COLUMN: Retention of Young Core Crucial to Program Progression at Kentucky

If the Wildcats wish to stay in the top half of the SEC, they must retain most, if not all of its impressive young core.

Perhaps it was a hindrance, perhaps it kept the season afloat, but Kentucky's 2022 campaign relied heavily on the production of young Wildcats. 

The stats speak volumes:

Accumulated by freshmen / sophomores

• 1,645 receiving yards (63% of team total)
• 296 tackles (39%)
• 119 receptions (58%)
• 15 touchdowns (71%)
• 10.5 sacks (55%)
• 4 interceptions (40%)

While veteran stars like Will Levis and Chris Rodriguez continued to lead UK into battle, it was the bevy of playmakers fresh out of high school who helped push the Cats across the finish line for its seven victories.

The 26-13 Governor's Cup win over Louisville on Saturday was a microcosm of that theme. Both of Levis' passing touchdowns and all but 13 of his 188 yards through the air found the hands of freshmen, true or redshirt. Both interceptions thrown by Louisville quarterbacks were picked-off by lowerclassmen. You can say the same about 32 of UK's 68 tackles against the Cardinals. 

Everywhere you look, a freshman is making an eye-popping catch while a sophomore collects another open-field tackle in blue and white. There may not be a more positive and comforting sight for a head coach than that. 

The future appears bright, but there's a colossal dark cloud rapidly approaching the land of college football, also known as the transfer portal, the eater of rosters. 

On Dec. 5, mayhem will ensue. It may as well be an actual portal, because players will be entering and exiting campuses so frequently, that coaching staffs won't know the entirety of their roster by name until the start of conference play next year. 

Kentucky will be no different. 

A player of Barion Brown or Deone Walker's stature should be seeing the pitches of every school in a 5,000 mile radius that has some sort of access to the internet...hell even a messenger pigeon. 

Brown denied rumors of transferring on Saturday night, while Walker dropped a tweet that hinted he was going nowhere. The return of both players would go a long way, even possibly creating a domino effect for other freshmen and sophomores tuning out the wonders of what lie in the portal and amongst a new program.  

It could be those secondary pieces, the middle dominoes, the players who didn't light up the box score this season that could swing the program pendulum in a positive or negative direction for the Wildcats for the foreseeable future. 

Retain the Khalil Saunders' and Jamarius Dinkins' of the roster. Keep and propel the blossoming tight end duo of Jordan Dingle and Josh Kattus. Let the world witness the growth of Keaton Wade in a Kentucky jersey instead of somewhere else. 

If only it were that easy. 

Some players are going to see the ever-flowing river of options that has all of a sudden become so easily accessible. They'll see the collectives and the dollar signs, they'll see the path to more playing time. Frankly, the attraction of it all is understandably mouth-watering. 

The question now remains for Kentucky...how much of that young salient nucleus will avoid the temptation of new opportunity and NIL hotbeds? 

Why stay in Lexington when a top-notch program is doing its best to lure you in like a freshly baked pie cooling down on a windowsill in an old cartoon? 

Kentucky better hope those youngsters find good enough answers to those questions over the next few weeks. Even Yogi Bear can't say no to Alabama's facilities.

Game recap of Kentucky's win over Louisville can be found here.

More on Matt Ruffolo's historic night here.

Barion Brown Denies Transfer Rumors here.

Watch: Stoops, Levis and more talk Governor's Cup win over Cardinals

Game Notes from the victory can be found here.

Want the latest on national football and basketball recruiting, including Cats targets? Head over to SI All-American for the latest news, blogs, and updates about the nation's best prospects.

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