Cutter Boley and four other Wildcats key to second half of 2025 and future

A heartbreaking Kentucky football loss to Texas did little to raise spirits of Big Blue Nation heading into the second half of the season.

The 16-13 loss to the then-No. 21 Longhorns represented a missed opportunity to silence some of the rampant speculation about Mark Stoops’ job status, but there are more opportunities ahead to flip the narrative by winning games. If the performance against Texas was a legitimate sign of improvement, there are winnable games ahead.

Certainly the final six games of the season will say much about the future of the program in terms of who the coach is, but the second half will also be important for determining what the roster looks like moving forward, regardless of who is the coach.

Here are five players to watch in the second half who could be key to both the present and future of the program.

QB Cutter Boley

There is no other option to start this list. The most important on-field storyline for Kentucky in the second half is the development of Cutter Boley.

Under the best-case scenario, Boley builds on the progress he showed at Georgia and against Texas to lead the Wildcats to multiple second-half upsets. In that scenario, whoever Kentucky’s coach is next season will likely want to build around Boley and sell potential offensive transfers on the chance to play with him. That scenario would also mean Kentucky’s administration has to make decisions about the future of the program with at least the consideration of what path makes it most likely that Boley stays in Lexington and continues to develop into a possible NFL draft pick next year.

But maybe Boley and the offense take a step back against a Tennessee team that ranks second in the SEC in sacks per game (3.71) and continues the streak of games without more than two offensive touchdowns against power-conference teams for five more games. In that scenario, Kentucky is likely in the market for a transfer quarterback this winter, regardless of who the coach is.

WR Hardley Gilmore

Few players generated more discussion during the winter and spring than Hardley Gilmore, who showed promise down the stretch as a freshman at Kentucky then transferred to Nebraska for the spring semester and back to Kentucky in the summer. But Gilmore caught just six passes in the first four games.

UK coaches acknowledged during preseason camp that Gilmore was likely the team’s most talented receiver but called for more consistency from him. There have been positive signs the past two games with seven catches for 58 yards. He was particularly effective against Texas with multiple highlight-reel-worthy receptions.

If Gilmore can emerge as a true go-to receiver in the second half, the offense suddenly becomes more complete. It would also decrease the pressure on Kentucky to add a No. 1 receiver in the transfer portal in January.

WR DJ Miller

You could put any number of wide receivers on this list, but one game after freshman Cam Miller earned a rotation spot at Georgia, it was fellow freshman DJ Miller who made an impact against Texas.

DJ was the most hyped of the freshmen in camp with quarterback Zach Calzada calling him the best freshman receiver he’d ever played with, but an injury kept DJ out of both preseason scrimmages and derailed his progress. Playing for the first time this season, he tallied two catches against Texas.

Both receptions came in key moments on two-minute drills at the end of the first half and regulation. His second catch set up the 45-yard field goal that sent the game to overtime.

At 6-foot-3, Miller brings some needed size to the wide receiver rotation. That could be particularly important in helping address Kentucky’s struggles in the red zone, where it ranks 88th nationally in touchdown percentage.

DL Tavion Gadson

Kentucky’s defensive line has been one of the few bright spots in the first half, but the Wildcats will lose three of their top six players at the position at the end of the season. Those losses will hurt, but the emergence of sophomore Tavion Gadson could ease the sting of the departures.

The 6-foot-5, 298-pound tackle is one of the most physically impressive players on the roster and already is translating those tools into production with 20 tackles, three tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks in a reserve role. He had four tackles and one-half sack against Texas.

Gadson looks like a player to build around for the future, but he is key for the present too as the physical toll of an SEC schedule is sure to lead to some attrition on the defensive line. Opponents have surely taken notice of his impact, meaning he will likely be a player Kentucky needs to invest revenue-sharing money into keeping, even if he is not one of the most recognizable names on the roster for casual fans.

CB DJ Waller

Since arriving at UK as a transfer from Michigan before the 2024 season, cornerback DJ Waller has frequently been discussed as a future star, but injuries have kept him out of 10 of the 18 games he could have played at Kentucky so far.

The latest setback came Saturday, when Waller was expected to play for the first time since the season opener but reaggravated his hamstring injury during early warmups.

“DJ is very disappointed,” Stoops said Monday. “He has worked his tail (off). He’s a guy that I have to hold back. All the way back before the bye, he was trying like heck to play. He’s going through it now but with hamstrings … you think you’re ready to go, and then it’s just unfortunate.

“...We did an MRI, and there is definitely a spot. It’s a little setback. We’ll see whether it’s in the scar tissue or whether it’s new and try to get him back as soon as possible. But, I know he’s chomping at the bit.”

Entering the season, Waller surely hoped he would play well enough to become the latest Kentucky cornerback to enter the NFL draft early, but hasn’t played enough to even prove he is an SEC-caliber starter yet, let alone an NFL draft prospect. If Waller can return to the field in the second half, that would boost the current secondary while offering more clarity on how much of the transfer budget needs to be devoted to a secondary where multiple starters will be out of eligibility at the end of the season.

This story was originally published October 21, 2025 at 6:00 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