With less than three weeks until national signing day, the Kentucky staff is attempting to put the final touches on the 2011 recruiting class. There are precious few scholarships available, so the staff has to be extremely picky from this point on. Here’s a summary of where the current class stands and some possible additions.
Quarterback
Who’s committed:
The Wildcats had quarterback Maxwell Smith enroll for the spring semester and he’s been working out with the team since the bowl practices. He’s a 6’5 gunslinger that’s a traditional pocket passer. The Cats also have a commitment from Theltus Cobbins who’s a 6’2 scrambler from New Orleans. Cobbins is in the process of recovering from a shoulder injury and should be available this fall. If things don’t go well for him at QB, he has the speed and athleticism to make the switch to receiver or defensive back.
Who’s still a possibility:
It looks like the QB position is filled up for this class. There are no other known targets.
Running back
Who’s committed:
The running backs in this class have both been relatively recent additions. Josh Clemons is a traditional feature-back, measuring in at 5’10 and weighing about 205 pounds. He’s got enough speed to break long runs and isn’t afraid to run between the tackles either. Marcus Caffey is a top 50 running back nationally and has breakaway speed and a big enough frame to bang around between the tackles himself. These guys both are a change from the small scat-back types Kentucky usually pursues.
Who’s still a possibility:
Louisville recently pulled their offer out from under hometown prospect Jerrell Moore and he’s listed Kentucky as a school he’s still considering. He’s been recruited as a running back for Kentucky, but Louisville was targeting him as a receiver. Alonzo Harris is a fullback/running back hybrid from Alabama that also has some potential at linebacker. He attempted to verbally commit to Kentucky before the season ended, but his commitment reportedly wasn’t accepted by the staff at that time (possibly due to the fact that UK fired their running backs coach and the guy recruiting Harris). Trayion Durham is a fullback from Cincinnati that is supposedly down to UK and Louisville. He was supposed to visit Kentucky this weekend, but I haven’t confirmed whether or not he made it yet. It’s beginning to look like the running back spots may be filled up at this point.
Wide receiver
Who’s committed:
UK currently has commitments from Rashad Cunningham, Nile Daniel, Demarco Robinson, and Josh Forrest. Cunningham and Forrest are both big targets with both of them measuring in at 6’4. Daniel is a speed merchant that is capable of breaking loose at any time. Robinson is an extremely well rounded receiver that does a little bit of everything.
Who’s still a possibility:
Kentucky is still targeting a couple of guys at receiver. Devin
Lucien is a highly rated prospect from California that’s played with UK quarterback Maxwell Smith. He’s not huge at 6’1, but is plenty tall enough to get the job done and has the type of skill set and personality that reminds som observers of Randall Cobb. Daryl Collins is another well rounded guy that should be visiting Kentucky this coming weekend. He is currently committed to Alabama, but might see early playing time at UK with the recent losses of Chris Matthews and Randall Cobb. Kentucky probably doesn’t have room in this class for both of these two, but either one would be a huge addition to the class.
Tight End
Who’s committed:
Kentucky’s first commitment in the 2011 class came from Louisville jumbo-athlete Jon Davis. Davis is an interesting player that has the size and skill-set to play running back, fullback, tight end, or linebacker in college and has been recruited to Kentucky to play tight end. He has recently been rumored to have opened his recruitment up a little bit, but Davis hasn’t made any comments himself about not being committed to Kentucky. He should be a guy to keep an eye on as national signing day approaches.
Who’s still a possibility:
Reports have recently come out that Kentucky has jumped in on Georgia tight end/defensive end prospect Alvin Dupree. Outside of him, it looks like UK is comfortable sitting tight with so many young tight ends on the roster.
Offensive Line
Who’s committed:
The Cats have hometown prospects Zach West and Darrian Miller in the fold already. Both guys are big time players that picked the Wildcats over multiple other BCS school offers. The Cats did lose a commit this month though, as Indianapolis tackle Nick Martin changed his commitment from Kentucky to Notre Dame.
Who’s still a possibility:
Kentucky has recently jumped in the mix for two tackle prospects that had previously thought to be locks to Michigan. Chris Bryant is a massive 6’5 330 pound lineman from Chicago that could play tackle or guard in college rated as a top 20 prospect nationally. James Elliott is a 6’4 305 pound tackle prospect that decommitted from Michigan and is now considering UK along with teammate Demarius Rancifer. The door was really opened for UK to take another lineman when Martin had a change of heart. I would expect the staff to jump on a commitment from either Bryant or Elliott if either offers.
Defensive Line
Who’s committed:
Kentucky really focused on the defensive line in the past class and this one should be no different. The Wildcats have secured commitments from David Washington out of Georgia, and Shaq Love and Christian Coleman out of Tennessee. Coleman is a big, strong defensive end that will join high school teammate Avery Williamson at Kentucky. Love and Washington are both versatile prospects that could play defensive end or defensive tackle and give UK some options in what scheme they want to run.
Who’s still a possibility:
It’s not clear if Kentucky is finished recruiting on the defensive line or not, but there aren’t a lot of uncommitted prospects left. It appears the strange recruitment of Isaiah Norton is over, and there are questions about Jakari Kinnie’s ability to qualify academically at UK. Don’t count out a signing day surprise here as the Cats may try to flip someone who’s already committed elsewhere.
Linebacker
Who’s committed:
The Wildcats have yet to get a commitment for the 2011 class despite linebacker possibly being the position of greatest need. Kentucky did enroll greyshirts Tim Patterson and Jabari Johnson from the 2010 class this semester though, which should provide some reinforcements for the time being.
Who’s still a possibility:
Anyone that even loosely follows UK football recruiting can tell you that the prized jewel for this class is Lamar Dawson from Danville. He’s a blue-chip prospect with offers from Florida, Oregon, USC, Tennessee, and many other schools. Antonio Poole isn’t as widely known as Dawson, but is no slouch himself. He is considering Kentucky along with Miami and Purdue. Demarius Rancifer is a 6’3 outside linebacker from Florida that’s down to Kentucky, Central Florida and Ole Miss. Georgia linebacker Troy Gray is thought to be down to Kentucky and Virginia. Don’t count out a second attempt at Boston College commitment Steven Dani
els either.
Defensive back
Who’s committed:
Kentucky has really focused on restocking the defensive backfield in this class and has added several talented prospects. Glenn Faulkner was an early commitment to the Wildcats and followed his senior season with a trip to the U.S. Army All-Star game. He’s projected to play safety at Kentucky. Ashely Lowery rode a wave internet publicity after a video clip of him hurdling over a defender went viral. He is projected to play safety at Kentucky. Riyahd Jones, Daylen Hall, and Eric Dixon are all speedy cornerbacks that will look to help shore up Kentucky’s pass defense. There’s also the possibility that quarterback Theltus Cobbins could eventually play in the defensive backfield if his shoulder doesn’t heal.
Who’s still a possibility:
It appears as though the Wildcats have wrapped up recruiting for the defensive backfield, barring a decommitment.
So there you have a breakdown of where UK currently stands. Keep in mind that this is recruiting we’re talking about and things tend to change quickly and happen fast, so you never know what might eventually unfold. I wouldn’t count Joker having an ace up his sleeve though, so signing day should be fun to watch.
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