SEC football fans need to buy stock in the Kentucky Wildcats now

Kentucky football is going to surprise fans this season.

Sep 16, 2023; Lexington, Kentucky, USA; Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Stoops runs onto the field before the game against the Akron Zips at Kroger Field. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-USA TODAY Sports / Jordan Prather-USA TODAY Sports

Kentucky fans will soon get to hear the most beautiful words that can be uttered in Lexington: It's football time in the Bluegrass. On August 31st, Southern Miss will make the trip to Lexington to take on the Kentucky Wildcats, officially kicking off the season for Mark Stoops and his team.

Many SEC football fans are writing off this Kentucky team, but talent-wise, it could be Coach Stoops's best team ever. The Wildcats brought in Georgia transfer quarterback Brock Vandagriff, who was a five-star out of high school. He was buried behind some elite players but brought all of his upside to Lexington.

Coach Stoops also hit the portal hard, bringing in CB DJ Waller Jr, QB Gavin Wimsatt, RB Chip Trayanum, WR Ja'Mori Maclin, and elite LB Jamon Dumas-Johnson. All of these players are going to have an instant impact on this team, and the addition of Dumas-Johnson gives Kentucky one of the best linebacker rooms in college football.

All of these additions, plus returning players like Maxwell Hairston, Deone Walker, and Barion Brown have this Kentucky team in a really good spot heading into the 2024 season.

The Wildcats have a tough schedule, having to play Ole Miss, Tennessee, and Texas all on the road and hosting the Georgia Bulldogs, but this team is capable of pulling off the upset in one of these games.

If Vandagriff ends up being as good as many believe he can, this Kentucky football team is capable of going 8-4 or 9-3, even with the incredibly difficult schedule the Wildcats have to play.