What to expect from each Kentucky football QB after wholesale offseason turnover

Brock Vandagriff is not the only new face in Kentucky’s quarterback room this season.

Heavy quarterback turnover has become common across college football in the transfer portal era, but Kentucky took that trend to the extreme this offseason by replacing its entire quarterback room.

Devin Leary, last season’s starter, is in the NFL. Backups Kaiya Sheron (UT Martin), Destin Wade (Colorado) and Deuce Hogan (New Mexico State) all transferred. Even the lone walk-on quarterback from the 2023 roster (Shane Hamm) left the team after spring practice.

The coach assigned to lead Kentucky’s quarterbacks has changed too with Liam Coen returning to the NFL and former Boise State offensive coordinator Bush Hamdan hired to replace him.

To replenish its quarterback room, Kentucky signed Vandagriff (Georgia), Gavin Wimsatt (Rutgers) and Beau Allen (Georgia Southern) from the transfer portal and four-star Lexington Christian Academy quarterback Cutter Boley in its 2024 high school class. Vandagriff was recruited to be the starter, but Kentucky fans need no reminder after the trials of recent years that a team rarely makes it through a season needing to play just one quarterback.

“We never had a quarterback room like this, so I’m happy,” recruiting coordinator Vince Marrow said after one preseason practice. “I mean, somebody goes down, I don’t think we’re gonna miss a beat.”

Here is what you need to know about each quarterback on the 2024 roster.

Brock Vandagriff (6-3, 217, Jr.)

How he arrived: Transfer from Georgia.

What to expect: A five-star prospect in high school, Vandagriff attempted only 21 passes in three seasons at Georgia. Since he was blocked at Georgia by two-time national champion quarterback Stetson Bennett for two seasons then lost the competition to possible 2025 top-10 pick Carson Beck last fall, there are reasons to hope he can still live up to his recruiting hype, but Vandagriff remains an unknown. Vandagriff describes himself as a pocket passer, but part of his hype as a high school recruit was due to his ability to also make plays with his legs. Part of the appeal of Vandagriff to UK as a transfer was the fact he had two years of eligibility remaining. If he can prove worthy of an SEC starting job in year one, fans will get excited about a true breakout in 2025.

What Bush Hamdan says: “He’s a guy that knows what he wants to do, is really playing a consistent way. … Certainly things we want to take the next steps on with him. He has been a guy since we got here that just keeps getting better and better. So I think he’s got a really good grasp of this thing. We’re excited.”

Gavin Wimsatt (6-3, 227, Jr.)

How he arrived: Transfer from Rutgers.

What to expect: Unlike the other quarterbacks on this list, experience is not an issue for Wimsatt, who played in 25 games across three seasons at Rutgers. The problem is there is an extensive enough track record to suggest Wimsatt is a strong runner (628 career rushing yards) and below average passer (46.6% career completion rate). If nothing else, Wimsatt significantly raises the floor for Kentucky in the event of an injury or struggles from Vandagriff. Even if Vandagriff keeps the starting job all season, Wimsatt should receive multiple touches per game as a “wildcat” quarterback. There has even been some buzz that Hamdan might try to get Vandagriff and Wimsatt on the field at the same time.

What Bush Hamdan says: “I think that we are going to utilize him in a lot of those wildcat-type situations, at the very least. … He is a big, talented player. When you have the opportunity to see him at practice, you will see how dynamic of a player he is. So, a little bit of a wait‑and‑see on how that role goes.”

Cutter Boley (6-5, 214, Fr.)

How he arrived: High school signee from Lexington Christian Academy.

What to expect: UK coaches have made no secret they view Boley as the quarterback of the future, but if he is starting games for Kentucky in 2024 something has probably gone wrong. It would be unfair to expect Boley to immediately make the jump from Kentucky Class 2A football to the SEC even after he enrolled early to participate in spring practice. Signing Wimsatt ensured that Boley is not forced into action too early if Vandagriff is injured or struggles, but Stoops and Hamdan will surely look for at least a couple of opportunities to get him game action this fall to prepare for the future.

What Bush Hamdan says: “He is going to be a special player, but we want to give him time to mature and grow.”

Beau Allen (6-2, 223, Sr.)

How he arrived: Transfer from Georgia Southern.

What to expect: While no current UK quarterback was on the roster last season, Allen has played for Kentucky before. He was once viewed as the Wildcats’ quarterback of the future when he signed with UK as a senior at Lexington Catholic High School, but after two years at UK he transferred to FCS Tarleton State in 2022 rather than spend a second consecutive season as Will Levis’ backup. Allen threw for 2,836 yards, 23 touchdowns and 11 interceptions in one season at Tarleton before transferring to Georgia Southern. The NCAA denied a waiver for him to play immediately there as a two-time transfer (a rule that no longer exists), so Allen was forced to sit out the 2023 season. When he transferred back to UK in January as a walk-on, Allen provided needed stability since he had already spent a year in Coen’s scheme. With Hamdan running the offense now, Allen has slotted into fourth on the depth chart. It is unlikely Allen plays this season barring an injury crisis, but he should still be a valuable veteran presence in the locker room.

What Bush Hamdan says: “It was also very good to bring Beau back. You have seen what can happen in years past when you’re not deep in that position. Some funny things can happen, so we do think that we have some quality depth in that position.”

This story was originally published August 21, 2024 at 10:30 AM.

Jon Hale

Lexington Herald-Leader

(859) 414-6776

Jon Hale is the University of Kentucky football beat writer for the Lexington Herald-Leader. He joined the Herald-Leader in 2022 but has covered UK athletics for more than 10 years. Hale was named the 2021 Kentucky Sportswriter of the Year. Support my work with a digital subscription