First Down Kentucky: Commits Receive Rankings Bump

Even though it is still early in the recruiting cycle, a couple of future Kentucky Wildcats are seeing their stock move in the right direction. 247 Sports ended the recruiting dead period by updating their Top 247 rankings and a couple of Cats received a big bump.

Isaiah West, the most recent addition to Kentucky’s 2025 recruiting class, moved up to No. 205 overall as the No. 11 overall running back in the country. He’s now considered a four-star, Top 300 talent by at least two recruiting services. Quintin Simmons also saw his stock make a steep rise, now up to No. 148 overall as the No. 12 wide receiver in America. The latest move makes Simmons the No. 276 overall player in the On3 Industry Rankings.

There’s plenty of room for rankings movement, but it’s clear Kentucky is off to a great start in the 2025 class and they aren’t slowing down anytime soon. The Cats will be hosting Martels Carter for a visit next month and 247 ranked the state’s top athlete as the No. 206 overall player. QB Brennen Ward was on campus yesterday, keeping the wheels in motion for an eventful spring of recruiting.

Spike Sowells on the Road

The Kentucky target from Louisville Male High School is kicking off his next round of visits in Raleigh. I know it’s just NC State and they play in the ACC, but the Wolf Pack have positioned themselves nicely in the talented offensive lineman’s recruitment. Kentucky is expected to host Spike Sowells during spring practice, just don’t sleep on NC State as a contender.

Ray Davis is the Y at Rupp Arena

Fresh off an exceptional weekend at the NFL Combine, Ray Davis was invited to Rupp Arena to be the final ceremonial Y of the 2023-24 regular season. Was it a coincidence that this game was played against Vanderbilt, his former school? I think not.

Tonight’s ‘Y’ at Rupp Arena… Ray Davis! pic.twitter.com/uw6TLFjpyV

— Jack Pilgrim (@JackPilgrimKSR) March 7, 2024

Kentucky Football Stat to Clean Up

There are various ways to measure efficiency. Success rate might be the simplest analytical approach. Another lens takes a more pessimistic approach. Folks who follow the 12% Rule subscribe to the belief that a team’s combined penalties, negative plays, turnovers, and drops should account for 12% or less of their snaps.

The Kentucky offense did not abide by the 12% Rule in 2023. Anecdotally, we knew the Wildcats were the kings of unforced errors. There are numbers that back that up. The Kentucky offense ran plays of negative yards and committed penalties, turnovers, or drops on 16% of their snaps. It’s tied with Bowling Green for the worst mark in FBS football. The defense was right on average at 12.1%, but the offense must play cleaner football under Bush Hamdan in 2024.

Chiefs Fans getting Frostbite Amputations

Remember the AFC Wild Card game on Peacock? It was the fourth-coldest game in the history of the NFL. It was -4 degrees, with wind chills as low as -27. Half of the 69 calls the Kansas City Fire Department received at Arrowhead Stadium were hypothermia-related. Dr. Megan Garcia tells KSN she treated dozens of patients for frostbite during the cold spell and half of them attended the Chiefs’ frigid Wild Card win over the Dolphins.

“The patients who had their frostbite injuries along with the Chiefs game, they are just getting to the point now we are starting to discuss their amputations that might be necessary,” Garcia said Tuesday, explaining that 70% of the patients referred for frostbite injuries suffered earlier this year are now being advised to schedule amputations.