
Could 100 Men Beat a Gorilla? Kendrick Gilbert’s Kentucky to Louisville move sparks a different debate
Could 100 unarmed men defeat a gorilla in a fight?
Strength, size, speed, and instincts — the gorilla has all the advantages that matter when chaos breaks out.
Which brings us, in a strange way, to another debate. Should a player ever transfer to a rival school? Kendrick Gilbert did just that.
Gilbert, a former top-400 recruit and three-star defensive lineman, made headlines this week for transferring from Kentucky to their blood rival Louisville after two seasons in Lexington. Gilbert, who originally committed to Jeff Brohm when Brohm was at Purdue, flipped to Kentucky when Brohm left for Louisville — and now, in a full-circle moment, he’s rejoining Brohm to suit up in Cardinal red.
Statistically, Gilbert’s career so far hasn’t made a massive dent — 8 tackles over two seasons, no sacks, no turnovers — but that’s not really what’s bothering Kentucky fans. It’s the idea that a player would jump directly to the other side in one of the nastiest, most personal rivalries in college sports.
It begs the question:
Is it worse when a player transfers to a rival?
Or is it just part of the game now?
In the age of the transfer portal, player movement is more common than ever. But when a guy switches from your jersey to your enemy’s, it cuts a little deeper. It’s one thing when a player leaves for a new opportunity — another when they decide they want to beat you twice a year.
Kentucky fans, of course, will argue it absolutely matters. It’s about loyalty. It’s about pride. It’s about the idea that some lines shouldn’t be crossed. Especially in a rivalry where even license plates and family Thanksgiving dinners can be divided by shades of blue and red.
Louisville fans? They’ll take it and run. If Gilbert helps clog up the line and stuff Kentucky’s run game this fall, they’ll call it a brilliant addition. Rivalry is war, and in war, you take any edge you can get.
Just like the gorilla debate, it’s easy to underestimate what happens when emotions, strength, and survival instincts get involved. On paper, maybe 100 men should overwhelm a gorilla. On paper, maybe one defensive lineman shouldn’t shift the power balance in a rivalry. But reality doesn’t always care about numbers.
Gilbert’s move may not change the rivalry overnight. He might not even start. But if he blows up a Kentucky play this November wearing a red jersey, it’ll hurt a lot more than if he’d gone anywhere else.
Four-Star Recruit Sends Message After Meeting Kentucky Staff
Even though they lost in the Sweet Sixteen round of the men’s NCAA Tournament a few weeks ago, the Kentucky Wildcats remain one of college basketball’s powerhouse programs.
They have gained a couple of notable players from the transfer portal this spring, including guard Daniel Aberdeen, who comes to them from the national champion Florida Gators, and forward Mouhamed Dioubate, who transferred from Alabama.
Christian Gibson, a four-star recruit from the high school class of 2026, announced on social media, reportedly visited with Kentucky assistant coach Mikhail McLean on Tuesday.
“It was good to catch up with him and hear from him when he came by,” Gibson told KSR+.
Gibson is a 6-foot-4 guard who attends Mayde Creek High School in the Houston, Texas area. He is known as a player who has the potential to become a volume scorer and an accurate outside shooter who also has strong ball-handling skills.
He reportedly also met with LSU and Baylor not too long ago, according to On3.com.
From 2009 to 2024, Kentucky was coached by John Calipari, and during that time, it went to the Final Four on four occasions and won the national championship in 2012. In 2012, Anthony Davis, who has since gone on to become an NBA superstar, led the way for the Wildcats.