Kentucky coach Will Stein chose to settle an overtime game on a single snap for the second week in a row, and again it paid off. Quarterback Kenny Minchey ran in a two-point conversion to lift the Wildcats past No. 10 LSU 35-34 Saturday night at Kroger Field, one week after they beat South Carolina by the identical score.
The win moved Stein’s first Kentucky team to 5-1 and dropped LSU to 4-2. The Wildcats came in unranked after falling out of the AP Top 25 despite their South Carolina win a week ago.
Kenny Minchey Walks in Winning Two-Point Try Over LSU
LSU needed two plays to score first in overtime, on quarterback Sam Leavitt’s 15-yard run, and Kentucky answered with running back CJ Baxter’s 1-yard touchdown. LSU coach Lane Kiffin called a timeout when the Wildcats first lined up for two, and Stein called one of his own on the next formation.
Then Kentucky spread out five wide, and Minchey dropped back, found the middle of the field empty and walked into the end zone. “Walk it off,” Kentucky Football, the program’s official account, posted with video of the winning play.
It was the same decision Stein made October 3 at South Carolina, where Minchey threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to Henry Boyer in overtime and then hit Willie Rodriguez for the winning two-point conversion. “We needed to go for two,” Stein said after that game.
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Strong safety Ty Bryant, a senior who usually sits in on staff meetings late in the week, hinted that day that he had known his coach’s intentions days earlier. “He’s aggressive. I’m good with that.”
That aggression did not always pay off against LSU. After Bryant intercepted Leavitt in the third quarter, Stein went for it on 4th & 2 rather than kick a field goal for a 7-point lead, and the pass was tipped at the line.
Overtime was another story.
“For a second straight week, Kentucky’s Will Stein elects to try a 2-point attempt in overtime and get it,” Ross Dellenger, a senior college football reporter for Yahoo Sports, wrote.
Both games finished 35-34, and according to On3, it was the first time in program history Kentucky had played back-to-back overtime games. Underdog, a sports betting platform, posted that Kentucky is the first team in FBS history to win consecutive games by one point in overtime.
CJ Baxter Rushes for 123 Yards as Kentucky Outlasts LSU
Pro Football Network’s College Football Playoff Meter, as of Saturday and before the result, gave Kentucky a 24.5% chance to beat LSU and a 9.4% chance to make the playoff with a win.
“Down go the Tigers,” ESPN College Football posted once it was over.
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Kentucky got there despite being outgained 410-401. Baxter broke a 77-yard run on the Wildcats’ first snap and scored on the next play, and he finished with 123 yards and two touchdowns on 19 carries.
Baxter’s PFN Impact grade of 83.4 through Week 5 ranks tied for 35th of 369 graded and qualified FBS running backs. Brock Coffman added a 55-yard punt return touchdown, and Minchey’s 1-yard run with three seconds left in the half sent Kentucky to the locker room up 21-17.
Still, it nearly slipped away. LSU went ahead 27-24 in the fourth quarter when Jackson Harris threw a 41-yard touchdown pass to Roman Mothershed on a double pass.
Adam Zouagui then missed from 42 and 28 yards before he hit the tying 33-yarder with 12 seconds left. His 28-yard miss came after Tavion Gadson recovered a Leavitt fumble.
On3 reported this week that a quote attributed to Minchey about LSU’s defense had been put up in the Tigers’ locker room, and that Minchey never said it. “He clearly did not say that about the team we’re about to play,” Stein said Wednesday.
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“LSU’s defense hasn’t seen anyone like us or our offensive line yet,” Kentucky Football posted after the game, turning the fabricated line back on the Tigers.
Kentucky outrushed LSU 155-94, gave up one sack and did not lose a fumble or throw an interception, while its defense forced two takeaways.
Looking Ahead in Week 7 to Oklahoma
LSU hosts Mississippi State next Saturday. With Mississippi State, Alabama, Texas and Tennessee left, the Tigers should absolutely be in ‘win-now-or-be-left-behind’ mode, in terms of a Playoff appearance.
Kentucky, meanwhile, heads to Memorial Stadium in Norman for next Saturday’s Week 7 game against Oklahoma, which is coming off a 27-24 win over No. 1 Texas.
This article originally appeared on Pro Football Network.
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