KSR Today: Kentucky gets the job done in Philadelphia

The Kentucky men’s basketball team had a long time to stew on last weekend’s home loss to UNC Wilmington. After a long week, the Wildcats took the floor at the Wells Fargo Center looking to collect another non-conference win. In a homecoming game for Aaron Bradshaw and D.J. Wagner, the Wildcats accomplished the mission.

Despite getting hit with a 20-6 Quakers run over the end of the first that led into the second half cutting the Kentucky lead to 45-43 with just over 16 minutes remaining. However, the Wildcats were able to seize control powered by a plus-10 advantage on the boards. In his second game, freshman Aaron Bradshaw led the way.

Aaron Bradshaw was excited to go home

After a solid debut, Aaron Bradshaw showed why he was such a highly-rated recruit in the class of 2023. The freshman big went for 17 points on 12 field goal attempts with 11 rebounds and three blocks in 29 minutes. The 7-foot-1 freshman was again Kentucky’s leader in plus/minus (+17).

The big fella was excited to be home.

“It’s going to be a blessing to me because not too many people where I come from get to that collegiate level, or even make it past high school,” Bradshaw said leading up to Kentucky‘s matchup in Philadelphia, just 80 miles from his hometown. “It’s going to be a teaching moment for the kids where I live. I can’t really explain the feeling, but it feels amazing.”

That played out on the floor. The future is bright for Kentucky’s young five-man.

How Kentucky won the game

KSR’s crew was hard at work before, during, and after Kentucky’s 81-66 victory over Penn in Philadelphia. One of the biggest highlights was a beautiful three-point make by Robert Dillingham that was important to a whole lot of people.

Rob getting shifty. pic.twitter.com/s9MmHQkKox

— Kentucky Men’s Basketball (@KentuckyMBB) December 9, 2023

We’ve got game recaps and YouTube content. Need some Sunday reading? We’ve got you covered right here.

• Aaron Bradshaw leads Kentucky to a win over Penn
• We’ve got your highlights
• Aaron Bradshaw’s presence makes a big impact
• Where is Justin Edwards?
• D.J. Wagner is critical to Kentucky’s success
• John Calipari has a message for his team
• Jordan Burks is back at the 3

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Raymond Cottrell is a Cat

Texas A&M wide receiver transfer Raymond Cottrell immediately emerged as a transfer portal target for Kentucky. The Wildcats worked quickly to schedule an official visit for the former top-250 recruit with four years of eligibility remaining.

On Saturday, Cottrell went ahead and claimed a spot for himself on the Kentucky roster when he committed to the Cats announcing his intentions to stay in the SEC.

I didn’t want to make an edit post I wanted to do my own thing thank you to the BBN I thank y’all so much for y’all the support has been real…with that being said I WILL BE COMMITING TO THE UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY #BBN GO WILDCATS!!!!!! pic.twitter.com/MiTrv8JCxQ

— Raymond Cottrell (@RaymondCottre14) December 9, 2023

At 6-foot-3 and 210 pounds, Cottrell is a big-bodied wideout with a high school track-and-field background. At Milton High, the class of 2023 recruit was a top-250 prospect due to his ability to run good routes and make tough, competitive catches. Outside of Dane Key, Kentucky really doesn’t have a receiver that can line up into the boundary, beat press coverage, and make tough intermediate catches. Cottrell could provide that to the Wildcats.

The Texas A&M transfer fits a clear need for Kentucky.

Jayden Daniels wins the Heisman Trophy

With no prime-time college football games on a Saturday for the first time since August, we have reached an odd time in the sport as we wait for bowl games to arrive, and coaching staffs are hard at work building next season’s roster through the transfer portal.

To replace the lack of games, the Heisman Trophy ceremony has become a staple on the second Saturday in December. We saw the SEC produce another winner in what was a fairly close vote.

The Moment.

The quarterback from LSU is the Heisman Trophy Winner. pic.twitter.com/nV9pkFEECr

— LSU Football (@LSUfootball) December 10, 2023

Jayden Daniels was voted as the winner over Bo Nix (QB, Oregon), Michael Penix Jr. (QB, Washington), and Marvin Harrison Jr. (WR, Ohio State). Daniels won the Heisman Trophy with 503 first-place votes and 2,029 points. Penix came in second with 1,701 points. Daniels and Penix were the lone players to receive more than 51 first-place votes.

Daniels becomes the third LSU player to win the Heisman joining Billy Cannon in 1959 and Joe Burrow in 2019. The most popular individual award in sports has had quite the SEC flavor over the last 17 years.

• 2007: Tim Tebow (QB, Florida)
• 2008: Sam Bradford (QB, Oklahoma)
• 2009: Mark Ingram (RB, Alabama)
• 2010: Cam Newton (QB, Auburn)
• 2011: Robert Griffin III (QB, Baylor)
• 2012: Johnny Manziel (QB, Texas A&M)
• 2013: Jameis Winston (QB, Florida State)
• 2014: Marcus Mariota (QB, Oregon)
• 2015: Derrick Henry (RB, Alabama)
• 2016: Lamar Jackson (QB, Louisville)
• 2017: Baker Mayfield (QB, Oklahoma)
• 2018: Kyler Murray (QB, Oklahoma)
• 2019: Joe Burrow (QB, LSU)
• 2020: DeVonta Smith (WR, Alabama)
• 2021: Bryce Young (QB, Alabama)
• 2022: Caleb Williams (QB, USC)
• 2023: Jayden Daniels (QB, LSU)

The Southeastern Conference has seen a player bring home this hardware nine times in the last 17 years. With Oklahoma and Texas set to join the league in 2024, that dominance could continue to grow. Daniels became the first player since Lamar Jackson to win the Heisman Trophy on a team with three losses.