KSR Today: Mark Stoops, Ole Miss Availability Report, and Game of the Week
Good morning, folks! Ole Miss Week at the KSR headquarters continues to roll right along as we’re now just two more sleeps away from Kentucky’s first road game of the season against the Rebels. Saturday’s noon kickoff will present a massive opportunity for the Wildcats to flip the season around. Meanwhile, No. 6 Ole Miss and head coach Lane Kiffin will face their toughest opponent yet after an easy early-season stretch to reach a 4-0 record.
As we do every Thursday, we’ll hear from Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops one more time this afternoon as he provides his final pregame thoughts before Saturday. He’ll likely be asked about the status of running back Chip Trayanum, who Stoops said was cleared to return from injury earlier this week, but was still listed as doubtful on Wednesday night’s Availability Report.
On that note, Kentucky ended up with seven players on the first Report of the week (the second one will come out tonight) while Ole Miss listed 26 (yes, 26!) players.
- Hardley Gilmore IV (WR) – Out
- Darrion Henry-Young (DL) – Out
- Courtland Ford (OL) – Out
- Tavion Gadson (DL) – Out
- Josaih Hayes (DL) – Out
- Devin Smith (LB) – Doubtful
- Chip Trayanum (RB) — Doubtful
Brad White, BVG preview Ole Miss
Following Wednesday’s practice, defensive coordinator Brad White talked with reporters about slowing down Ole Miss’ high-scoring offense. White was followed by DB Zion Childress, DL Deone Walker, and DB DJ Waller, who all had thoughts on the Rebels’ offense. We also heard from QB Brock Vandagriff, who shared his perspective from the other side of the ball and how Kentucky will attack Ole Miss’ defense.
Hear everything they had to say in the videos below.
Big Blue Madness with a twist
Mark Pope told the Kentucky fanbase that this year’s edition of Big Blue Madness would go “next level” with attractions that had never been seen in college basketball before. So far, he’s not letting us down.
UK announced yesterday that this year’s Big Blue Madness will partner with ASB GlassFloor, a global leader in innovative sports flooring, to create a “full LED video sports floor allowing for interactive applications” throughout the entire event. Kentucky will be the first college basketball program to utilize this technology, which was also used during the 2024 NBA All-Star Weekend.
“This is something that’s never been seen in college basketball before,” Pope said in UK’s press release. “Big Blue Madness is one of the great spectacles in all of sports. We are so excited for Kentucky Basketball to be the first college program to partner with ASB GlassFloor, bringing this exciting technology to Big Blue Nation. Our team can’t wait to put on a show in Rupp Arena on Oct. 11.”
Big Blue Madness is set for Friday, Oct. 11. Tickets for the annual preseason event go on sale Friday.
Fresh episode of 11 Personnel
Need more football talk to prepare you for Saturday? Let the 11 Personnel crew of KSR’s Nick Roush and Adam Luckett help you out. The guys preview Ole Miss by talking about Jaxson Dart’s Heisman odds, how the Rebels’ defense will approach Bush Hamdan‘s offense, what the potential return of Trayanum means for the Wildcats, and much more.
Weather moves up KSR Game of the Week
The KSR Game of the Week between No. 3 Paducah Tilghman (5-0) and Allen County-Scottsville (5-0) isn’t the only game that’s been moved from Friday to Thursday though. Due to impending inclement weather expected to hit the state on Friday, dozens of high school football games have been rescheduled to Thursday night. The Game of the Week was one of them, as was No. 6 DuPont Manual vs. No. 18 Christian Academy-Louisville.
Click the link here for a full preview of tonight’s KSR GOTW. Click here for an updated look at tonight’s schedule. More changes could be on the way throughout the day.
Kentucky women’s soccer looks to bounce back
Speaking of the weather, tonight’s Kentucky women’s soccer match against Georgia has also seen a time change. The game is still scheduled for this evening, but kickoff has been bumped to 5:00 p.m. EST with gates opening at the Bell Soccer Complex at 4:00 p.m. EST. SEC Network+ will still carry the event.
Following a historic 8-0-0 start to the season, the Wildcats have since tied Florida (0-0) and lost to South Carolina (0-1). Georgia comes to Lexington just outside of the national poll with a 5-3-2 mark.
Two 5-star recruits arrive in Lexington tomorrow
Two weeks after hosting five-star power forward Caleb Wilson for an official visit, Mark Pope and the Kentucky Wildcats will welcome two more five-stars to Lexington this weekend.
6-foot-10 power forward Chris Cenac and 6-foot-3 point guard Mikel Brown Jr. will both officially visit Kentucky this weekend, arriving on Friday and staying throughout the weekend before heading back home on Sunday. Cenac is No. 7 overall in the 2025 class by the On3 Industry Ranking while Brown checks in at No. 11.
Cenac is down to a Top 12 that includes UK, Arkansas, Alabama, Auburn, Baylor, Houston, Louisville, LSU, Michigan State, Tennessee, Texas, and UConn. Brown does not have a group of finalists but is currently finishing up a visit to Louisville with trips to Maryland, Central Florida, and Arizona on the schedule for the fall.
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