The 1965 Kentucky Wildcats football team represented the

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a Public University, public Land-grant University, land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentu ...

in the

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities of ...

during the

1965 NCAA University Division football season During the 20th century, the NCAA had no playoff for the major college football teams in the University Division, later known as Division I-A. The NCAA did recognize a national champion based upon the final results of "wire service" (AP and UPI) ...

. The Wildcats scored 202 points while allowing 160 points, finishing 6-4 overall, 3-3 in the SEC.1997 Kentucky Football Media Guide, p.208

Rick Norton Richard Eugene Norton (November 16, 1943 – July 25, 2013) from Louisville, Kentucky was an American collegiate and professional football quarterback who played college football at the University of Kentucky and professionally with the Ameri ...

and

Sam Ball Sam Ball (born June 1, 1944) is a former American football offensive lineman who played in the National Football League (NFL) from 1966 through 1970. During that span he appeared in Super Bowl III and Super Bowl V for the Baltimore Colts. He ...

were chosen as team captains. Kentucky opened with a 7-0 win at Missouri. Missouri finished the season ranked #6 in the nation, with a record of 8-2-1. Kentucky entered Week 2 of the season ranked #10 in the country. The second game was a 16-7 win against Ole Miss. Kentucky advanced to a #6 ranking in the AP poll. A loss at Auburn (23-18) was followed by a 26-24 win against Florida State. A 31-21 loss at LSU was followed by a 28-10 win over Georgia and a 28-8 victory over West Virginia. Kentucky then was ranked again in the AP poll, at #10. Next was a 34-0 win over Vanderbilt. Kentucky retained its #10 ranking in the AP poll. At that point Kentucky was offered a bid to the

Gator Bowl The Gator Bowl is an annual college football bowl game held in Jacksonville, Florida, operated by Gator Bowl Sports. It has been held continuously since 1946, making it the sixth oldest college bowl, as well as the first one ever televised natio ...

but turned it down, hoping for a better bowl invitation. However, star quarterback Rick Norton suffered a broken leg in the next game, which ended up being a 38-21 loss at Houston, and a 19-3 loss to Tennessee left the Wildcats with a 6-4 record and no bowl game.

Schedule

Team players in the 1966 NFL and AFL Drafts

References

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

Kentucky Wildcats football seasons

Kentucky Wildcats football The Kentucky Wildcats football program represents the University of Kentucky in the sport of American football. The Wildcats compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Eastern D ...

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