Last year, the Missouri Tigers blew out Eastern Michigan 61-21 for one of only four victories in a difficult season.

On Saturday, the Kentucky Wildcats had a little bit more trouble against the Eagles, battling until the final whistle to earn a 24-20 victory.

Of course, this year’s Eastern Michigan squad appears to be a lot better than last year’s team, so it’s unfair to draw too many comparisons to Mizzou’s blowout, but fans were hoping for an easier game this weekend and didn’t get it.

Whether it was a hangover effect from the devastating loss to Florida last weekend or just a disappointing effort, here are some quick takeaways from Saturday’s less-than-comfortable victory:

Letting lower-level teams hang around

Just like the game against Eastern Kentucky earlier this season, the Wildcats struggled to beat Eastern Michigan.

For a team that plays up to the level of teams like Florida, it also plays down to lower-level competition. The fact that the Eagles had the ball late in the fourth quarter with a chance to go score a game-winning touchdown should be unacceptable for coach Mark Stoops and the Wildcats.

Or, perhaps, the Wildcats should avoid playing teams with “Eastern” in their name from now on.

Stephen Johnson looks good

Even when WR Charles Walker went out with back pain after a targeting hit against him, Johnson managed to keep the offense from falling apart.

Though the offense didn’t put many points on the board, he completed an impressive percentage of his passes and accounted for the Wildcats’ first two touchdowns through the air.

He took a beating in the latter stages of the game thanks to some shoddy offensive-line play, so the Wildcats need to hope that he is fully healthy and ready to go next week against Mizzou.

Benny Snell took a while to get going

The offense goes as Snell goes, so when he struggles, it isn’t pretty for the Wildcats.

However, early in the third quarter, he started finding more room to run and making the most of it. He was a big reason the Cats got in field goal range to take a 17-14 lead.

He also willed his way into the end zone on a long touchdown run that ended up being the deciding points in the narrow victory.

Something’s up with Austin MacGinnis

MacGinnis was supposed to be one of the best kickers in the SEC this year, but he’s struggled the last couple of weeks.

He left a couple of 53-yard field goals well short against the Eagles, one week after missing a long game-winning attempt against Florida.

If he can’t kick with more consistency, the Wildcats may have to try someone else out at the position.