Today on KSR: Fall camp, Mamba and the NFL Preseason

We are exactly three Saturdays away from the start of the Kentucky football season, the Wildcats kicking things off against Ball State on September 2 at noon ET. We’re now in the heat of fall camp, players battling for reps and rotation spots with a few battles for starting jobs.

But today in particular is a big one. It’s the first major scrimmage of the preseason, a chance for the cream to truly rise to the top in a full-pad 11-on-11 setting. How much progress has the offensive line truly made? Who is the go-to playmaker in the backfield? What does the depth look like at wide receiver? How about the pass rush and coverage? Are clear standouts emerging in the secondary with live reps?

All of those answers and more will be found out today during and at the conclusion of the scrimmage. And luckily for us, Mark Stoops and select players will be available to break it all down afterward, hopefully with more good news than bad.

Needless to say, a big day for the football program. We’ve got our coffee poured and keyboards ready to roll here at the KSR offices to keep you updated throughout the day. All of the video and written content you can dream of coming right up.

Cats in the NFL Preseason results and schedule

As the current Wildcats get ready for their season, some former standouts are doing the same at the next level in the NFL. The full preseason schedule is underway, in the midst of a busy weekend of games.

Let’s go through the scores and individual results, shall we?

Friday

• Green Bay Packers (Carrington Valentine) def. Cincinnati Bengals (Yusuf Corker) 36-19
  • Valentine – Four tackles, three pass deflections, one interception
  • Corker – Hamstring injury
• Detroit Lions (Benny Snell, Josh Paschal) def. New York Giants (Wan’Dale Robinson) 21-16
  • Snell – Six carries, 23 yards
  • Paschal – One tackle
  • Robinson – DNP (torn ACL recovery)
• Atlanta Falcons (Bud Dupree, Josh Ali) def. Miami Dolphins (Keidron Smith) 19-3
  • Smith – Two tackles, two pass deflections
  • Ali – One reception, 14 yards (three targets)
  • Dupree – DNP
• Pittsburgh Steelers def. Tampa Bay Buccaneers 27-17
• Washington Commanders (Jamin Davis, Chris Rodriguez Jr.) def. Cleveland Browns (Za’Darius Smith, Chris Westry) 17-15
  • Rodriguez – Five carries, 39 yards
  • Davis – One tackle
  • Westry – DNP (CD)
  • Smith – DNP (CD)
• Arizona Cardinals def. Denver Broncos 18-17

Saturday

• Buffalo Bills vs. Indianapolis Colts – 1 p.m. ET
• Chicago Bears vs. Tennessee Titans (Will Levis, Justin Rigg) – 1 p.m. ET (NFL Network)
• Carolina Panthers (Marquan McCall) vs. New York Jets (Randall Cobb, Brandin Echols) – 4 p.m. ET (NFL Network)
• Dallas Cowboys (Quinton Bohanna, Kelvin Joseph) vs. Jacksonville Jaguars (Josh Allen, Luke Fortner) – 5 p.m. ET
• Baltimore Ravens (Tashawn Manning) vs. Philadelphia Eagles – 7 p.m. ET (NFL Network)
• Los Angeles Rams (T.J. Carter, DeAndre Square) vs. Los Angeles Chargers – 9 p.m. ET (NFL Network)

Sunday

• New Orleans Saints (Lynn Bowden, Lonnie Johnson Jr., Landon Young) vs. Kansas City Chiefs (Mike Edwards, Phil Hoskins, Darian Kinnard) – 1 p.m. ET (NFL Network)
• Las Vegas Raiders vs. San Francisco 49ers – 4 p.m. ET (NFL Network)

Kentucky basketball becomes a Mamba Program

It’s not just hectic in the football world. The basketball program is also staying in the news, again in a major way. After a few busy weeks of breaking down the ins and outs of 7-foot-2 bigs from Croatia, Kentucky is ready to shake things up once more by becoming the first known Mamba Program in college basketball.

Vanessa Bryant — wife of the late Kobe Bryant — has hand-picked the University of Kentucky as the first Mamba school in the partnership with Nike, sources tell KSR. A process over a year in the making has been finalized, bringing exclusive Kobe sneakers and apparel to the program this season and beyond. Special uniforms featuring the Mamba logo are also possible in the future.

While Kentucky is the first Mamba school in this partnership, several other programs are expected to join the fold over the course of the multi-year rollout.

Justin Edwards gets a new truck

The brand is strong. First Mamba, now a Raptor? Kentucky standout freshman Justin Edwards, who was recently projected as the top pick in the 2024 NBA Draft by The Athletic, has signed a NIL deal with Paul Miller Ford that scored him the keys to a brand new 2023 Ford F-150 Raptor pickup truck.

Paul Miller Ford announced the agreement on Friday.

“Hey Big Blue Nation! Get ready for a slam dunk, as we welcome University of Kentucky’s newest Wildcat, Justin Edwards to the Paul Miller family!” Paul Miller wrote in their Instagram post. “We can’t wait to see Justin’s debut at Rupp Arena this season, and we’re proud to present him with the keys to a brand new 2023 Ford F-150 Raptor.”

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A post shared by Paul Miller Ford | Ford Dealership (@paulmillerky)

An MSRP value of roughly $77,000? Not bad for a 19-year-old freshman.

Edwards came to Kentucky as the No. 2 overall prospect in the 2023 On3 Industry Consensus. And now after averaging 14.5 points, 4.8 assists and 3.0 rebounds per contest in Toronto at the GLOBL JAM, he’s raking in the NIL rewards.