Kentucky football currently stands as an 8.5-point favorite on ESPN, with ESPN matchup predictor giving the Wildcats a 70.1% chance of victory over South Carolina.
While few would argue after a less-than-stellar showing by the Gamecocks against Old Dominion that Kentucky looked better in week one, it is certainly UK that has more to prove heading into the matchup.
The reason for this? Two years of the South Carolina Gamecocks having UK’s number. Two years of losses in women’s basketball, men’s basketball and football.
March 6, 2022, was the last time one of the “big three” UK sports teams beat the Gamecocks.
Kyra Elzy’s Kentucky Wildcats women’s basketball team had managed to overcome an abysmal mid-season stretch to work its way back into the NCAA Tournament conversation with eventual No. 1 overall pick in the WNBA Draft Rhyne Howard.
Making a run in the SEC Tournament in Nashville, Kentucky overcame the odds to conquer Mississippi State, No. 6 LSU and No. 18 Tennessee, setting up an SEC Championship contest against the undefeated No. 1 overall South Carolina Gamecocks. The same Gamecocks that would go on to breeze to a national championship, last defeating No. 5 UConn 64-49.
To say nobody expected Kentucky to win would have been an understatement, but after jumping out to a lead, the game came down to the wire. With the ball trailing by one, future Baylor Bear Dre’Una Edwards attempted a shot that would forever define her collegiate career as she nailed a 3-pointer to win UK’s first SEC Championship in 40 years.
As for what came next, the Cats got stunned by No. 25 Princeton in the NCAA Tournament first round, Edwards transferred, Howard was drafted, South Carolina won the title and Elzy was eventually fired following the 2023-24 season.
More immediately relevant, however, what came next was dominance from South Carolina over Kentucky’s teams.
Sticking with women’s hoops, since winning on the big stage, Kentucky has never truly come close to conquering Dawn Staley.
In 2022-23, the Cats were crushed 95-66 in Lexington before also falling 87-69 in Columbia against a Gamecocks squad that would finish undefeated in SEC play and fall in the Final Four, paving the way for LSU’s national championship.
Last season, Kentucky put up an even worse showing on the road, being thrashed 98-36 before it got run off its home court 103-55. South Carolina would go on to win another national title and Elzy would be relieved of her duties.
On the men’s side, the results were far less understandable as South Carolina is nowhere near the unstoppable force it is on the women’s side.
In 2022-23, Kentucky was far from its standard, finishing as a second round exit in a disappointing contest against Kansas State, but South Carolina was even worse. Finishing 11-21 overall and 4-14 in the SEC, losing to the Gamecocks was inexcusable. Losing at home and snapping a win streak dating back over a year was even worse. But sure enough, Kentucky did just that, falling 71-68 in the lone matchup of the year.
Heading to Columbia last season for revenge, Kentucky fared even worse, albeit against a far better South Carolina squad. The Wildcats were blown out 79-62 against the eventual NCAA Tournament quality Gamecocks, once again in the only meeting of the pairing.
Jumping over to football, Mark Stoops and the Cats have not been immune to the Gamecock curse that has plagued both basketball teams for the past two seasons either.
In 2022, Kentucky went into the contest shorthanded. Starting quarterback and current Tennessee Titans starter Will Levis was ruled out for the night after tweaking his foot in an undefeated showdown against Ole Miss the week prior.
With Levis out of the equation and Rich Scangarello as the offensive coordinator before being fired at the end of the season, Kentucky struggled immensely to move to football.
While the defensive effort was better, missed plays and struggles saw the Wildcats lose 24-14 at home in front of 61,000+ members of Big Blue Nation.
Heading to Williams-Brice Stadium last season, things began to look more puzzling.
While the UK offense was never “elite” with former Baltimore Ravens practice squad member Devin Leary at quarterback, the scoring game had been mostly serviceable for the majority of the season.
Not in Columbia.
Scoring, once again, 14 points, Kentucky’s defense allowed the Gamecocks to march down the field and find the endzone for a game-winning touchdown, bringing about the 17-14 final.
With South Carolina going on to finish short of six wins, the loss seemed even more puzzling when the dust had cleared.
Now having an opportunity for revenge and a chance to break the curse, Kentucky football will face off with the Gamecocks on Saturday, Sept. 7, from Kroger Field in Lexington, Kentucky. Kickoff against South Carolina is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. ET and will air live on ABC.