1984 Kentucky Wildcats football team

1984 Kentucky Wildcats football
Hall of Fame Classic, W 20–19 vs. Wisconsin
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 19
AP	No. 19
1984 record	9–3 (3–3 SEC)
Head coach	Jerry Claiborne (3rd season)
Offensive scheme	I formation
Base defense	Wide-Tackle Six
Home stadium	Commonwealth Stadium
Seasons

1984 SEC football standings
	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
#3/7 Florida †	5	–	0	–	1			9	–	1	–	1
#15/16 LSU	4	–	1	–	1			8	–	3	–	1
#14/14 Auburn	4	–	2	–	0			9	–	4	–	0
Georgia	4	–	2	–	0			7	–	4	–	1
#19/19 Kentucky	3	–	3	–	0			9	–	3	–	0
Tennessee	3	–	3	–	0			7	–	4	–	1
Alabama	2	–	4	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Vanderbilt	2	–	4	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Ole Miss	1	–	5	–	0			4	–	6	–	1
Mississippi State	1	–	5	–	0			4	–	7	–	0
† – Conference champion Florida's title was later vacated by the SEC. Rankings from AP Poll / Coaches Poll

The 1984 Kentucky Wildcats football team represented the University of Kentucky in the 1984 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Wildcats scored 293 points while allowing 221 points. Kentucky won the 1984 Hall of Fame Classic Bowl.

Season

Kentucky opened with a 42–0 win over Kent State, followed by a 48–14 win at Indiana. A 30–26 win at Tulane was followed by a 27–14 win over Rutgers, which put Kentucky into the AP poll at #19. The Wildcats then won their conference opener at Mississippi State, 17–13, to improve to 5–0 for the first time since 1950. Kentucky was then ranked #16 in the AP poll.

Kentucky then dropped two conference games against ranked opponents, to #10 LSU 36–10 and to #13 Georgia 37–7. The Wildcats clinched a winning season with a 31–7 win against North Texas and then defeated Vanderbilt 27–18. A 25–17 loss to #5 Florida followed. Kentucky then closed out the regular season with a 17–12 victory at Tennessee.

Kentucky closed its season with a 20–19 victory over #19 Wisconsin in the 1984 Hall of Fame Classic Bowl. As a result, Kentucky finished the season ranked #19 in the final AP poll, with a record of 9–3.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance
September 8	Kent State*		Commonwealth Stadium Lexington, KY	W 42–0	56,402
September 15	at Indiana*		Memorial Stadium Bloomington, IN	W 48–14	44,389
September 22	at Tulane*		Louisiana Superdome New Orleans, LA	W 30–26	16,505
October 6	Rutgers*		Commonwealth Stadium Lexington, KY	W 27–14	58,010
October 13	Mississippi State	No. 19	Scott Field Starkville, MS	W 17–13	30,395
October 20	No. 10 LSU	No. 16	Commonwealth Stadium Lexington, KY	L 10–36	57,252
October 27	No. 13 Georgia		Commonwealth Stadium Lexington, KY	L 7–37	56,032
November 3	North Texas*		Commonwealth Stadium Lexington, KY	W 31–7	54,328
November 10	Vanderbilt		Commonwealth Stadium Lexington, KY	W 27–18	53,112
November 17	No. 5 Florida		Commonwealth Stadium Lexington, KY	L 17–25	52,823
November 24	at Tennessee		Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN (Battle for the Barrel)	W 17–12	93,791
December 29	vs. No. 19 Wisconsin*		Legion Field Birmingham, AL (Hall of Fame Classic)	W 20–19	47,300
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Team players in the 1985 NFL Draft

Player	Position	Round	Pick	NFL Club
George Adams	Running back	1	19	New York Giants
Cam Jacobs	Linebacker	5	136	Pittsburgh Steelers
Oliver White	Tight end	10	268	Pittsburgh Steelers
Jeff Smith	Defensive tackle	11	291	San Diego Chargers