KSR Today: More NSD prep, Santa Bradshaw, WKU's comeback

Good morning, folks! National Signing Day is only one sleep away. Kentucky football’s 20 high school commits and four transfer portal commits are all expected to sign with the program on Wednesday. There could be some surprises too — both good and bad. We’re expecting a busy next 36 hours at the KSR headquarters.

In the leadup to NSD, offensive coordinator Liam Coen spoke with the media on Monday. He talked about things he’s not supposed to. This afternoon, we’ll hear from defensive coordinator Brad White. Maybe he’ll spill some beans too?

If you want to stay as up-to-date as possible on this Tuesday morning, might I suggest last night’s episode of the KSR Football Podcast featuring Nick Roush and Adam Luckett? The guys break down the possibility of a late addition to this year’s class along with the hiring of Kentucky’s new wide receivers coach, Trevin Wallace going to the NFL, and much more.

Before you settle in for the morning, make sure you find time to give it a listen. Once you do, you can dive into the rest of today’s news and notes below.

Take advantage of the KSR+ SIGNING DAY SALE to get bonus coverage of the Cats, including football transfer portal rumblings, basketball game threads, in-depth scouting reports, and the latest recruiting intel. 50% off the annual price or $1 for 1 month.

Kentucky MBB cracks the top 10

In both of the major national polls, actually. Both the Associated Press and Coaches Polls slotted Kentucky men’s basketball at No. 9 in the country on Monday following Saturday’s big win over North Carolina. Kentucky actually took UNC’s spot from the previous week. A fair deal, in our opinion.

RANK	TEAM	RECORD	TREND	POINTS
1	Purdue	10-1	⬆️ 2	1534 (48)
2	Kansas	10-1	—	1457 (6)
3	Houston	11-0	⬆️ 1	1394 (8)
4	Arizona	8-1	⬇️ 3	1372
5	UConn	10-1	—	1367
6	Marquette	9-2	⬆️ 1	1235
7	Oklahoma	10-0	⬆️ 4	1062
8	Tennessee	8-3	⬆️ 4	983
9	Kentucky	8-2	⬆️ 5	981
10	Baylor	9-1	⬇️ 4	896
11	North Carolina	7-3	⬇️ 2	773
12	Creighton	9-2	⬇️ 4	734
13	Illinois	8-2	⬆️ 3	727
14	Florida Atlantic	9-2	⬆️ 1	716
15	Gonzaga	8-3	⬇️ 5	642
16	Colorado State	10-1	⬆️ 1	588
17	BYU	10-1	⬆️ 1	569
18	Clemson	9-1	⬇️ 5	501
19	Texas	8-2	—	449
20	James Madison	10-0	—	442
21	Duke	7-3	—	311
22	Virginia	9-1	—	287
23	Memphis	8-2	—	274
24	Wisconsin	8-3	⬇️ 1	269
25	Ole Miss	10-0	—	180

Others Receiving Votes

Miami 97, Auburn 87, Colorado 84, Utah 37, Iowa St. 24, Ohio St. 12, Michigan St. 10, TCU 10, Texas A&M 9, San Diego St. 8, Northwestern 5, Providence 5, Alabama 3, Dayton 3, Nevada 3, New Mexico 2, Grand Canyon 2, Washington 2, Saint Joseph’s 2, South Carolina 1, Mississippi St. 1.

KSR is going to Louisville for UL-UK

Ahead of Thursday’s matchup against the Louisville Cardinals (reminder, it’s still Louisville Hate Week, no matter how bad they are), the KSR crew is taking the radio show to Bearnos Pizza in New Albany. As always, it will air from 10-noon EST that morning. Tipoff is set for 6:00 p.m. EST on ESPN. The pregame show will also take place in Louisville at Country Boy Brewing from 3:30-4:30 p.m. EST.

Go ‘Cats. Beat the Cards.

For the @LouisvilleMBB – @KentuckyMBB game on Thursday, we will do @KySportsRadio at @BearnosPizza in New Albany.

3002 Charlestown Crossing, New Albany

And then do the pregame show from @CountryBoyBrew in Louisville from 330-430 at 400 South 2nd Street. Lville

— Ryan Lemond (@ryanlemond) December 18, 2023

DJ Wagner = SEC Freshman of the Week

For the second time this season, actually. DJ Wagner‘s performance against UNC — 14 points, a season-high six rebounds, and five assists — was more than enough in the eyes of the Southeastern Confernce to recognize the point guard with the honor again.

Wagner was also named SEC Freshman of the Week in late November after averaging 25 points and 5.5 assists on nearly 55 percent shooting in wins over St. Joseph’s and Marshall. He is the second Wildcat to take home the honor this season. Reed Sheppard was also tabbed SEC Freshman of the Week at the beginning of the month.

Tyler Hansbrough is a loser

You already knew this, but the former Tar Heel reconfirms it every time he opens his mouth.

Tyler Hansbrough thought his alma mater was going to beat Kentucky over the weekend in Atlanta, Obviously, he was dead wrong on that prediction (he said UNC by 12 — almost impressive how wrong he was!). But instead of showing any grace, he resorted to back-handed compliments and 4th grade-level jokes. Classic, Psycho T.

We don’t expect anything less from the guy who turned John Wall away from North Carolina.

Tyler Hansbrough has a message for Big Blue Nation after Kentucky's win over North Carolina 👀

See the full video:https://t.co/mLMQUQyHvh pic.twitter.com/0qFoFiM1Sr

— The Field of 68 (@TheFieldOf68) December 19, 2023

WKU won the Buttered Toast Bowl

Or whatever the bowl game was named, but it doesn’t matter. All that matters is Western Kentucky overcame a 28-0 deficit to Old Dominion, marching all the way back to win in overtime, 38-35, marking the fourth-largest comeback in college football bowl history. The Toppers converted a 15-yard touchdown pass on fourth down with just 18 seconds left to force the extra period.

In overtime, ODU got the ball and moved it to the one-yard line, but WKU held on to force the field goal — blocked by the Toppers. Given the chance to pull off the miraculous win, they earned a first down, then centered the ball for a 29-yard game-winning field goal attempt, drilled by kicker Lucas Carneiro.

Toast was eaten in celebration — no, seriously.

Will Levis is going to be just fine

It sure didn’t look like it initially though. The Tennessee Titans franchise quarterback went down with what appeared to be a serious injury during the beginning of overtime on Sunday against the Houston Texans. His leg got caught under a defender and many immediately feared the worst. We won’t be showing you the replay.

But Levis’ rookie season will live to see another day. According to Ian Rapoport, Levis only suffered a sprained ankle — “It could’ve been a lot worse,” Levis said — and it sounds like he won’t be missing any significant time. His status for Sunday’s game against the Seattle Seahawks is currently up in the air.

Maybe if the Titans didn’t give up seven sacks in a single game, the team’s quarterback of the future wouldn’t be spending half the game on the turf.

Aaron Bradshaw played Santa

Aaron Bradshaw‘s outgoing personality made him the perfect fit to play Santa this holiday season (was Santa 7-foot-1?). As they do every year, the Kentucky men’s basketball team hosted 10 families to a mini-Christmas at the Wildcat Coal Lodge — a big dinner and even more gifts, which included shoes, toys, TVs, and even rent checks.

A Kentucky Basketball Christmas featuring Santa @bradshawaaron25 Claus. pic.twitter.com/VmV8XvCpam

— Kentucky Men’s Basketball (@KentuckyMBB) December 18, 2023

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