Did anyone get to watch any of the Kentucky game?

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INSTANT ANALYSIS

Quick hits from Kentucky's 40-33 escape of Louisiana-Lafayette in Saturday night's season opener:

Offensive Player of the Game: Patrick Towles opened his second season as Kentucky's starting quarterback with a bang, throwing for 219 yards and two touchdowns before halftime. He struggled in the second half but delivered when the Cats needed it most, coming up with a key third-down strike that helped set up Mikel Horton's winning 12-yard touchdown rumble with 57 seconds to go. Towles finished 16-of-34 for 257 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. Towles completed six passes longer than 25 yards before halftime.

Defensive Player of the Game: Junior cornerback J.D. Harmon, best known for getting called out by coach Mark Stoops for special teams mistakes in 2014, appears to be out of the dog house. He thwarted a long Ragin' Cajuns drive in the first quarter by stripping the ball from a wide receiver at UK's 10-yard line. Harmon then turned away another ULL scoring attempt with a leaping interception at the Cats' 19 just before halftime. For good measure, he also returned a kickoff 62 yards in the second half.

Where the Game Turned: Kentucky held the momentum literally from the first offensive play, when sophomore star Stanley "Boom" Williams raced 75 yards up the middle for a TD. His breakaway speed – flashed as a freshman when he had three scores of 50-plus yards – was impressive. But true freshman tight end C.J. Conrad's key block, driving back ULL star linebacker Otha Peters (an Arkansas transfer), is perhaps even more encouraging for the Cats.

Key Stat: More than a dozen true and redshirt freshmen played Saturday night for UK and it showed, especially on defense. Stoops could frequently be seen screaming at several of the young linebackers on the sideline. While the Cats have dramatically upgraded their talent, they're still relying on so much youth that there are bound to be some growing pains.

What Went Right: The Cats piled up 303 yards in the first half of offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson's debut. He clearly plans to let the Air Raid fly, dialing up nearly a dozen deep passes before halftime. It helps that all of the projected playmakers actually were on Saturday. In addition to Williams' long run, Towles completed passes of 25-plus to five different receivers: junior Ryan Timmons and sophomores Jeff Badet, Dorian Baker, Blake Bone and Garrett Johnson. Runs of 75 and 38 yards from Williams, 32 yards by junior Jojo Kemp and then winning touchdown by Horton, a sophomore who ran over a defender to score, were also encouraging.

What Went Wrong: Kentucky's defense looks seriously shaky. On three consecutive first-half possessions, the Cajuns strung together drives of 10 plays, 12 plays and 13 plays – totaling 185 yards – all of which ended deep in the Cats' end of the field. UK was fortunate to get out of those messes with just seven points allowed, but the dam broke in the second half. ULL scored 23 unanswered points in the fourth quarter and finished with 479 total yards. The Wildcats were gashed over and over for big plays, both missing tackles and looking out of position. The defensive-minded Stoops will not be pleased and SEC offenses are surely licking their chops.

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