The Blue/White scrimmage is officially over and now that the Spring Game is done there are many questions that I had going into this that have been answered for the most part. Some of those questions were kind of obvious, like how good is Brock Vandagriff, how has the secondary improved from last season to now, and actually how good is the incoming freshmen for the 2024 class?
Let's start with the big question that many Kentucky fans probably have. How good is Brock Vandagriff? I think that is a fair question to ask, especially with getting such a big-time name to transfer in from Georgia. Brock appears to be very solid from what was displayed on Saturday. Kind of like with Devin Leary, he has an absolute cannon for an arm. I think the difference between the two is that Vandagriff has better control on his throws. His accuracy seems to be much better when comparing the two. Defensive back, Maxwell Hairston, even eluded to Brock's ability to place the ball where only the receiver could get to it which will be extremely important in SEC play as they go up on a weekly basis against some of the most talented secondary players in the country. Hairston jokingly said it frustrates him when trying to defend it in practices.
You can watch Maxwell Hairston’s postgame press conference on our YouTube channel below.
Let's take a look real quick at the rest of the quarterback room. Both Beau Allen and Cutter Boley saw a lot of snaps during the spring game as well. The difference in Allen from what he was like as a redshirt freshman in 2021 to now is quite impressive if I am being honest. He has a lot more confidence throwing the ball and seems to be a lot more physical, bulking up in weight to become much stronger. This was an awesome pickup for Kentucky to challenge Brock Vandagriff to get better every week. Someone who is a Lexington native that knows what’s expected within the program extremely well.
Then there is the freshman, Cutter Boley. Boley is very raw, but the potential I have to say is clearly there. He has an extremely strong arm the only issue I can see right now is accuracy and not being able to place the ball where the receivers can get them. Working with Brock and Beau over this next year will be super beneficial for him and his growth.
Here is what Brock Vandagriff had to say when addressed by the media after Saturday’s Spring Game.
I know last year there was a lot of criticism surrounding the secondary play. I won't go into too much detail about this because this was still just a scrimmage and not a real game situation, but I will say this; I was encouraged by the play of a couple of secondary players today. Maxwell Hairston was a standout of course but the other was Jaremiah Anglin Jr. The redshirt freshman broke up several passes in today's scrimmage and looked really comfortable out there. He will be one to keep an eye on over the course of the season.
The final takeaway of the day was Kentucky's freshman class. These guys are impressing staff very early on in their freshman seasons at Kentucky. Jason Patterson looked really good today at the tailback spot and made some good cuts to open up holes to run through. Hardley Gilmore, a name that has been thrown around quite a bit this off-season, looks comfortable as he managed to come down with a lot of catches today. Jerod Smith and Steven Soles Jr. also managed to impress me. They are both very explosive and quick off the line. There were a couple of occasions that if it were a real game situation Soles would have lived up to his nickname "Sack em' Soles".
Overall it was a beautiful day to watch some football and there was a good fan turnout to see what the Wildcats have been working on over the past couple of weeks. At the end of the day, you can't take a whole lot out of a glorified practice but there are a lot of encouraging pieces that if this team gets and stays healthy throughout the summer, they’ll have a pretty high ceiling and even Mark Stoops seemed to be pleased by how things went today.
Here is what Mark Stoops had to say when recapping the event.