KSR Today: Transfer portal frenzy and Brock Vandagriff updates

Good morning, folks. It’s only Tuesday but it sure feels like a Thursday. That’s what happens when the transfer portal (or college “free agency”) opens up, which it officially did this week. Kentucky football has not been immune to the impact of the portal, having already seen several pieces from last season’s roster looking for new homes. But on the flip side, there is plenty of positive momentum surrounding the program in regard to potential portal additions.

There’s a lot going on right now. Let’s catch up on the biggest news together.

An early morning decommitment

If you’re a member over at KSBoard, you knew there was a possibility of a football decommitment on Monday night. A little over 12 hours later, the rumors became a reality. Four-star linebacker Elijah Groves, who had been committed to Kentucky since July, announced on social media this morning that he is reopening his recruitment.

“First off I want to thank god for giving me a chance to further my football career to the next level,” Groves wrote on social media. “I want to thank all my family for putting a roof over my head and clothes on my back. I want to thank my highschool coaches for taking me in not only as a athlete but as a son, but with all that being said I will be decommitting from Kentucky and opening my recruitment back up. I just ask yall to respect my decision!”

Purdue and NC State, which were finalists the first time around before he committed to UK, are expected to be among the favorites as his next landing spot. Groves was the sixth-highest-rated commit for Kentucky and a top 250 national recruit from the 2024 class.

Got thoughts? Continue the conversation on KSBoard, the KSR Message Board. New members can try 1 month for $1.

Keep an eye on Georgia QB Brock Vandagriff…

Almost immediately after Georgia backup quarterback Brock Vandagriff entered his name into the transfer portal on Monday, Kentucky quickly became the school mentioned the most. Multiple sources tell On3’s Pete Nakos that UK is “the top destination” for the former five-star recruit. Vandagriff was rated as the nation’s No. 22 overall recruit in the 2021 class and served as Georgia’s primary backup in 2023. The grad transfer appeared in 13 games for the Bulldogs during his three seasons in Athens.

Nothing is set in stone by any means, but Vandagriff is clearly a top portal target for Kentucky. He also has a wild head of hair and a lumberjack-esque beard. Does that matter when it comes to football? No, but it makes for a fun talking point. You can learn more about Vandagriff with our Bio Blast breakdown. A decision is expected to come soon, too.

“If it’s not done this weekend, it will be done next weekend,” Brock’s father, Greg Vandagriff, told 247Sports’ Steven Wilftong of a decision. “He will probably commit and then go visit.”

Who is going portaling?

By our count, nearly a dozen Wildcats have already entered their names into the transfer portal. The biggest loss is true sophomore linebacker Keaten Wade, who went into the portal not long after twin brother Destin (backup QB) did the same. Interestingly enough, RB JuTahn McClain has also gone into the portal, but head coach Mark Stoops said on Monday that McClain expects to play in Kentucky’s bowl game (adding that starting running back Ray Davis might do the same, too) against Clemson later this month. Of note, backup QB Deuce Hogan sent out a post on social media indicating he was transferring, but it was later deleted, so we’ll leave him off the list for now.

• DB Jalen Geiger 
• WR Dekel Crowdus
• DL Jamarius Dinkins
• OL Grant Bingham
• TE Izayah Cummings
• LB Luke Fulton
• RB JuTahn McClain
• QB Destin Wade
• OLB Keaten Wade
• WR Shamar Porter
• LB Martez Thrower

Stay up to date on all things transfer portal as it relates to Kentucky football with KSR’s Transfer Portal Tracker.

KSR Football Podcast: Transfer Portal Special

Need more portal content? KSR’s Nick Roush and Adam Luckett have you covered. The boys went live on Monday afternoon for another edition of the KSR Football Podcast to talk about the outgoing Wildcats and who the Kentucky coaches have their eyes set on as potential additions to next season’s roster.

DJ Wagner remains day-to-day

Kentucky starting point guard DJ Wagner went down with an ankle injury during the Wildcats dominating win over the Miami Hurricanes last week and then sat out UK’s loss to UNC-Wilmington over the weekend. Will he be ready to go for Kentucky’s game this Saturday against Penn up in Philadelphia? As of this morning, we still don’t have a clear idea.

“DJ was in the gym today doing stuff with his ankle. He’s day-to-day,” John Calipari said during his call-in radio show Monday evening. “Whether he plays Saturday, we won’t know for a while. He was in there watching, he’s getting treatment.

“I know he wants to play. It’s not swollen, but it’s black and blue.”

Kentucky MBB drops to No. 16

Speaking of those games against Miami and UNC-Wilmington, the 1-1 record for Kentucky in those two matchups last week moved the Wildcats down a few spots in the latest national polls. Kentucky went from No. 12 to No. 16 in the AP Poll and from No. 12 to No. 17 in the Coaches Poll.

Additionally, the NCAA Evaluation Tool (NET) rankings are not fans of Kentucky’s resume through eight games this season. The Wildcats debuted at No. 45 overall in the NET, which replaced the RPI ahead of the 2018-19 season, on Monday. A Quad 3 loss to UNC-Wilmington did Kentucky no favors.

• Average opponent NET rank: 229
• Average opponent NET: 194
• NET strength of schedule: 263
• NET non-conference strength of schedule: 259
• Quad 1 matchups: 0-1
• Quad 2 matchups: 1-0
• Quad 3 matchups: 1-1
• Quad 4 matchups: 4-0

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Reed Sheppard named SEC Freshman of the Week

Kentucky did not look good at all against UNC-Wilmington, but if there was a bright spot, it was the individual play of freshman Reed Sheppard, who was the only reason UK didn’t lose to the Seahawks by 15-plus. As a result, he was named SEC Freshman of the Week.

Sheppard averaged 23.0 points, 7.0 rebounds, 5.0 assists, and 2.0 steals per game while shooting 56.7 percent from the field during games against Miami and UNC-Wilmington last week. He dropped a career-high 25 points in the latter matchup.