Chip Trayanum's arrival at Kentucky was a huge pickup for a team that loves to run the rock. However, he hasn't been able to play a snap all season due to injury. In Week 5, Trayanum was cleared to practice, and all indications were that he would play versus Ole Miss. However, something seems to have happened in practice, as he went from probable to doubtful to out.
The Wildcats then went into their bye week and came out to play Vanderbilt, but he still wasn't ready. It was beginning to look like Trayanum may never see a snap as a Wildcat. There were even rumors of surgery on the table. Then, this week, new speculation came forth that Trayanum is ready.
The first slip actually came from player Demie Sumo-Karngbaye. He seemed to tell reporters that Trayanum is good to go accidentally.
When answering a question about the RBs, Demie Sumo-Karmgbaye let it slip, “Now we got Chip back.”
— Nick Roush (@RoushKSR) October 15, 2024
More optimism the Ohio State transfer will make his debut at Florida.
Then the injury report was released for the game. Here it is for both teams:
Injury report for both teams as of October 16. pic.twitter.com/8wvOo9zEwS
— Wildcat Blue Nation (@WildcatBlueNatn) October 17, 2024
Do you see his name there? It's under "questionable." Which is a huge upgrade from out or even doubtful. However, it's certainly not definitive. Oh, you know what happened next? The official Kentucky Football X account posted this:
Midweek work pic.twitter.com/OH4RblCuIT
— Kentucky Football (@UKFootball) October 17, 2024
Look through those pictures closely, and who do you see practicing? Trayanum. That's a great sign and it looks like he truly is getting ready to play this week. Fans are starting to get excited and insiders are trying to figure out whether he will actually suit up or not. Chris Beasmore, a local reporter, tweeted this yesterday:
Per a source, DeaMonte "Chip" Trayanum is expected to make his debut for Kentucky against Florida on Saturday. #BBN pic.twitter.com/AiA74sCD0J
— Chris Beasmore (@CBeasmoreSports) October 17, 2024
It's really starting to look like Trayanum will be playing this week. And as of Thursday night he has been upgraded to “probable.” He may have limited reps, but it will be so encouraging to see him out there carrying the rock. Stay tuned because this could be the week we finally see our prize transfer.
The bad news is, and maybe you saw this earlier in this article, Maxwell Hairston is already listed as out. It will be important to watch him now, as we aren't exactly sure how long he will be sidelined.