Brock Vandagriff was the starting quarterback for the Kentucky Wildcats to start the 2024 season. He slowly lost that job due to injury and inconsistent play. By the end of the year, head coach Mark Stoops was basically trying any other quarterback except for Vandagriff. Then, as the transfer portal opened up, everyone expected two things to happen: first, that Vandagriff would jump in it and find a new home to play in his senior season, and second, that Kentucky would find their new starting quarterback.
UPDATE: Since posting, Kentucky athletics has announced that Vandagriff is retiring.
Kentucky QB Brock Vandagriff retiring from football https://t.co/hhKD1V2wcH via @agershon99 #BBN
— TheCatsPause247 (@TheCatsPause247) December 29, 2024
Only the second thing happened. Vandagriff never entered the portal, and the news around him has been eerily quiet. Sure, there have been some rumor-monger social media accounts that say they have the scoop. One says he is retiring, and another says he's upset that it's been said he's retiring. Neither can currently be believed. While he very well could retire, there has been nothing from him or Kentucky football.
However, without him entering the portal the options get limited. He can only now do a few things:
1. He can stay as a Wildcat and compete for the starting job. This option feels unlikely but he is technically still on the roster.
2. He can retire and hang up his cleats. This one is the one the rumors are floating around about. He doesn't have to play his final year of eligibility.
3. He can wait until the spring portal in April and transfer then. If he is unsure what he wants to do, there's time again to find a new home in a few months.
4. He can technically transfer at any point but must sit out a year if he doesn't use a portal window. This also feels unlikely but is theoretically a possibility.
While nothing recent has come out from Kentucky football or Vandagriff, Mark Stoops did indicate he had a heart-to-heart with Vandagriff in one of his final post-game press conferences, and Stoops said he wasn't going to talk about what happened in that conversation but that he was proud of Vandagriff and thinks he's an incredible young man. This indicates that Stoops has an idea of what Vandagriff will do and what will happen, but Kentucky fans still don't know what that is. For now, we wait and wonder.