Five Thoughts on Kentucky's 2024 SEC Slate

The new era of the SEC poses a big question for Kentucky: Can it take that next step?

Kentucky is going to find itself in some of the best environments in all of college football in 2024. 

The bi-yearly trips to The Swamp and Rocky Top. A quick return back to The Grove in Oxford. The program's second-ever game at the iconic Memorial Stadium in Austin. Four highly-regarded atmospheres that many college football fans seek out whenever the opportunity presents. 

Oh...and Akron. Can't forget the true cathedral that is InfoCision Stadium.

On Wednesday night, the new era of sports in the Southeastern Conference felt closer than ever, as the SEC released the in-conference opponents for all 16 teams in 2024, including the additions of Texas and Oklahoma. 

The eight-game schedule lived to fight another day, leading to this octet of games for coach Mark Stoops' Wildcats:

HOME

• Auburn
• Georgia
• South Carolina
• Vanderbilt

AWAY

• Texas
• Florida
• Ole Miss
• Tennessee

Here are five thoughts about the schedule release and what it means for UK:

It's Really Happening

There's been so much blown smoke regarding the conference actually adding Texas and Oklahoma. Then came the initial reports that the Longhorns and Sooners leaving the Big 12 was more than a possibility, then the reports that it was actually happening. 

Eventually, the dust settled and the two powerhouse programs were headed to the best conference in football in 2024. While another season stands between the domino finally falling, the opponent reveal on Wednesday sets the groundwork for the next chapter. 

Dates for the SEC games will be announced at a later date, but Kentucky is indeed headed to Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium in Austin to play the University of Texas in a conference football game. That's a sentence that won't sound right for some time. 

The East and West divisions will cease, leaving opportunities for old rivalries to renew and new rivalries to form. The two best teams will head to Atlanta to play in the SEC Championship. New beginnings. 

Not all realignment feels necessary, and the future might look scary for some programs in those middling conferences that could find themselves without a plausible home in the future. Currently, however, the new-look SEC invokes excitement. 

Tough Road Slate for UK 

Thanks to the transfer portal, predicting how good or bad a team is going to be in two years is as difficult a task as ever. Based off a mixture of names and trajectory, though, it's still fair to say that none of the four SEC road games on UK's schedule are going to be remotely close to easy. 

Assuming the best for the four programs, quarterback Arch Manning will be living up to the hype at Texas. Coach Billy Napier will have the ship turned around in Gainesville. Ole Miss won't have lost Lane Kiffin and will still be improving. Tennessee will still be a high-powered, seemingly indestructible offense.

From an atmosphere standpoint, all four venues and fanbases are up there with the best in college football. Memorial, Ben Hill Griffin, Vaught Hemingway and Neyland each carry a touted and loud history. 

Again, who knows where UK or anyone else in the SEC will stand in 2024, but winning on the road looks like it may be as hard as ever. 

Things Could Be Worse

Having said that, take a peak at some of the other schedules in the conference:

Complete list of SEC football opponents for the 2024 season. pic.twitter.com/GDXo1V7wSP

— FBSchedules.com (@FBSchedules) June 14, 2023

Including a non-conference road trip to play Wisconsin, Alabama also heads to LSU, Oklahoma and Tennessee. Georgia opens the season vs. Clemson, then later has to go to Alabama and Texas. Mississippi State is set to go through the wringer.

Florida is set to play just one game against a non-Power 5 opponent in 2024. 

LSU perhaps got off the best of any team, but there are no easy schedules. The SEC found balance, leading to a tough time for all 16 schools. Kentucky is going to have its hands full with the road slate and of course hosting Georgia, but it could be worse, just by looking other schedules. 

See You Later Mississippi State, Missouri

While there's nothing sexy about playing Mississippi State and Missouri, those are a pair of games UK will likely wish were still on the docket when 2024 rolls around, as neither are trending to be near the top of the league. 

The Cats will attempt to break their Starkville skid this upcoming season, but playing the Bulldogs at Kroger Field is often welcomed. Missouri has become a bit of a rival with UK, as things always get chippy when the two programs collide. 

2024 will be the first year since 1989 that UK won't play Miss State and the first since 2011 that it won't play Mizzou. 

Essentially trading those two games for Auburn and Ole Miss doesn't make things easier in the slightest for Kentucky, but it does breakup the monotony of the yearly schedule and adds an interesting spice that will sometimes benefit the Cats, and other times be a detriment. 

Tying Things In With Non-Conference Schedule

Those eight games join the Governor's Cup vs. Louisville, the road game at Akron and two home games vs. Ohio and Murray State. 

Kentucky's contract with Akron has been amended multiple times, but that trip to InfoCision Stadium to open the season is still currently a go. Stoops' teams are past the point of a game like that being worrisome, but it will be different. It makes back-to-back seasons with five road games, as UK will head to Louisville in 2023 to go along with four SEC road trips. 

Speaking of Louisville, what direction will the program be in under Jeff Brohm by the time the 2024 Governor's Cup rolls around? Based off the Cardinals' transfer portal usage and easy-to-see potential, that game could carry plenty more oomph than it did in the Scott Satterfield era. 

Kentucky will have its hands full. As Stoops has trekked up the SEC totem pole, the Wildcats have garnered respect. With the landscape changing and schedules getting consistently harder, will UK continue to grow? Or will Texas and Oklahoma serve as two reminders that it just isn't at that level just yet. 

With the College Football Playoff expansion also on the horizon, Kentucky must face the challenge of taking one more leap to reach that echelon of teams that can realistically finish a regular season as one of the top 12 teams in the country. 

Observations from Kentucky's final open spring practice HERE.

Safety Zion Childress is emerging as a leader on the UK defense

WATCH: Kentucky football's transfer portal signees speak to the media

Devin Leary discusses his decision to transfer to Kentucky HERE.

Ray Davis isn't following former Kentucky RB's footsteps. More 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.

Sports Illustrated also offers insight, information and up to the minute details for gamblers. Check it out here.