What If? Kentucky's Most Realistic Path To Atlanta
October has not been kind to Kentucky over the years. This one has been no different, as the Wildcats have a record of 1-2 in their October games, after exploding out of the gates to a 4-0 start. With that, this college football season has been anything but predictable. As Kentucky gets ready for a top-20 battle at Neyland Stadium, lets dream out the most realistic scenario for the Wildcats to be playing in the SEC championship.
Kentucky: Win out
This one is pretty self-explanatory. Mark Stoops and company have to win out to keep their hopes alive.
Tennessee: Losses to Kentucky and Georgia
The Volunteers are rolling (no pun intended) and College Football Playoff talks have become very real in Knoxville. Weeks 9 and 10 present the biggest opportunity for Tennessee losses. Facing a hungry Kentucky team, coming off of a bye, and the top-ranked Georgia Bulldogs are definitely two tall tasks for the hottest team in the country. If Kentucky is able to pull off the upset at Neyland, Big Blue Nation needs to root heavily for the Dawgs next weekend.
Georgia: Losses to Kentucky and Mississippi State
In our scenario, Georgia would be 9-0 heading into back-to-back road games against Mississippi State and Kentucky. Mississippi State has flirted with the top-15 all year, but losses against Kentucky and Alabama pushed them out of the top 25. Do not let the 5-3 record fool you, Mike Leach has a squad that can compete on any given Saturday. Also, they are undefeated at Davis-Wade Stadium. The second domino that needs to fall in this scenario is for Mark Stoops to get his first win against Georgia. Kirby Smart will lead Georgia into Lexington on November 19th, as both teams will be playing in their SEC finale for the 2022 season. If everything in this article happens, this game will once again be for the SEC East.
South Carolina: Loss to Tennessee
Shane Beamer and the Gamecocks have been on fire with wins over Kentucky and Texas A&M over the past two weeks. With two early losses to Arkansas and Georgia, all Kentucky needs is one loss from South Carolina. The most likely SEC loss on their schedule is Tennessee.
Mark Stoops would love to be in a situation where the Wildcats controlled their own destiny, but the South Carolina loss put Kentucky's fate in the hands of others. Cue the "so you're saying there's a chance" quote.