KSR Today: Hello, August (and hello, football season)

Good morning, folks! Welcome to the month of August. I’m glad you could join us. While the late-summer months signal the beginning of the end of warm weather and pool days, they also usher in the official countdown to football season. That’s right, the Kentucky Wildcats will hit Kroger Field exactly 30 days from now to host Southern Miss in the 2024 opener .

We’re about to dive headfirst into football season, too. Yesterday was the team’s first practice. Tomorrow is Media Day for Mark Stoops ‘ program. We’ll hear from the headman himself along with offensive coordinator Bush Hamdan , defensive coordinator Brad White , and every available player we can stick a microphone in front of. We might just get to sit on an open practice for a bit too *wink wink*.

That’s just the beginning of the football-filled weekend though. Fan Day follows on Saturday at the Joe Craft Football Training Center from 11-12:45 p.m. EST. This will also include an open practice. Get those tailgate supplies ready, BBN — it’s almost time.

While you wait, enjoy this video of Brock Vandagriff throwing a touchdown to Barion Brown and this picture of Maxwell Hairston going full extension.

Vince opens up on NIL

We heard Mark Stoops give his real thoughts on NIL last week. And now, we’re getting the same thing from the Big Dog.

Vince Marrow recently went on the 1 Star Recruits podcast to talk about the impact of NIL on college football recruiting. Of course, he acknowledged the importance of money but clarified that relationships still mean the most.

“I think people believe once you got the portal and NIL, everybody can just give guys money and you’re going to get the guy,” Marrow said. “That’s not the case. You still gotta recruit. You still gotta be the guy that can go sit in their living room, meet with their parents or sit down with the student-athlete and tell them what your message is. And you gotta have people from the past they can do some reference checks on. ‘Is this guy really who he is?’ That’s been really good for me and Mark in the fact that people from the past have always said, ‘What these guys say, they mean.’”

Considering Kentucky currently has the No. 21 overall 2025 recruiting class in the country, Marrow’s formula sure seems to be working.

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Trio of Cats lead Team USA to Olympic quarterfinals

With one more Group Phase game remaining, Team USA has already locked up a spot in the Olympic quarterfinals set for next week. Fueled by Bam Adebayo , Anthony Davis , and Devin Booker , the Americans took down Wenyen Gabriel and South Sudan by a final score of 103-86. Team USA is now 2-0 in Group C and will look to make it 3-0 against Puerto Rico on Saturday.

Adebayo was the star for Team USA, posting a team-high 18 points in the win. Between the three former Wildcats, they combined for 36 points (16-23 FG), 15 rebounds, 10 assists, four blocks, and three steals against South Sudan. Pretty good, I’d say.

Before fouling out, Gabriel chipped in two points and 10 rebounds while turning the ball over seven times along the way. South Sudan can join USA in the quarterfinals with a win over Serbia on Saturday.

A couple of significant list cuts

A pair of 2025 five-stars narrowed down their list of options over the last 36 hours. Power forward Caleb Wilson is down to 12 schools (with an official visit scheduled to Kentucky) while shooting guard Darryn Peterson is down to eight.

Wilson (No. 4 overall): Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Duke, Georgia Tech, Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio State, Oregon, Tennessee, Central Florida, and Southern California.

Peterson (No. 3 overall): Arizona State, Kansas, Kansas State, Kentucky, Louisville, Ohio State, Southern California, and Washington.

Wilson is set to officially visit Kentucky the weekend of Sept. 13 for the UK-Georgia football game. Peterson has yet to finalize an OV to Lexington, but the expectation is that will happen in October. Mark Pope has the Wildcats right in the thick of it for two Top 5 talents.

It’s Watch List SZN!

Now that we’re less than a month away from football, the preseason awards are dropping like flies. On Wednesday, two more were announced and a couple of Kentucky Wildcats were mentioned.

After a breakout season in 2023, defensive back Maxwell Hairston has cracked the Jim Thorpe Award Watch List, which recognizes the nation’s top DB. Hairston’s five interceptions (two returned for touchdowns) last season ranked fifth nationally. The Preseason First Team All-SEC will get to play this season without a giant cast on his hand, too.

Meanwhile, wide receiver Barion Brown was named to the Jet Award Watch list, which honors the nation’s top return specialist. Brown returned three kickoffs for touchdowns last season and is up to four for his entire career, which is tied for the SEC record. Regarded as the fastest player in college football going into 2024, the Preseason All-American is expected to be lethal with the ball in his hands once again.

Bat Cats get a HUGE pickup

Tyler Bell was the 66th overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft by the Tampa Bay Rays. But instead of getting a jump start on his professional career, the soon-to-be freshman wants to get the college experience. Bell announced on Wednesday that he’s forgoing the MLB and will play at Kentucky under head coach Nick Mingione beginning this season.

The Illinois native is considered one of the top shortstops in the entire 2024 class. Perfect Game ranks him as the 59th overall prospect in the cycle. Bell will be eligible again for the MLB Draft in 2026, but in the meantime, his addition to Kentucky’s roster is massive for the future of the program.

Reed Sheppard might just be the ROY favorite

Following an impressive Summer League debut with the Houston Rockets, No. 3 overall pick Reed Sheppard has made an outstanding impression on NBA front-office executives. So much so that a poll of 20 front-office members from ESPN revealed that they believe Sheppard is the best rookie in the entire class.

Sheppard received seven votes as the best pick in the draft and seven votes to win Rookie of the Year — the most of any other first-year player.

“There’s a good deal of optimism around the league surrounding Sheppard’s future, and the prevailing thought is that he might be the next Kentucky Wildcats guard to fully blossom upon his arrival in the NBA… The buzz in Las Vegas and optimism around his game was reflected in the voting.”

Paul Rodriguez retires from football

Now for some bad news. Kentucky OL Paul Rodriguez is medically retiring from football due to what he says is “a lower back and spinal injury”, according to his social media.

A 6-foot-5, 325-pound lineman from Mason, OH, Rodriguez was a three-star prospect in Kentucky’s 2021 recruiting class. The reserve offensive guard saw action in all 13 games last season as a part of the Wildcats’ special teams unit.

Injuries stink, man.

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