DALLAS (FWAA) – The Kentucky Wildcats
went into Gainesville and ended one of college football's longest
losing streaks Saturday, upsetting Florida, 27-16. For ending a
31-game streak to the Gators – the fourth-longest in NCAA history
in an uninterrupted series – Kentucky (2-0) is the Reveal
Suits National Team of the Week for games of the weekend
of Sept. 8.
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This is the second time for Kentucky to win the honor dating
to the 2002 season, and the Wildcats’ first since 2007. The announcement
came on "Off Campus with Mark Packer" on ESPNU Radio on
SiriusXM. Each Monday during the season, the Reveal Suits National
Team of the Week will be unveiled during the program, which airs
weekdays from 4-7 p.m. ET. The FWAA's All-America Committee selects
the weekly winner and all Division I FBS and FCS schools are eligible
to be selected.
In the Southeastern Conference opener for
both teams, the Wildcats beat the Gators for the first time since
1986 behind sophomore quarterback Terry Wilson, who threw for 151
yards and two touchdowns and added 105 yards on the ground with
another touchdown. Junior running back Benny Wilson rushed for 175
yards on a bullish 27 carries and moved into fifth place on Kentucky’s
all-time rushing list (2,724 career yards).
Kentucky had not won in Gainesville since 1979, and this was
the Wildcats’ first road win over a ranked SEC opponent since 1998
at No. 21 LSU. The Wildcats are 2-0 for a second straight season,
won their SEC opener in consecutive seasons for the first time since
2006-07, and won their SEC road opener for a second year in a row
for the first time since the 1983-84 seasons.
"I'm happy for our administration and our fan base. Our
fan base has waited a long time for this," Kentucky Head Coach
Mark Stoops said. "To say that it doesn't bother them would
be a lie because it's the unnecessary burden that these players
carry when they come into a streak like that. They don't deserve
that because they weren't a part of it. We don't have to deal with
anymore after today. I'm just very grateful for our team, it was
truly a team victory."
The other National Team of the Week nominees for the weekend
of Sept. 8 were:
• East Carolina (1-1): The Pirates posted
a third consecutive win over North Carolina and a seventh win
in their last nine meetings against an ACC opponent with a 41-19
home win. ECU led 21-19 at the half, but its defense came up
with two fourth-and-one stops and only gave up five first downs
and 78 total yards in the second half. The Pirates had 220 rushing
yards and 510 total yards.
• Eastern Michigan (2-0): Freshman kicker
Chad Ryland nailed a 24-yard field goal as time expired to send
the Eagles to a 20-19 win on the road at Purdue and post their
second win over a Power 5 opponent in school history. The last-second
score came at the end of a 15-play, 75-yard drive that included
a conversion on fourth-and-15. EMU is 2-0 for only the third
time in the last 20 seasons, and beat a Big Ten team on the
road for a second consecutive season after winning at Rutgers
last year.
• Kansas (1-1): The Jayhawks ended a long
streak of their own, snapping the second-longest road losing
streak in college football history at 46 games with a dominating
31-7 win at Central Michigan. Kansas had not won on the road
since this same week (Sept. 12) in the 2009 season. The Jayhawks’
defense came up with four interceptions and returned one for
a touchdown as part of 17 points it scored off CMU turnovers.
KU led 7-0 at the half before two touchdown runs by Pooka Williams
(125 yards) broke the game open in the third quarter.
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Founded in 1941, the Football Writers Association of America consists of 1,400 men and women who cover college football.
The membership includes journalists, broadcasters and publicists, as well as key
executives in all the areas that involve the game. The FWAA works to govern areas
that include game-day operations, major awards and its annual All-America team.
For more information about the FWAA and its award programs, contact Steve Richardson
at tiger@fwaa.com.
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