UK football throttles ULM 48-14

LEXINGTON, Ky.

If the University of Kentucky football team had a South Carolina hangover when Saturday's game against Louisiana-Monroe started, someone must've passed out aspirin after the first quarter.

The Wildcats wobbled early and walloped late, scoring the game's final 45 points to rout the Warhawks 48-14 at Commonwealth Stadium. In doing so, UK (5-1, 2-1 SEC) avoided a letdown everyone feared after an emotional, come-from-behind win over the Gamecocks last week.

"I thought we were a little ahead of ourselves" when the game started, coach Mark Stoops admitted. "We needed to create some energy today. Everybody was a little flat, whether it be the fans or the team all week. The energy wasn't as high as it normally is, so that always concerns you a little bit."

Then ULM jumped out to a 14-3 lead heading into the second quarter and a crowd that rushed the field seven days earlier went silent, save a few groans. These Cats, though, apparently don't rattle easily. They roared back with a blitz of big plays on both sides of the ball: six sacks and two touchdowns by the defense, three highlight-reel scores from the offense.

"We're definitely fighters," said quarterback Patrick Towles, who shook off a sluggish start himself to finish 16 of 28 for 216 yards and three touchdowns. "You will never be able to count us out. I don't care what the score is. We're always going to throw another punch, and that's going to win a lot of football games."

It already has. Kentucky is 5-1 for the first time since 2007. On the heels of consecutive two-win seasons, the Cats are just one victory away – with six games to play – from being bowl eligible for the first time since 2010. And, thanks to Georgia hammering Missouri on Saturday, UK heads to LSU next week tied for first place in the SEC East.

"I love it. I love it. Let's go," said Stoops, whose team "took care of business (and) I'm proud of them for that. We're seeing us win some games even when we're not playing our best. We really feel like we can play a lot better, and that's the good news."

After Stanley "Boom" Williams' opening 75-yard kickoff return – which the Wildcats could only turn into a field goal – not much went well in the first quarter against ULM. Kentucky went three-and-out twice, missed a field goal, threw an interception deep in its own end.

The "Wildcat" formation – direct snaps to tailback Jojo Kemp – which sparked UK's comeback win over South Carolina, flopped Saturday. Kemp's first pass attempt of the season was a quacking duck into traffic, picked off and returned to the Cats' 9-yard line to set up the Warhawks' second touchdown.

ULM led 14-3 at the end of the first quarter and had out-gained Kentucky 119 yards to 61.

The Cats were reeling on all fronts and needed a spark. Senior defensive end Bud Dupree provided one. With 10 minutes to go in the half and ULM driving again – all the way to the UK 39 – having converted 4 of 6 third downs already, Dupree sacked the quarterback to thwart a scoring threat. And so began the onslaught.

After UK's first 23 plays gained a total of 70 yards, the 24th was an 83-yard touchdown from Towles to senior receiver Javess Blue deep down the right sideline. Then linebacker Josh Forrest returned an interception 29 yards for a score. And Towles found freshman Blake Bone on a 4-yard touchdown fade. Then Blue again for a spectacular, one-handed, 21-yard grab in the back of the end zone.

"We had to tell ourselves, 'They can beat us,' " Blue said. "It shows that we can flip the switch at any time. We just need that push. We need that motivation and one big play to make it all happen. That's what gets the train going."

Once it did, ULM couldn't slow it down Saturday. UK safety Marcus McWilson ran back a pick 36 yards for a touchdown. Williams ripped free up the middle and ran away for a 58-yard score. The Cats' defense finished with six sacks – Dupree and defensive tackle C.J. Johnson were in on two each – a dozen tackles for loss and three forced turnovers.

They turned a potential letdown into a beatdown.

"I just grabbed my guys," Dupree said, "just had to make sure everybody forgot about the past and started going on to the next play."

So far, this whole season has been about burying the past for Kentucky. Dupree's first three seasons here, the Cats went 9-27. He never dreamed of reaching the halfway point of a season 5-1, still in contention to make the SEC championship game and a single step away from punching his postseason ticket.

"I means a lot. It's crazy," Dupree said, struggling to describe how this second-year turnaround under Stoops makes him feel. "It was horrible (before). I'm just blessed to be in this situation now, and thankful for it. Change is good at times, and this time it was good."

Kyle Tucker can be reached at (502) 582-4361. Follow him on Twitter@KyleTucker_CJ.