One key junior will participate in Kentucky football Senior Day, but he could still return
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Kentucky football junior outside linebacker J.J. Weaver is apparently considering jumping to the NFL Draft after the season.
Weaver, who is in his fourth year on campus, will participate in Kentucky’s Senior Day festivities on Saturday before the regular-season finale versus Louisville. Also on the list of Senior Day participants were fourth-year juniors DeMarcus Harris and Taj Dodson.
“He’ll have an option, a decision to make,” Kentucky Coach Mark Stoops said of Weaver, noting there are current seniors on the roster who participated in Senior Day a year ago and still elected to return to school.
A Moore High School graduate, Weaver is tied for the team lead in sacks (two) and ranks second on the team in tackles for loss (five) despite missing two games with an elbow injury and playing at less than 100% after returning to the field.
“I think he’s played really well in spurts,” defensive coordinator Brad White said of Weaver last week. “I thought before the injury he was playing at an extremely high level. Obviously, he had to sort of work back into confidence level. … He’s getting the confidence back sort of in that arm.
“Listen, it’s hard to pass rush one-armed. I think people lose sight of that. When you’re not necessarily 100% — but I think every week he gets stronger and stronger and more comfortable with that.”
White praised Weaver for his performance in the loss to Vanderbilt, in which the 6-foot-5, 242-pound outside linebacker tallied seven tackles and two quarterback hurries.
In a recent update of his NFL Draft big board, ESPN analyst Mel Kiper Jr. ranked Weaver just outside his top 10 outside linebackers in the 2023 draft class. Weaver arrived at Kentucky as a four-star recruit who hoped to follow in the footsteps of former Wildcat Josh Allen, the 2018 National Defensive Player of the Year and a 2019 first-round draft pick of the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Weaver redshirted in his first season on campus in 2019. Just as Weaver was beginning to cash in on his considerable promise in 2020, he tore the ACL in his right knee in a late-November game at Florida. Weaver returned to the field more quickly than expected in time to play in the 2021 opener, but coaches said he was still less than 100% throughout the season.
This season was supposed to be the year Weaver broke out now that he was fully healthy, but he suffered the elbow injury in week three against Youngstown State.
“Missouri, that’s when I felt back comfortable with it, actually striking with it,” Weaver said last week. “Then last game I played a good game. Trying to get all my teammates together against Vanderbilt, but I think I played an amazing game against Vanderbilt.”
Harris, a reserve wide receiver, has caught four passes in 11 games this year. Dodson, a reserve defensive back, has been limited to seven games this year due to an injury. He has tallied one tackle while playing primarily on special teams.
Three players listed as seniors on the roster (tight end Keaton Upshaw, fullback Justice Dingle and running back Ramon Jefferson) are not planning to participate in Senior Day. Upshaw and Dingle have an additional year of eligibility remaining due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Jefferson is planning to apply for a medical waiver for an additional year of eligibility after tearing his ACL in the season opener.
The highlight of Senior Day will likely come when Kentucky honors former linebacker Chris Oats.
Oats’ career was ended by a stroke in May 2020. He has continued to stay around the team in recent years, frequently attending games in his wheelchair. UK launched a fundraising campaign to help pay for Oats’ medical expenses as he continues his rehabilitation process.
This story was originally published November 21, 2022 at 12:56 PM.
