The Kentucky Wildcats are turning into one of the bigger stories of the college football season. They can’t afford to suffer a letdown this weekend against an opponent from the Sun Belt.
Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks @ Kentucky Wildcats
Saturday, October 11th – 12:00 PM ET
Odds: Kentucky (-21.5)
Why The Warhawks Will Cover
They might catch Kentucky looking ahead to SEC games. Kentucky is improbably but undeniably a factor in the SEC East after beating South Carolina last weekend. The Wildcats are 2-1 in the SEC, which puts them in the mix of teams that have a shot at winning the division. Kentucky’s offense is growing up along with its defense. Every part of the team is making strides, but Kentucky is not used to winning consistently, so with the excitement of the SEC season being the main talking point for the Wildcats, this game against a Sun Belt Conference school could be something Kentucky might not treat with the responsible and sober outlook it ought to have.
Louisiana-Monroe’s offense isn’t great, but its defense is respectable. ULM’s defense held Wake Forest to under 100 yards of total offense in the season opener, and it forced multiple turnovers last week against Arkansas State, giving up under 30 points. If the Warhawks can limit Kentucky to 28 points this week, they should be good enough to score at least 10 and cover the number. If ULM can get a few turnovers, it might be able to either limit Kentucky’s total a little more or score seven more points itself. Kentucky did win last week, but the Wildcats did give up 38 points and 500 total yards. The Warhawks are not playing an elite team. They’re playing an average team that is winning a little more than it used to.
Why The Wildcats Will Cover
They are soaring with confidence right now and have a much more balanced team than they did even a year ago. It was hard to imagine Kentucky getting caught up in a shootout a season ago, and then being able to win that kind of game. Yet, the Wildcats did just that this past Saturday against South Carolina. They scored 45 points against an opponent that gained 500 yards. Kentucky was down 14-0 in the first half, and it came back. It was down 38-24 in the fourth quarter, and it came back. Kentucky’s offense was great, but the defense also made huge plays, especially a tiebreaking pick-six with 2:29 left to win the game. Kentucky picked off South Carolina quarterback Dylan Thompson three times. Kentucky scored a team win which was not just the product of good offense. Everyone contributed. That kind of feeling – not only scoring a big comeback win in a conference game, but doing it with participation throughout the roster – should make this team more unified than ever. It can take that inspiration and bring it into this game, leading to a thoroughly energized and spirited performance that will overwhelm ULM.
Outlook
Kentucky might not be fully sharp, but Louisiana-Monroe’s offense scored only 14 points last week in a Sun Belt game and probably doesn’t have the horses to stay with Kentucky for 60 minutes. Take the Wildcats here.
Pick: Kentucky (-21.5)
