Stoops, Kentucky Maintaining Challenge of Juggling Recruiting and the Transfer Portal

Kentucky football has jumped a couple of pedestals in the college football hierarchy over the course of Mark Stoops' tenure.

As the Wildcats have gotten consistently better, so has the recruiting around Lexington. Following years of mediocrity on the field and on the trail, Big Blue Nation saw a consistent rise on both fronts.

UK has had three straight recruiting classes ranked in the top-25 in the country, per 247Sports. While Kentucky winning games does wonders for luring top high school athletes to come play in the Bluegrass, the proof is in the pudding when you look in the pros.

A grand total of 19 former Wildcats made regular season rosters in the NFL, 18 of whom played under Stoops. Seeing the college success translate to the next level is as good of a recruiting pitch as any coach needs.

The transfer portal has changed things, however. With NCAA rules changing, allowing players to not have to sit out a season if they transfer schools, players who aren't seeing the field on a consistent basis are now more inclined to search for a new home due to the lessened repercussions.

As a result, games like Kentucky's latest win over Youngstown State can create quite the domino effect for years down the road.

While the Cats blanked Youngstown 31-0, it wasn't a perfect, seamless performance. Kentucky turned the ball over three times and had 0 penalties, keeping the starters in the game until the last couple of drives in the fourth quarter. Those backups that were expecting to gain valuable playing time, instead saw just a few snaps.

If some of the fringe depth chart players play just four drives in the regular season instead of seven or eight, that could be the difference in them deciding to stay for another season or heading elsewhere. Stoops understands the balancing act of keeping everyone on his team involved in some facet:

“As I mentioned to the coaches, sometimes we spend years recruiting these guys. They’re really good players," Stoops said. "You also have to really take time with the players and help them understand that a lot of these guys are going to be very successful. If they are not successful right now, then let’s talk about it, address it and see where they need to improve and really help them improve."

On the other side of the coin, the Kentucky head coach has picked up on attracting players looking to transfer.

"With the older guys, it’s about exactly showing them what role we think he could play within our system. They’re done with the coming out of high school, all the fancy stuff," he said. "Generally, the transfers are really looking at 'where do I fit into their system' and 'how are they going to use me.' Those kind of guys are enjoyable to recruit, because for us it’s just a matter of showing them the film and showing them what we’ve done to help other guys reach their goals and be successful in this league and be successful at the next level.”

Nine players transferred to Kentucky for the 2022 season, while 11 made their exit from Lexington. The portal has become the bread and butter of building a team, leaving the recruiting trail a step behind.

It's evident already in UK's 2023 recruiting class, as it currently ranks just 35th in the nation. That won't cut it in the SEC, but best believe that Stoops and Co. will be hitting the portal hard come the offseason.

While the allure of mixing and matching a bulk of recruits and transfers to compile a team is an ever-growing and ever-changing challenge for head coaches around the nation, Stoops is doing his best to stay ahead of the curve.

Want the latest on national football and basketball recruiting, including Cats targets? Head over to SI All-American for the latest news, blogs, and updates about the nation's best prospects.

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