We are currently 19/20th on Rivals for recruiting.

[The-Hack]

With our recent flips, we have the 19th ranked class, and 20th average Star rating, per Rivals:

2025 All Teams Football Recruiting Team Rankings

2025 all-teams football recruiting team rankings by Rivals.com

n.rivals.com

With a ceiling of 105, I think we’ll ink 25 this December/February, and still have room for quality transfers.

 

[mrschwump]

With our recent flips, we have the 19th ranked class, and 20th average Star rating, per Rivals:

2025 All Teams Football Recruiting Team Rankings

2025 all-teams football recruiting team rankings by Rivals.com

n.rivals.com

With a ceiling of 105, I think we’ll ink 25 this December/February, and still have room for quality transfers.

If the NCAA goes thru with the 105 proposal UK, and all other schools, could be looking at adding a significant additional number of signees beginning in Dec. including portal additions. Still very early but I've identified at least 3 in the portal UK might be interested in. That could boost UK's ranking.

 

[The-Hack]

Still very early but I've identified at least 3 in the portal UK might be interested in. That could boost UK's ranking.

This new 105 limit will absolutely screw most G5 and FCS programs, as at least 40 traditional P4 programs, and a handful of long-term G5’s (Houston, BYU, SMU, etc.) will be able to afford a full roster of 105, with everyone receiving both some NIL and profit sharing.

A kid who stands out at an EKU or a MAC school won’t be there very long . . . and yeah, that’s already been happening, but 40-50 schools absorbing another 20 players apiece is another 800-1000 athletes concentrating into the higher monied schools. And UK is in the Top half of those 40 . . . and is sniffing around tailgating poles and tents looking for even more!

As in most competitions in a free market society, it is a war for dollars.

I now drink Kentucky Blue Light Beer, many are going to face hundreds (thousands) to tent/tailgate, I kick into NIL, the QB Club, pay for tickets . . . how much more can they pluck from the fans???

 

[K_TIME]

This new 105 limit will absolutely screw most G5 and FCS programs, as at least 40 traditional P4 programs, and a handful of long-term G5’s (Houston, BYU, SMU, etc.) will be able to afford a full roster of 105, with everyone receiving both some NIL and profit sharing.

A kid who stands out at an EKU or a MAC school won’t be there very long . . . and yeah, that’s already been happening, but 40-50 schools absorbing another 20 players apiece is another 800-1000 athletes concentrating into the higher monied schools. And UK is in the Top half of those 40 . . . and is sniffing around tailgating poles and tents looking for even more!

YOu are correct and NCAA is stupid for expanding scholly limits. This will bury lower tier schools along with NIL faster than many would imagine.

But to the point...Stoops doesn't struggle with talent acquistion.....that is one thing we have correct.

 

[The-Hack]

But to the point...Stoops doesn't struggle with talent acquistion.....that is one thing we have correct.

And he’s a victim of his own past success. We finished 11th in 2018/19 beating Penn State on January 1, 2019, with 18 or 19 former 4 and 5 Star players, and cumulative classes in the mid-thirties.

We have now doubled our “blue-chip ratio” with at least 35 former 4 and 5 Star players, and have successively shat the damn bed with classes averaging around 20th.

Folks have ridiculed me (and others) for actually being optimistic. But almost all Kentucky fans 50 years or older have tolerated decades of linemen who looked up to most opponents. Now, we “look” the physical equal of Georgia and Bama, but find a way to stumble and bumble into three-figure penalty yardage and piss away upset opportunities against the likes of Georgia.

The frustrating thing about it all is this: it would not surprise me in the least if we go to Knoxville and/or Austin and either pull out upsets or play tough 4th quarter losses. But if and when we do, we all now have the feeling that even our FCS games might become nail-biters (see Chattanooga a couple of years ago).

Stoops and the whole program need to look in the mirror and ask this question: how did this program elevate dozens of lightly recruited players into a national ranking, and now with enough “blue-chip” players to almost go two deep on both sides, cluster-f@&k our way to mediocrity for 4 damn years?

 

[mrschwump]

This new 105 limit will absolutely screw most G5 and FCS programs, as at least 40 traditional P4 programs, and a handful of long-term G5’s (Houston, BYU, SMU, etc.) will be able to afford a full roster of 105, with everyone receiving both some NIL and profit sharing.

A kid who stands out at an EKU or a MAC school won’t be there very long . . . and yeah, that’s already been happening, but 40-50 schools absorbing another 20 players apiece is another 800-1000 athletes concentrating into the higher monied schools. And UK is in the Top half of those 40 . . . and is sniffing around tailgating poles and tents looking for even more!

As in most competitions in a free market society, it is a war for dollars.

I now drink Kentucky Blue Light Beer, many are going to face hundreds (thousands) to tent/tailgate, I kick into NIL, the QB Club, pay for tickets . . . how much more can they pluck from the fans???

Schools will "pluck from the fans" whatever the fans are willing to pay. TN's imposing a $10 tax per ticket next year to further buy players. Expect them to add another $10 dollar tax to provide Chumlee's buffet tab.

 

[The-Hack]

Expect them to add another $10 dollar tax to provide Chumlee's buffet tab.

I’ll kick in $5 for Stoops’ Weight-Watchers membership!

 

[Larry Skaggs]

NCAA is also proposing an increase of players on the field from 22 to 30

 

[seccats04]

If only we could coach the way we recruit…

 

[Mark80]

With our recent flips, we have the 19th ranked class, and 20th average Star rating, per Rivals:

2025 All Teams Football Recruiting Team Rankings

2025 all-teams football recruiting team rankings by Rivals.com

n.rivals.com

With a ceiling of 105, I think we’ll ink 25 this December/February, and still have room for quality transfers.

But how many walk ons do we have. There will be no walk ons anymore. They all become scholarship players.

 

[mrschwump]

But how many walk ons do we have. There will be no walk ons anymore. They all become scholarship players.

Something like 20-25 but all of those may not be offered.

 

[The-Hack]

NCAA is also proposing an increase of players on the field from 22 to 30

Let's see, that would be an increase of 36.36 percent of players on the field, likely meaning our penalty yards climb from 105, to 143.178 per game.

[Yes, I used a calculator].

 

[The-Hack]

But how many walk ons do we have. There will be no walk ons anymore. They all become scholarship players.

Possible, and not a bad outcome.

 

[PopesReignOverCardinals]

But how many walk ons do we have. There will be no walk ons anymore. They all become scholarship players.

We'll still have walk-ons, but more will have opportunities to earn scholarships. With expanded numbers, we'll just be able to add more guys who are currently on the fringe of being offered or who would have formerly had their offers pulled in a numbers crunch.

 

[SkyPrince1]

Why would a school want or need 105 players on scholarship?
That's equivalent to 25 scholly's for a basketball team.

 

[Orange_N_White]

Arms race

There are 11 SEC teams in the Top 20