Castell’s pick-six helps Kentucky close out Oklahoma, 21-13

Jordan Castell took an interception 41 yards for a touchdown with 1:17 remaining, and No. 15 Kentucky beat Oklahoma 21-13 on Saturday night in Norman. The Wildcats intercepted four passes and kept the Sooners scoreless in the fourth quarter to win their fifth straight game.

Castell and Ty Bryant each had two interceptions. Bryant’s last one ended Oklahoma’s final possession, giving Kentucky a 6-1 record and a 4-1 mark in the Southeastern Conference. Oklahoma fell to 3-3 overall and 1-2 in the league a week after beating Texas.

Kentucky had to defend a one-point lead for most of the fourth quarter. Kenny Minchey’s 12-yard touchdown pass to Willie Rodriguez put the Wildcats ahead 14-13 with 12:53 left, but their next two possessions produced no points. Oklahoma still had a chance to drive for a winning field goal when Castell stepped in front of John Mateer’s pass and ran down the sideline.

The defense had already supplied the possession that put Kentucky ahead. Late in the third quarter, Mi’Quise Humphrey-Grace disrupted Mateer’s throw, and Bryant intercepted it. Minchey then used completions to Jason Patterson and Kenny Darby to move the ball into scoring position before finding Rodriguez for his second touchdown.

Minchey completed 21 of 28 passes for 158 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions. Rodriguez caught five passes for 38 yards, including both scoring throws. His first touchdown, a two-yard catch, finished Kentucky’s opening possession after Mikkel Skinner converted fourth-and-one with a 16-yard run.

Oklahoma answered with Tate Sandell’s 44-yard field goal, then took a 10-7 halftime lead on Mateer’s 20-yard touchdown pass to Rocky Beers. Sandell added a 26-yard field goal in the third quarter. The Sooners moved the ball well enough to threaten repeatedly, but Kentucky stopped another first-half scoring chance by intercepting holder Jacob Ulrich’s pass on a fake field goal.

The Wildcats finished with five sacks. After Rodriguez’s go-ahead touchdown, their pressure forced consecutive Oklahoma punts, including one after Kentucky turned the ball over on downs deep in Sooners territory. Wilson Berry later pinned Oklahoma at its own four, leaving Mateer a long field with less than three minutes remaining.

Mateer threw for 270 yards and a touchdown but was intercepted three times. Manny Choice had five catches for 98 yards, and Isaiah Sategna III added eight for 83. Kentucky’s Grant Godfrey made 15 tackles, while Nic Anderson led the Wildcats’ receivers with 48 yards against his former team.

Kentucky returns home to face Vanderbilt next Saturday. Oklahoma was left with a defense that allowed only two offensive touchdowns and an offense whose four interceptions erased that advantage.