In Texas HC Steve Sarkisian's recent media session, he addressed the Longhorns' week 8 opponent and gave some of his thoughts about different aspects of the matchup.
On heading to Lexington for a night game:
"As we know, playing on the road in the SEC at night, it's going to be a tough environment."
Though Kentucky hasn't been the best this season, they're still an SEC conference team with loads of talent that could surprise at any moment, which is why nobody can be taken lightly in this league.
"That's this conference. That wasn't the only game (Auburn vs. Georgia). There were a ton of one-score games in our conference and probably a lot of games closer than the final score indicated."
"When you go on the road and you play at night in some of these environments, you had better buckle up."
The Wildcats have been doing an excellent job of running the football on offense with running backs Seth McGowan and Dante Dowdell in 2025. Despite not being incredibly well-known yet, they've formed one of the better ball-carrier duos in the SEC this season. McGowan being the "lightning" and Dowdell being the "thunder".
Sarkisian also commented on this aspect, as well as Longhorns DT Hero Kanu:
They're "running the heck out of the ball" Sark said. "Kentucky is a team that you can't underestimate. They're big and physical. They play hard, that's the one thing that stands out on tape." Added Kanu.
Kentucky's run game is consistently ranked within the top third of the NCAA each week, and they're currently sitting at:
- #40 in rushes per game at 37.7
- #46 in rushing yards per game at 166.7
- #50 in yards per rush at 4.4 ypc