Kentucky Fights Off Pesky Huskies, Defeats NIU 31-23
A mixture of explosive offense and sluggish defense led to a 31-23 victory over Northern Illinois for the No. 8 Kentucky Wildcats on Saturday night in Lexington.
"Just overall a sluggish game," head coach Mark Stoops said after the win. "Good to get it behind us. We know it's a good football team. It's tough. They're going to play hard, compete for their conference championship. We knew it wasn't going to be easy. We thought, again, we did good things."
Kentucky (4-0, 1-0 SEC) managed to explode its way past the Huskies (1-3) on multiple occasions, thanks to wide receiver duo Tayvion Robinson and Barion Brown. Both players notched their first two receiving touchdowns of the season, all four of which came in style.
Both of Robinson's touchdown grabs went for 40 yards or more, while Brown added a 70-yard score to kick the second half off in style for the Wildcats. Robinson finished with seven catches for 147 yards while Brown needed just four grabs to rack up 102 yards.
Robinson was labeled as reliable by both Stoops and quarterback Will Levis, something the Virginia Tech transfer came to expect when he arrived in Lexington:
"Feels good," Robinson said. "That's why (Stoops) brought me here. That's why he wanted me here. I was an experienced guy in a young receiver room. I was a playmaker. I think I've been doing that since I've been here."
Kentucky found itself in a dogfight from the get-go, as NIU marched down the field on its opening drive, needing 11 plays to travel 75 yards and score. The Huskies were without starting quarterback Rocky Lombardi, who was a game-time decision after suffering a lower leg injury last weekend against Vanderbilt. It was presumed that redshirt freshman Ethan Hampton would take the reins under center, and he did just that, completing 13 passes for 196 yards and a touchdown.
His numbers turned out to be no match for Levis', however. The team captain threw for 303 yards and four touchdowns, tying a career high. Though he was sacked five times, the QB managed to burn the Huskies' secondary on multiple occasions.
"Will Levis played an extremely good game once again," Stoops said. "We improved in certain areas with the protection. They were bringing a lot of pressures and we made them pay for it with the pressures. We got them protected and hit the ball downfield with some explosive plays. That was good to see."
While the Cats won the war on offense, it was a war they feel they shouldn't have been in in the first place. NIU totaled 327 yards of offense on a Kentucky defense that is fresh off of its first shutout in over a decade. Before Saturday, Kentucky hadn't allowed more than 16 points in a game all season.
It was the UK offense that struggled a week ago, but this time the roles were reversed, which wasn't a good sign for defensive coordinator Brad White:
"Too sloppy, too many mistakes," White said. "You'll never never complain about a win and and trust me, that's what it's about, and really proud of the offense. And, you know, how well they responded and, you know, so now it's our turn as a defense to to respond."
Even when the Cats thought they had the game wrapped up, NIU continued firing every last bullet in the chamber, as it marched down the field late in the fourth quarter down 31-17, scoring a quick touchdown to make it a one possession game.
NIU went on to onside kick following the score with just over two minutes remaining, but the Wildcats managed to recover after letting the football travel for far too long.
While a win is a win, Stoops would've liked for it to come easier at the end:
"Obviously not the finish that we were looking for. I think that kind of puts a bad taste in everybody's mouth who was sitting there," he said.
Next up for the Wildcats is a date down in Oxford with the undefeated Ole Miss Rebels. Kickoff is set for noon EST on Oct. 1 as Kentucky looks to improve to 5-0 on the season and 2-0 in SEC play.
