Florida Football: Post-spring game-by-game predictions for 2019
Florida will go on the road for its SEC opener, looking to avenge a home loss to Kentucky last September. It was Florida’s first loss to the Wildcats in football since 1986. It hasn’t lost in consecutive seasons to Kentucky since 1976-1977.
Coming off of an impressive 10-win season last year, 2019 is likely to be a rebuilding year for Mike Stoops in Lexington. The Wildcats lost a ton of production, especially on defense, that won’t be easily replaced. Kentucky boasted a Top-25 defense last season, but lost more than 60-percent of the production from that group.
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The biggest losses were of two of the best players in the history of the program – running back Benny Snell Jr. and edge rusher Josh Allen. Replacing those guys will likely be a by-committee approach; you don’t replace legendary players that easy, especially at a program like Kentucky.
Replacing Snell might be the most difficult. Snell was the offensive workhorse, logging 289 carries as a senior. Rising senior A.J. Rose was the No. 2 running back, and he saw 71 carries, which he turned into 442 yards and 5 touchdowns. He’s likely to be the starter, but don’t expect him to carry a similar workload. Stoops will instead look to divvy it up to a more by-committee approach, with guys like Kavosiey Smoke, Chris Rodriguez, and true freshman Travis Tisdale carrying a share of the offensive burden.
Senior quarterback Terry Wilson will have to shoulder more of the offensive load himself. He could see an increase in carries as well as the dual-threat quarterback looks to improve off of an up-and-down 2018 season. Kentucky is also likely to find creative ways to get the ball in the hands of senior receiver Lynn Bowden, who is one of the most dynamic playmakers in the country.
Kentucky has the advantage of playing this game at home, but it’s difficult to project the Wildcats coming out on top of Florida for a second season in a row, particularly with all they have to replace.
Pick: Florida 29, Kentucky 17 (3-0, 1-0 SEC)