Willie Rodriguez, DJ Waller among breakout candidates for UK football in 2025

For Kentucky football to exceed expectations in 2025, it will need the majority of the 24 transfers it signed to pan out. It will likely need contributions from a handful of talented freshmen.

But there will need to be development from players who don’t easily fit into the categories of returning starter, much-hyped transfer or blue-chip freshman. One of the many failures of the 2024 season was that only a couple of players could be classified as exceeding their individual preseason expectations.

On a roster with only one preseason All-SEC selection on offense or defense (third-team guard Joshua Braun), finding breakout candidates will be essential. While the plethora of transfers from smaller programs have plenty to prove, for the purposes of this discussion, we are excluding any player who started more than half his team’s games last season.

Here are five breakout candidates for the 2025 Wildcats.

Willie Rodriguez

The hype for the former Covington Catholic star grew throughout his freshman season in 2024, but he finished the year with just five catches for 94 yards. Three of those catches came in a November loss at Texas.

While starting tight end Josh Kattus is back, UK lost three players at the position to the transfer portal. At least part of that exodus can be explained by the fact that Rodriguez looked poised for a bigger role after a strong finish to his freshman season.

Now, Rodriguez has a chance to turn hype into consistent production.

“He’s had some plays, some kind of very special individual plays (in camp),” UK coach Mark Stoops said. “I’ve seen flashes of that, so we want to continue to just let him do his thing. But he certainly can be an impact guy.”

Only one Kentucky tight end has caught more than 20 passes in a season since Jacob Tamme had 56 catches in his final college season. With no wide receiver yet emerging as a go-to option for quarterback Zach Calzada, do not be surprised if Rodriguez joins C.J. Conrad as the only UK tight ends to hit that plateau since 2007.

Sam Greene

When Stoops unveils the first depth chart of the season Monday, expect transfers to be listed as the starter at quarterback, running back, left tackle, left guard, right tackle, wide receiver, nose guard, defensive end and outside linebacker, but only outside linebacker Sam Greene from that group was not a full-time starter at his former school.

Greene totaled 15 tackles, three tackles for loss and one sack while playing in 11 games with three starts at Southern Cal last season. He was not even the most-hyped transfer addition at his position for Kentucky last winter.

But Greene took the majority of the first-team snaps at “Jack” linebacker in the two preseason practices open to reporters and looks certain to at least serve a featured role as part of a rotation with Kent State transfer Kam Olds and sophomore Steven Soles at the position.

“He brings that tough, rugged physicality,” Kentucky defensive coordinator Brad White said. “...He’s sort of a tone setter with that physicality and that strength. He’s strong as an ox, but he’s an unbelievable teammate, worker. … He walks in, he’s got an infectious smile.

“You want to say he never has a bad day. He might, but he’s not going to bring that negativity into the building. He’ll swallow it and make sure when he walks in the building, everybody can feed off him. And those are special young men.”

Hardley Gilmore

By now, Gilmore’s roller coaster offseason is well documented.

After being hyped by UK coaches throughout his freshman season, he surprised by entering the transfer portal on the final day of the winter window and eventually following former UK wide receivers coach Dakiel Shorts and fellow Wildcat receiver Dane Key to Nebraska. Gilmore did not even last a full semester at Nebraska, though, and eventually transferred back to Kentucky.

Now, he is something of a hybrid returner and transfer addition for a Wildcat receiving room that has plenty of options but no clear stars.

“Hardley’s a young kid that’s figuring it out, young adult,” wide receivers coach L’Damian Washington said. “And he got tremendous talent. Probably our most talented receiver, but consistency. … You ask me about anybody in life: Consistency. Consistency is the key to it all.”

After missing most of the first half of last season with a collarbone injury, Gilmore caught six passes for 153 yards and one touchdown in seven appearances, including one start. Offensive coordinator Bush Hamdan has been clear that no receiver has emerged from the pack to cement his status as a go-to option, but the best-case scenario for UK’s offense is Gilmore growing into that role at some point this season.

Antwan Smith

The only player on this list certain to open the season as a backup, Antwan Smith should still serve a valuable role as a depth inside linebacker and special teams contributor early in the year. Given the physical toll on inside linebackers, it would not be a surprise if he is needed to fill in as a starter for Alex Afari or Daveren Rayner at some point in 2025.

“His athleticism is out of the roof,” safety Jordan Lovett said of Smith when asked for under-the-radar contributors at SEC Media Days. “...His athleticism is ridiculous, and it needs to be used on the field.”

In the pre-transfer portal era, Smith likely would have been in line to redshirt as a freshman last season, but UK coaches acknowledged the increase in player movement led to a change in philosophy about how to use freshmen who could improve the special teams units but might not be in line for significant snaps on offense or defense. Smith ended up playing in seven games, almost exclusively on special teams. He was credited with one tackle, one pass breakup and one quarterback hurry in the win over FCS Murray State for his only statistics on the season.

At 6-foot-3, 215 pounds, Smith fits the mold of the type of wiry, athletic inside linebacker Kentucky has found success with in recent years.

“He pushed me every day to get better,” Afari said of Smith. “I pushed him, he pushed me. He’s gonna be great. I can’t wait to see how his career goes. He’s one of the most God-gifted athletes I’ve ever been around. He’s gonna be good.”

DJ Waller

After contributing as a backup for the 2023 national champions, Waller was widely expected to immediately lock down a starting job after transferring from Michigan to Kentucky last summer. Instead, he lost the preseason cornerback battle to JQ Hardaway – one of the few Wildcats who could be classified as enjoying a breakout 2024.

Waller did end up starting four games when future NFL first-round pick Maxwell Hairston was sidelined by an infection, but he missed the final four games with his own injury. Now, Waller will be counted on to serve as a full-time starter opposite Hardaway and might be the best candidate on the roster to continue UK’s recent success in sending cornerbacks to the NFL.

“I think there’s just a maturity to everything he’s doing right now in terms of how he handles his business, both in the building and outside,” White said. “...I’ve just been proud of his growth. Since the moment he stepped on to where he is, from a maturity standpoint, and then I think physically, he’s in much better shape.”

Waller was credited with 13 tackles and two pass breakups in seven games during his Kentucky debut season.

“I feel more explosive,” Waller said. “My body feels different, my mind feels different. Just knowing that you put the work in, you got nothing to worry about on the field.”

This story was originally published August 22, 2025 at 9:00 AM.

Jon Hale

Lexington Herald-Leader

(859) 414-6776

Jon Hale is the University of Kentucky football beat writer for the Lexington Herald-Leader. He joined the Herald-Leader in 2022 but has covered UK athletics for more than 10 years. Hale was named the 2021 Kentucky Sportswriter of the Year. Support my work with a digital subscription