Brock Vandagriff’s future, a road upset and other Kentucky football bold predictions

It would be impossible to predict exactly how Kentucky football’s 2024 season will play out.

But we can feel safe in assuming at least one development will happen that no one saw coming.

Already in Mark Stoops’ tenure at UK, a wide receiver has been forced to play quarterback then responded with one of the best single seasons in program history, a two-star recruit has turned into the national defensive player of the year, and the Wildcats have posted two 10-win seasons after not hitting that plateau from 1977 to 2018.

Those type of unforeseen developments are the aim of the bold predictions that follow. Extending the bowl streak or playing Georgia close will not qualify.

It would be wise to take these predictions with a grain of salt — the point after all is to find predictions that are by their definition most likely to miss — but we have plenty of evidence that the unexpected can happen.

With that in mind, here are three bold predictions for UK football’s 2024 season.

Brock Vandagriff will be one-and-done at Kentucky

The fact that Vandagriff had two seasons of eligibility remaining after transferring from Georgia was a plus for UK coaches as they mined the transfer portal for a new starting quarterback. While there have been instant-impact quarterback transfers in the portal era of college football, more common is a productive first season followed by a special second season in a new system.

But the prediction here is Vandagriff never makes it to year two at Kentucky.

After sitting for three seasons at Georgia behind two-time national champions Stetson Bennett and 2025 projected first-round pick Carson Beck, Vandagriff has to be eager to prove he still has the talent that garnered him a five-star ranking as a high school prospect. Kentucky’s roster is built to win now, and Vandagriff should have ample weapons around him in an offensive system that looks tailored to his skill set.

Even if Vandagriff falls short of an All-SEC caliber season, he could show NFL scouts enough to garner a draft pick next April. Since he needs no reminder that there are no guarantees in football, with a degree already in hand Vandagriff could leap at the chance to start his professional career in that scenario.

Of course, the other option is Vandagriff does not live up to his high school recruiting hype. If that happens, UK coaches might be ready to turn the page to the Cutter Boley era , leading Vandagriff to search for another opportunity for his final season of eligibility.

Either way, Kentucky fans would be wise to enjoy Vandagriff while they can.

Kentucky wins multiple road games

This might not look like a truly bold prediction on paper considering Kentucky was 3-2 in road games last season, but there are no trips to Vanderbilt or Mississippi State on the schedule this fall.

Three of the Wildcats’ four road games come against teams ranked in the top 15 of the preseason Associated Press Top 25 (No. 4 Texas, No. 6 Ole Miss and No. 15 Tennessee). The fourth is at Florida, where Kentucky has won twice in its last three trips to Gainesville but is just 6-29 all-time.

The smart money would be on Kentucky to lose all four of those games or to win only at Florida, but this feels like a roster finally ready to knock off a true playoff contender on the road in SEC play. I’ll keep Florida in the win column due to UK’s three-game winning streak in the series, but where does the other road win come?

Kentucky should have beaten Ole Miss in each of its last two meetings if not for self-inflicted mistakes. Getting an 11 a.m. Central kickoff time for the game in Oxford should help the Wildcats as it did in the 2022 trip there. Just make sure everyone is lined up correctly on any possible game-winning touchdowns this time.

A win at Ole Miss could put Kentucky at 4-1 (assuming a win against South Carolina and loss to Georgia). That should be enough to move into the AP Top 25 and possibly even the playoff discussion. A three-game stretch against Vanderbilt, Florida and Auburn follows, giving Big Blue Nation reason to dream of a 7-1 record and top-10 ranking heading into the Nov. 2 game at Tennessee.

I’m not ready to predict that level of success yet, but I do like Kentucky’s chances in Oxford.

J.J. Weaver leads the SEC in sacks

This was not supposed to be how Weaver’s career played out.

The former Moore High School star arrived at UK as a four-star recruit compared to first-round pick Josh Hines-Allen (known as Josh Allen in his time as a Wildcat). Even after a torn ACL threatened to derail his career, Weaver entered 2023 under the expectation he would use one final college season to cement his status as a mid-round NFL draft pick.

Instead, inconsistency plagued Weaver again. A strong finish to the season with a combined 13 tackles and three sacks against Louisville and Clemson added to the feeling of what could have been rather that providing the fitting cap to his time at UK. Ultimately, Weaver elected to use his extra season of eligibility granted all players during the COVID-19 pandemic to return to Kentucky for 2024.

None of the buzz that preceded last season for Weaver has returned this summer. Instead, Weaver has almost been viewed as an afterthought on a veteran defense littered with NFL talent.

“That’s what I wanted,” Weaver said when asked about flying under the radar in camp. “I’ve been going through a lot of pressure through the years, so this is what I wanted, just no pressure, no nothing, just mindset clean, just playing fast and free.

“… I like being the underdog right now.”

Underestimate Weaver at your own peril. Something finally seemed to click for him in the last two games last season. The prediction here is he carries that momentum into a monster 2024 with double-digit sacks, enough to lead the SEC during the regular season.

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