With the 2024 college football season less than two months away, Athlon Sports released its annual ranking of all 134 FBS teams Monday.
Kentucky landed 13 spots outside the Top 25 at No. 38 on Athlon’s list. The Wildcats were sandwiched between two Group of Five schools: Appalachian State (Sun Belt) at No. 39 and Memphis (AAC) at No. 37.
Kentucky ranked 12th on the list among the 16 SEC teams, placing three spots below Florida at No. 35 and six spots below Auburn at No. 32 as the closest teams ahead of the Wildcats on Athlon’s list.
Athlon Sports’ Steven Lassan notes:
After back-to-back seven-win seasons, Kentucky hopes a few key transfer additions and an experienced defense are enough to move up the SEC pecking order. Without divisions, the annual slate could get a little tougher for the Wildcats, but coach Mark Stoops’ squad caught a break with swing games against South Carolina, Auburn, and Louisville in Lexington for ’24.
Kentucky returns nine starters on defense, including Preseason Walter Camp All-American Deone Walker at defensive tackle. Lassan believes that Brad White’s defense could take a step forward in 2024 but warns that the Wildcats need to improve on pass defense.
Per Lassan:
Walker is one of the SEC’s top linemen, and the linebacker unit could be among the best in college football with the arrival of Georgia transfer Jamon Dumas-Johnson to join J.J. Weaver and D’Eryk Jackson. Cornerback Maxwell Hairston is a standout on the outside, but the pass defense has to get a lot better in ’24 (ninth in the SEC in pass efficiency defense ’23).
As for the offense, Stoops tapped Boise State offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Bush Hamdan to lead the offense after Liam Coen left for the same position with the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The Wildcats will feature a new signal-caller this year in Georgia transfer Brock Vandagriff, a former five-star recruit. Ohio State transfer Chip Trayanum will take the reins at tailback after Ray Davis rushed for over 1,110 yards a season ago.
Lassan adds:
Vandagriff’s progression is crucial to Kentucky’s ’24 hopes, as the former Bulldog has limited experience but brings significant upside to the offense. Vandagriff’s transition into the starting role will be eased by the return of standout receivers Barion Brown and Dane Key, along with a line that brings back four starters.
Georgia topped Athlon’s list at No. 1, followed by Ohio State at No. 2 and Oregon at No. 3. Among SEC schools, Texas was No. 4, Ole Miss was No. 5, and Alabama was No. 6. Missouri edged LSU to round out the Top 10.
Kentucky opens the season August 31 in primetime against Southern Miss at Kroger Field. Kickoff is set for 7:45 p.m. ET. The game will be televised by SEC Network.
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