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Collecting all the post-game analysis articles, including those behind paywalls, regarding the UK game here:

(Gerald Goodridge) No. 21 Texas 16, Kentucky 13: Three things we learned

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Ugly may not be strong enough of a word to describe the No. 21 Texas Longhorns’ efforts in their win over the Kentucky Wildcats. Texas looked hapless on offense until the very end, nearly blowing a sure thing in overtime after needing just a field goal to win the game in the extra period. The passing game was out of sync, and the run game was something even worse than failure-to-launch.

The offense is not fixed

It looked like the offense may have found a recipe for success against the Oklahoma Sooners, but it looked like its typical listless self in Lexington. Texas started the game with three consecutive punts, only breaking the trend thanks to a massive punt return from Ryan Niblett that set them up with a short field. Texas was somehow worse in the second half, with three of their first four drives going three-and-out for one yard. Just two drives in the second half ended with points, both of which were field goals. One had one chunk play — a 31-yard pass to Emmett Mosley — and the other was set up by Ryan Niblett’s second big return of the night. Even on that final offensive drive of regulation, the offense made a crucial mental error, with DeAndre Moore going out of bounds to stop the clock and give Kentucky enough time to tie the game up in regulation.

This defense deserves better

The Texas defense did enough in regulation to beat Kentucky. Pete Kwiatkowski’s unit forced the Wildcats to punt on six of their drives, keeping a clean sheet for the first half, with a turnover on downs, three punts, an interception, and a missed field goal. Colin Simmons and Anthony Hill played like men possessed, with Hill finishing the game with 12 tackles and an interception and Simmons with three sacks and a forced fumble.

The unit sputtered a bit late, but they were rightfully gassed in the second half, with Kentucky massively controlling the time of possession, ending regulation with an almost 19-minute advantage in time of possession, running 81 plays to Texas’s 52. Despite that, the defense came up with stop after stop in the second half, sending Kentucky off the field without points on three of their five drives to close regulation. They did it again in overtime, after allowing a big chunk play to set up UK in scoring position, but stonewalled them on the goal line to set up the game-winning field goal.

Texas needs answers on the ground

While Quintrevion Wisner looked solid a week ago against Oklahoma, that seemed to be an apparition based on what Texas managed in Lexington. Texas put together just 50 yards by its running backs with 15 carries, averaging just 3.3 yards per carry in the contest. The Longhorns went 1-4 on downs when they needed two or fewer to convert and were stuffed on 32% of their carries. They were 0-4 on third and shorts, with just 18 yards on the ground on third downs, converting just one by rush. The offensive line looked exceedingly average against a Kentucky defense giving up an average of 192.66 yards in its three SEC games this year. Texas put up fewer yards on the ground than both Toledo and Eastern Michigan did against Kentucky, a simple summation of how bad things were.

Chip Brown: Quick Takes from Texas' 16-13 overtime victory at Kentucky

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LEXINGTON, Ky. — Just when you thought the Texas offense had found some rhythm with a short-passing game and a commitment to the run in a win over Oklahoma, Steve Sarkisian returned to a slow-developing, deep passing attack that hadn't worked all season behind a flawed offensive line. It didn't work again Saturday night at Kentucky in a 16-13 overtime win at Kentucky in a game in which Texas' offense regressed to its early-season ineptitude.

Instead, it was Kentucky using a quick passing game to its running backs, attacking the perimeter of Texas' defense with an occasional drag route across the middle to pile up yards and time of possession between the 20s before stalling. The result was an overtime game on a Saturday full of upsets.

Thanks to a Mark Stoops' decision to go for it on fourth-and-goal from the 1 in overtime, and a goal-line stand led by Travis Shaw, Michael Taaffe and Liona Lefau as well as a clutch, 45-yard field goal by Mason Shipley in OT, Texas escaped Lexington with a 13-10 win for its first victory in a true road game this season. But if not for a bending-but-not-breaking Texas defense, led by three sacks from Colin Simmons and the goal-line stand in overtime, as well as two big punt returns by Ryan Niblett of 45 yards to the UK 5, setting up a 1-yard Quintrevion Wisner TD run in the first half, and of 43 yards to the UK 42 with 2:36 left to play, the Longhorns would've had no way of moving the ball into scoring position because UT's offense was so inept. Even on the first play of overtime, Texas' Brandon Baker was flagged for holding, forcing Shipley's game-winning field goal to be from 45 yards.

— After completing 21-of-27 last week in a win over Oklahoma, Arch Manning was back to struggling with inaccuracy, finishing 12-of-27 (44%) for 132 yards. Manning missed Ryan Wingo on a couple third-down throws from the pocket in the first half and missed a wide-open Jack Endries 15 yards downfield at the UK 25 from the pocket in the third quarter. Manning missed Emmett Mosley IV on a third-and-5 slant in the fourth quarter with pressure in his face. He threw a ball in the dirt to Wingo on a crosser midway through the fourth quarter.

Manning finally hit a clutch throw to DeAndre Moore for 9 yards on third-and-7 with 1:39 left to the UK 30. But two plays later, Moore caught a pass on second-and-10 and ran out of bounds after a 9-yard gain instead of sliding in bounds and forcing Kentucky to use its final timeout. On third-and-1, Manning couldn't gain a yard, forcing Mason Shipley to kick a 39-yard field goal with 57 seconds left. That was enough time for Kentucky go 46 yards in seven plays and kick a 45-yard field goal to tie the game with :09 left, sending the game into overtime.

— Kentucky's defense had so much success attacking the left interior of Texas' offensive line (right between LG Nick Brooks and C Connor Robertson) that by the time Texas absolutely needed to complete some passes in the fourth quarter, Manning was under siege and seemingly losing confidence by the drive. It's crazy, but Manning seems more accurate throwing the ball when he's on the move than he is throwing from the pocket.

— Kentucky had given up 220 yards rushing on 48 carries to Ole Miss; 131 yards rushing on 30 carries to Eastern Michigan; 178 yards rushing on 48 carries to South Carolina; and 180 yards on 44 carries to Georgia. Texas finished with 47 yards rushing on 28 carries (1.7 ypc). Let that sink in for a second. Texas' inability to sustain any kind of offense resulted in the Texas defense had been on the field almost twice as long (39:23) as the Texas offense (20:37). Kentucky ran 88 plays to Texas' 55 and outgained the Longhorns 395 yards to 179.

 

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