2025 Kentucky Wildcats football team

2025 Kentucky Wildcats football
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Record	2–1 (0–1 SEC)
Head coach	Mark Stoops (13th season)
Offensive coordinator	Bush Hamdan (2nd season)
Offensive scheme	Multiple pro-style
Defensive coordinator	Brad White (7th season)
Base defense	Multiple
Home stadium	Kroger Field
Seasons ←  2024 2026 →

2025 Southeastern Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
No. 13 Ole Miss		2	–	0					4	–	0
No. 4 LSU		1	–	0					4	–	0
No. 20 Missouri		1	–	0					4	–	0
No. 7 Oklahoma		1	–	0					4	–	0
No. 18 Vanderbilt		1	–	0					4	–	0
No. 5 Georgia		1	–	0					3	–	0
Mississippi State		0	–	0					4	–	0
No. 9 Texas A&M		0	–	0					3	–	0
No. 10 Texas		0	–	0					3	–	1
No. 17 Alabama		0	–	0					2	–	1
Auburn		0	–	1					3	–	1
No. 15 Tennessee		0	–	1					3	–	1
Kentucky		0	–	1					2	–	1
Arkansas		0	–	1					2	–	2
Florida		0	–	1					1	–	3
South Carolina		0	–	2					2	–	2
Championship: December 6, 2025
$ – Conference champion y – Championship game participant As of September 25, 2025 Rankings from AP Poll

The 2025 Kentucky Wildcats football team represents the University of Kentucky in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) as a founding member during the 2025 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Wildcats are led by Mark Stoops in his 13th year as their head coach. The Kentucky football team plays its home games at Kroger Field located in Lexington, Kentucky.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 30	12:45 p.m.	Toledo *	Kroger Field Lexington, KY	SECN	W 24–16	56,457
September 6	3:30 p.m.	No. 20 Ole Miss	Kroger Field Lexington, KY	ABC	L 23–30	58,346
September 13	7:30 p.m.	Eastern Michigan *	Kroger Field Lexington, KY	ESPNU	W 48–23	58,489
September 27	7:45 p.m.	at South Carolina	Williams–Brice Stadium Columbia, SC	SECN
October 4	12:00 p.m.	at Georgia	Sanford Stadium Athens, GA	ABC
October 18		Texas	Kroger Field Lexington, KY
October 25		Tennessee	Kroger Field Lexington, KY (rivalry)
November 1		at Auburn	Jordan-Hare Stadium Auburn, AL
November 8		Florida	Kroger Field Lexington, KY (rivalry)
November 15	1:30 p.m.	Tennessee Tech *	Kroger Field Lexington, KY	SECN+/ESPN+
November 22		at Vanderbilt	FirstBank Stadium Nashville, TN (rivalry)
November 29		at Louisville *	L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium Louisville, KY (Governor's Cup)
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll - Released prior to game All times are in Eastern time

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Game summaries

vs Toledo

See also: 2025 Toledo Rockets football team

Toledo Rockets (0–0) at Kentucky Wildcats (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Rockets	0	2	0	14	16
Wildcats	7	3	0	14	24

at Kroger Field • Lexington, Kentucky

• Date: August 30
• Game time: 12:45 PM EDT
• Game attendance: 56,457
• Referee: Kyle Olson
• TV announcers (SECN): Taylor Zarzour (play-by-play), Matt Stinchcomb (analyst), and Alyssa Lang (sideline)

Game information

First quarter UK – Zach Calzada 1-yard run (Jacob Kauwe kick), 6:27. Wildcats 7–0. Drive: 7 plays, 29 yards, 3:38. Second quarter TOL – Langston Long Safety, 13:08. Wildcats 7–2. UK – Jacob Kauwe 45-yard field goal, 2:04. Wildcats 10–2. Drive: 10 plays, 23 yards, 5:24. Third quarter No scoring plays. Fourth quarter UK – Seth McGowan 6-yard run (Jacob Kauwe kick), 12:30. Wildcats 17–2. Drive: 12 plays, 76 yards, 6:27. TOL – Tucker Gleason 9-yard run (Dylan Cunanan kick), 9:38. Wildcats 17–9. Drive: 7 plays, 69 yards, 2:45. UK – Dante Dowdell 79-yard run (Jacob Kauwe kick), 9:22. Wildcats 24–9. Drive: 1 play, 79 yards, 0:12. TOL – Junior Vandeross III 20-yard pass from Tucker Gleason (Dylan Cunanan kick), 1:55. Wildcats 24–16. Drive: 7 plays, 95 yards, 2:28.

Statistics	TOL	UK
First downs	17	17
Plays–yards	69–329	66–305
Rushes–yards	29–59	43–220
Passing yards	270	85
Passing: comp–att–int	23–40–1	10–23–1
Turnovers	1	2
Time of possession	28:19	31:41

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Toledo	Passing	Tucker Gleason	23/40, 270 yards, TD, INT
	Rushing	Chip Trayanum	14 carries, 41 yards
	Receiving	Junior Vandeross III	7 receptions, 88 yards, TD
Kentucky	Passing	Zach Calzada	10/23, 85 yards, INT
	Rushing	Dante Dowdell	14 carries, 129 yards, TD
	Receiving	Josh Kattus	3 receptions, 43 yards

vs No. 20 Ole Miss

See also: 2025 Ole Miss Rebels football team

Pregame line	Over/under

No. 20 Ole Miss Rebels (1–0) at Kentucky Wildcats (1–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 20 Rebels	0	17	10	3	30
Wildcats	7	6	7	3	23

at Kroger Field • Lexington, Kentucky

• Date: September 6
• Game time: 3:30 p.m.
• Game weather: Cloudy
• Game attendance: 58,346
• Referee: David Smith
• TV announcers (ABC): Sean McDonough (play-by-play), Greg McElroy (analyst), and Molly McGrath (sideline)

Game information

First quarter UK – Seth McGowan 9-yard run (Jacob Kauwe kick), 1:55. Wildcats 7–0. Drive: 8 plays, 31 yards, 4:19. Second quarter UK – Jacob Kauwe 33-yard field goal, 14:17. Wildcats 10–0. Drive: 5 plays, 17 yards, 1:33. MISS – Kewan Lacy 1-yard run (Lucas Carneiro kick), 12:25. Wildcats 10–7. Drive: 6 plays, 75 yards, 1:52. MISS – Damien Taylor 1-yard run (Lucas Carneiro kick), 8:24. Rebels 14–10. Drive: 8 plays, 70 yards, 2:49. UK – Jacob Kauwe 31-yard field goal, 4:31. Rebels 14–13. Drive: 10 plays, 62 yards, 3:53. MISS – Lucas Carneiro 43-yard field goal, 1:05. Rebels 17–13. Drive: 8 plays, 50 yards, 3:26. Third quarter MISS – Lucas Carneiro 28-yard field goal, 8:48. Rebels 20–13. Drive: 9 plays, 61 yards, 3:39. UK – Seth McGowan 8-yard run (Jacob Kauwe kick), 5:38. Tied 20–20. Drive: 6 plays, 75 yards, 3:10. MISS – Austin Simmons 7-yard run (Lucas Carniero kick), 2:20. Rebels 27–20. Drive: 8 plays, 75 yards, 3:18. Fourth quarter MISS – Lucas Carniero 36-yard field goal, 1:10. Rebels 30–20. Drive: 9 plays, 50 yards, 3:01. UK – Jacob Kauwe 39-yard field goal, 0:08. Rebels 30–23. Drive: 5 plays, 54 yards, 1:02.

Statistics	MISS	UK
First downs	20	18
Plays–yards	72–455	70–359
Rushes–yards	48–220	37–172
Passing yards	235	187
Passing: comp–att–int	13–24–2	16–33–0
Turnovers	2	0
Time of possession	27:47	32:13

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Ole Miss	Passing	Austin Simmons	13/24, 235 yards, 2 INT
	Rushing	Kewan Lacy	28 carries, 138 yards, TD
	Receiving	Harrison Wallace III	4 receptions, 117 yards
Kentucky	Passing	Zach Calzada	15/30, 149 yards
	Rushing	Seth McGowan	15 carries, 93 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Jamori Maclin	2 receptions, 59 yards

vs Eastern Michigan

See also: 2025 Eastern Michigan Eagles football team

Pregame line	Over/under

Eastern Michigan Eagles (0–2) at Kentucky Wildcats (1–1) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Eagles	3	13	0	7	23
Wildcats	14	14	10	10	48

at Kroger Field • Lexington, Kentucky

• Date: September 13
• Game time: 7:30 p.m.
• Game weather: Clear, 79 F
• Game attendance: 58,489
• Referee: Ken Williamson
• TV announcers (ESPNU): Clay Matvick (play-by-play) and Chase Daniel (analyst)

Game information

First quarter UK – Seth McGowan 4 yard-run (Jacob Kauwe kick), 14:11 Wildcats 7–0. Drive: 2 plays, 10 yards, 0:39. UK – Seth McGowan 12 yd rush (Jacob Kauwe kick), 05:32 Wildcats 14–0. Drive: 11 plays, 79 yards, 5:09. EMU – Rudy Kessinger 38 yd FG, 02:20 Wildcats 14–3. Drive: 8 plays, 55 yards, 3:12. Second quarter UK – Willie Rodriguez 3 yd pass from Cutter Boley (Jacob Kauwe KICK) Wildcats 21–3. Drive: 5 plays, 54 yards, 1:52. EMU – Rudy Kessinger 37 yd FG, 5:19 10 plays, 56 yards, 4:59 Wildcats 21–6. Drive: 10 plays, 56 yards, 4:59. UK – Josh Kattus 4 yd pass from Cutter Boley (Jacob Kauwe KICK) Wildcats 28–6. Drive: 7 plays, 75 yards, 3:23. EMU – Terry Lockett Jr. 64 yd pass from Noah Kim (Rudy Kessinger KICK), 1:36 Wildcats 28–13. Drive: 3 plays, 75 yards, 0:19. EMU – Rudy Kessinger 50 yd FG, 0:03, Wildcats 28–16. Drive: 5 plays, 34 yards, 0:47. Third quarter UK – Jacob Kauwe 51 yd FG, 8:13, Wildcats 31–16. Drive: 7 plays, 30 yards, 2:38. UK – Seth McGowan 8 yd rush (J.Kauwe kick), Wildcats 38–16. Drive: 4 plays, 27 yards, 1:21. Fourth quarter UK – Jacob Kauwe 24 yd FG, 13:16, Wildcats 41–16. Drive: 7 plays, 51 yards, 3:38. UK – Jason Patterson 6 yd rush (Jacob Kauwe kick), 4:46, Wildcats 48–16. Drive: 10 plays, 63 yards, 5:20. EMU – Noah Kim 5 yd rush, 0:58 (Rudy Kessinger KICK), Wildcats 48–23. Drive: 12 plays, 75 yards, 3:48.

Statistics	EMU	UK
First downs	21	24
Plays–yards	77-461	69-492
Rushes–yards	30-131	46-252
Passing yards	330	240
Passing: comp–att–int	25-43-1	12-21-0
Turnovers	1	0
Time of possession	30:04	29:55

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Eastern Michigan	Passing	Noah Kim	25/42, 330 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	Dontae McMillan	13 carries, 83 yards
	Receiving	Terry Lockett Jr.	3 receptions, 90 yards, 1 TD
Kentucky	Passing	Cutter Boley	12/21, 240 yards, 2 TD, 0 INT
	Rushing	Seth McGowan	18 carries, 104 yards
	Receiving	Josh Kattus	3 receptions, 64 yards, 1 TD

at South Carolina

See also: 2025 South Carolina Gamecocks football team

Pregame line	Over/under

Kentucky Wildcats (2–1) at South Carolina Gamecocks (2–2) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Wildcats			0
Gamecocks			0

at Williams–Brice Stadium • Columbia, South Carolina

• Date: September 27
• Game time: 7:45 p.m.
• Game weather:  
• Game attendance:  
• Referee:  
• TV announcers (SECN): Tom Hart (play-by-play), Jordan Rodgers (analyst) and Cole Cubelic (sideline)

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	UK	SC
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Turnovers
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Kentucky	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
South Carolina	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at Georgia

See also: 2025 Georgia Bulldogs football team

Pregame line	Over/under

Kentucky Wildcats (0–0) at Georgia Bulldogs (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Wildcats			0
Bulldogs			0

at Sanford Stadium • Athens, Georgia

• Date: October 4
• Game time: 12:00 p.m.
• Game weather:  
• Game attendance:  
• Referee:  
• TV announcers (ABC):  

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	UK	UGA
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Turnovers
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Kentucky	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Georgia	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

vs Texas

See also: 2025 Texas Longhorns football team

Pregame line	Over/under

Texas Longhorns (0–0) vs Kentucky Wildcats (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Longhorns			0
Wildcats			0

at Kroger Field • Lexington, Kentucky

• Date: October 18
• Game time:  
• Game weather:  
• Game attendance:  
• Referee:  
• TV announcers ( ):  

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	TEX	UK
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Turnovers
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Texas	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Kentucky	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

vs Tennessee (rivalry)

See also: 2025 Tennessee Volunteers football team and Kentucky–Tennessee football rivalry

Pregame line	Over/under

Tennessee Volunteers (0–0) vs Kentucky Wildcats (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Volunteers			0
Wildcats			0

at Kroger Field • Lexington, Kentucky

• Date: October 25
• Game time:  
• Game weather:  
• Game attendance:  
• Referee:  
• TV announcers ( ):  

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	TENN	UK
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Turnovers
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Tennessee	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Kentucky	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at Auburn

See also: 2025 Auburn Tigers football team

Pregame line	Over/under

Kentucky Wildcats (0–0) at Auburn Tigers (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Wildcats			0
Tigers			0

at Jordan-Hare Stadium • Auburn, Alabama

• Date: November 1
• Game time:  
• Game weather:  
• Game attendance:  
• Referee:  
• TV announcers ( ):  

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	UK	AUB
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Turnovers
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Kentucky	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Auburn	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

vs Florida (rivalry)

See also: 2025 Florida Gators football team and Florida–Kentucky rivalry § Football

Pregame line	Over/under

Florida Gators (0–0) vs Kentucky Wildcats (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Gators			0
Wildcats			0

at Kroger Field • Lexington, Kentucky

• Date: November 8
• Game time:  
• Game weather:  
• Game attendance:  
• Referee:  
• TV announcers ( ):  

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	FLA	UK
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Turnovers
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Florida	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Kentucky	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

vs Tennessee Tech (FCS)

See also: 2025 Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles football team

Pregame line	Over/under

Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles (FCS) (0–0) vs Kentucky Wildcats (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Golden Eagles (FCS)			0
Wildcats			0

at Kroger Field • Lexington, Kentucky

• Date: November 15
• Game time: 1:30 p.m.
• Game weather:  
• Game attendance:  
• Referee:  
• TV announcers (SECN+/ESPN+):  

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	TTU	UK
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Turnovers
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Tennessee Tech	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Kentucky	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at Vanderbilt (rivalry)

See also: 2025 Vanderbilt Commodores football team and Kentucky–Vanderbilt football rivalry

Pregame line	Over/under

Kentucky Wildcats (0–0) at Vanderbilt Commodores (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Wildcats			0
Commodores			0

at FirstBank Stadium • Nashville, Tennessee

• Date: November 22
• Game time:  
• Game weather:  
• Game attendance:  
• Referee:  
• TV announcers ( ):  

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	UK	VAN
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Turnovers
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Kentucky	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Vanderbilt	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at Louisville (Governor's Cup)

See also: 2025 Louisville Cardinals football team and Governor's Cup (Kentucky)

Pregame line	Over/under

Kentucky Wildcats (0–0) at Louisville Cardinals (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Wildcats			0
Cardinals			0

at L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium • Louisville, Kentucky

• Date: November 29
• Game time:  
• Game weather:  
• Game attendance:  
• Referee:  
• TV announcers ( ):  

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	UK	LOU
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Turnovers
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Kentucky	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Louisville	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

References

1. Meek, Vance (December 12, 2024). "Kentucky football schedule for 2025 has been released". UK Wildcats Wire. Retrieved December 20, 2024.
2. "2025 Kentucky Football Schedule". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved December 20, 2024.