Blazing New Trails: Kentucky Author Begins 8th Major Manuscript

Special to KySportsStyle.com Magazine

July 13, 2026

Longtime Kentucky professor and sportswriter Jamie H. Vaught is continuing his lifelong passion for writing.

Vaught has begun working on his eighth book on University of Kentucky men's basketball. “I never dreamt that I would write that many books which have done very well,” said Vaught, who still teaches two online classes at Southeast Kentucky Community & Technical College after retiring in 2024. “I’m extremely thankful for the support that I have received over the years. I love writing. I love sports. That’s surely a very nice combination.”

Seven-time Kentucky author Jamie H. Vaught displays his first UK basketball book, Crazy About the Cats: From Rupp to Pitino, published in 1991. His new book -- No. 8 -- is expected to be ready in late 2028.

Unlike his previous seven books which included feature stories about different players and coaches associated with the UK program, the new volume is expected to have a somewhat different format.  The author recently interviewed a couple of prominent UK personalities, jump-starting his manuscript.

The target publication date for the new book is November 2028.

His latest published work, Unforgettable Journey with the Cats, was released last November, and the 325-page book is available online as well as in many Kentucky bookstores, including Barnes & Noble and Lexington’s Joseph-Beth Booksellers.

The volume recently has been featured on Lexington’s FOX-56 and in Kentucky Living monthly magazine as well as in other media outlets.

As part of the July 4th holiday celebration, the book is on sale on Amazon for only $13.95, reflecting a discount of five dollars. This holiday sale will conclude at the end of July.

UK basketball coach Mark Pope and Kentucky author Jamie H. Vaught in 2025.

Vaught gives credit to his late mother, a librarian and teacher, for his lifelong love of writing. "My mother had several stories published in various magazines, and loved to read and write," he said. "As the old saying goes, reading definitely helps to improve your writing."

After serving as sports editor of the Kentucky Kernel, the student daily newspaper at UK, during his college days, Vaught continued his sportswriting career at The Cats’ Pause under the leadership of publisher and editor Oscar Combs during the early 1980s. 

A two-time UK graduate with degrees in accounting and an MBA, Vaught taught full-time in higher education for 38 years -- including 33 years at Southeast Kentucky CTC -- while moonlighting as a sportswriter for a couple of daily newspapers and other outlets. A Somerset native who lives in Middlesboro, Vaught is currently the founder and editor of the Middlesboro-based KySportsStyle.com Magazine.