Thursday Quickies: Remembering Jared Lorenzen Edition

Reflecting on the life and career of the legendary Wildcat

By Zac Oakes@ZacOakes Jul 4, 2019, 7:30am EDT

If you buy something from an SB Nation link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics statement.

Today’s Quickies would normally be about today being the 4th of July, but instead, I’m using this space to reflect on the life and career of one of the most loved and admired Kentucky football players of all time, Jared Lorenzen, who passed away yesterday at the age of 38.

One could argue that Lorenzen is one of the most well-known Kentucky football players. He grew up in the state of Kentucky, took his team to a state championship in high school, and had multiple offers to go play for other, higher-profile schools at the time.

But Lorenzen wanted to lead his home-state Wildcats and that he did.

He broke record after record (many of which he still holds), recorded highlight after highlight, and became an icon in the Bluegrass state.

After his time at UK, he won a Super Bowl ring with the Giants and after retiring, became involved with the UK football program once again. There is no doubt he loved the UK Football program tremendously and wanted to see the program continue to succeed.

Jared’s weight loss journey, the Jared Lorenzen project, inspired thousands to help lead healthier lifestyles. It’s safe to say that over the course of his life, in one way or another, Jared made an incredible impact on hundreds of thousands of lives.

For me, my earliest memories of Kentucky Football involve watching Jared Lorenzen. I’ve heard many say it, but it’s absolutely true: he was larger than life. I remember just sitting in awe watching him run around the backfield and make throws that nearly any other quarterback wouldn’t even dare trying. I remember watching him put his shoulder down and go straight into linebackers trying to pick up a couple extra yards. I remember cameras picking him up on the sidelines during games and hearing him yell at fans or teammates in his excitement or frustration.

Jared Lorenzen is one of my first memories of UK Football and what memories they are.

He will be sorely missed by everyone who knew him, but especially his family and in particular, his two children. They’ll remain in our thoughts and prayers.

What are your favorite Lorenzen memories? Let’s talk about them.

Tweets of the Day

I remember Jared Lorenzen not so much as the Hefty Lefty, the Round Mound of Touchdown, or the Pillsbury Throw Boy—but as the UK superstar who took the time to greet and acknowledge everybody on a leisurely stroll through Fayette Mall. Heart is broken for all his family.
— John Huang (@KYHuangs) July 3, 2019

This is a good reflection of Jared the person.

I’ve spoken with so many former teammates of Jared Lorenzen tonight. It wasn’t his ability on the football field that they’ve talked about. One of the saddest days on BBN twitter. I’m sure we’ve all cried at some point today.
— Shawn Smith (@gbbcountry) July 4, 2019