'Get better every day with the guys': 3 keys to Kentucky football's win over Vanderbilt

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Andru Phillips wished he could say Kentucky practiced it. But the memorable play he helped author Saturday — taking a lateral from teammate D'Eryk Jackson and returning it 50 yards after Jackson's interception of Vanderbilt quarterback AJ Swann in the third quarter — unfolded in the heat of the moment.

"It's just about trusting your teammate," said Phillips, a fourth-year junior cornerback. "He trusted me to do it —  trusted me to give me the ball and try to go score."

Though Phillips came up 21 yards short of the end zone, it was a play that symbolized, on a day the Wildcats won 45-28 on the road in spite of multiple errors, instincts sometimes kick in at the perfect time.

"I thought it was smart," Wildcats defensive coordinator Brad White said. "There was no one around. A lot of times you don't like it, especially if somebody's hanging. But I thought it was a clean enough play. It was a good look. And it really benefited us when you think about the field position change."

Jackson's interception was one of three for White's unit. Aside from terrorizing Swann, UK stymied Vanderbilt's explosive receiver tandem, Will Sheppard and Jayden McGowan. Sheppard and McGowan ranked among the top five in the SEC in receptions and yards entering Saturday. Sheppard had two receptions for 31 yards, and McGowan didn't catch a pass despite being targeted five times.

Here are three things we learned from Saturday's conference-opening win over the Commodores:

Happy homecoming for Kentucky RB Ray Davis

Statistically, Saturday wasn't striking when juxtaposed against Ray Davis' sky-high standard the previous three weeks. Yet there's no question Saturday was far sweeter for Davis than any before it.

During the postgame, he repeated the same mantra he had uttered all week. Saturday was about Kentucky facing Vanderbilt, not him facing his former team. Davis' on-field actions spoke differently, as he ran with more authority than any other time this season, looking to punish defenders at the end of runs. He finished with 78 yards and two touchdowns on 17 carries.

"It felt great to close that chapter and finally move on and now focus on something much more important," Davis said, "and that's just trying to get better every day with the guys, hone in on the details and try to execute and make sure we go out there and play our game."

Few Wildcats have played better than Davis so far. This season or any in the past decade. He's the first UK player to score at least one touchdown in each of the team's first four games since La'Rod King in 2011. And his five rushing TDs in that stretch are the most by a Wildcat since Benny Snell Jr. crossed the goal line seven times in 2018.

That two of those scores came at the expense of the school he suited up for the past two seasons added to their significance. Even if he wouldn't admit it.

"Ray still has love for Vanderbilt. He's a Vanderbilt alum," UK quarterback Devin Leary said. "But it meant a little something more coming here, where he's had great success. … So to walk away with a win, I know he's going to sleep better at night."

Maxwell Hairston continues ascent on record-setting day

Kentucky cornerback Maxwell Hairston reserved a spot in the program's record book Saturday: He became the first Wildcat to record two pick-six interceptions in the same game.

"I just feel blessed," said Hairston, who also had four tackles and three pass breakups (the first three of his career). "I've got to thank the man upstairs for blessing me to be able to do that. I want to thank my team. We went out there, we did what we were supposed to do and we got rewarded for it."

Going back to his football roots, Hairston said he'd never had a game in which he scored twice on interceptions. And he wasn't aware he was the first Wildcat to do so.

He vows it's only the beginning.

"I don't think I've made it yet," he said. "I feel like I've still got a lot to improve on, and I just want to go (out) every week and try to get better, study my opponents more and more."

A year ahead of Hairston, Phillips (who is the Wildcats' other starting cornerback) has known his teammate since the day his younger teammate arrived in Lexington from Michigan. If Hairston ever lacks for motivation, all he has to do is turn to Phillips.

"After any (pick six), I'm like, 'That's nothing. Go do it again,'" Phillips said. "Usually you say that and it doesn't happen. But today, he went and got another pick six. After that, I'd still say, 'Job's not finished,' because next week, we got Florida."

Even before Saturday's record-setting outing, Hairston had begun to establish himself as one of the country's best players at his position. Through three games, his Pro Football Focus grade (87.3) ranked fourth among all corners nationally.

"I feel way more confident," said Hairston, whose first career start as a collegian came in this season's opener versus Ball State. "I feel like I've been putting the work in and taking what I learned from the guys who came before me and just applying it to now.

"I feel like it's starting to pay off."

Wildcats keep committing penalties (but overcame them Saturday)

In terms of penalties per game, Kentucky entered Saturday among the nation's most flag-ridden teams. Saturday's performance won't help.

The Wildcats committed 10 penalties for 105 yards; they averaged 7.33 per game through their first three contests, which is tied for 101st (of 130 FBS teams) in the country.

Coach Mark Stoops saw a silver lining Saturday, though, pointing to the final scoring drive for the offense. During the possession, Kentucky committed three penalties, two holding calls and an ineligible receiver downfield. Yet it didn't keep the Wildcats out of the end zone, as Leary lofted a picture-perfect pass to sophomore wideout Dane Key, who leaped over Vandy corner Martel Hight for the 22-yard score.

"We overcame a third-and-8. We converted a second-and-20-something," he said, "and that says a lot."

He just doesn't want to make it a habit.

"I'd like to not see that (many penalties) again," Stoops said. "You know, I'd like them to even out someday."

UK football wins SEC opener: Ray Davis scores 2 TDs in Vandy return as Wildcats remain unbeaten

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Reach Kentucky men’s basketball and football reporter Ryan Black at rblack@gannett.com and follow him on X at @RyanABlack.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Kentucky football: Mark Stoops' team defeats Vandy with Florida next