Game Balls: No. 9 Kentucky 31, Youngstown State 0

Offense: Dane Key

Lexington native Dane Key has established himself as a ridiculously good wide receiver. He added six catches for 90 yards and another touchdown against Youngstown State today, dicing up the secondary on nearly every route he ran. Key has caught a touchdown pass in all three of his games as a Wildcat, already putting his name in the program record book.

The trio of Key, Tayvion Robinson and Barion Brown is going to be nearly un-guardable all season long. There are only so many defensive backs in the country that are quick and agile enough to defend all three players for the course of 60 minutes, and only a few teams in the nation possess more than one of those kind of DB's.

Key is already on pace to finish his Kentucky career with multiple records attached to his name.

Defense: Carrington Valentine

What a start to the season its been for Carrington Valentine. After notching five tackles and a career-high three pass breakups in The Swamp against Florida, the junior cornerback wrangled in his first career interception, denying UK transfer Bryce Oliver a touchdown:

INT @run_carri7!

📺 - @SECNetwork 📲 - https://t.co/KlLaJXWxFv pic.twitter.com/p40h5MT3fQ
— Kentucky Football (@UKFootball) September 17, 2022

There were many questions surrounding the Kentucky secondary in the beginning of the season, and Valentine was at the front of the stage when it came to pointing fingers at who was to blame.

He's done nothing but silence doubters through three games. With Ole Miss transfer Keidron Smith on the other side of Valentine, he knows that he's going to see a majority of one-on-one passes, and he welcomes it.

"Just more opportunity to make plays at the ball at that point, you know. I mean, you just gotta pick your poison. I mean, you got (Smith) on either side and got me so it's whatever you want to do at that point," Valentine said on Wednesday. "You know, just know having experience on both sides, you have to pick one. I am younger than him, so might as well try me, I guess. But I just had to show up and just make plays."

Those opportunities have came, and Valentine has made the most of them.

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