Will Levis Frustrated by Kentucky's Lack of Energy, Execution in Loss to Vandy
The levy broke on Saturday afternoon for Kentucky football and quarterback Will Levis in the shocking 24-21 defeat to Vanderbilt.
After weeks of frustration with the offense not living up to the potential that had been presented to itself at the beginning of the season, all of the struggles came to a climax as the Wildcats could only manage two touchdowns and a trio of field goals against a statistically bad defense.
Post-game, Levis reflected on everything that went wrong in the brutal loss.
"Not enough hype. Not enough juice. We talked about it among us all week and we did not buy into it," he said. "We did not play hard as they did. We knew they were going to play hard as they play hard every single game you see them play, whether they lose by 50 or win you never know. We knew that about them, and we did not match them today.”
Vanderbilt matched Kentucky's intensity and then some, as was evident by the rushing-yard totals, seeing the Commodores manage 264 yards on the ground compared to UK's 213, most of which came from star running back Chris Rodriguez in the second half.
Levis had a less than ideal game, throwing for just 109 yards while completing 11 of 23 passing attempts. It's the third consecutive outing that he's thrown for less than 200 yards.
Some throws were on the money and weren't hauled in, some were just deflected by the defense, some never even had a chance of making it to the receiver. Offensive coordinator Rich Scangarello mentioned after the loss that the Wildcat receivers' routes weren't as "crisp" as usual, making the day even harder for the UK QB.
Throw in a shoddy offensive line, and you've got a significant amount less to work with when it comes to excelling in the passing game.
"It's not just Will. It's hard for me to say that right now until I look at the film and see what we're doing around him, what position we're putting him in to be successful, how players are playing around him," head coach Mark Stoops said.
The boiling point was reached, culminating in the fourth and final sack of the afternoon on Levis, coming with less than 20 seconds remaining in the game. He was animated after going down, presenting a state of anger and emotion that can resonate with all the players, coaches and fans who watched all four quarters of the abysmal showing.
“It’s one thing when you’re just not playing as well as the other team. It’s another thing when you’re beating yourself and guys aren’t doing the right thing and aren’t locked in. When that happens, it’s frustrating," Levis said." I got a little more vocal with the guys today when those things happen because that is unacceptable. We haven’t seen it at the rate we did today yet this year and the combination of that and being disappointed in myself and knowing that I can be doing better. I try to keep my calm out there but sometimes you need that extra motivation for your guys, which I tried to step up and do today but it didn’t end up working out.”
For Levis, it isn't about the NFL draft stock. It isn't about looking good on the field and padding his stats. It's clear that he wants to win and be a part of something special within this Kentucky program.
Unfortunately for him, the latter disintegrated once the scoreboard showed no time remaining with his squad down in points to a team who hadn't won an SEC game since before COVID-19 was publicly around.
The mission has been failed. Now two games remain on the docket, one against the No. 1 team in the country and the other against a surging rival. Both games will take place at Kroger Field, but will the fan support be there?
In the words of Stoops, Kentucky has to look itself in the mirror after what happened on Saturday. The worst-case scenario struck, leaving BBN and the Wildcats down in the dumps, officially shutting the door on any positive outlook for the remainder of the 2022 campaign.
Levis knows he has to lead by example, finding out where he's currently lacking, but also finding new ways to lead his group as UK tries to find some sort of silver lining to get ready for the final push.
“I have been thinking about what I want to say to the guys, but I think I need to look in the mirror first and say to myself what can I do to improve? If there is one point of emphasis that is the mentality," he said. "When you are engaged in football in any way the most attention-to-detail thing is focus and energy. You cannot be lackadaisical, and you cannot be lazy.”
More on the stunning loss to the Commodores here.
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