Vandagriff will be in demand this season

Media Day is not something that every college athlete embraces, especially star players who can be bombarded with interview requests and sometimes answer the same question several times.

Kentucky football had its Media Day last week and player interviews lasted almost an hour. However, the final player on the field still doing interviews was Georgia transfer Brock Vandagriff, Kentucky’s expected starting quarterback when the season opens.

“He is a consummate pro. I’ve said that multiple times,” Kentucky offensive coordinator Bush Hamdan said. “This is a big time football league. We get done with practices at 6:30, he wants to be up in the facility. He’s always watching games on opponents.

“We know at this position it comes down to kind of locking yourself in that room and just working and keep getting better every day and I think that he is a guy that understands that.”

Vandagriff, a five-star recruit out of high school, signed with Kentucky when Liam Coen was the offensive coordinator. A few weeks later Coen left for the NFL and UK coach Mark Stoops brought in Hamdan to run the offense.

“He has done a great job. He’s a real player’s coach. He’s really respectful about when you’re out on the field. He’ll rip you and that’s good. That’s what I asked for when I first met him. I said, ‘Coach, l want to be coached hard,’” Vandagriff said.

“I know I haven’t made it and I want to know if there’s something I can improve on and he’s definitely been a great coach in that aspect. Any time I ever text them about anything I’ve never had another answer besides yes. That’s something you’re looking for in an offensive coordinator. With a quarterback just having that bond and that connection is so important and I have that trust with him.”

Vandagriff, the No. 2 ranked dual-threat quarterback in his recruiting class, played in 13 games at Georgia completing 12 of 21 passes for 165 yards and two scores and ran six times for 46 yards. However, Georgia won national championships in 2021 and 2022.

Vandagriff is avoiding looking ahead to UK’s opening game Aug. 31 against Southern Mississippi and trying to concentrate on what he must do daily in practice.

‘I’m going to do to be the best player I can be at every practice preparation,” the quarterback said.

Kentucky coaches, players and fans have big expectations for this team because of the talent and depth. Vandagriff is not downplaying how much he likes this team.

“I definitely think this team has a chance to be really, really good. Really, really deep. The O-line has got a couple guys coming back that have been great and are teaching the new guys different stuff,” Vandagriff said. “Even if you look back at last year, this team was just a few plays away (from more wins) that were the difference in the ballgames.

“Just making sure we’re ready to make that play when our number is called is something we’ve talked about. I really don’t think it’s optimistic to say that this team will be looking really good because I think we will be too.”

To eliminate some possible distractions, Vandagriff plans to stay off social media during the season. He’s already deleted Instagram and Twitter (X), something he also did at Georgia along with national championship starting quarterback Carson Beck.

“I’ll get it back occasionally if somebody needs me to do something or say something or whatever, but nothing crazy. It just was more for me than anything,” Vandagriff said. “There’s some crazy stuff out there, so you’re just trying to stay away from that. We’re trying to stay level headed doing your job and at the end of the day, it’s all about where you can be your best. If that’s what I believe helps make me be a better player than someone else, I’ll definitely do It (stay off social media for as long as it takes.”

Hamdan said a quarterback coming into a new system with a new offensive coordinator still hast to be a team leader, something Vandagriff has done.

“So much is about scheme and plays, but don’t lose sight about what that looks like when you are in a locker room building those relationships with the guys as the true signal-caller,” Hamdan said.  “Certainly from a play style standpoint it always comes down to accuracy, decision‑ making, toughness, but we really don’t want to lose sight of that leadership part.

Hamdan believes Vandagriff is the “right mold” for a quarterback in his system because he is a “smart player, tough, can run, all those things.”

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