1983 Kentucky Wildcats football team
Encyclopedia
The 1983 Kentucky Wildcats football team represented the University of Kentucky
in the 1983 NCAA Division I-A football season
. The Wildcats scored 228 points while allowing 237 points.
After a 4-0 start, Kentucky finished the regular season 6-4-1 before playing in the 1983 Hall of Fame Classic Bowl
, losing to #18 West Virginia
, 20-16. The improvement from 1982's 0-10-1 mark was, at the time, an NCAA record for most improvement in wins from one season to the next.
's first season in 1982, Kentucky raced out to a 4-0 mark, opening with victories against Central Michigan, Kansas State, Indiana and Tulane. A loss to #7 Auburn was followed by a win at LSU, then a loss at #7 Georgia and a tie with Cincinnati. A win at Vanderbilt was followed by losses at #14 Florida and to Tennessee. The season closed with a 20-16 loss to #18 West Virginia in the 1983 Hall of Fame Classic Bowl
.
University of Kentucky
The University of Kentucky, also known as UK, is a public co-educational university and is one of the state's two land-grant universities, located in Lexington, Kentucky...
in the 1983 NCAA Division I-A football season
1983 NCAA Division I-A football season
The 1983 NCAA Division I-A football season ended with the University of Miami winning their first national championship over perennial power Nebraska in the Orange Bowl....
. The Wildcats scored 228 points while allowing 237 points.
After a 4-0 start, Kentucky finished the regular season 6-4-1 before playing in the 1983 Hall of Fame Classic Bowl
1983 Hall of Fame Classic Bowl
1983 Hall of Fame Classic Bowl was the sixth installment of the Hall of Fame Bowl. The game featured the Kentucky Wildcats of the Southeastern Conference and the West Virginia Mountaineers, then an independent...
, losing to #18 West Virginia
West Virginia Mountaineers football
The West Virginia Mountaineers football team represents West Virginia University in the NCAA FBS division of college football. Dana Holgorsen is the team's 33rd head coach. He has held the position since he was promoted in June 2011 after the resignation of Bill Stewart. The Mountaineers play their...
, 20-16. The improvement from 1982's 0-10-1 mark was, at the time, an NCAA record for most improvement in wins from one season to the next.
Season
Following a 0-10-1 record in Jerry ClaiborneJerry Claiborne
Jerry Claiborne was an American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at Virginia Tech , the University of Maryland, College Park , and his alma mater, the University of Kentucky , compiling a career college football record of 179–122–8...
's first season in 1982, Kentucky raced out to a 4-0 mark, opening with victories against Central Michigan, Kansas State, Indiana and Tulane. A loss to #7 Auburn was followed by a win at LSU, then a loss at #7 Georgia and a tie with Cincinnati. A win at Vanderbilt was followed by losses at #14 Florida and to Tennessee. The season closed with a 20-16 loss to #18 West Virginia in the 1983 Hall of Fame Classic Bowl
1983 Hall of Fame Classic Bowl
1983 Hall of Fame Classic Bowl was the sixth installment of the Hall of Fame Bowl. The game featured the Kentucky Wildcats of the Southeastern Conference and the West Virginia Mountaineers, then an independent...
.
Schedule
| Game | Date | Opponent | Result | Wildcats points | Opponents | Record |
| 1 | Sept. 3 | Central Michigan Central Michigan Chippewas football The Central Michigan Chippewas football team is a college football program in Division I FBS, representing Central Michigan University. They are a top 25 program in terms of all-time winning percentage and top five amongst all teams from non-BCS automatic qualifying conferences... |
Win | 31 | 24 | 1-0 |
| 2 | Sept. 10 | Kansas State Kansas State Wildcats football The Kansas State Wildcats football program is the intercollegiate football program of the Kansas State University Wildcats. The program is classified in the NCAA's Division I Bowl Subdivision, and the team competes in the Big 12 Conference... |
Win | 31 | 12 | 2-0 |
| 3 | Sept. 17 | Indiana Indiana Hoosiers football The Indiana Hoosiers football program represents Indiana University Bloomington in NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision college football and in the Big Ten Conference.-Bowl games:... |
Win | 24 | 13 | 3-0 |
| 4 | Sept. 24 | Tulane Tulane Green Wave football The Tulane Green Wave football program is an NCAA Division I FBS football team that represents Tulane University in New Orleans. The team is a member of Conference USA and is led by interim head coach Mark Hutson, who took over on October 18, 2011, when fifth-year head coach Bob Toledo resigned... |
Win | 26 | 14 | 4-0 |
| 5 | Oct. 8 | #7 Auburn Auburn Tigers football Only Mohamed Amin Abughadir set the record with 1,890 yards in 1 season. He was the QB for Auburn in 1998.The Auburn Tigers football team represents Auburn University in college football as a member of the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, competing in the Western Division of the... |
Loss | 21 | 49 | 4-1 |
| 6 | Oct. 15 | at Louisiana State LSU Tigers football The LSU Tigers football team, also known as the Fighting Tigers or Bayou Bengals, represents Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States in NCAA Division I FBS college football. Current head coach Les Miles has led the team since 2005. Since 1999 when Nick Saban took over as... |
Win | 21 | 13 | 5-1 |
| 7 | Oct. 22 | at #7 Georgia Georgia Bulldogs football The Georgia Bulldogs football team represents the University of Georgia in football. The Bulldogs are a member of the Southeastern Conference and are frequently a top-25 team. The University of Georgia has had a football team since 1892 and has an all-time record of 738–398–54... |
Loss | 21 | 47 | 5-2 |
| 8 | Oct. 29 | Cincinnati Cincinnati Bearcats football The Cincinnati Bearcats football program represents the University of Cincinnati in a college football. They compete at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level as members of the Big East Conference. The Bearcat football program is one of the nation's oldest, having fielded a team as... |
Tie | 13 | 13 | 5-2-1 |
| 9 | Nov. 5 | at Vanderbilt Vanderbilt Commodores football The Vanderbilt Commodores football program is a college football team that represents Vanderbilt University. The team currently competes in NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision as a member of the Southeastern Conference... |
Win | 17 | 8 | 6-2-1 |
| 10 | Nov. 12 | at #14 Florida | Loss | 7 | 24 | 6-3-1 |
| 11 | Nov. 19 | Tennessee 1983 Tennessee Volunteers football team The 1983 Tennessee Volunteers football team represented the University of Tennessee in the 1983 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Volunteers offense scored 282 points while the defense allowed 165 points... |
Loss | 0 | 10 | 6-4-1 |
| 11 | Dec. 29 | #18 West Virginia West Virginia Mountaineers football The West Virginia Mountaineers football team represents West Virginia University in the NCAA FBS division of college football. Dana Holgorsen is the team's 33rd head coach. He has held the position since he was promoted in June 2011 after the resignation of Bill Stewart. The Mountaineers play their... |
Loss | 16 | 20 | 6-5-1 |
Team players in the 1984 NFL Draft
| Player | Position | Round | Pick | NFL Club |
| John Grimsley John Grimsley John Glenn Grimsley was an American linebacker in the National Football League who played for seven seasons for the Houston Oilers.... |
Linebacker | 6 | 141 | Houston Oilers 1984 Houston Oilers season The 1984 Houston Oilers season was the 25th season the team was with the league. The team improved upon their previous season's output of 2–14, winning three games, but failed to qualify for the playoffs for the fourth consecutive season.-NFL Draft:... |