The leaders of both programs were undoubtedly coaching for their jobs on the sidelines at Jordan-Hare Stadium late Saturday night, Kentucky and Auburn both monitoring their situations closely under Mark Stoops and Hugh Freeze, respectively.
For the former, it was about picking up not only the first SEC win of the season, but also ending a 10-game losing streak in conference play. The Wildcats will have to end their 11-game losing streak at Kroger Field against Power Four competition another day, but this one was just about getting back in the win column if there was any chance of salvaging the relationship.