14-in-14 2023: Kentucky Wildcats
Kentucky keeps making strides but has had trouble taking that final leap into the upper echelon of the SEC East. Can Mark Stoops change that in 2023?
By: Waco Kid
For the past ten years, Kentucky has been on the brink of greatness, however, the SEC title and consistent 10+ win seasons seem to barely elude the program. Mark Stoops took over the program 11 years ago and brought the Wildcats out of football obscurity. He revamped the other side of the athletics department which had been a laughing stock so that the school was not just an elite basketball pillar but a serious brand in SEC football as well. The problem has always been the same though. Over the course of the last decade, the East has had one team that was far and above better than the rest. Most recently that team has been the Georgia Bulldogs, but Florida has three East titles in that time and Missouri also boasted a few years of dominance.
UK has tried to break through the ceiling into the upper echelon but always seems to be on the outside looking in and will once again be expected to do the same. This year they will most likely be watching either Georgia or Tennessee join the winner of the West in Atlanta. That’s not to say they cannot have a great year but there are three games on this Wildcat schedule that will prove to be a little more than can be handled. Georgia, Tennessee, and Alabama will all be games that Kentucky will enter as the underdog and the development of transfer quarterback Devin Leary will determine whether or not they will even be able to compete with these juggernauts.
The good news is the Wildcats are set to host 2 out of 3 of those games. Alabama and Tennessee will have to travel to Lexington and try to best Stoops’ squad on their home turf. With the loss of Will Levis and Chris Rodriguez, their offense will have to reload in a big way. Those two carried the offensive production for most of the 2022 season. Mark Stoops has quite the hill to climb but also his team is playing in nine games that can all be won. Will they be able to topple one of the three giants or will Kentucky once again be a mid-top tier program that just misses its shot?
Kentucky will go as far as NC State transfer QB Devin Leary can take them in 2023. (Photo: Silas Walker, Lexington Herald-Leader)
State of the Program is: 8/12 biscuits. The ‘Cats are quietly in a solid position to make moves in the East.
8/12 biscuits is by no means a bad state to be in, it just means there are improvements to be made and wins needed. Kentucky will have to show up in big games to make a jump into East contention. This is something that they, so far, have been incapable of doing. Last year was a down year winning only seven games and dropping in every game they were underdogs or close favorites. There is no way you can lose to South Carolina, Vanderbilt, and Ole Miss and still be considered a top team in the East. Couple that with losses to powerhouses like Georgia and Tennessee and it made for a long 2022.
The state of the program will continue to be 3/4 of the way to greatness until they can prove they can hang with the big dawgs on Saturday afternoons. A 9-3 season will be a good year for Stoops, but he really cannot afford to lose any more than three games. If Big Blue falls to a mediocre team they must supplement that loss with an upset over one of the Big 3. Devin Leary has the potential to be an elite quarterback who can win against Tennessee or maybe Georgia on a bad day. The one thing that Kentucky excels at is bringing in top-level quarterbacks from the transfer portal.
What went right in 2022
The play of running back Chris Rodriguez and quarterback Will Levis was definitely a highlight of the 2022 season. Unfortunately, both playmakers were lost to the NFL Draft. These two combined for the majority of the offensive production throughout the season and when Levis was shaky behind center, UK always knew they had C-Rod to lean on in the rushing attack. A back like that is a staple in the SEC and necessary to compete week in and week out. Kentucky was able to get some pretty significant wins last year as well, they beat Florida, Mizzou, Mississippi State, and Louisville en route to a Music City Bowl berth. While none of these were overly impressive wins, they were ones that the Wildcats needed to show up and make a statement in which they were able to do.
Another plus for the program is that Mark Stoops continues to have them competing in the toughest conference in the nation. There was a time when three wins was a good season for this program and it seems they have shed that narrative and keep taking steps in the right direction towards national relevance. Lexington is now a place that can be enjoyed throughout the fall season as opposed to having to wait until winter to experience the excitement of collegiate sporting events.
What went wrong in 2022
Huge losses to Vanderbilt, South Carolina, and Tennessee were all black marks on the 2022 season. I mean just losing to teams like Vandy or SC is bad enough, then you add in a 44-7 loss against Tennessee, and you have a mediocre season. Yes, the Vols were a national contender last year but you cannot lose a conference game by 37 points and expect to be an actual threat. Will Levis, while consistent, still showed some inefficiencies in the passing game which led to losses in a few of their contests. There continues to be massive potential for this team every year but they cannot seem to capitalize on said potential. And there is nothing worse than wasted potential.
Stoops and Liam Coen will need to find a way to take Devin Leary’s talent and translate that to wins on the field or we will just be watching another Wildcats first-round prototype quarterback flounder throughout games. The Bluegrass State has been revitalized with energy and expectations but needs to keep that in check until their beloved Wildcats can prove they are not just a middle-of-the-pack team that qualifies for a decent bowl game.
What the Wildcats need in 2023
The Wildcats are returning 14 starters, tied for third-most in the SEC, so that will give Kentucky a huge leg up on the competition and should allow them to get rolling sooner rather than later. Four of the starting offensive linemen are returning for the 2023 season, and the line is always an important factor in the SEC. That line will have to improve in pass protection, as they allowed Levis to be sacked 36 times last season.
The signing of North Carolina State transfer quarterback, Devin Leary, was also a huge get in the offseason. Leary will need to put the team on his back and lead the charge if the boys in blue have any shot at winning the big games.
Kentucky will also need to solidify their rushing attack with a new running back after relying heavily on Chris Rodriguez these past few years. They will look to transfer back Ray Davis to tote the rock this season. Davis rushed for over 1,000 yards and five touchdowns as a part of the Vanderbilt offense in 2022. That means Davis is already used to lowering his head against SEC-caliber defenses and also rushing behind a subpar O-line. The UK line is quite the improvement from his previous stint at Vanderbilt but will still need to take steps to open holes for this seasoned veteran. Kentucky also has a stacked receiver room that will give Devin Leary an arsenal of weapons on offense.
Defensively, the Wildcats always seem to put in a decent resume and send a couple of the guys to the NFL. I would say that if there is one thing you can count on it is that Blue defense. They will give up points to programs like Tennessee but most teams around the country would have the same issue. To combat this, the ‘Cats will need to find the endzone quickly and often to compete at the level they believe they’re capable of. Defensive lineman Deone Walker and safety Jordan Lovett will be the key pieces for this unit. Walker will need to be a disruptive force on that line and plug holes to make it difficult for opposing backs to be productive. Lovett will need to be a ball hawk and help cause some turnovers in almost every game to give Kentucky more chances to score the rock.
How they can earn some extra biscuits
They have to beat at least one out of the three top-tier SEC teams they have on their schedule this year. I think the best chance they have is to take down Tennessee on their home turf. While a long shot, they are playing at home and the Vols will live and die by the play of quarterback Joe Milton. Milton can be exploited in the passing game as he tends to overthrow the ball and is erratic with some of his ball placement. The problem is they also have to figure out a way to contain this beast in the rushing aspect of the game. The Wildcats also cannot lose games against teams that are inferior. There will be no room for error against the Vanderbilts and Missouris of the world.
When all is said and done, there will likely be a statue of Mark Stoops erected outside the Big Grocery Bag, but to cement his legacy in college football, he will have to take this program to 10+ wins and an appearance in Atlanta, whether it’s this year or in the coming years.
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Georgia
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