Jamarion Wilcox appears to be the future for Kentucky at RB

When you play one of the worst teams in college football, you’re supposed to perform at the highest level in a thorough and complete beatdown. It may not have been quite that for Kentucky — who covered the 38.5-point spread in the 48-6 win, but committed nine penalties for 87 yards with four sacks taken and two turnovers — but it was more than enough to get the job done.

“Obviously we were long overdue,” Mark Stoops said after the win. “We needed a victory and our team has been good I thought, as I mentioned coming off of the bye. Trying to physically and mentally heal up a little bit.”

Of the standouts to help the Wildcats coast to the six-touchdown win? Jamarion Wilcox, who finished with 123 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries for an average of 9.5 yards per carry. It was his second consecutive 100-yard game, making him the first Kentucky player with consecutive 100-yard performances since Chris Rodriguez did it in 2022. He’s also the first freshman with consecutive 100-yard games since Benny Snell did it in three straight matchups in 2016.

Stoops will be the first to admit he’s been hard on Wilcox — remember the head coach’s rant about the redshirt freshman’s untied shoelaces? – but the criticism has been well-intentioned. He’s made it clear from the beginning it’s because he believes in the Douglasville, GA’s future in Lexington, but he can’t take shortcuts to get there. Without discipline on and off the field, he’ll never be able to hit his ceiling.

“Jamarion is a guy that you’ve heard me say many times that I believe in his talent, and he’s a very good player. We are leaning on him to be consistent on and off the field. Do things right, be on time to meetings, the little things,” Stoops said back in September.

The product we saw Saturday vs. Murray State was part of the reason Stoops has gone out of his way to hold Wilcox accountable up to this point. He’s a clear star in the making, but the inability to develop good habits early while fully grasping the playbook have limited him from taking the keys in the backfield.

That goes for every young talent looking to find his footing in the SEC.

“He’s no different than anybody. He’s never, I mean — he’s no different than any player on our team,” Stoops said. “Jamarion’s always been really, you know, good attitude, really positive and everything. It’s just there’s a lot to the offense. Just learning every little facet of it and out of those things.  And sometimes, you know — he’s grown.”

When he’s humming, though? Look out, both now and down the road. His 123 yards don’t even include the 73-yarder he had called back due to a hold that would have given him 196 on the day. He’s the most talented back in the room and it’s not particularly close.

“There is no denying that running ability. No doubt about it,” Stoops said. “I was joking with him on the sideline. At one point, I think he was averaging 12 yards per run and they called back – I don’t know how long that one was he had. 73? Yeah, that would have been a pretty good average.”

All of that natural ability? You can thank Stoops for it. He did show Wilcox everything he knows as a quick and agile backfield threat, after all.

“Yeah, he’s a talented runner. I teach him that,” he joked.

.@JamarionWilcox1 battling into the endzone for a TOUCHDOWN.

📺 – @SECNetwork+ pic.twitter.com/OveXXnCYfA

— Kentucky Football (@UKFootball) November 16, 2024