Who are the top remaining recruiting targets for Kentucky football before signing day?
Kentucky football fans worried about the lack of confirmation that Los Angeles Rams offensive coordinator Liam Coen is returning to Lexington to run the Wildcats’ offense could receive some reassurance Wednesday.
Coen told reporters in Los Angeles last week he planned to have a conversation with UK after the Rams’ season ends, but it is clear Mark Stoops, recruiting coordinator Vince Marrow and the other UK coaches are already selling a vision of next season’s offense to potential transfers and high school recruits.
“I can’t tell you all what I told them, but eventually that will come to fruition,” Marrow said Monday when asked how he was handling the offensive uncertainty when meeting with recruits. “... Whatever coordinator we get in — I almost slipped on that — he’s going to do a good job. If it’s somebody who I think it is, he going to do a really good job. We’re excited if that’s the person coming in. Can’t say who that is until the appropriate time.”
Marrow acknowledged rival programs have tried to use Kentucky’s lack of a coordinator or clear starting quarterback against the Wildcats on the recruiting trail, but he has been able to share details about the plans to fill those holes with recruits that he cannot say publicly yet.
“They said the same thing two years ago,” Marrow said. “We didn’t have a coordinator and we didn’t have a quarterback, and we see how that turned out. Won 10 games and that quarterback may be the first pick of the draft. I’m very confident in what we’re going to do with that. We’ll see Wednesday if all of those guys believe that though when signing day comes.”
Has Kentucky found its replacements for Will Levis and Chris Rodriguez? What uncommitted high school prospects could sign with UK Wednesday?
Here is a look at the lingering questions heading into the early signing period.
How will Kentucky build around Devin Leary?
There is likely no better evidence that the offensive coordinator search is already wrapped up than Tuesday’s commitment from NC State quarterback transfer Devin Leary. As the top-ranked quarterback in the transfer portal according to multiple national rankings, Leary would not have committed to the Wildcats unless he felt comfortable about the direction of the offense.
Leary also visited Auburn after entering the portal. Kentucky appears to have prioritized him over Wisconsin transfer Graham Mertz, who visited UK earlier this week. We wont hear from UK’s next offensive coordinator on signing day, but Stoops can explain how the staff settled on Leary and how they plan to use him next season.
No signing day commitment will generate as much buzz as Leary’s pledge, but the national spotlight on UK just grew brighter.
Who are the top uncommitted high school prospects on the board?
A year after Barion Brown, Deone Walker, Dane Key and Josh Kattus signed with Kentucky in advance of impact debut seasons, there is hope for some instant-impact additions on signing day.
A commitment from four-star wide receivers Karmello English or Demetrius Bell (or both) could give Kentucky one of its best high school wide receiver classes ever. UK already holds commitments from four-star receivers Anthony Brown and Shamar Porter. Depth is needed at that position following the transfers of five receivers.
Running back is another position to watch with four-star prospect Jamarion Wilcox and three-star recruit Trey Cornist two of the top remaining targets. Vanderbilt running back transfer Ray Davis could also commit to Kentucky soon.
Other uncommitted high school prospects to watch include four-star Florida prep linebacker Jayvant Brown, three-star Iowa prep linebacker Asa Newsome and three-star Georgia prep defensive lineman Tavion Gadson.
How high will Kentucky’s 2023 class be ranked?
The Wildcats’ 2022 class, which was ranked 14th nationally by the 247Sports Composite, raised expectations for Kentucky football recruiting, but for most of the current cycle UK’s 2023 class has been ranked outside the top 40.
It is important to note the high school recruiting rankings are becoming less relevant as schools fill holes on their roster with instant-impact transfers, but with commitments from multiple players in the group listed above, Kentucky could still make a significant rise in the high school rankings on signing day.
As of Tuesday, the 247Sports Composite ranks the class at No. 45. Rivals ranks the class at No. 48.
The current ranking is hurt by the small size of the class with only 15 players committed. Closing with multiple four-star commitments on signing day would still make the average rating per prospect among the best of the Stoops era.
This story was originally published December 20, 2022 at 7:56 AM.