More evidence Kentucky football believes it can recruit in the heart of SEC country

Catching up with some post-vacation random notes:

▪ Hiring Chris Collins as a new secondary coach proves that Mark Stoops believes Kentucky football can continue to make more recruiting inroads south of Ohio and Kentucky. Collins was recruiting director at Georgia State.

▪ Reports say Kentucky is the front-runner for former Ole Miss linebacker Jacquez Jones, who has entered the transfer portal. If true, that would be a big boost for one of UK’s few thin position groups. Jones was to visit UK on Tuesday. He led the Rebels in tackles last season.

▪ Chris Hummer writing for 247Sports: “You could argue no individual transfer portal loss was more harmful for an individual program than Wan’Dale Robinson leaving Nebraska for Kentucky. Robinson is not only a game-changing presence, but he accounted for 31.2% of the team’s non-quarterback rushing and receiving production in 2020. Without Robinson, the Huskers don’t return a receiver who posted 150 yards or more last year. That’s a massive blow.”

▪ CBS Sports’ newest NBA mock draft, version 5.0, has former Kentucky forward Isaiah Jackson rocketing up to No. 8.

▪ That same mock has ex-Western Kentucky center Charles Bassey at No. 30.

▪ ESPN’s Buster Olney ruffled feathers Tuesday when he left Reds outfielder Jesse Winker’s name off a Twitter poll for early National League MVP. After all, Winker entered Tuesday night second in Major League Baseball in OPS at 1.077, second in batting average at .350, tied for second in home runs at 17 and first in slugging percentage at .665.

▪ The Reds might have saved their season with that four-game sweep of the Cardinals in St. Louis over the weekend. David Bell’s club went from fading to right back in the thick of it. Well, as much as you can be sitting 28-29 on June 8.

▪ Nick Lodolo, the Reds’ No. 1 pick in the 2019 draft, has a 1.01 ERA through five starts at Class AA Chattanooga. The left-handed pitcher has struck out 38 in 26 2/3 innings.

▪ A couple of weeks back when I praised the Reds’ new play-by-play man, John Sadak, I should have included a good word for the Reds’ radio play-by-play broadcaster, Tommy Thrall, who has nicely filled Marty Brennaman’s rather large shoes.

▪ It’s a shame that Medina Spirit’s positive drug test after the Kentucky Derby will overshadow the history of the 2021 Triple Crown. Rombauer’s Preakness win and Essential Quality’s victory over a game Hot Rod Charlie in the Belmont Stakes were both top-notch.

▪ The Belmont Stakes might have been Brad Cox’s first win in a Triple Crown race, but it will be far from his last. With Bob Baffert all but out of the Triple Crown picture for the next couple of years, Cox could easily step into the breach.

▪ Viewership for the Belmont Stakes was 4.528 million viewers, up from 3.331 million last year but down from 4.913 in 2019.

▪ Alabama Coach Nick Saban will be 77 years old when his newly extended contract expires in 2028. The 74-year-old Mike Krzyzewski announced last week that 2021-22 will be his final season as Duke basketball coach.

▪ Remember, Coach K was 38-47 in his first three seasons at Duke. That was 1980-81 through 1982-83. Had that been 2018-19 through 2020-21, no way he makes it to 2021-22.

▪ Even though Brad Stevens has moved from head coach to the Boston Celtics’ front office, I still don’t think he’ll return to college basketball.

▪ According to Jeff Goodman, 59 college basketball teams will have new head coaches next season. So much for COVID-19 giving coaches a free pass. Only Bethune-Cookman has an opening for 2021-22.

▪ Yahoo Sports’ Pete Thamel reports that a 12-team scenario is “the most likely” expansion of the College Football Playoff. If that happens, you can kiss most bowl games goodbye.

▪ Am I the only one who fails to get Aaron Rodgers’ beef with the Packers?

▪ In case you haven’t checked the stats lately, former Henry Clay standout Walker Buehler is 4-0 with a 2.62 ERA for the world champion Los Angeles Dodgers. Buehler has struck out 70 in 70 1/3 innings. Better still, he has issued just 13 walks, one of which was intentional. That’s just 1.7 per nine innings. And it ranks 11th in all of baseball.

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