Should Kentucky Worry About Potential Offensive Line Issues?

The Big Blue Wall didn't have all of its barriers up on Saturday night against Miami (OH)

Kentucky flew by Miami (OH) in the second half of its season-opener, eventually winning 37-13 behind some tremendous chunk plays that extended its lead in a hurry. 

Quarterback Will Levis hurled for 303 yards, three touchdowns and an interception on Saturday, which on paper, seems like a pretty solid start to a senior season. 

Levis, however—not too impressed:

“I’ve never felt so disappointed in a 300-yard touchdown performance in my life. I feel like from a decision-making standpoint it was really good but there were some accuracy issues here and there," Levis said. "Coach brought me over at halftime and kind of just told me to make plays and to trust your weapons and let it go and once he said it to me, it helped me settle down a little bit, but the interception was completely on me. He was wide open, and I just missed him.”

While some errant throws could be pinned on the veteran, a bulk of the blame could fall on the offensive line in front of him. 

Miami finished Saturday with four sacks, a number that the Big Blue Wall won't be satisfied with when it looks back at the tape on Monday. 

The line is still gelling as a unit, as everyone is adjusting to a new position, aside from Kenneth Horsey, who was questionable entering Saturday, but ultimately started against the Redhawks. The left side of the line predominantly featured a pair of freshmen in David Wohlabaugh Jr and Jager Burton. Growing pains are to be expected, but game one wasn't exactly a success. 

"A lot of guys got to play in some new spots, but, I mean, obviously that is not the standard with our big blue wall. We’ve got to earn that title back and we have to have good preparation and have more snaps under our belts so the group can gel and start to be a cohesive unit,” center Eli Cox said. 

The run game was nearly non-existent, as Kentucky managed just 50 yards on the ground. Chris Rodriguez's absence was loud, as Kavosiey Smoke couldn't get anything going. Furthermore, the running back room could already be looking slim, as both Ramon Jefferson and JuTahn McClain went down with injuries. 

Kentucky's O-line has plenty of work to do, but Cox see's the issues as easy to correct before the Wildcats head down south to take on the Florida Gators.

“Yeah, it's all fixable. We have a young group that doesn't have as much experience as we're used to seeing in the past. I mean, we had to replace three guys lost to the NFL so you can't rebuild the wall overnight. It's going to take some time," Cox said. "We had a lot of guys that never even started a game here before that are very talented players who I’m very confident in, but now, having that experience under their belts, I think it's only going to be smoother sailing from here for them.”

The Gators' defensive-line will be 10-fold what the Redhawks brought to the table. Those mistakes in a hostile environment will be less forgiving than what they were on Saturday, leading to a less efficient offense. 

Offensive line coach Zach Yenser has said all throughout camp that he has the utmost confidence in the line and its mixture of young and old talent. While Saturday wasn't a step in the right direction, it's clear that the pieces are there—it's just putting them together. 

Levis, while frustrated, knows he has to keep the morale of his linemen high: 

“Just telling them I have full confidence in them, making sure that their minds are thinking positively, and they know what they are supposed to be doing, and as long as they trust in their coaching and in their keys then everything is going to work out. And obviously we had some instances where some things could've worked out a little better, but we are going to keep working. I have all the trust in the world in those guys and they know that.”