LEXINGTON, Ky. — Imagine the human embodiment of a safety net, someone built to catch, to save, in the most urgent of situations. They’d need to be sprawling and sturdy. They’d be quick to the spot, unerringly selfless and so utterly reliable you’d just about bet your life on their success. In other words, they’d be a lot like Ahmad Wagner.



Kentucky’s 6-foot-6, 235-pound senior wide receiver, a position that even sounds like a euphemism for safety net, with his 6-10 wingspan and paws that require 3XL gloves, is perfectly designed to be there when the Wildcats need to make a leap of faith.



Like Oct. 28, 2018, at Missouri. Kentucky has reached the Tigers’ 10-yard line with four seconds left, time for one last play in a dizzying comeback from being down 14-3 late in the fourth quarter. The Wildcats line up four-wide with the program’s all-time leading rusher, Benny Snell, in the backfield. Three of the available receivers...