How Kentucky football and No. 8 Alabama match up — with a game prediction

How the Kentucky Wildcats (6-3, 3-3 SEC) and the No. 8 Alabama Crimson Tide (8-1, 6-0 SEC) match up at each position — with a game prediction:

Quarterbacks

▪ Kentucky’s Devin Leary (57.4 completion percentage, 1,905 passing yards, 18 touchdowns, seven interceptions) is on a late-season uptick. Over UK’s past two games, the 6-foot-1, 217-pound product of Sicklerville, New Jersey, has completed 67.2 percent (41-of-61) for 528 yards with four TDs and no picks. Leary left Kentucky’s 24-3 win last week at Mississippi State early due to an apparent problem with blurry vision. He told reporters Tuesday he is cleared to play vs. Alabama. Leary, a North Carolina State transfer, will be one of 19 players recognized during UK’s Senior Day recognition Saturday.

▪ Alabama’s Jalen Milroe (64.8 completion percentage, 1,836 yards, 13 touchdowns vs. only five interceptions; 279 rushing yards with nine TDs) is another QB who is coming on late in the season. In the Crimson Tide’s 42-28 victory over LSU last week in a pivotal SEC West showdown, the 6-2, 220-pound redshirt sophomore from Katy, Texas, ran for 155 yards and four touchdowns and completed 15 of 23 passes for 219 yards. Milroe digs the long ball — he has thrown six TD passes of 40 yards or more.

Advantage: Alabama.

Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe ran for 155 yards and four touchdowns and threw for 219 yards in the Crimson Tide’s 42-28 victory over LSU last week. Gary Cosby Jr./USA TODAY NETWORK

Running backs

▪ For the first time this season, Kentucky star Ray Davis (903 rushing yards, nine touchdowns, 6.1 yards a carry; 19 receptions, 227 yards, five TDs) did not score a touchdown at Mississippi State. A 5-10, 216-pound transfer from Vanderbilt, Davis will join veteran halfbacks JuTahn McClain and Ramon Jefferson plus fullback Justice Dingle in going through Senior Day. Another N.C. State transfer, junior Demie Sumo-Karngbaye caught a 4-yard touchdown pass in last week’s win at MSU.

▪ Alabama seniors Jase McClellan (632 rushing yards, 4.6 yards a carry, five touchdowns) and Roydell Williams (395, 5.4, two) have been more solid than spectacular for Nick Saban and Co. McClellan, a 5-11, 212-product of Aledo, Texas, has come up large in some big spots. He ran for for 105 yards and a touchdown in Bama’s 24-10 win over Mississippi in an important SEC West game. In the Tide’s 34-20 “revenge win” over Tennessee, McClellan ran for 129 yards and a score. Williams, a 5-10, 214-pound product of Hueytown, Alabama, was the hero of the Crimson Tide’s slog of a 17-3 win at South Florida in week three, running for 129 yards and a touchdown.

Advantage: Kentucky.

Kentucky running back Demie Sumo-Karngbaye (0) caught a touchdown pass from Devin Leary to spark UK’s 24-3 win at Mississippi State last week. Both Sumo-Karngbaye and Leary transferred to UK from North Carolina State. Ryan C. Hermens/rhermens@herald-leader.com

Wide receivers

▪ Kentucky slot receiver Tayvion Robinson (31 catches, 462 yards, three touchdowns) played one of his best games as a Wildcat in the win at Mississippi State, catching a team-high five passes for 91 yards. The 5-11, 194-pound transfer from Virginia Tech is one of five super-seniors who went through Senior Day festivities last season who will be playing at Kroger Field for the final time Saturday. Sophomore Dane Key (28, 431, four) continued his late-season surge at MSU, catching four passes for 36 yards and a TD. Sophomore Barion Brown caught four passes for 24 yards in Starkville and continues to lead UK in receptions (32, 358, two).

▪ A transfer from Georgia, Alabama’s Jermaine Burton (26 catches, 537 yards, five touchdowns) is a field stretcher. The 6-foot, 194-pound product of Calabasas, California, has caught a pass for 40 yards or more in five of Alabama’s nine games. Sophomore Isaiah Bond (28, 420, three) has made 16 catches combined in Bama’s past four games.

Advantage: Alabama.

Kentucky wide receiver Tayvion Robinson (9) caught five passes for 91 yards in UK’s 24-3 win at Mississippi State last week. The super-senior, a transfer from Virginia Tech, will play his final game at Kroger Field on Saturday when the Wildcats take on No. 8 Alabama. Ryan C. Hermens/rhermens@herald-leader.com

Tight ends

▪ After Kentucky redshirt sophomore Jordan Dingle (11 catches, 198 receiving yards) and true sophomore Josh Kattus (seven catches, 70 yards, two TDs) combined to make six catches (Dingle four, Kattus two) in UK’s 33-27 loss to Tennessee two weeks ago, UK tight ends had no receptions in the win at Mississippi State last week. Former Male High School standout Izayah Cummings is going through Senior Day on Saturday, while super-senior Brenden Bates will play in Lexington for the final time.

▪ Alabama sophomore Amari Niblack (12 catches, 218 yards, three touchdowns) has drawn praise from Nick Saban for his ability to create and then exploit mismatches. CJ Dippre caught 30 passes for 314 yards and three TDs last season for Maryland. This year, the transfer has seven receptions for 130 yards for Bama.

Advantage: Alabama.

Offensive line

▪ Kentucky super-senior left guard Kenneth Horsey will make his swan song in Lexington on Saturday, while UK starters Eli Cox (center), Marques Cox (left tackle) and Jeremy Flax (right tackle) will all go through Senior Day ceremonies. Mark Stoops is imploring the interior of the UK offensive front to play better than it did at MSU. “I don’t want to throw anybody under the bus, but we need to be better,” Stoops said.

▪ Coached by former Kentucky assistant Eric Wolford, the Alabama offensive front has had a rough go in 2023. Out of 130 FBS teams, the Crimson Tide is tied (with South Carolina) for 124th in sacks allowed, having given up 37. Junior right tackle JC Latham and senior center Seth McLaughlin are the veteran anchors on a unit that otherwise starts two sophomores and a freshman.

Advantage: Even.

Kentucky center Eli Cox is one of 19 Wildcats who will be participating in Senior Day festivities before UK faces No. 8 Alabama on Saturday at Kroger Field. Christopher Hanewinckel/USA TODAY NETWORK

Defensive line

▪ Kentucky nose guard Josaih Hayes, a product of Lake Horn, Mississippi, returned to his home state last week and turned in an active performance with three tackles vs. Mississippi State. The 6-3, 317-pound senior now has 18 tackles and 3.5 tackles for loss this season. Redshirt sophomore tackle Kahlil Saunders, a 6-5, 285-pound product of Huntsville, Alabama, also had three tackles in the win at MSU.

▪ Alabama redshirt senior end Justin Eboigbe (44 tackles, 6.5 TFL, four QB sacks, four QB hurries) turned in a big effort in the win over LSU. The 6-5, 292-pound product of Forest Park, Georgia, made six tackles against the Tigers and had a sack.

Advantage: Alabama.

Kentucky nose guard Josaih Hayes (99) had three tackles in UK’s 24-3 win at Mississippi State last week. Brian Simms/bsimms@herald-leader.com

Linebackers

▪ Kentucky MLB D’Eryk Jackson, a 6-1, 245-pound product of Dublin, Georgia, scored a touchdown on a 26-yard interception return in the win at Mississippi State. Quietly, Jackson — who will participate in Senior Day — has had a standout season. He now leads UK in tackles (58), is fourth in TFL (4.5) and has two picks. Super-senior OLB/rush end J.J. Weaver (28 tackles, 5.5 TFL, four sacks) will play at Kroger Field for the final time Saturday.

▪ Alabama may have the best pair of edge rushers in college football. A staple on this year’s media-selected midseason All-America teams, SLB Dallas Turner, a 6-4, 242-pound junior, has made 38 tackles, eight sacks, 11.5 TFL, 11 QB hurries and has forced two fumbles. Rush end Chris Braswell, a 6-3, 255-pound senior, has 34 tackles, 6.5 sacks, nine TFL, four QB hurries and two forced fumbles.

Advantage: Alabama.

Alabama outside linebacker Dallas Turner (15) is tied for 14th in the FBS in sacks. Troy Taormina/USA TODAY NETWORK

Defensive backs

▪ Kentucky free safety Ty Bryant was named SEC co-Freshman of the Week for his play at Mississippi State. The 6-foot, 187-pound product of Frederick Douglass High School had eight tackles, four solo, in Starkville. Since being forced into action two games ago by injuries to other safeties, Bryant has made 20 tackles. Sophomore cornerback Maxwell Hairston is tied for second in the FBS with five interceptions and is second on the UK team with 54 tackles. Cornerback Andru Phillips (36 tackles, two pass breakups) and safety Jalen Geiger (seven tackles, a fumble-recovery touchdown) are each participating in Senior Day activities.

▪ Alabama cornerbacks Kool-Aid McKinstry and Terrion Arnold each received midseason All-America recognition from at least one national media outlet. McKinstry, a 6-1, 195-pound junior from Birmingham, has broken up five passes and made 21 tackles. Arnold, a 6-foot, 196-pound redshirt sophomore from Tallahassee, Florida, has broken up eight passes, picked off two and made 45 tackles. True freshman strong safety Caleb Downs has become an immediate star. The 6-foot, 203-pound product of Hoschton, Georgia, is fifth in the SEC with 76 tackles and has two interceptions.

Advantage: Alabama.

Special teams

▪ Kentucky punter Wilson Berry (39.5 yards a kick average) stopped three of his six punts inside the Mississippi State 20-yard line last week. Place-kicker Alex Raynor, a Georgia Southern transfer, is 9-of-10 on field-goal attempts with a long of 50 yards.

▪ Alabama place-kicker Will Reichard was named to various midseason All-America teams. The super-senior is 15-of-17 on field goal tries with a long of 51 yards. Punter James Burnip, a 6-6, 220-pound Australian, is averaging a robust 48.24 yards a kick and has stopped 14 of 37 punts inside the opponents’ 20-yard line.

Advantage: Alabama.