Paul Finebaum 'Shocked' By One College Football Team's Week 2 Performance

Mark Stoops has done a great job since taking over as the head coach of the Kentucky Wildcats in 2013. He has led the Wildcats to two 10-win seasons, whereas they had only achieved two such seasons in the school's history before his tenure.

After two consecutive seven-win seasons, it seemed like Kentucky had a good chance of getting closer to those 10-win seasons this year. One of the main reasons for optimism was the addition of former Georgia quarterback Brock Vandagriff. Vandagriff had previously been a backup at Georgia but was highly regarded coming out of high school. He was ranked as the No. 8 overall player and the No. 3 quarterback behind Texas' Quinn Ewers and Caleb Williams, who went No. 1 in last season's draft.

In the season's second game, Kentucky played South Carolina at home. The Wildcats, a 9.5-point favorite, were unexpectedly blown out 31-6. ESPN's Paul Finebaum called the performance shocking, as he had thought Kentucky would be a more complete team this season compared to previous years.

"I was shocked," Finebaum said. "I had just been led to believe that Kentucky was going to be a much more complete team, but clearly they weren't."

Kentucky's defense performed well in the game, allowing only 252 yards and forcing one turnover. However, the offense struggled, gaining only 183 yards of total offense and just 44 yards passing. Vandagriff went 3-of-10 for 30 yards, threw one interception and had a quarterback rating of 1.2. That QBR rating ranked dead last in all of college football for Week 2.

It will be tough for the Wildcats to bounce back this week as the No. 1 ranked Georgia Bulldogs come to town. That game will be played on Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024, at 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC.

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