Kentucky @ Vanderbilt preview

Last Meeting ( Nov 13, 2010 ) Vanderbilt 20, Kentucky 38

THE STORY: Two teams battling to become bowl eligible face off as Kentucky travels to Nashville to face Vanderbilt in the Commodores’ final home game. The losing team will need to win out just to secure a .500 finish. While the Wildcats and Commodores have identical 4-5 records, they’ve played different brands of football. Three of Vandy’s five SEC losses have come by single digits, including last week’s 26-21 defeat at Florida. Kentucky has been less competitive. But the Wildcats have won their past three games on Vandy’s home field.

TV: SEC Network. LINE: Vanderbilt -13.

ABOUT KENTUCKY (4-5, 1-4 SEC): QB Maxwell Smith earned SEC Freshman of the Week honors after throwing for 283 yards and two touchdowns against Ole Miss as Kentucky earned its first conference win. Coach Joker Phillips anticipates Smith will be the QB in this game, even if Morgan Newton is able to play. Newton missed the Ole Miss game due to ankle and shoulder injuries sustained the previous week against Mississippi State. Watch out for LB Danny Trevathan, who’s posted 17 tackles in consecutive games and leads the SEC with 111 total stops.

ABOUT VANDERBILT (4-5, 1-5 SEC): And the most explosive offense in the SEC is … Vanderbilt’s? The Commodores have more plays that have gained 40 or more yards than any team in the conference, according to first-year coach James Franklin. Since getting held to three combined points in consecutive losses to South Carolina and Alabama, Vandy has scored at least 21 in the subsequent four games. For the season, the Commodores’ 24.8-point average is the highest since 2005, Jay Cutler’s senior year. Four of Vanderbilt’s five losses have come against teams currently ranked in the top 25 in the BCS standings.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Kentucky’s defense posted 10 tackles for loss, a season high, during last week’s 31-13 victory over Ole Miss.

2. A 49-yard effort against Florida hindered RB Zac Stacy’s goal to become the first 1,000-yard rusher at Vanderbilt in 16 years. Stacy enters the Vanderbilt game 244 yards shy of the milestone.

3. Vanderbilt DB Casey Hayward recently was named a semifinalist for the Jim Thorpe Award.

PREDICTION: Vanderbilt 27, Kentucky 21 – Both teams are struggling to compete in the SEC, but the Commodores have been performing at a higher level than the Wildcats.