UK adds another four-star football recruit to promising young secondary

The UK football program received another gift on the recruiting trail Monday afternoon with the commitment of four-star defensive back Yusuf Corker, one of the Cats’ most promising additions to its 2017 class.

Corker — a 6-foot, 185-pound cornerback from Stockbridge, Ga. — chose the Wildcats over fellow finalists Michigan State, South Carolina and Tennessee after taking visits to all four schools. The Volunteers were widely considered the most likely choice leading up to Corker’s planned announcement Monday, so his decision to commit to the Cats was a bit of a surprise.

Volunteers Coach Butch Jones and several assistants visited Corker at his home on Dec. 7, two nights before the star recruit headed to Lexington for his official visit to UK.

It’s certainly a welcome addition for Mark Stoops, who has a highly successful track record with coaching defensive backs and now has another high-upside player for UK’s secondary of the future.

Scout.com and ESPN both rank Corker as a four-star prospect, and ESPN pegs him as the nation’s No. 21 cornerback nationally for the 2017 class. He is UK’s fifth defensive back commitment for next year, joining Tyrell Ajian, Cedrick Dort, Lonnie Johnson and Michael Nesbitt.

The Cats now have 22 commitments for 2017, and UK’s class will be ranked No. 19 nationally by Rivals.com with several of the program’s top remaining targets — such as four-star Ohio prospects Lynn Bowden, Danny Davis and Thayer Munford — still undecided.

Corker will join a team stacked with returning talent in the defensive backfield. Starters Derrick Baity, Mike Edwards and Chris Westry were all sophomores this past season. The 2016 recruiting class might have been UK’s best yet in terms of the secondary, with the Cats signing highly touted cornerbacks Tobias Gilliam, Jordan Griffin and Davonte Robinson. Gilliam and Robinson were both able to redshirt this fall and will have four more seasons of eligibility.

Kentucky has picked up eight commitments this month, and the Cats are expected to add a few more players before national signing day on Feb. 1.

This story was originally published December 26, 2016 at 1:04 PM with the headline "UK adds another four-star football recruit to promising young secondary."