Kentucky QB depth is much improved following addition of Gavin Wimsatt

Quarterback depth has been a problem at Kentucky. Since the battle between Terry Wilson and Gunnar Hoak heading into the 2018 season, the Wildcats have entered every fall camp with a clear starter but a dire situation after QB1. Most importantly, Kentucky has not had a backup with college football snaps played since Sawyer Smith in 2019.

That will change in 2024.

New offensive coordinator Bush Hamdan went looking help at quarterback in the spring transfer portal window and the Wildcats added Rutgers transfer Gavin Wimsatt. The Owensboro (Ky.) High product spent three seasons in the Big Ten and will be a redshirt junior in 2024 with two years of eligibility remaining. Wimsatt immediately gives the Kentucky offense an experienced player to backup Georgia transfer Brock Vandagriff this fall.

“He had an opportunity to come in and compete. He has a lot of snaps under his belt. We don’t have a lot of experience on our roster. He was looking for an opportunity to come in and to improve himself and compete. We like that with Gavin,” Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops told reporters at SEC Media Days. “We like the fact that he’s got snaps under his belt. He’s a big, strong guy and I think he’ll do very well in our system.”

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Kentucky has added a veteran quarterback with 21 career starts. Gavin Wimsatt has played over 1,200 snaps with 2,537 career passing yards and 28 total touchdowns. Last season, the quarterback rushed for 581 non-sack yards with 11 touchdowns and five carries of 20-plus yards. The 227-pound quarterback gives the Wildcats a potential wildcat offense wrinkle and a backup who will fit an offense that will require more running from the quarterback position.

The Wildcats will not ask Wimsatt to start but he gives Hamdan another option for the offense to have in its back pocket as Vandagriff becomes a starter for the first time in his career. For the first time in a few years, Kentucky’s offense should not suffer a significant drop-off at quarterback if a backup was needed to play a series or a full game. Hamdan now has two quarterbacks who can go out and win power conference football games.

KSR’s Scouting Write-Up: Gavin Wimsatt

Gavin Wimsatt played in a primarily shotgun offense at Rutgers under offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarocca in 2023 that included a high volume of RPO actions. A team captain at just 19 years old, Wimsatt struggled with three-level accuracy last season on tape. Looks like he aims the ball on short passes around the line of scrimmage and misfires on slants. Better at pushing the ball downfield showing some good touch and ball placement on throws up the seam and down the sideline. Has velocity to drive the football down the middle. Footwork is erratic and leads to misfires on all three levels. Pocket awareness and good athleticism allowing Wimsatt to extend plays.

North/south runner on zone read concepts who does a good job of reading blocks and getting downhill. Long strider with some breakaway speed. Can provide a legit threat as a change-of-pace runner with the ability to execute multiple gap scheme runs. Raises the floor in Kentucky’s QB room bringing over 1,200 snaps of experience to the offense.

Adam Luckett’s Scouting Notebook