‘Big people are still big in the fourth quarter.’ Defensive line now a strength at UK.

Brad White caught himself before calling Kentucky’s pass rush the least of his worries heading into the 2020 season, but as far as potential hiccups that could lead to his defense getting derailed this fall, it’s certainly low on the list.

That level of confidence is bolstered due to returning outside linebackers Jamar “Boogie” Watson and Jordan Wright, but it’s rooted in a first wave of defenders with legitimate experience and the potential to go three-deep in its rotation thanks to a group of true freshmen that would make just about every other school in the Southeastern Conference salivate.

Kentucky’s defensive line adds Josh Paschal at defensive end, a position he’s floated in and out of during his time at Kentucky and that the junior now will command exclusively. As a “jack” linebacker last year, Paschal developed a strong understanding of what that unit expects from the group of which he’s now a full-time member. Watson has seen it pay dividends from his perspective behind the line, too.

“When we’re working stunts with the d-line, me and Josh pretty much have a great feel of what to expect from each other ‘cause he heard the coaching tips from Coach White last year,” Watson said. “Understanding what the outside guy needs from the inside guy in games, and also me knowing what he needs ‘cause I went through the meetings last year with him being in nickel, I think us working together, him knowing what the outside guy’s looking for and me vice versa, I definitely think it’s helping and we have a great chemistry.”

On the other side of the three-man front is Phil Hoskins, a sixth-year senior who earned an additional season of eligibility after being sidelined for the entirety of 2019 (he missed the first two games due to academic issues before suffering an injury in warm-ups prior to UK’s third game that turned out to be season-ending).

“I think he can have a really big year,” White said of the 6-foot-5, 315-pound defensive tackle. “He’s big and twitchy. I know we talked about it last year but unfortunately we weren’t able to have him. But he’s come back with sort of a different mindset, and it’s shown. His work ethic on the field is unlike since I’ve been here.”

Tying it all together is Quinton Bohanna, the senior manning the middle. Bohanna to this point has been viewed more as a run-stopper than an all-around athlete at nose guard, but says the difference is “night and day” between last fall camp and this year’s camp in terms of his ability as a pass rusher.

That uptick is in part self-motivated — he has a great frame to be a high selection in next year’s NFL Draft if he can show marked progress — but also at the behest of new defensive line coach Anwar Stewart, a UK player in the late 1990s and a former assistant under Mark Stoops who was hired in the offseason to replace Derrick LeBlanc, who left for the same job at Arkansas.

“He’s been pushing the heck out of me, us as a whole he’s been pushing, but specifically he’s been pushing me a lot,” Bohanna said. “Any slight fault in my technique, he’s adjusting right there, gonna nip it in the bud.”

Young bigs

A quartet of freshman signees — Justin Rogers, Tre’Vonn Rybka, Josaih Hayes and Octavius Oxendine — all were tabbed as, at least, four-star prospects coming out of high school and to this point they’re delivering as hoped. Redshirt freshman Isaiah Gibson is progressing nicely, too.

Cultivating that depth is crucial for the program’s long-term future but takes on even more importance in the short term due to the possibility of players being unavailable week to week because of COVID-19 procedures.

It could pay off nicely against a 10-game SEC schedule, too.

“We’re all humans,” White said. “If I know there’s potential that it could be an eight-play drive, I can’t just expend and use all my energy on the first three. Maybe I hold back a little bit, maybe I don’t chase as hard on the back side. When you’ve got depth and can play six, seven, eight, maybe even get to nine guys, you can say, ‘I’m gonna play hair on fire for three, four reps, and boom we’re gonna put someone else in and they’re gonna do the same and I’m gonna come back in.’ We feel good about that.”

They’re still true freshmen, though, even if they don’t necessarily look like typical newcomers. White is thankful that they’re getting sharpened against one of the nation’s top offensive line groups in camp.

“Big people are still big in the fourth quarter, you know?” White said. “That’s sort of our mantra.”

Scouting the Cats

This is the fourth of nine stories looking at the 2020 Kentucky football team position-by-position.

Outlook: Defensive line

Leading men: Josh Paschal’s move back to defensive end, a position he occupied as a true freshman, should ease the line’s transition into 2020 competition as it seeks to replace T.J. Carter and Calvin Taylor Jr. on the sides. Paschal’s one-year turn at linebacker should serve him well closer to the point of attack, and should likewise be a boon to those whose ranks he left, if for no other reason than encouraging trust. Quinton Bohanna is back at nose guard and is expected to deliver what he’s capable of, “and then more,” according to defensive coordinator Brad White; if he proves able to do that over the course of a 10-game SEC schedule, he could be a high NFL Draft selection. Phil Hoskins, who gained a sixth year of eligibility from the NCAA after sitting all of last season, projects as the starter at defensive tackle.

Supporting cast: Backing up Bohanna is the Hulk-like Marquan “Bully” McCall, a 379-pound junior who’s played in 21 games — including all 13 last year — since arriving in 2018. Tackles Abule Abadi-Fitzgerald (a junior) and Qua Mahone (sophomore) saw action in 2019, but a vaunted class of true freshman linemen will surely have at least a couple of guys make a run at legitimate playing time. That group includes five-star defensive tackle Justin Rogers and in-state standout Octavious Oxendine, a four-star prospect out of North Hardin High School.

Synopsis: This group will start, and involve, several new faces — including its position coach, Anwar Stewart — but don’t discount the overall defensive experience of Paschal and the 1-2 punch of Bohanna and McCall in the middle. Experienced depth is the unit’s biggest concern, but it doesn’t lack for raw talent, which it boasts in abundance. As long as some of those young guys develop fast, things should play out well up front.

This story was originally published September 13, 2020 at 9:29 AM.

Josh Moore

Lexington Herald-Leader

Josh Moore covers the University of Kentucky football team for the Lexington Herald-Leader, where he’s been employed since 2009. Moore, a Martin County native, graduated from UK with a B.A. in Integrated Strategic Communication and English in 2013. He’s a fan of the NBA, Power Rangers and Pokémon. Support my work with a digital subscription