2023 Kentucky Wildcats Football Betting Guide for the Season

The Kentucky Wildcats still have designs on contending in the SEC East even after a disappointing 2022. The offense was sluggish; they only scored more than 21 points one time in SEC play, hanging 27 on Mississippi State on Homecoming. The defense struggled because of the amount of time they had to spend on the field after the offense let drives stalled, as we saw in an unsightly home loss to Vanderbilt. When their defense did stand tall (like it did at home against Georgia), the offense still couldn’t muster much; in that game, the Bulldogs escaped with a 16-6 win. Turning things around for Kentucky started with getting Lian Coem to call plays and getting quarterback Devin Leary through the transfer portal from N.C. State. Let’s look at Kentucky’s offense, defense and special teams as you consider your college football betting choices for the upcoming season.

NCAA Football Betting News: Kentucky Wildcats 2023 Season Betting Preview

Reviving the offense

Will Levis returned at quarterback for Kentucky, which gave the Wildcats a lot of hype in the preseason. Levis is gone now, but Coem (who was the OC at Kentucky in 2021) is back. Coem spent one season in the NFL as the L.A. Rams’ OC before coming back to guide the Wildcat attack once again. Devin Leary came back from a torn pectoral muscle to play in spring practice. Freshman All-Americans Dane Key and Barion Brown will run routes for him; both were All-Americans as true freshmen last year after combining for 1,147 receiving yards.

Star tailback Chris Rodriguez Jr has moved on, but Kentucky reloaded with Ray Davis, who transferred in from Vanderbilt. Will Davis have a breakout season? It will depend on how well the offensive line plays after a dreadful 2022. Marques Cox transferred in from Northern Illinois to take the starting job at left tackle. Kenneth Horsey slides back to left guard, his natural position, pushing Jager Burton and Eli Cox to the right (center, and right guard, respectively). Ben Christman (Ohio State) and Courtland Ford (USC) also transferred in after spring practice to add depth.

Reloading the defense

With Mark Stoops as head coach and Brad White as defensive coordinator, the Wildcats will have a defense-first philosophy. Only six starters return on this side of the ball, but the rising talent is also exciting. Defensive tackle Deone Walker was an All-American last year as a true freshman, and he might be the Wildcats’ most NFL-ready player. Inside linebackers D’Eryk Jackson and Trevin Wallace must replace the lost production of Jacquez Jones and DeAndre Square. Safeties Zion Childress and Jordan Lovett should have breakout seasons, as should outside linebacker J.J. Weaver.

The transfer portal brought cornerbacks Jantzen Dunn (Ohio State) and J.Q. Hardaway (Cincinnati) along with nose guard Keeshawn Silver (North Carolina). We don’t know much about them at the college level; all were blue-chip recruits coming out of high school but had a difficult time cracking the lineup at their first schools.

What about special teams?

Barion Brown also excelled as a kick returner in 2022. However, the kicking game needs some upgrades after the team bumbled snap after snap and hold after hold in 2022. The team has Chance Poore and Wilson Berry as the likeliest starters at kicker and punter, respectively.

The Wildcats won 10 games in 2021, and their self-concept clearly ballooned out of control as the team slid to 7-6 last year, including a 21-0 loss to Iowa in their bowl game. Can Leary stay healthy? Is the O-line better? If so, then Kentucky should have a better season. If not, the Wildcats will have another mediocre season in the middle of the SEC East.

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