Cutter Boley Optimistic Kentucky can be "Something Special" in the Future

The loss at Texas might have provided a glimpse of the future of Kentucky football. It’s not because of the final result, but the players who were in the game when the Wildcats put a little pressure on the Longhorns in the second half.

A tie ballgame quickly turned into a 24-7 deficit in the final minutes before halftime. Desperate to change things up, Mark Stoops put true freshman Cutter Boley into the game at quarterback.

“We felt like we needed a spark,” Stoops said after the loss. “The only way Cutter wouldn’t have played in this game is if we were in a really tight game and Brock was playing really well. It’s not all on him, I said that at half. I just felt like we needed a spark at that time. We knew we were going against a really good defense. With Cutter in there, I thought he did some good things once again, and he’s gaining some really valuable experience.”

Boley’s first completion was a 43-yard bomb to Barion Brown. A few plays later, he had another 40+ yard pass against an all-out blitz that was ultimately erased by a holding penalty.

He finished his night 10-18 for 160 yards and an interception. In four of the five possessions with Boley under center, Kentucky entered scoring territory. Unfortunately, they didn’t get any points on any of those possessions, a trend that’s plagued the Cats all year long.

“We have to get into the end zone. We have to put some points on the board,” said the young quarterback.

“I was able to go out there and make some stuff happen, but we have to put some points on the board. If we put some points on the board on a few of those drives, then we’d have a chance to go out there and win that game.”

Boley Optimistic About the Future

The spark that Stoops was looking for, you clearly see it when Cutter Boley is in the football game. There’s just something different when he’s out there slinging the rock. It probably leads many to ask the question, “Why couldn’t we have seen this guy at quarterback all year?”

Boley spent the season redshirting. He’ll have an extra year of eligibility after only playing in four games. He has no regrets and believes he benefitted tremendously from the experience.

“I’m definitely really happy that I got to sit and watch Brock and Gavin do their thing. I think I learned a tremendous amount from them throughout the year. I would be nowhere close to as ready as I am without the role models of them two in the room every single day, and watching them go out and execute on gameday,” Boley said. “Without them two, I would not be as ready as I am today.”

Mark Stoops and Bush Hamdan have a decision to make about the Louisville game. They were unwilling to commit to either Boley or Brock Vandagriff in their postgame comments. No matter who plays next Saturday in the Governor’s Cup, Boley believes in the future of Kentucky football.

“We have a great group of guys in that locker room and we all have great attitudes, especially the young guys,” said Boley.

“We really believe we have something special moving forward. We think we can do something at UK that’s never been done before and I feel like every guy in the locker room believes that and we’re going to keep taking the next steps to be that team we want to be.”