Kentucky 2024 Transfer Portal Class Provides Cautionary Tale

Kentucky quarterback Brock Vandagriff hands it off to running back Chip Trayanum - Mont Dawson, Kentucky Sports Radio

The transfer portal has brought an annual free agency period to college sports. As you see each year in professional, not all free agents are created equally, just ask Juan Soto.

Kentucky’s first transfer portal class in the NIL era was the antithesis of the Soto situation. There was money to be made, but pay-for-play wasn’t as commonplace as it has become. Kentucky took seven transfers in that first cycle and four ended up becoming starters, three in the first year.

Dare Rosenthal became a quality starter at left tackle. Liam Coen hit a home run with his northeast connections to secure Will Levis. Vince Marrow’s pre-established relationship with Wan’Dale Robinson paved the way for the best single season by a UK receiver in school history.

That’s a spectacular hit rate that exceeded all expectations. Since then, the hit rate has slowly declined, culminating in a 2024 class that was a swing and a miss.

The Transfer Portal is Made for Finding Starters

Free agency isn’t the primary tool for developing depth. It’s for finding starters. Kentucky recruited players to star for the Cats, but that’s not exactly how things unfolded.

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Jamon Dumas-Johnson was an All-American at Georgia and for most of the season, he was Kentucky’s best defensive player, tallying a team-high 67 tackles, 3.5 sacks, 3 fumble recoveries, an interception, and scoring a defensive touchdown. He lived up to the hype.

There are a few other stories that have yet to be written. Jalen Farmer started all season at right guard and is expected to do the same next year. Kentucky found a starting punter for a season. They might be able to get more out of DJ Waller in year two. Ja’Mori Maclin showed plenty of promise late in the season. Sadly, that’s about all of the nice things you can say about the 14-person transfer portal class.

Raymond Cottrell only stayed on campus for spring practice. An injury prevented Chip Trayanum from receiving any meaningful snaps. Brock Vandagriff flashed but ultimately was nowhere close to the five-star player we saw in high school. Gavin Wimsatt stepped in and gave a little something-something. Gerald Mincey was supposed to fortify the tackle position. He ended the season at the concession stand.

Kentucky had a significant amount of talent on the roster when it went to the portal to find players who could plug a few holes. Instead of slapping some Flex-Seal on it, the boat leaked all year long. Now Kentucky must fill even more holes on the roster, making the margin of error even thinner. The coaching staff can’t afford to repeat the same mistakes they made a year ago.