Kentucky @ Florida preview

Last Meeting ( Sep 28, 2013 ) Florida 24, Kentucky 7

Florida looks to extend its victory streak over visiting Kentucky to 28 when the teams open SEC play on Saturday. A week after weather problems forced a cancellation between the Gators and Idaho in the season opener, Florida took all of its frustration out on Eastern Michigan as quarterback Jeff Driskel threw the ball 45 times in an easy 65-0 win. The Wildcats are off to a rare 2-0 start and have matched last season's victory total.

The Idaho cancellation has put the Gators in a strange position. Traditionally, they have two nonconference home games before SEC play begins, but ready or not, an improved Kentucky team will stroll into The Swamp averaging 39.5 points per game. The Wildcats, who lost their final four games last season under first-year coach Mark Stoops, have outscored their two opponents, 79-17.

TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, SEC Network. LINE: Florida -18

ABOUT KENTUCKY (2-0): Balance has been the name of the game as Stoops seems much more comfortable with his personnel and play diversification this season. Quarterback Patrick Towles has thrown the ball 64 times, and has a 61.7 completion percentage to go with 547 yards and two touchdowns. With 25 carries and 89 yards, Towles can run the ball, too, but he’s just a piece of a deep backfield that has seen five others take rushing plays, including Mikel Horton, who has 17 carries, 90 yards and two touchdowns.

ABOUT FLORIDA (1-0): Driskel completed a career-high 31 passes for 248 yards and a touchdown versus Eastern Michigan, but when it came to scoring for the Gators, it was mostly on the ground. Florida churned out 259 yards and four touchdowns on 39 carries and let eight players run the ball to get into a flow and shake off the early-season delay. The defense wasn’t tested much in snapping a seven-game losing streak, but registered five takeaways, and held the Eagles to just 125 total yards.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Kentucky has outscored its opponents, 52-0, in the first half this season.

2. The Wildcats last defeated the Gators in 1986, and haven’t won at Florida since a 31-3 victory in 1979.

3. With a per-carry average 4.7 yards, Florida ranks third in the SEC in rushing since 2008, behind Auburn (5.1) and Alabama (5.3).

PREDICTION: Florida 26, Kentucky 15.