Stock watch: Kentucky football opener helps quiet preseason doubts about one position

Considering Southern Miss only won three games a year ago, it was always going to be dangerous to read much into Kentucky’s season opener.

But add in the fact the Wildcats only played a little more than one half in the lightning-shortened 31-0 victory and it becomes even harder to know what lessons to apply to upcoming Southeastern Conference games.

Still, there were plenty of encouraging performances in the 35 minutes of game action. Here’s a look at what is trending up and what is trending down for the Wildcats in the Herald-Leader’s weekly UK football stock watch.

STOCK UP: Run game

Perhaps the biggest question on the roster for Kentucky entering the season was running back, where coaches predicted a committee approach even before presumed starter Chip Trayanum was sidelined by a hand injury. The coaches held true to that promise with three backs recording carries in the abbreviated opener, but for at least one night the committee approach looked to be the result of multiple productive options rather than the lack of a true star.

Starter Demie Sumo-Karngbaye totaled 59 yards and one touchdown on eight carries. Redshirt freshman Jamarion Wilcox added two carries for 8 yards in his UK debut. Freshman Jason Patterson had perhaps the most impressive drive of the game of any running back and finished the night with four carries for 28 yards.

“You saw what I had been talking about,” UK coach Mark Stoops said of his running backs. “We felt very confident with Demie, and Jason I thought showed his physicality and vision. And Jamarion can go. I think he is going to give us something this year. He needs to continue to push and grow and be reliable so we can trust him. And they have some talent.”

Perhaps most telling from the opener was the rushing committee was not limited to just running backs.

Quarterback Brock Vandagriff totaled five carries for 35 yards, gaining three first downs with his legs. Three wide receivers recorded carries on jet sweeps. Barion Brown led that group with three rushes for 14 yards.

New offensive coordinator Bush Hamdan was not available for interviews after the game due to the weather-altered schedule, but it appears he has already added several wrinkles for South Carolina to prepare for this week. The abbreviated game meant we did not even see any of the wildcat formation planned for backup quarterback Gavin Wimsatt.

There are still questions about whether Sumo-Karngbaye and the younger running backs have the physicality to gain tough yards against SEC defenses — it should be noted the lone third-and-short run in the game was a jet sweep to Brown — but it is difficult to argue with the results from the opener.

STOCK UP: Linebacker play

With defensive tackle Deone Walker and cornerback Maxwell Hairston ranked as top-50 2025 NFL draft prospects entering the season, the second level of Kentucky’s defense flew somewhat under the radar.

The opener offered a reminder that there is plenty of talent in the linebacker corps, though.

Georgia transfer Jamon Dumas-Johnson looked the part of former All-American with an interception on his second play as a Wildcat. J.J. Weaver opened the season with a sack. Alex Afari totaled two tackles for loss. D’Eryk Jackson recorded three tackles and made a crucial tip of a pass near the end zone that allowed cornerback JQ Hardaway to end Southern Miss’s only scoring threat with an interception.

The linebacker play helped Kentucky limit Southern Miss to just 5 rushing yards.

“The line (of scrimmage), you gotta win it,” Dumas-Johnson said. “You win the line of scrimmage, win the game. Simple.”

STOCK DOWN: Weather

The only true negative from the opener was beyond Kentucky’s control.

A run of 12 years without a game delayed by weather, especially considering some of the rain games Kentucky has played in recent years, was more than could reasonably be hoped for, so a night like Saturday was bound to happen eventually. While it was a bizarre sight to see the stadium kept empty until shortly before the original kickoff time despite no rain, the lightning protocols are designed to keep fans and players safe.

Much of the pomp and circumstance associated with a season opener was lost due to the delay, but UK did at least have a few opportunities to show off the new light shows made possible by an offseason renovation. Unfortunately the viewing experience at home was affected by the weather too with the SEC Network crew not using their normal on-field cameras due to the risk of lightning.

Let’s hope for a smoother afternoon this week for a 3:30 p.m. start against South Carolina.

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