All these bridge closures are a warning. Louisville needs more ways to cross the river.
SPORTS

UK-UF Notes: Towles takes "big step"

Kyle Tucker
@KyleTucker_CJ
Kentucky quarterback Patrick Towles (14) gets off a pass just before he is hit by Florida defensive lineman Dante Fowler Jr. (6) during the first half of an NCAA college football game in Gainesville, Fla., Saturday, Sept. 13, 2014. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

GAINESVILLE, Fla.

University of Kentucky quarterback Patrick Towles wasn't perfect in Saturday night's 36-30 triple-overtime loss at Florida – he threw three interceptions and nearly tossed a few more to the Gators – but he was mighty impressive at times in the first road start of his career.

Towles completed 24 of 45 passes for 369 yards and three touchdowns. Two of his picks were on deep balls that bounced off the hands of his wide receivers and into the arms of defenders.

"And probably two drops for another 70 (yards)," offensive coordinator Neal Brown said. "He could've been sitting here with 450 yards passing. In here, in this atmosphere. I thought he did a great job keeping plays alive, not taking sacks. I thought he did a really good job running the ball when we asked him to do that. I was extremely proud of how he played, and it was a big step in his maturation process."

Towles put up the most passing yards against Florida since 2007 and just the second 300-yard passing game against the Gators in the last seven seasons. He's the first UK quarterback to throw for 300-plus in an SEC game since 2010.

"That's as on throwing the ball as I've seen him," Brown said.

Towles has accounted for 1,027 yards of total offense – 916 passing, 111 rushing – and six touchdowns in his first three games as a starter. His 305.3 passing yards per game rank 19th nationally and third in the SEC.

"Missed some opportunities and made some plays," he said Saturday night. "I left some plays out there, but I gave everything I had, so that's the one thing you can deal with."

PATCHWORK O-LINE HELD UP UNDER HEAT

It seemed like a recipe for disaster. Facing a ferocious Florida defense in a roaring road environment, Kentucky at one point had three redshirt freshmen on the offensive line. Starting left guard Zach West sat out his second game with a neck injury, then starting left guard Darrian Miller left with a stinger – and his backup, Kyle Meadows, went down with an ankle injury.

So the Cats had had redshirt freshmen at left tackle (Nick Haynes), left guard (Cole Mosier) and right guard (Ramsey Meyers). Meadows is also a redshirt freshman. Despite all that youth, UK held its own up front, and Miller eventually returned to help steady the ship.

"We were beat. We were beat up," coach Mark Stoops said. "Next man up. Didn't matter. If they could play, they were in. For a long time, we were playing with some guys that (have) very limited experience, and they fought their tails off."

Offensive coordinator Neal Brown said he wouldn't know for at least 24 hours the status of all his injured linemen, but it helps that the Cats have this week off before hosting Vanderbilt on Sept. 27.

"Darrian came back out and really battled. He's a stud. He's a really good player," Brown said. "I was really proud of how those guys competed. I don't know how many times we threw it. 45 times? That's a lot against these guys. There's a lot of NFL guys playing up front there. So you're talking about playing four redshirt freshmen in their first away game, and it was there, on big-time television, a lot of screaming fans. We'll build on this."

CATS STILL CONFIDENT IN KICKER

Stoops has made one thing very clear through three weeks: even with some ups and downs, he believes in redshirt freshman kicker Austin MacGinnis. He called on him to kick a 53-yarder in Week 2 after he'd missed a pair earlier in the game, and MacGinnis nailed it.

He called on MacGinnis to hit a 51-yarder late in the fourth quarter against Florida, and he made it again. So the 41-yard field goal attempt MacGinnis pushed wide right in the third overtime? Not going to shake Stoops' confidence in his guy, despite now four misses in 10 career tries.

"The one he made to put it in overtime, we wouldn't have even been in those overtimes if he didn't make it," Stoops said. "I take my hat off to him. He was clutch. He made some very difficult kicks. I'm proud of him. He'll be fine."

MacGinnis also came to the postgame interview room before any of his teammates and fielded every question from reporters with his head held high. His coaches rave about the rookie's next-kick mentality, and he seemed unshaken by miss.

"It's definitely tough because I think it would have been a huge changing point in the program, but, I mean, we stuck with them," he said. "Each game that I play in, I just feel like I get more game experience. That's the only way you can really learn."

THE GATOR WHO GOT LOOSE

If not for Florida receiver Demarcus Robinson, Kentucky's defense would've had a really nice night. The Gators gained just 316 yards on 79 plays that were not completed passes to Robinson – an average of only four yards per play.

The trouble: Robinson caught 15 passes for 216 yards and two touchdowns. So what the heck happened?

"He definitely has a lot of speed. He definitely has height. He has great ball skills. He's a great receiver. We took some risks and got into some zero coverage and I think he hit us on some of those," UK defensive coordinator D.J. Eliot said. "He got in one-on-one matchups there that he won. That was just the way that we decided to go with it, and our players have got to start winning some of those one-on-one matchups."

Cornerback Fred Tiller was Robinson's most frequent victim, including one especially frustrating play where Tiller had a potential pick-six bounce off his chest, into Robinson's arms for a 33-yard gain to set up at touchdown. That was one of seven receptions for 10-plus yards by Robinson.

He also snuck behind two defenders for the tying touchdown on fourth down in the first overtime, a play that should've been wiped out by a delay-of-game penalty on Florida.

"I couldn't tell," Eliot said. "It was frustrating to me that we didn't stop him. That's what was frustrating to me."

QUICK KICKS …

* It wasn't all bad on defense for the Cats, despite allowing 532 yards. Defensive end Za'Darius Smith was a force, racking up 11 tackles, half a sack and a pass breakup that would've likely gone for a touchdown.

* Linebacker Josh Forrest had a career-high 10 tackles, one for loss, and senior cornerback Nate Willis snared his first interception as a Wildcat. Fellow JUCO transfer Melvin Lewis was also a force at defensive tackle, in on two tackles for loss, including a sack.

* While there is lots of talk about UK's talented freshmen, several sophomores from Stoops' first recruiting class are making an impact. Nickel Blake McClain had five tackles and three QB hurries against Florida. End Jason Hatcher had four tackles, two for loss, including a sack.

* For instant updates on the Wildcats, follow me on Twitter @KyleTucker_CJ. Email me at ktucker@courier-journal.com.