Tennessee vs. Kentucky: Box score, stats, game summary and more ft. Nico Iamaleava

No. 7 Tennessee rallied in the second half to keep its College Football Playoffs strong, while Kentucky succumbed to late injuries and took a tough loss by a 28-18 count.

Tennessee (7-1, 4-1) has a loss to Arkansas, but bested Alabama and has earned its way into the Playoff hunt, albeit with an offense that has struggled early in games. Tennessee used its running game to outlast Alabama, and has been strong defensively throughout the season.

Kentucky (3-6, 1-6) has lost its last four games, and looks poised to end Mark Stoops’s streak of bowl appearances. The last time Kentucky missed a bowl was 2015.

Tennessee vs. Kentucky box score

Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Total
Tennessee	0	7	14	7	28
Kentucky	7	3	0	8	18

Tennessee Passing Stats

Player	Comp.	Att.	Yards	TDs
Nico Iamaleava	28	38	292	1

Tennessee Rushing and Receiving Stats

Player	Rushes	Yards	Rush TDs	Rec.	Yards	Rec. TDs
Dylan Sampson	27	141	2	1	3	0
Peyton Lewis	8	24	1	0	0	0
DeSean Bishop	1	6	0	0	0	0
Nico Iamaleava	7	14	0	0	0	0
Miles Kitselman	0	0	0	6	97	1
Bru McCoy	0	0	0	5	56	0
Dont'e Thornton Jr.	0	0	0	5	36	0
Chas Nimrod	0	0	0	3	45	0
Squirrel White	0	0	0	2	11	0
Chris Brazzell II	0	0	0	2	11	0
Holden Staes	0	0	0	3	27	0
Mike Matthews	0	0	0	1	0	0

Tennessee Kicking Stats

Player	XP-XPA	FG-FGA	Long
Max Gilbert	4 for 4	0 for 3

Kentucky Passing Stats

Player	Comp.	Att.	Yards	TDs
Brock Vandagriff	10	17	123	1
Gavin Wimsatt	4	10	69	1

Kentucky Rushing and Receiving Stats

Player	Rushes	Yards	Rush TDs	Rec.	Yards	Rec. TDs
Jamarion Wilcox	17	102	0	2	10	0
Brock Vandagriff	9	14	0	0	0	0
D. Sumo-Karngbaye	6	38	0	2	11	0
Barion Brown	0	0	0	3	29	0
Josh Kattus	0	0	0	1	27	1
Hardley Gilmore IV	0	0	0	1	25	0
Dane Key	0	0	0	2	43	0
Khamari Anderson	0	0	0	1	9	0
Gavin Wimsatt	4	20	0	0	0	0
Ja'Mori Maclin	0	0	0	1	32	1
Fred Farrier II	0	0	0	1	6	0

Kentucky Kicking Stats

Player	XP-XPA	FG-FGA	Long
Alex Raynor	2 for 2	1 for 1	32

Tennessee’s offense continued to struggle early. Kentucky used an open pass to tight end Josh Kattus to post a 7-0 lead early. Tennessee missed three field goals early in the game, but did tie the score at 7 on a Peyton Lewis 1 yard run with 4:45 in the half. Kentucky added a late field goal for a 10-7 halftime edge.

Tennessee scored twice off short fields to seemingly take control at 21-10. Kentucky rallied to pull within 21-18 on a drive from backup QB Gavin Wimsatt after starter Brock Vandagriff was apparently injured. But Tennessee held on to get the victory.

Tennessee will host Mississippi State next week, which should be an easy game for the Vols. Kentucky has a week off and will then host FCS Murray State.

Kentucky- Josh Kattus 27 yard TD pass from Brock Vandagriff (Raynor XPT), 7-0, 5:28 remaining in 1st quarter
Tennessee- Peyton Lewis 1 yard TD run (Gilbert XPT), 7-7, 4:45 remaining in 2nd quarter
Kentucky- Alex Raynor 32 yard field goal, 10-7, 0:30 remaining 2nd quarter
Tennessee- Dylan Sampson 7 yard TD run (Gilbert XPT), 14-10, 8:28 remaining in 3rd quarter
Tennessee- M. Kitselman 6 yard TD pass from Nico Iamaleava (Gilbert XPT), 21-10, 0:33 remaining in 3rd quarter
Kentucky- Jamori Maclin 32 yard TD pass from Gavin Wimsatt (Wimatt to Maclin 2 pt. conversion), 21-18, 13:31 remaining in 4th quarter
Tennessee- Dylan Sampson 6 yard TD run (Gilbert XPT), 28-18, 4:55 remaining in 4th quarter