Kentucky Wildcats Quarterback Legacy: A Storied History

The University of Kentucky Wildcats football program, while not always nationally recognized, boasts a rich history of talented quarterbacks who have left their mark on the gridiron. From record-breaking passers to dual-threat athletes, these players have captivated fans and contributed to memorable moments in Kentucky football history.

The Manning Legacy and Kentucky

Before delving into the Wildcats' quarterback history, it's worth noting the connection between the Manning family and the University of Kentucky. The Manning family, a true "quarterback royal family," has a significant history facing the Kentucky Wildcats. Should Arch Manning start for Texas against Kentucky, he would become the fourth Manning to start at quarterback against the Wildcats. Archie Manning, his grandfather, faced Kentucky three times while at Ole Miss (1968-1970). Peyton Manning, his uncle, started four games against UK for Tennessee (1994-1997). Eli Manning, another uncle, started once for Ole Miss against Kentucky in 2001.

Archie Manning vs. Kentucky

Archie Manning's record as a starter against Kentucky was 2-1. In 1968, Ole Miss defeated Kentucky 30-14. The following year, Kentucky upset No. 8 Ole Miss 10-9. In 1970, No. 5 Ole Miss won 20-17. Over those three games, Archie Manning completed 27 of 65 passes for 348 yards and two touchdowns.

One memorable moment occurred on September 28, 1968, when Manning made his first start against Kentucky. This game was significant due to the civil rights tensions of the time. Kentucky had integrated SEC football in 1967 with Nate Northington. In 1968, Kentucky had two Black players, Wilbur Hackett and Houston Hogg, traveling to Mississippi during the height of the Civil Rights movement. Hackett recalled Manning being unusually kind during the game. The following season, Hackett and Hogg helped Kentucky upset Manning and No. 8 Ole Miss.

Peyton Manning vs. Kentucky

Peyton Manning had a perfect 4-0 record against Kentucky. In 1994, Tennessee dominated Kentucky 52-0. In 1995, No. 4 Tennessee won a close game 34-31. The following year, No. 9 Tennessee defeated Kentucky 56-10. In 1997, No. 5 Tennessee won 59-31. Over those four games, Manning completed 74 of 114 passes for 1,235 yards with 12 touchdowns.

His most memorable moment against Kentucky was the November 22, 1997, showdown with Kentucky's Tim Couch. Manning completed 25 of 35 passes for 523 yards and five touchdowns. Couch threw for 476 yards and two touchdowns. The game featured a combined 42 plays of 10 or more yards.

Eli Manning vs. Kentucky

Eli Manning faced Kentucky only once, in 2001, with Ole Miss winning 42-31. He completed 19 of 36 passes for 268 yards with two touchdowns. Manning led Ole Miss to touchdowns on its first three drives. Late in the game, he completed a 43-yard pass to set up a game-clinching touchdown.

Top Quarterbacks in Kentucky Wildcats History

Here is a look at some of the best quarterbacks in the history of Kentucky Wildcats football:

1. Tim Couch

Tim Couch is considered not only the best Kentucky Wildcat quarterback ever but also one of the best college quarterbacks of his era. After limited playing time as a freshman, he emerged as a star as a sophomore. As a junior, he was named SEC player of the year and a consensus All-American in 1998, leading to him being the number one pick in the 1999 NFL draft. The 20th anniversary of his era is celebrated as "Couch to Yeast."

On November 22, 1997, Couch had a memorable quarterback showdown against Peyton Manning. Couch threw for 476 yards and two touchdowns. At one point, the Kentucky quarterback completed 13 straight passes. He finished the game 35 of 50 passing with three interceptions.

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2. Andre Woodson

Andre Woodson was one of the best quarterbacks in college football during his final two seasons at Kentucky. After a slow start, he and the Wildcats found success in 2006 and 2007. The Wildcats finished both seasons 8-5 and won the Music City Bowl. Woodson finished his Wildcat career as their all-time leader in touchdowns thrown and with a 61.9% completion percentage, 9,360 yards, 79 touchdowns and 25 interceptions. Woodson will also forever be remembered by Kentucky fans for his role in the 43-37 win over the #1 ranked LSU Tigers in 2007. Between 2006 and 2007, he passed for 7,224 yards and 71 touchdowns. He set the (since-broken) SEC record for TD throws with 40 in 2007.

3. Jared Lorenzen

Jared Lorenzen will forever be remembered for his size, standing 6'4 and weighing somewhere in the neighborhood of 280-300 pounds. The "Hefty Lefty", as he was called, started four years for the Wildcats. He still leads them in career passing yards, and is only one behind Andre Woodson in passing touchdowns. Lorenzen finished his career at Kentucky with a 56.9% completion percentage, 10,354 yards, 78 touchdowns and 41 interceptions. While his Kentucky teams never found resounding success, that absolutely was no fault of his. Lorenzen made his first appearance on the field in a Giants uniform on December 30, 2006. Lorenzen made his second appearance on Sunday, January 7, 2007, in the Giants' wild card loss against the Philadelphia Eagles. Lorenzen's first significant regular season appearance occurred on September 9, 2007, when he took over for the injured Manning in the fourth quarter of the season opener against the Dallas Cowboys. Lorenzen made both his first regular season pass and rush, but failed to earn a first down.

Lorenzen attended Highlands High School in Fort Thomas, Kentucky, and was a letterman in football, basketball, and baseball. As a junior, he passed for a Northern Kentucky-record 2,759 yards and 37 touchdowns in 13 games. As a senior in 1998, he completed 62 percent of his passes for 3,393 yards, 45 touchdowns and six interceptions. He also rushed for 904 yards (8.4 average per carry) and 15 TDs in leading Highlands to a 15-0 season and No.19 national ranking as a senior, earning him the Mr. Football award.

As a redshirt freshman, he was named the team's starting quarterback by Wildcats head coach Hal Mumme ahead of returning starter Dusty Bonner. The move caused Bonner to transfer. Lorenzen's career at Kentucky was marked by two head coaching changes; Mumme departed as an investigation into NCAA rules violations brought down his staff and resulted in the program being placed on probation with scholarship limitations. After Lorenzen helped lead the team to a 7-5 record in 2002, head coach Guy Morriss left to become the head coach at Baylor University and was replaced by Rich Brooks, who designed plays in which Lorenzen lined up as a receiver while Shane Boyd played quarterback. Despite all the turmoil, Lorenzen set school records in total offense, passing yards, and passing touchdowns, eclipsing many marks set by 1999 NFL No. 1 overall pick Tim Couch.

Following a preseason stint with the Indianapolis Colts, Lorenzen played indoor football for the AF2, Ultimate Indoor Football League (UIFL), and Continental Indoor Football League (CIFL) from 2009 to 2014. Lorenzen struggled with his weight throughout most of his life, which was exacerbated following a leg injury that ended his playing career. He was a guest host of the Lexington-based radio show Kentucky Sports Radio, mainly during UK football season.

Read also: Legacy of Fordham University

Lorenzen died on July 3, 2019, at the age of 38.

4. Babe Parilli

Babe Parilli played for the Wildcats from 1949-1951, putting up some impressive stats for the time. He had a 55.9% completion percentage with 4,351 yards, 50 touchdowns and 37 interceptions. Parilli led the wildcats to three straight New Years Day bowl games, winning consecutive ones after the 1950 and 1951 seasons. Parilli would go on to be drafted fourth overall in the 1952 NFL Draft.

5. Derrick Ramsey

Derrick Ramsey was the quarterback at Kentucky for two years from 1977-1978. His stats won't blow anyone away, as he recorded a 47.6% completion percentage for 1,653 yards, 14 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. However, he did add 1,764 yards and 25 touchdowns rushing and helped lead that 1978 Wildcats team to a 10-1 record, finishing ranked #6. In 1975, Ramsey became the first African-American starting quarterback in the University of Kentucky's history. In 1994, Ramsey returned to his alma mater to become a Community Relations Officer at the University of Kentucky. Five years later, he became the Athletics Director at Kentucky State University. In 2004, he began his first stint in a state government role when he was appointed Deputy Secretary of Commerce in the Governor Fletcher Administration. In December of 2015, newly-elected Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin called on Ramsey's proven track record by asking him to once again serve the citizens of the Commonwealth, this time as Secretary of the Kentucky Labor Cabinet. In 2018, Governor Bevin then appointed him as Secretary of the Education and Workforce Development Cabinet.

Other Notable Quarterbacks (2000-Present)

Here is a ranking of the 13 UK quarterbacks from 2000-present who attempted 100 passes:

Terry Wilson: He was tasked with being a game manager in 2018 and had his season ended in the second game in 2019. He is 12-3 as a starter at Kentucky. He won in The Swamp, something a UK quarterback hadn’t done since 1979. He won 10 games in a season, something a UK quarterback hadn’t done since 1977. He hit a game-winning touchdown pass on an untimed down.
Patrick Towles: His best season was his sophomore campaign in 2014, when he had 2,718 yards and with 14 TDs against 9 INTs.
Mike Hartline: He led UK to a bowl in 2010 with 3,178 passing yards, 23 touchdowns and 9 interceptions.
Randall Cobb: He played quarterback for much of the 2008 season, and amassed most of his passing stats in that role.
Shane Boyd: He started a few games in 2001 and most of the 2004 season, but also played a slash role in 2002 and 2003, showing excellent rushing skills, and catching a handful of passes.
Jalen Whitlow: He split time with Maxwell Smith and was the mobile QB for Joker Phillips’ final UK team and Mark Stoops’ first one.
Drew Barker: He threw for almost 300 yards in the first half of the 2016 opener against Southern Mississippi.
Sawyer Smith: He showed excellent skills for much of the Florida game in 2019, and then suffered several injuries, each of which reduced his effectiveness more than the one before.
Morgan Newton: He showed great promise in helping Kentucky win 7 games as a true freshman in 2009, passing for 706 yards with 6 TDs against 3 interceptions.
Lynn Bowden Jr.: There’s more than one way to be an effective quarterback. Consider this in the context of Kentucky’s position group from the past 2 decades, which includes great passers like Jared Lorenzen and Andre Woodson and scramblers like Randall Cobb and Lynn Bowden. But how do they stack up?

Early Quarterbacks

"Black Doc" Rodes: All-Southern. Vanderbilt coach Dan McGugin stated "If you would give me Doc Rodes, I would say he was a greater player than Curry." Rodes was a cousin of earlier Kentucky football player William "Red Doc" Rodes.
W. H. N. T. "Doc" Also a member of the "immortals".
**George B. ** Captain of the 1898 "Immortals".
Carey Spicer: All-Southern.

Recent Quarterback Achievements

Will Levis: Completed 21 of 32 passes for 192 yards and two touchdowns at No. 1-ranked Georgia. He completed 21 of 31 passes for a career-high 419 yards and a career-high-tying four touchdowns in the win over New Mexico State. Added 11 net rushing yards and his 430 yards total offense is a career high. 419 passing yards is the 12th-highest single-game total in school history. Became the first 400-yard passer since Andre’ Woodson threw for 430 vs. Tennessee in 2007. 79-yard pass to Wan’Dale Robinson marked the longest of his career and longest for UK since an 83-yard pass from Patrick Towles to Javess Blue vs. ULM. He accounted for 419 yards total offense and five touchdowns vs. Tennessee. Rushed 15 times for a net 47 yards and two TDs. Completed 31 of 49 passes for a career-high 372 yards and three touchdowns. Marked the most passing yards for a Wildcat since Patrick Towles threw for 390 yards vs. Mississippi State in 2014. Most yards total offense since Towles had 466 (390 passing, 76 rushing) vs. Mississippi State in 2014. He received The Manning Award Quarterback of the Week, the Howard Schnellenberger Award as the Most Valuable Player of the Governor’s Cup game vs. Louisville, and was named Maxwell Award Player of the Week after the Louisville game after completing 21 of 32 passes for 303 yards and three touchdowns in the season opener vs. Miami (OH). He helped lead Kentucky to a come-from-behind 26-16 victory at No. 12 Florida, rushing 14 times for a career-high 113 yards and a career-best four touchdowns. The four rushing touchdowns tied the school record that has now been set by 12 players a total of 14 times and also tied the Governor’s Cup record set by Lynn Bowden Jr. He completed 27-of-35 passes for a season-high 377 yards, the second-most in his career, two touchdowns and two interceptions, in the win over Youngstown State. He also rushed for seven yards on nine carries and a touchdown. He recorded his highest completion percentage in a game when attempting at least 20 passes (.771). Marked the highest single-game completion percentage for a Wildcat (min. 20 att.) since Shane Boyd (.783) vs. During that season, after throwing for 377 yards against Youngstown State, he became the first UK quarterback with back-to-back 300-yard passing games since Patrick Towles vs. South Carolina in 2014.
Joey Gatewood: Completed 14-of-31 passes for a career-high 219 yards, including a 74-yard completion in his first starting assignment of the season vs. Georgia.
Beau Allen: Completed 18 of 26 passes for 367 yards and four touchdowns in the season opener vs. ULM, notching career highs for completions, yards and TDs, in his first career start at Kentucky. Marked the most passing yards for a Kentucky player in his first game as a Wildcat and the most passing yards for a UK quarterback since Patrick Towles threw for 390 in 2014 vs. Mississippi State. UK’s first 300-yard passer in a season opener since Drew Barker, 323 vs. ULM.

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