Kelvin Joseph opts out 5 days before Kentucky’s final game to prepare for NFL Draft
After going all season without a player opting out of the 2020 campaign, Kentucky lost one of its best defensive players to a voluntary opt out on Monday, less than a week before the season finale.
Kelvin Joseph, a junior who’s tied for the second-most interceptions in the country with four this season, announced on social media Monday evening that he is opting out of UK’s remaining schedule to focus on his professional football aspirations.
“Growing up in North Baton Rouge, not many have had the opportunity that I have to play in the NFL,” Joseph wrote in a message posted to his Instagram and Twitter pages. “My family struggled but still managed to raise a successful young black man. I am taking this opportunity to focus on preparing for the NFL Draft.
“I want to thank LSU for bringing me into the brotherhood & the Kentucky Wildcats coaches, teammates and the community for accepting me and allowing me to showcase my ability. I know it was a short stay but it’s BIG BLUE NATION ALL DAY!” (sic)
Joseph started UK’s previous nine games and was listed as a No. 1 cornerback ahead of the Wildcats’ game against South Carolina this week. The former four-star recruit sat out the entirety of last season due to NCAA transfer rules; he played in 11 games as a true freshman at LSU during the 2018 season.
The news broke during head coach Mark Stoops’ weekly radio show. Host Tom Leach asked Stoops about the decision on the air.
“He came in and visited with me after my press conference today,” Stoops said. “… Kelvin, he’s a good young man and I appreciate what he did for us. He just didn’t, I don’t know how to phrase it. He didn’t really want to opt out but he didn’t want to play this week. … I can’t just have him out there standing around saying, ‘I’m not playing in this game.’ That’s not how we’re going to do this at Kentucky.”
Stoops said that he looks forward to aiding Joseph however he can throughout the pre-draft process.
“He’s got a lot of talent but he’s also young and has got a lot of work to do,” Stoops said. “… He doesn’t have a lot of tape.”
This story was originally published November 30, 2020 at 6:50 PM.
