.

"But if we all just continue to go to work and believe in each other, I believe positive things will come."

Here are three takeaways from the Wildcats' dispiriting 14-point home defeat to the Auburn Tigers:

The Wildcats were down their top two running backs. Who doubled as their most experienced backfield options: Demie Sumo-Karngbaye and Chip Trayanum. That left running back duties to Jamarion Wilcox and Jason Patterson — a redshirt freshman and freshman, respectively.

The pair combined for 63 yards and a touchdown (by Wilcox) on 13 carries.

"I thought they did a decent job," UK coach Mark Stoops said. "I thought (Auburn) really played good up front. They kind of controlled the game with their front."

Kentucky offensive coordinator Bush Hamdan declined to say the absence of the two veterans affected the plays he could dial up Saturday.

"It's part of the job," he said. "So every week, you've got to figure out who that is, who to target, who to get the ball to. Again, just the biggest thing today, just felt (like we) kept getting behind the sticks and second-and-long situations, third-and-long situations — it's probably not gonna be a strength for any team, but for us right now, that's certainly something we've got to avoid."

Nor did he second guess himself about their lack of touches.

"I just think you've got to make that decision — if you feel like you can keep chipping away at (Auburn's defense), " he said. "And as the play caller, I just didn't feel that way. I just felt like it was behind the sticks, and second and long a decent amount of time. We knew they had a very talented front. ... We said it before: their record didn't indicate the players they had on that front seven.

"And we felt we were going to have to take more shots down the field and try to score quicker than try to be able to wear them out."

Saturday's loss was Kentucky's seventh straight home setback against a conference foe. It's a continuation of recent futility in front of its loyal fans at Kroger Field. Dating back to the beginning of the 2022 season, the Wildcats are a staggering 2-10 in league tilts in Lexington. They went 1-3 in 2022 and 2023 before this fall's 0-fer.

The slate doesn't lighten up next year, as UK flips its conference games from this season. That means the four SEC opponents who will step foot in Lexington will be Florida, Ole Miss, Texas and Tennessee.

The Gators, who have beaten the Wildcats 34 of the last 38 meetings. The Volunteers — who have topped Stoops' squad nine times in 11 matchups — own a decisive 84-26-9 advantage heading into next week's contest in Knoxville, Tennessee. The Longhorns, who clearly have established themselves among the nation's elite once more. And the Rebels, who came within a fourth-down heave last month of boasting a 4-0 record versus Stoops.

Not a game among them one would feel confident predicting a Kentucky victory, that's for sure.

J.J. Weaver played a role in keeping points off the board just before Saturday's first half ended. A sixth-year senior linebacker from Louisville, Weavers sacked Auburn quarterback Payton Thorne. And Weaver hurt himself in the process, suffering an ankle injury. But knowing the Tigers had no more timeouts available, he hobbled over to the line of scrimmage as the visitors rushed their field-goal unit onto the field; had he fallen to the ground after his injury, the whistle would have blown, giving Auburn an opportunity to trot its kicking unit onto the field without worrying about the clock.

"That was a very big play, for him to limp over — and we were yelling at him to (do so)," Stoops said. "But players, they have a lot on their plate and they're out there playing hard. He gets a sack, and he's injured.

"But (Weaver's) awareness (to know) that they're out of timeouts? It doesn't always happen that way, you know? So it was huge that he got back and got lined up, and the time expired."

Weaver didn't return to the contest in the second half.

"It's super unfortunate," Hardaway said. "Not to say that you would rather another guy go down, but you definitely don't want to see J.J. go down with all the things he (does) for this team.

"He's such a great leader, always there for us, man. So I hate that for him. I made sure I was able to go over there and share my love with him, let him know I'm here for him (and) I'm praying for him."

He showcased both grit and football I.Q. on his final play of the night.

"It just shows how much of a team guy he is," Hardaway said. "He makes lots of sacrifices for this team. That's just one of them."

Reach Kentucky men’s basketball and football reporter Ryan Black at [email protected] and follow him on X at @RyanABlack.