Mark Stoops remains mum on Kentucky's QB situation ahead of Tennessee game

Kentucky’s quarterback situation remains unclear two days out from a road matchup with No. 7 Tennessee.

Last Saturday at home against Auburn, Kentucky had to make a mid-game change at quarterback. Starter Brock Vandagriff was benched at halftime of the 24-10 loss and replaced by backup Gavin Wimsatt for the entirety of the second half. Vandagriff finished 9-17 for 120 yards with one interception. Wimsatt wasn’t any better, going 3-10 for 34 yards and an interception while running the ball nine times for 23 yards.

In short, neither quarterback looked promising against the Tigers. It’s turned into a bit of positional controversy ever since too. Offensive coordinator Bush Hamdan said on Monday that they’re “evaluating everything” with the two signal callers. Tennessee, Kentucky’s next opponent, is preparing for the Wildcats as if both quarterbacks will play.

During his weekly Thursday afternoon post-practice press conference, head coach Mark Stoops was asked about how Vandagriff, who acknowledged his shortcomings from the Auburn game earlier this week, has responded in practice since then.

“Brock has been fine,” Stoops said. “Brock really doesn’t ever change his demeanor too much. He pretty much always puts his head down, goes to work, and does the best he can.”

As a follow-up to that, Stoops was later asked if he sees the quarterback situation as close to a 50/50 split between Vandagriff and Wimsatt going into Saturday. He elected not to show his hand.

“We’ll see,” he said. “I don’t necessarily need to give that information away right now.“

It might be the first offensive possession when we learn who will take snaps under center for Kentucky first against the Volunteers. The Wildcats head to Knoxville for a Saturday night showdown with Tennessee set for 7:45 p.m. EST on the SEC Network.

Watch the latest Mark Stoops press conference on the KSR YouTube Channel.