A former Kentucky QB has been named his team's Week 1 starter

Gavin Wimsatt running the ball against Ohio - Dr. Michael Huang, Kentucky Sports Radio

Gavin Wimsatt has won the starting quarterback job at Jacksonville State.

Wimsatt, who mostly served as Kentucky’s backup quarterback in 2024 before entering the transfer portal in the offseason, beat out transfer Cade Cunningham and returnee Caden Creel as the Gamecocks’ QB1. A native of Owensboro, Wimsatt started his college career at Rutgers (2021-23) prior to his time at UK.

“Right now, going into this game, Gavin has earned the starting spot. I will say I am very comfortable with all three quarterbacks,” Jacksonville State’s new head coach Charles Kelly said Monday. “I want to clarify that Gavin is our starting quarterback, but I feel comfortable with the three quarterbacks we have. I think our team is comfortable with that position. All of them have shown good leadership, ability to move the team. We feel like Gavin has done his part to earn the starting spot.”

Wimsatt, who was a four-star high school recruit out of Owensboro, will be first under center when Jacksonville State opens its season Thursday against UCF.

Jacksonville State coach Charles Kelly announced that Gavin Wimsatt will be the team's starting quarterback against UCF on Thursday.

Here's what to know about Wimsatt and the Gamecocks: https://t.co/eZIUGAnsLM
— Thomas Ashworth (@_ThomasAshworth) August 24, 2025

Wimsatt was a highly sought-after high school prospect. After playing the first game of his senior high school season, he soon enrolled early at Rutgers and joined the program in September 2021. The 6-foot-3 signal caller went on to appear in four games as a true freshman and eight more as a sophomore in 2022. His junior year in 2023 was a breakout campaign with Wimsatt playing 13 games for the Scarlet Knights (including a bowl game) as he threw for 1,735 yards and nine touchdowns.

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From there, Wimsatt made the move back to his home state, committing to Kentucky in May 2024. He was the Wildcats’ backup to Brock Vandagriff last season, completing just 41 percent of his passes while throwing three touchdowns and four interceptions during his eight appearances. Wimsatt hit the portal again in December and landed at Jacksonville State for what will be his fifth and final college season.

Jacksonville State expects to be one of the top programs in Conference-USA this season. How far can Wimsatt take them?