Kentucky’s 2014 season got off to a fast start Saturday with a dominant first half against UT Martin. The Cats lead their season opener 35-0 at the break and have out-gained the Skyhawks 446 total yards to 114.

New starting tailback Braylon Heard began his UK career with a bang, running for touchdowns on each of his first two carries to break the game wide open. He took a 73-yard carry to the house to extend the Cats lead to 14-0 midway through the first quarter, then took his second carry 43 yards for another touchdown to make the score 21-0 in the middle of the second quarter. His 116 yards on the ground leads Kentucky, as do his two first half scores.

Patrick Towles has also dazzled in his debut as the Cats starting quarterback. He completed 15-of-22 passes for 263 yards and a touchdown pass to freshman wideout Blake Bone, and seven different Wildcats caught a pass from Towles in the first half.

The Kentucky defense also posted a shutout to match the team’s dominance on offense. Safety A.J. Stamps had a huge half, delivering a handful of powerful hits in addition to a remarkable one-handed interception, the lone turnover of the half for either team.

Defensive tackle Mike Douglas recorded the game’s lone sack, and Skyhawks’ quarterbacks Jarod Neal and Dylan Favre combined to throw for just 32 yards in the half.

The lone bright spot for UTM has been its rushing attack, which picked up 82 yards on 20 first half attempts. The Cats were 7-fo-9 on third down, while the Skyhawks were just 1-of-6.

Before exiting the field at halftime, Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops admitted backup quarterback Reese Phillips will see time in the second half.