# 1977 Kentucky Wildcats football team

The 1977 Kentucky Wildcats football team represented the University of Kentucky in the 1977 NCAA Division I football season. The Wildcats scored 252 points while allowing 111 points. The Wildcats finished conference play undefeated but due to NCAA probation were not eligible for a share of the SEC championship or for postseason play. The Wildcats finished the season ranked #6 in the final AP Poll.
Kentucky's 33–13 victor over LSU was its third in four years over the Bayou Bengals, and the Wildcats' first at Tiger Stadium since 1949, when Bear Bryant was Kentucky's coach.
In the Border Battle, Kentucky beat Tennessee by a score of 21–17. Entering that game, Kentucky had seven injured starters unable to play, including quarterback Derrick Ramsey, whose arm was injured so badly he could not throw the football. Tennessee jumped out to a 17–14 lead when backup quarterback Mike Deaton completed a 36-yard pass to Felix Wilson; the injured Ramsey then entered the game and led Kentucky to a touchdown. Tennessee's offense then took the ball to Kentucky's 22-yard line but Tennessee quarterback Jimmy Streater fumbled due to a hit by Kentucky All-American defensive end Art Still, and linebacker Kelly Kirchbaum recovered the ball to preserve the win.

## Schedule

| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | Result | Attendance |
| September 10 | North Carolina* | | Commonwealth StadiumLexington, KY | W 10–7 | 57,796 |
| September 17 | at Baylor* | | Baylor StadiumWaco, TX | L 6–21 | 30,000 |
| September 24 | West Virginia* | | Commonwealth StadiumLexington, KY | W 28–13 | 57,796 |
| October 1 | at No. 4 Penn State* | | Beaver StadiumUniversity Park, PA | W 24–20 | 62,196 |
| October 8 | Mississippi State | No. 16 | Commonwealth StadiumLexington, KY | W 23–7 | 57,914 |
| October 15 | at No. 16 LSU | No. 12 | Tiger StadiumBaton Rouge, LA | W 33–13 | 71,495 |
| October 22 | at Georgia | No. 8 | Sanford StadiumAthens, GA | W 33–0 | 59,100 |
| October 29 | Virginia Tech* | No. 7 | Commonwealth StadiumLexington, KY | W 32–0 | 57,914 |
| November 5 | at Vanderbilt | No. 7 | Dudley FieldNashville, TN (rivalry) | W 28–6 | 34,694 |
| November 12 | at Florida | No. 7 | Florida FieldGainesville, FL (rivalry) | W 14–7 | 58,125 |
| November 19 | Tennessee | No. 7 | Commonwealth StadiumLexington, KY (rivalry) | W 21–17 | 57,914 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll released prior to the game |||||||

## Game summaries
### Penn State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • Kentucky | 7 | 7 | 10 | 0 | 24 |
| Penn St | 10 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 20 |

### Georgia

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • Kentucky | 0 | 10 | 10 | 13 | 33 |
| Georgia | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
* The Prince of Wales (now Charles III) in attendance

## Team players in the NFL

| Player | Position | Rounds | Pick Overall | NFL club |
| Art Still | Defensive End | 1 | 2 | Kansas City Chiefs |
| Derrick Ramsey | Quarterback | 5 | 136 | Oakland Raiders |
| Mike Martin | Tackle | 9 | 244 | Chicago Bears |
| Will Grant | Center | 10 | 255 | Buffalo Bills |
| Dallas Owens | Defensive Back | 10 | 275 | Baltimore Colts |
| Jerry Blanton | Linebacker | 11 | 282 | Buffalo Bills |

## Awards and honors

* Art Still, All-America honors