Kentucky opened its 128th football season on Saturday with a 35-20 victory over Central Michigan.

Junior running back Benny Snell, who was questionable with an illness before the game, paced Kentucky with 125 yards rushing and two touchdowns. His backup, AJ Rose, also scored two touchdowns and rushed for 104 yards. It was the first 100-yard rushing game of his career.

Kentucky's other touchdown came when backup quarterback Gunnar Hoak connected on a 24-yard strike to former walk-on David Bouvier. The six-play, 71-yard drive consumed only 41 seconds and gave the Wildcats the halftime lead.

For the game, Kentucky amassed 427 yards in total offense compared to Central Michigan's 255. The Wildcats' defense pitched a shutout in the second half while limiting CMU to just 97 yards and four first downs.

The victory improves Kentucky to 87-36-5 in season openers while coach Mark Stoops now stands at 4-2.

Kentucky's 15-point victory might have been more impressive had the Wildcats not been their own worst enemy. The Wildcats only led 21-20 at halftime, thanks to four first-half turnovers. In fact, all 20 the Central Michigan's points came after UK mistakes. As a result, Kentucky held a slim one-point halftime lead despite outgaining Central Michigan 246 yards to 158.

Central Michigan entered the game riding a five-game regular season win streak, its longest since 2009.

The Chippewas were led by quarterback Tony Poljan, who rushed 16 times for 47 yards. Poljan also completed 17-27 passes for 137 yards. Standout running back Jonathan Ward was held to 36 yards on 11 carries.

Kentucky (1-0) enters Southeastern Conference play next weekend with a road trip to Florida. Central Michigan (0-1) hosts Kansas.

--Field Level Media