Georgia football: Observations of opponents after week one

Kentucky struggles with Southern Mississippi

Kentucky comes into the 2017 season with moderate expectations. No one picked them to win the SEC East, but eight wins and a bowl game wasn’t out of the question.

But after barely getting by a Southern Mississippi squad that finished 7-6 last year has to make Kentucky fans doubt some of those expectations. Granted, the Wildcats did lose to Southern Mississippi last season. But Kentucky improved a lot as that season went on so you’d think they’d come out looking better than winning 24-17.

Benny Snell Jr. didn’t look all that potent in the running game and Stephen Johnson was decent through the air. But the Kentucky defense let Kwadra Griggs and Keon Howard throw the ball around on them. The Golden Eagles did however lose three fumbles to help Kentucky pick up the win.

This is not how the Wildcats wanted to begin the 2017 season. They could certainly improve like last year and starting with a victory is always ideal. But just based on this performance, Kentucky could be in for a disappointing season that could mean the end of Mark Stoops in Lexington.