 The Wildcats came out strong in the first half but unfortunately, after half time, things took a turn for the worse as they fell to Southern Mississippi 44-35 in their season opener. It has been nine months since the Wildcats have suited up against another opponent and during that time, the program has faced some adversity with player transfers and coaching changes. One coaching change in particular, Shannon Dawson. Kentucky's former offensive coordinator made his debut on the Golden Eagles sideline this season as their offensive coordinator. Stoops troops were confident going into this one, but that confidence turned into a roller coaster of emotions. With just six minutes off the clock, Southern Mrs. Ido Smith rushes into the end zone for an eight-yard touchdown in their first touchdown of the night. Kentucky's Drew Barker steps in and takes the reins on the action, meeting Jeff Battett in the air for a 72-yard touchdown to complete a 75-yard scoring drive. In just moments later, Barker and Garrett Johnson connect for a 43-yard completion, putting up six more on the board and he surpasses his 1,000 career-receiving mark. The Cats find their groove. Just a few short plays later, J.D. Harmon snags a one-handed interception to put the Cats back on the field and then just before the end of the first quarter, Barker finds Kwayne Ross in the end zone and the Cats are up 21-7. He's headed into the second quarter. Barker finds Johnson again this time for a 53-yard touchdown, and it seemed like smooth sailing from there, and JoJo Kemp finishes off for Kentucky's final touchdown of the night. A Southern Miss scored 34 unanswered points in the second half of the game to upset Kentucky. The Cats are headed to the swamp next Saturday to take on the Gators at 3.30. Reporting for EKB Sports at Commonwealth Stadium, I'm Mikaela Colley.