No. 8 Alabama visits Kentucky looking to clinch SEC West title, Wildcats seek second straight win
No. 8 Alabama (8-1, 6-0 SEC, No. 8 CFP) at Kentucky (6-3, 3-3 SEC), Saturday, Noon ET (ESPN)
Line: Alabama by 10½, according to FanDuel.com Sportsbook.
Series: Alabama leads, 38-2-1.
WHAT’S AT STAKE
Alabama can clinch the SEC West title with its eighth consecutive win or a Mississippi loss. The Wildcats are bowl eligible and seek to halt a seven-game losing streak against the Crimson Tide.
KEY MATCHUP
Alabama might not be the same offensive juggernaut but still poses numerous challenges for Kentucky’s defense. The Tide feature mobile quarterback Jalen Milroe (266.6 offensive yards per game) along with the SEC’s No. 9 receiver and rusher respectively in Jermaine Burton (537 yards, five TDs, 20.65 per catch) and Jase McClellan (632 yards, five TDs). In addition, Tide kicker Will Reichard is the SEC’s career points leader (502). Kentucky is allowing 347.2 yards per game but held Mississippi State to just 218 yards and a field goal. D'Eryk Jackson also returned an interception for a touchdown, the Wildcats' third pick-six this season. Any chance of beating ’Bama starts with slowing down that offensive trio.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Alabama’s Milroe is coming off perhaps his best game as the Tide quarterback, one that included solid passing numbers and a 155-yard, four-touchdown rushing effort against LSU. That gives Kentucky’s defense a lot to look for from a quarterback who has also had success with the deep ball.
Kentucky RB Ray Davis leads the SEC with 84 points and is second in rushing with 903 yards. He’s on the verge of a second consecutive 1,000-yard season after totaling 1,042 last fall at Vanderbilt and enters with a 22-game streak with a reception.
FACTS AND FIGURES
This is Alabama’s first game at Kentucky since 2013. ... The Tide is 27-0 in games that start at 11:30 a.m. CT or earlier under Nick Saban. ... The Tide rushed for a season-high 288 yards against LSU, the most since Oct. 1, 2022 against Arkansas. Their six rushing TDs marked the most since the 2020 game against Arkansas. ... Saban is 8-0 against Kentucky as a head coach, including five meetings with Alabama. Mark Stoops is 0-3 against the Tide. ... Kentucky sophomore receivers Barion Brown and Dane Key need just 16 and 50 yards respectively to reach 1,000 for their careers. ... Davis can become the school’s 15th rusher with 1,000 yards in a season.
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