How would you grade Kenny Minchey through 4 games? ESPN QBR him last among SEC QBs

After Kenny Minchey delivered an impressive performance against No. 9 Texas A&M last Saturday, completing 14/18 passes for 252 yards and two touchdowns, the Kentucky quarterback struggled to find the same rhythm against South Alabama.

Minchey finished the game 19/25 for 177 passing yards and one touchdown, as Kentucky defeated South Alabama 45-21. He lost one fumble and took two sacks. He also had a fourth-down pass attempt that was right on the money but dropped by tight end Willie Rodriguez.

Against Texas A&M, Minchey consistently connected on downfield throws and made several big plays through the air. That was not the case against South Alabama, as he struggled to complete his deep passes and appeared unable to find a consistent rhythm throughout much of the game, even though he did finish with a rather efficient game overall.

Whether it was short completions, dropped passes, or throws that were simply off target, Minchey had difficulty getting the passing game going. He looked more comfortable in the fourth quarter, when he threw his first touchdown of the game.

Granted, Minchey’s job became easier as the game progressed thanks to an outstanding performance from Kentucky’s running back room. C.J. Baxter, Jason Patterson and Jovantae Barnes each rushed for 100+ yards, marking the first time ever that three Kentucky running backs accomplished that feat in the same game.

One advanced analytics service thinks Minchey could be toward the bottom of the SEC quarterback hierarchy. ESPN’s Total QBR metric has Minchey ranked last in the SEC with a 33.0 rating. He received an 88.7 QBR for his performance vs. Texas A&M but just an 8.7 mark vs. South Alabama.

Total QBR is ESPN’s adjusted total quarterback rating, which rates a quarterback on all play types on a 0-100 scale and adjusts for the strength of opposing defenses. So while it’s only a four-game sample size, this metric is not a fan of Minchey’s overall performance this year.

While this ranking may seem harsh, Minchey will need to consistently perform the way he did against Texas A&M if Kentucky hopes to keep defeating SEC opponents and reach bowl eligibility.

It will be interesting to see whether Minchey can bounce back and deliver a stronger performance next week when Kentucky travels to face South Carolina.

So, how would you grade Kenny Minchey through four games? Let us know in the poll below and down in the comments section!

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