Vanderbilt Commodores at Kentucky Wildcats

Injuries noted

Vanderbilt Commodores: Blaze Berlowitz (out) — QB #1 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report; Jaylin Lackey (out) — CB #2 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report; Brian Allen Jr. (out) — EDG #10 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report; Josiah Broxton (out) — LB #18 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report; Jamison Curtis (out) — LB #20 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report; Gunner Givens (out) — OL #50 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report; Aaron Bryant (out) — DL #55 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report; Kahden Smith (out) — WR #81 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report; Nikhil Jefferson (out) — DL #93 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report

Kentucky Wildcats: Sam Greene (out) — OLB #2 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report; Nic Anderson (out) — WR #4 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report; Antwan Smith (out) — ILB #4 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report; Lincoln Watkins (out) — TE #11 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report; Jaden Smith (out) — DB #24 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report; Grant Grayton (out) — DB #30 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report; Cole Marszalek (questionable) — LS #40 listed Questionable on the SEC Update 2 report; Tyler Thomas (questionable) — DE #97 listed Questionable on the SEC Update 2 report

QUARTERBACK

• Jared Curtis is VAN's projected starter

  7.71 Y/A

  Jared Curtis is VAN's projected starting quarterback. The October 24 availability report describes Curtis as QB1 following Berlowitz's injury. This is independent reporting; a current-week team statement or readable official depth chart explicitly confirming the starter was not retrieved. 2026 line: 1242 passing yards, 62.7% completions, 7.71 yards per attempt, 6-7 TD-INT over 6 games.

• Kenny Minchey is UK's projected starter

  7.56 Y/A

  Kenny Minchey is UK's projected starting quarterback. The October 22 Courier Journal report identifies Minchey as Kentucky's starting quarterback ahead of Vanderbilt. No current-week team announcement or successfully opened team depth chart confirming this game's starter was retrieved. 2026 line: 1512 passing yards, 68.5% completions, 7.56 yards per attempt, 12-1 TD-INT over 7 games.

PACE & SCRIPT

• UK: 32.7 points per game to VAN's 23.6

  9.1 PPG

  VAN is at 23.6 points per game over 7 games; UK is at 32.7 over 7 games. Those are this season's games through Oct 23. Last season VAN was at 38.5 over 13 games and UK at 23 over 12 games.

TURNOVERS

• UK: 2.29 takeaways per game to VAN's 0.86

  1.43 TO

  Kentucky forces 2.29 turnovers a game over seven games, and Vanderbilt forces 0.86 over seven. Takeaways are streaky and tend to drift back toward average, so Kentucky's rate is more likely to dip than climb. Over seven games the gap still points to a Kentucky defense that wins more short fields. Vanderbilt's ball security is the thing to watch, since the edge here shows up as extra possessions.

MISMATCH

• UK: 0.71 turnovers a game to VAN's 1.71

  0.71 VS 1.71

  Kentucky turns it over 0.71 times a game through seven games, a sharp drop from 1.83 last season. Vanderbilt went the other way, from 0.92 to 1.71. Turnover rates swing a lot, so both of these big moves could partly reverse as the season goes on. For now, Kentucky at home has been the cleaner team, and Vanderbilt's path runs through cutting down the giveaways.

REPLACEMENT

• Blaze Berlowitz (QB) is out for VAN

  OUT

  QB #1 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report SEC availability report (Update 2, published 2026-10-23 19:10:00 CT) (2026-10-23)

• Jaylin Lackey (CB) is out for VAN

  OUT

  CB #2 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report SEC availability report (Update 2, published 2026-10-23 19:10:00 CT) (2026-10-23)

• Brian Allen Jr. (EDGE) is out for VAN

  OUT

  EDG #10 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report SEC availability report (Update 2, published 2026-10-23 19:10:00 CT) (2026-10-23)

• Josiah Broxton (LB) is out for VAN

  OUT

  LB #18 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report SEC availability report (Update 2, published 2026-10-23 19:10:00 CT) (2026-10-23)

• Jamison Curtis (LB) is out for VAN

  OUT

  LB #20 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report SEC availability report (Update 2, published 2026-10-23 19:10:00 CT) (2026-10-23)

• Gunner Givens (OL) is out for VAN

  OUT

  OL #50 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report SEC availability report (Update 2, published 2026-10-23 19:10:00 CT) (2026-10-23)

• Aaron Bryant (DL) is out for VAN

  OUT

  DL #55 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report SEC availability report (Update 2, published 2026-10-23 19:10:00 CT) (2026-10-23)

• Kahden Smith (WR) is out for VAN

  OUT

  WR #81 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report SEC availability report (Update 2, published 2026-10-23 19:10:00 CT) (2026-10-23)

• Nikhil Jefferson (DL) is out for VAN

  OUT

  DL #93 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report SEC availability report (Update 2, published 2026-10-23 19:10:00 CT) (2026-10-23)

• Sam Greene (LB) is out for UK

  OUT

  OLB #2 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report SEC availability report (Update 2, published 2026-10-23 19:10:00 CT) (2026-10-23)

• Nic Anderson (WR) is out for UK

  OUT

  WR #4 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report SEC availability report (Update 2, published 2026-10-23 19:10:00 CT) (2026-10-23)

• Antwan Smith (LB) is out for UK

  OUT

  ILB #4 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report SEC availability report (Update 2, published 2026-10-23 19:10:00 CT) (2026-10-23)

• Lincoln Watkins (TE) is out for UK

  OUT

  TE #11 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report SEC availability report (Update 2, published 2026-10-23 19:10:00 CT) (2026-10-23)

• Jaden Smith (DB) is out for UK

  OUT

  DB #24 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report SEC availability report (Update 2, published 2026-10-23 19:10:00 CT) (2026-10-23)

• Grant Grayton (DB) is out for UK

  OUT

  DB #30 listed Out on the SEC Update 2 report SEC availability report (Update 2, published 2026-10-23 19:10:00 CT) (2026-10-23)

TEAM RECORD

• SEC game: VAN 0-4, UK 4-1 in conference

  CONFERENCE

  These two share the SEC. VAN is 0-4 against it, UK is 4-1. 2026 standings through 2026-10-24.