Kentucky Football Schedule: Three Things We Learned vs. Virginia Kentucky football continued to put together more of its desired identity in its victory over Virginia. And here are the three most important things we learned from the Wildcats' 42-13 win over the Cavaliers. It's all in the name When Kentucky went out and hired Paul Haynes as the program’s first-ever offensive coordinator in December, the big thing we were told was that Haynes wants to take the identity of an offense and make it match with a defense. And when you watch the Wildcats on the field and compare it to other SEC offenses you can really see it in full bloom. The offensive game plan was to be aggressive in the passing game and give quarterback Patrick Towles and wide receivers Damon Hazelton and Stephen Johnson more opportunities than they had had over the last few weeks. Towles was able to finish with over 300 yards on the night with 27 completions on 43 attempts. Another thing that stood out on the offensive side was the way they used multiple backs in the game. Kentucky used seven different runners and they were used in different ways. They used a couple of different backs to establish the run and then they'd get the zone read. Then Kentucky would run a play where they'd have a run/pass option that would have an effect of just handing the ball off to the running back. The offensive game plan really is all about making you defend the entire field. Terry Wilson was a star If you take just one thing away from the game on Saturday it was the play of T.J. Watt on defense. It was a good game for freshman linebacker TJ Johnson as well but his position coach Terry Wilson stole the show on defense and it was a shame Kentucky didn’t have more plays like his interception in the endzone on Virginia’s second possession of the game. On that play, Kentucky had the play called ‘49 Z’ which means that the quarterback will throw the ball to a receiver who has a man coverage. The defensive back reads the route but he just couldn’t get around the corner of the defender. Wilson just out-leaped the defender and intercepted the pass in the endzone. Virginia then had to punt on the next possession. It is a thing of beauty when a young guy has the swagger and confidence in their abilities to go up in the air and make a play in front of millions of people. Hopefully with more and more film of guys like Watt and others that can be expected more often in the future. Defense wins games On the other side of things, it was great to see that Kentucky’s defense came out and was dominant in a very physical manner. On top of all the interceptions and fumble recoveries there were also a lot of huge hits, including one against a Virginia wide receiver that nearly knocked him out of the game for the night. Tackling wasn’t the only issue as Virginia is a team that likes to throw the football down the field. But that hasn’t hurt Kentucky in a while and it wasn’t going to stop the Wildcats from being successful on Saturday night. It's obvious what the offense's game plan will be this weekend Against such a talented defense, the game plan is pretty obvious. The Wildcats can throw down the field a little bit but that will be more as a mix than anything else. When it comes to running the football, it will just be what has been done so far this season. If Kentucky has the ball and they feel like they need to score they will do so with the run game. And if they need to pick up a first down or two, running the football is the best choice. That is what the Wildcats are going to do this weekend against Mississippi State and you can bet that the offensive game plan is already in place. Kentucky quarterback Patrick Towles gets the ball and starts things off looking to the run game on first down. If he feels like there is enough time to throw down the field, he will do it. It is just that simple. Mississippi State at Kentucky Kentucky will have to travel to Starkville this weekend to take on an improved Mississippi State team that is off to a 5-0 start. The Bulldogs have a high-flying offense that is very versatile and plays with a lot of speed. On top of being an improving defense, Mississippi State also has a very good quarterback in Nick Fitzgerald. He had the chance to throw the football in the fourth quarter against Georgia Southern and did not disappoint. Mississippi State’s defense is solid but it doesn’t have anyone quite like Watt. Now that Wilson is with Kentucky, perhaps the Wildcats can continue to develop its talent at the position. These two teams have a lot of similarities. They both are strong on the offensive line and both teams boast plenty of depth. But make no mistake about it, this game could turn into a shootout if both defenses aren’t able to contain each other. Kentucky's final record in the regular season will show if the effort against Virginia was a sign of things to come. Will this game be just a flash in the pan as well? Or will it be another sign that the Wildcats are making progress in some areas? Mississippi State won a game on Friday night against Auburn, but that wasn’t a sign that they’re a good team. It was the best win any of those teams could get. So can the Bulldogs get their first winning streak going in Starkville on Saturday? Here's a preview of the matchup in Starkville as well as five key factors to be aware of.