Kentucky linebacker Chris Oats out of rehab, and Cats dedicate first 2020 win to him
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Game day: Kentucky 24, Mississippi State 2
Click below for more of the Herald-Leader’s and Kentucky.com’s coverage of Saturday’s Kentucky-Mississippi State football game at Kroger Field in Lexington.
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Kentucky linebacker Chris Oats has left a rehabilitation facility and is back home with his family.
Oats — a junior from Cincinnati — was hospitalized in May after suffering an undisclosed medical issue and has been under medical care since. His brother, Sosa Keilan Woods-Hernandez, posted a photo on Twitter of Oats in a wheelchair Saturday afternoon, and other social media posts from his family over the past 24 hours also said he was finally home. Before Saturday night’s game against Mississippi State, UK Radio Network’s Tom Leach confirmed that Oats was home with his family.
Kentucky defeated the Bulldogs, 24-2, in Saturday’s game for the Cats’ first victory of the 2020 season, thanks to a phenomenal effort from the UK defense. Oats’ teammates dedicated the win to him.
“It was really important for us,” said UK Coach Mark Stoops. “We just did dedicate that game ball to Chris, and we’re going to bring it up to him tomorrow. So it was important for us to play well for him, and to try to inspire Chris to continue with his rehab.”
UK has not disclosed the exact details of Oats’ situation, but the program decided this year to have a different player wear Oats’ No. 22 jersey for each game this season.
“We are going to recognize Chris Oats and have a player each week wear his number in honor of Chris, starting with DeAndre Square this week, who would normally be playing side-by-side with him as the two inside linebackers,” Stoops said before the Auburn game. “Keaton Upshaw is his roommate and wants to wear it and honor him for the first home game. Those are the first two we have set and from there we will alternate his number to honor him and show him he’s still with us and we’re thinking about him.”
On Saturday night, it was linebacker Jamin Davis who wore No. 22 in honor of Oats, and he had arguably his best game as a Wildcat. Davis led the team with 11 tackles and also intercepted a pass near the UK goal line at the end of the second quarter to preserve a 14-0 lead going into halftime.
“It means a lot,” Davis told UK Radio Network after being named the player of the game. “Me and DeAndre were talking about it all night — that we’re doing everything for him. And it was just feeling like he was with us tonight.”
Earlier in the game, Upshaw caught a touchdown pass to give Kentucky a 7-0 lead.
“I am honored to be the first player to wear No. 22,” Square said at the beginning of the season. “Chris is my best friend on the team and wearing No. 22 will hopefully let him and everyone else know that he’s always with us and he’s going to be with us this whole season. I know he’s fighting and grinding every day to get better so he can come back to Kentucky.”
Oats was expected to be one of Kentucky’s best defensive players this season. He finished fifth on the team with 46 tackles in 2019, starting two games as a sophomore.
Before coming to UK, he played for Winton Woods High School in Cincinnati and was considered a four-star recruit by both 247Sports and Rivals. His other top scholarship offers out of high school included Georgia, Ohio State and Michigan.
This story was originally published October 10, 2020 at 9:03 PM.
