By now, you probably know that Toledo, Kentucky’s first opponent this season, is no cupcake. The Rockets are the favorite to win the MAC and beat Mississippi State by 24 points in Starkville last year. The Cats are only a 9.5-point favorite in the August 30 matchup at Kroger Field, but there is a slight chink in the perennial Group of Five power’s armor.
Action Network released its “Dirty Score” for all of the teams in the FBS over the last five seasons. It measures which teams are the most and least disciplined by four metrics: penalty yards per game, penalties per game, penalty first downs per game, and penalties per play. The scores run from zero (“cleanest”) to 100 (“dirtiest”). From 2020 to 2024, Toledo was the third “dirtiest” team in college football with a Dirty Score of 98.51, one of the most penalized teams in the country thanks to a steady pattern of high penalties per game and penalty yards.
New Mexico is No. 1 with a perfect score of 100.0, followed by UAB (99.25). Pittsburgh (97.76) and Miami (97.01) round out the top five. From the SEC, Tennessee (No. 8, 94.78), Mississippi State (No. 9, 94.03), and Ole Miss (No. 10, 93.28) fill out the top ten. Over the past five seasons, Kentucky is relatively “clean,” coming in at No. 99 with a score of 26.87.
That’s kind of where the good news ends. If you break down the data by season, Kentucky is trending in the wrong direction. Last season, the Cats averaged 6.0 penalties per game, 48.9 penalty yards per game, 2.2 penalty first downs per game, and 0.05 team penalties per play. Toledo was pretty similar last year, averaging 6.3 penalties per game, 55.3 penalty yards per game, 2.4 penalty first downs per game, and 0.04 team penalties per play.
| Team | Season | Penalties Per Game | Penalty Yards Per Game | Penalty First Downs Per Game | Team Penalties Per Play |
| Toledo | 2024 | 6.3 | 55.3 | 2.4 | 0.04 |
| Toledo | 2023 | 6.8 | 63.3 | 1.5 | 0.05 |
| Toledo | 2022 | 6.5 | 53.5 | 2.3 | 0.04 |
| Toledo | 2021 | 9.8 | 86 | 2 | 0.07 |
| Toledo | 2020 | 9.7 | 75.2 | 2.7 | 0.06 |
| Kentucky | 2024 | 6 | 48.9 | 2.2 | 0.05 |
| Kentucky | 2023 | 5.8 | 49.3 | 2 | 0.05 |
| Kentucky | 2022 | 5.3 | 36.8 | 1.8 | 0.04 |
| Kentucky | 2021 | 4.6 | 40.7 | 1.6 | 0.03 |
| entucky | 2020 | 5.7 | 55.9 | 1.5 | 0.04 |
Of course, this data is just that, a record of what happened in the past. Discipline has been an issue for Kentucky in recent years, and it’s reflected in the numbers. So far, it sounds as though there has been a culture shift in the locker room, but we won’t know for sure until Kentucky takes the field against the Rockets on August 30. Hopefully, “discipline” and “urgency” are more than just buzzwords, because the Cats can’t afford many mistakes if they want to start a pivotal season on the right foot.
