Kentucky adds a three-star quarterback to its football recruiting class of 2019
Three-star quarterback Nik Scalzo announced his commitment to Kentucky on Monday night, giving the Cats their first signal caller for the class of 2019.
Scalzo — a 5-foot-11 prospect from Fort Lauderdale, Fla. — had been on UK’s recruiting radar for months when he finally landed a scholarship offer from the Cats in February.
Illinois, Florida Atlantic, UNLV and Buffalo were among his other biggest offers, but offensive coordinator Eddie Gran was his primary recruiter at UK, which zeroed in on Scalzo as one of its top targets at the position over the past few months. Quarterbacks coach Darin Hinshaw visited Scalzo last week.
247Sports ranks him as the No. 18 dual-threat quarterback in the class of 2019, and he’s the No. 131 overall prospect from the talent-rich state of Florida in that group. As a junior, Scalzo completed 175 of 307 passes for 2,065 yards and 23 touchdowns with six interceptions.
Last month, Scalzo was in California for the Adidas 7-on-7 national championships, and he led his team to a title at that competition.
“His team won the toughest 7-on-7 tournament I’ve been at,” 247Sports analyst Steve Wiltfong told the Herald-Leader after that event. “There was a ton of talent. He had a ton of talent on his team, and he spread the ball around, made a lot of plays and took care of the football. He was a key in helping their team win it.”
His early addition could also help Kentucky with some of his peers in Florida.
Scalzo’s high school teammates include three-star tight end Nikolas Ognenovic, three-star offensive lineman Jamari Williams and three-star running back Vincent Davis, who both have UK scholarship offers. The personable quarterback is also likely to start recruiting additional prospects from Florida and other states on UK’s behalf.
The Cats might not be done with QB recruiting for the 2019 cycle.
The Herald-Leader was told recently that there’s a good chance Kentucky takes two quarterbacks in its 2019 class, and the Cats’ top target — Ohio native Connor Bazelak — was in town for the Blue-White Game last month alongside Scalzo.
Bazelak — a 6-4 prospect from Dayton — is ranked by 247Sports as the No. 16 pro-style QB in the 2019 class. He’s expected to make a college decision next month.
The Cats go into the 2018 season with four scholarship quarterbacks: sophomores Terry Wilson and Gunnar Hoak, and redshirt freshmen Danny Clark and Walker Wood.
This story was originally published May 14, 2018 at 8:18 PM with the headline "Kentucky adds a three-star quarterback to its football recruiting class of 2019."