Draft Scout Kentucky Player News, College Football: Kentucky

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Draft Scout College Football Player News: Kentucky

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11/14/21 - Chris Rodriguez Jr., rSr/2023, Kentucky + More +

Chris Rodriguez Jr. ran for 114 yards and a touchdown, Will Levis threw for two scores and Kentucky used a fast start to beat Vanderbilt 34-17 in a Southeastern Conference matchup on Saturday night. The Wildcats (7-3, 5-3) ended a three-game losing streak and have won the last six games against Vanderbilt (2-8, 0-6). The Commodores have lost five in a row and 19 consecutive SEC games. Kentucky scored on its first four possessions. "We played more complimentary football in the first half than we have in some time," Kentucky coach Mark Stoops said. "We did what we had to do to win. You know this was big for us coming on the road and getting another SEC East win." Levis hit Wan'Dale Robinson in the end zone for a 6-yard touchdown and Izayah Cummings for a 22-yard score. Jalen Geiger returned an interception 31 yards into the end zone. Rodriguez, who has rushed for over 100 yard five times this season, added a 5-yard touchdown run that stretched the Wildcats' lead to 28-3 with 10:43 remaining in the second quarter.

Mike Wright took over for Vanderbilt starting quarterback Ken Seals to start the second half and threw an 8-yard touchdown pass Chris Pierce Jr. with 5:53 left in the third quarter. Wright later capped a 75-yard drive with an 8-yard TD pass to Amir Abdur-Rahman with 7:33 remaining. "Ken was hurt in the first half," Vanderbilt coach Clark Lea said. "We will have to see the extend of his injury. We were pleased with what Mike did in the second half. He knew during the first defensive series he was coming in. He was ready. I think he made good decisions. We have a lot to build on." The Wildcats offense was shut down for most of the second half. Matt Ruffolo's 32-yard field goal with 13:26 left in the game broke the drought. - Kentucky/AP College Football

rSr/2023

RB Chris Rodriguez Jr., Kentucky
News Source: Kentucky/AP College Football
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11/07/21 - Devin Leary, rSr/2024, Kentucky + More +

Dave Doeren can smile with pride, enjoying a season in which North Carolina State defeated Clemson and Florida State for the first time since he arrived in Raleigh, N.C., in 2013. Devin Leary threw for 314 yards and four touchdowns as the Wolfpack jumped ahead of Florida State early for a 28-14 win on Saturday. "I don't know how many times NC State has beaten Clemson and Florida State in the same year as a program," Doeren said. "But that happened this year and I think that's pretty good. When you look at those two programs, what they spend on football, their budgets, what they spend on their staffs, what we just did. I think it says a lot about what we're doing." Doeren's Wolfpack knocked off two of their biggest Atlantic Division rivals for the first time since 2002, before some of the current freshmen were born. N.C. State used the big play in the passing game against a Florida State team that was shorthanded due to flu-like symptoms.

Leary connected with Trent Pennix, C.J. Riley, Christopher Toudle and Ricky Person on touchdowns - one in each quarter - for the Wolfpack (7-2, 4-1 Atlantic Coast Conference). Three of the touchdowns were big plays, with connections of 62 yards to Riley, 45 yards to Pennix and 43 yards to Person. "I feel like it's a really special day," Pennix said. "We have a really special team. I had all the faith in my guys that we were going to pull out this win. We just went out and finished like we always do." McKenzie Milton filled in as Florida State's starting quarterback with Jordan Travis not dressed out. Milton completed 22 of 44 passes for 233 yards and scrambled to complete an 8-yard touchdown pass to Keyshawn Helton, but the Seminoles (3-6, 2-4) were also plagued by drops from the start. - North Carolina State/AP College Football

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QB Devin Leary, Kentucky
News Source: North Carolina State/AP College Football
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11/05/21 - Trevin Wallace, Jr/2024, Kentucky + More +

NOV 1 SEC FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK: Trevin Wallace, LB, Kentucky,...Making his first collegiate start, Wallace totaled a career-high 12 tackles, including two for loss (-6 yards)...Had a solo tackle for loss (-3 yards) in the third quarter...Shared a four-yard tackle for loss in the third quarter that forced a field goal...Shared a one-yard tackle for loss in the fourth quarter that helped force a punt. - SEC Football

Jr/2024

OLB Trevin Wallace, Kentucky
News Source: SEC Football
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10/31/21 - Devin Leary, rSr/2024, Kentucky + More +

Devin Leary threw three of his four touchdown passes in the fourth quarter as North Carolina State's offense finally got untracked in a 28-13 win over Louisville on Saturday night. Leary hit Trent Pennix on a 29-yard touchdown pass on the second play of the fourth quarter to push the Wolfpack into the lead. Leary connected with Devin Carter with 5:53 remaining as N.C. State stretched its edge to 21-13. The clinching points came on 10-yard touchdown pass to C.J. Riley with 2:21 to go. "Love the way we finished the game," N.C. State coach Dave Doeren said. "To be able to pad our lead was awesome down the stretch." N.C. State (6-2, 3-1 Atlantic Coast Conference), which finished with 44 yards on the ground, had only 189 yards of total offense through three quarters. "Credit to our defense, they played their tails off the entire game," Leary said. "We kind of rallied off that." Leary ended up 25-for-36 passing for 317 yards. "He's just playing smart," Doeren said of his quarterback. "There are times where he's trying to be a little too perfect, but he's gutsy." So it was largely defense that allowed the Wolfpack to bounce back from a one-point loss a week earlier at Miami. The outcome leaves N.C. State as the closest pursuer to undefeated Wake Forest in the ACC's Atlantic Division. "It says a lot about our maturity," Wolfpack linebacker Drake Thomas said. "It takes a real strong, mature team to do what we just did." The Cardinals managed 55 yards on three fourth-quarter possessions. - North Carolina State/AP College Football

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QB Devin Leary, Kentucky
News Source: North Carolina State/AP College Football
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10/14/21 - Zach Calzada, rSr/2026, Kentucky + More +

OCT 11 SEC OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Zach Calzada, QB, Texas A&M,...The sophomore from Sugar Hill, Georgia, started his fourth game of his Aggie career and completed his first 10 passes against top-ranked Alabama...On the day, Calzada was 21-of-31 for 285 yards with one interception and three touchdown passes...In the fourth quarter, Calzada missed on his first five pass attempts, but then completed four of his next five passes to tie the game with a 25-yard touchdown strike to Ainias Smith with three minutes remaining in the game...After an Aggie defensive three and out series, Calzada led the offense 54 yards on eight plays with a game-winning 28-yard field goal...Calzada also scrambled for a first down moving the ball into Alabama territory. - SEC Football

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QB Zach Calzada, Kentucky
News Source: SEC Football
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10/14/21 - Eli Cox, rSr/2025, Kentucky + More +

OCT 11 SEC CO-OFFENSIVE LINEMAN OF THE WEEK: Eli Cox, OG, Kentucky,...Played every offensive snap and graded at 91 percent in Kentucky's 42-21 win over LSU...Helped UK to 330 rushing yards, averaging 7.3 per attempt (7.7 per attempt if you don't include two kneel-downs at the end of the game)...Led the offensive line with seven knockdown blocks and had 15 blocks at the point of attack, including Will Levis' quarterback sneak for a touchdown...Did not have any missed assignments and did not allow any quarterback sacks or pressures...Helped UK to 42 points, most ever for the Wildcats against LSU in a regulation-length game. - SEC Football

rSr/2025

C Eli Cox, Kentucky
News Source: SEC Football
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10/14/21 - Octavious Oxendine, rSr/2025, Kentucky + More +

OCT 11 SEC CO-DEFENSIVE LINEMAN OF THE WEEK: Octavious Oxendine, DT, Kentucky,...Made three tackles, including the first two quarterback sacks of his career (-16 yards), in Kentucky's 42-21 win over LSU...His seven-yard sack in the second quarter helped force a punt...Credited with a nine-yard sack when he forced the LSU quarterback into an intentional grounding call, helping force another punt. - SEC Football

rSr/2025

DT Octavious Oxendine, Kentucky
News Source: SEC Football
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10/11/21 - Octavious Oxendine, rSr/2025, Kentucky + More +

Kentucky defensive tackle Octavious Oxendine will miss the rest of the season with a lower leg injury sustained in the No. 11 Wildcats' 42-21 win over LSU. Coach Mark Stoops wasn't more specific about Oxendine's injury on Monday but called it a “big loss” considering Kentucky (6-0, 4-0 Southeastern Conference) has already lost nose guard Marquan McCall in the win over Florida with what he described as a lower extremity injury. Senior Abule Abadi-Fitzgerald is listed as the starter for Saturday's East Division showdown at top-ranked Georgia. The announcement comes as Oxendine was named SEC co-defensive line player of the week for his play against LSU. The sophomore recorded two sacks among three tackles, earning credit for a sack after forcing an intentional grounding call. He was eighth on the team with 15 tackles, including 3.5 for loss. - AP College Football

rSr/2025

DT Octavious Oxendine, Kentucky
News Source: AP College Football
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10/10/21 - Will Levis, rSr/2023, Kentucky + More +

OCT 10 WALTER CAMP NATIONAL OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: WILL LEVIS, KENTUCKY, Junior, Quarterback, Madison, CT/Xavier HS,...Will Levis accounted for five touchdowns (3 passing, 2 rushing) as 16th-ranked Kentucky defeated LSU, 42-21. Levis threw for 145 yards (14-of-17) and three scores, and rushed for 75 yards and two more touchdowns as the Wildcats remained unbeaten (6-0, 3-0 in SEC). Notes: Will Levis joins teammate Jacquez Jones (Oct. 3, 2021) and former Wildcat linebacker Josh Allen (Nov. 4, 2018) as Walter Camp National Player of Week honorees since 2004 from Kentucky. - The Walter Camp Football Foundation

rSr/2023

QB Will Levis, Kentucky
News Source: The Walter Camp Football Foundation
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10/10/21 - Zach Calzada, rSr/2026, Kentucky + More +

During a speaking engagement this spring Texas A&M coach Jimbo Fisher used colorful language to proclaim his team would beat Alabama during coach Nick Saban's career. He fulfilled that promise in his first try since that vow Saturday night, handing the defending national champions their first loss since 2019 in a thrilling upset. "Our team beat a really good football team...and that's what's important to me," Fisher said. Seth Small made a 28-yard field goal as time expired and Texas A&M stunned top-ranked Alabama 41-38 to end the Crimson Tide's winning streak at 19 games. The victory came on Fisher's 56th birthday and is certainly Texas A&M's biggest win since Fisher took over in 2018. "I didn't know what to get him, so we thought as a team that we should get a win for him," Small said. Alabama (5-1, 2-1 Southeastern Conference) had scored 21 straight points - capped by a TD reception and 2-point conversion grab by Jameson Williams - to take a 38-31 lead with five minutes to go.

Texas A&M (4-2, 1-2) tied it at 38 when Zach Calzada connected with Ainias Smith for a 25-yard touchdown with three minutes left. Calzada was hit as he threw the strike and had to be helped off the field but returned for the next drive after a visit to the medical tent. Calzada returned after the Aggies forced a punt to orchestrate the winning drive, highlighted by a 17-yard pass to Isaiah Spiller before Small finished it off to send fans streaming onto the field to celebrate. "I'm proud of our guys," Fisher said. "We made plays at critical times." Calzada threw for 285 yards and three touchdowns, as the former backup played like a star. Devon Achane returned a kickoff 96 yards for a TD in the third quarter and A&M's defense got after Bryce Young all night. - Texas A&M/AP College Football

rSr/2026

QB Zach Calzada, Kentucky
News Source: Texas A&M/AP College Football
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10/10/21 - Will Levis, rSr/2023, Kentucky + More +

Will Levis' short touchdown passes stood out because his throwing touch has been a work in progress. The gutsy Kentucky quarterback continued to show how he can take and give hits rushing the ball, spinning free from several tackles during one run before carrying a few LSU defenders a few extra yards for a highlight-worthy clip. Both impressive skills helped the No. 16 Wildcats earn their most remarkable victory this season. Levis threw for three touchdowns and ran for two more scores and Kentucky dominated LSU throughout in a 42-21 blowout Saturday night.

The Wildcats have their first 6-0 start since 1950, improved to 4-0 in the Southeastern Conference and earned a second consecutive win over a conference heavyweight. Kentucky beat then-No. 10 Florida 20-13 last week. The Wildcats' biggest challenge looms at No. 2 Georgia next week in an East Division showdown, and they'll enter with their best performance since the season opener. Levis had a huge hand in that, with the QB bouncing back from a lackluster stretch to account for three second-half scores alone as Kentucky pulled away to a 35-7 lead early in the fourth quarter. The Penn State transfer sandwiched TD passes of 25, 11 and 3 yards between rushing scores of 5 and 1 yards as the Wildcats outgained the Tigers 475-408, though much of LSU's yardage came after the game was out of reach. - Kentucky/AP College Football

rSr/2023

QB Will Levis, Kentucky
News Source: Kentucky/AP College Football
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10/04/21 - Josh Paschal, rSr/2022, Kentucky + More +

OCT 4 SEC CO-SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Josh Paschal, DE, Kentucky,...Made the game-changing play - a blocked field goal that was returned for a touchdown - in Kentucky's 20-13 win over No. 10/9-ranked Florida...With UK trailing 10-7 in the third quarter, Paschal swatted a 48-yard attempt that was caught by Trevin Wallace and returned 76 yards for the TD, giving the Wildcats a lead that they did not relinquish...Also made seven tackles, including 2.5 for loss, from his defensive end position...Helped limit Florida to 171 rushing yards and 382 yards total offense, well below their season averages of 322.5 rushing yards (third nationally) and 540.8 total offensive yards (ninth nationally). - SEC Football

rSr/2022

DE Josh Paschal, Kentucky
News Source: SEC Football
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10/04/21 - Jacquez Jones, rSr/2023, Kentucky + More +

OCT 4 SEC CO-DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Jacquez Jones, LB, Kentucky,...Had nine tackles, including one for loss, a quarterback hurry and a game-saving pass breakup in Kentucky's 20-13 win over No. 10/9-ranked Florida...His fourth-down pass breakup in the end zone with 18 seconds left preserved the victory...Had two shared tackles for loss, one on a three-yard loss that helped force a punt and also on a one-yard loss leading up to UK's decisive game-changing blocked punt...The UK defense limited Florida to 171 rushing yards and 382 yards total offense, well below their season averages of 322.5 rushing yards (third nationally) and 540.8 yards total offense (ninth nationally)...The UK defense ended the Florida streak of 14 consecutive games of 400+ yards total offense, the nation's longest active streak. - SEC Football

rSr/2023

ILB Jacquez Jones, Kentucky
News Source: SEC Football
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10/03/21 - Jacquez Jones, rSr/2023, Kentucky + More +

OCT 3 WALTER CAMP NATIONAL DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: JACQUEZ JONES, KENTUCKY, Senior, Inside Linebacker, Tuscaloosa, AL/Hillcrest,...Jacquez Jones had nine tackles, including one for a loss, and added one pass break up on the game's final play, and one quarterback hurry as 23rd-ranked Kentucky (5-0, 3-0 in SEC) defeated 9th-ranked Florida, 20-13. It was the Wildcats' first win over the Gators in Lexington since 1986. Notes: Jacquez Jones is the second Kentucky player since 2004 to earn Walter Camp National Player of Week honors, joining former Wildcat linebacker Josh Allen (Nov. 4, 2018). - The Walter Camp Football Foundation

rSr/2023

ILB Jacquez Jones, Kentucky
News Source: The Walter Camp Football Foundation
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10/03/21 - Josh Paschal, rSr/2022, Kentucky + More +

Trevin Wallace returned a blocked field goal 76 yards for the go-ahead touchdown late in the third quarter, Chris Rodriguez Jr. had a 9-yard scoring run early in the fourth and Kentucky made a final defensive stand to hold off No. 10 Florida 20-13 on Saturday night. The Southeastern Conference East Division showdown was more of a slog than a slugfest for much of the night, and the Gators (3-2, 1-2) were poised to add Jace Christmann's 48-yard field goal attempt to their 10-7 lead. Kentucky defensive end Josh Paschal got a hand on the low kick that sent the ball fluttering the line to Wallace, who jetted past a tackle on the left sideline and cut back through a small seam to race for the game-changing TD.

The Wildcats (5-0, 3-0) turned it over on downs at the Florida 34 to start the fourth quarter but created another opportunity when linebacker J.J. Weaver intercepted Emory Jones' pass for a first down at the Gators 29. Rodriguez took over from there, rushing three times for 22 yards including the 9-yard TD for a 20-10 cushion with 11:32 remaining. Florida got within seven on Christmann's 33-yard field goal with 6:23 left before getting the ball again a couple of minutes later and driving to the Kentucky 5 with the help of a defensive facemask penalty. A 4-yard loss on a pass play and false start penalty moved the Gators back to the 14, but they had a final chance from the 8 before Jacquez Jones swatted away a fourth-down pass with 18 seconds left to seal the win. Fans stormed the field as Kentucky beat Florida at home for the first time since 1986 and took a big step toward challenging Georgia in the East. - Kentucky/AP College Football

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