Spring practice isn’t even underway yet, but the addition of new players, the attrition of some of the personnel on the roster, and the emergence of some of the younger players should give the team a fresh look in 2012. The pre-spring depth chart should be available soon, but until then, this is my best guess as to what it will look like when the spring sessions are over. I’ve taken the liberty of moving some players around and changing positions as needed for depth.
QB
1. Maxwell Smith (SO)
2. Jacob Russell (SO)
3. Morgan Newton (SR)
Notes: The starting job appears to be all Smith’s for spring practice. Newton will be rehabbing from a shoulder surgery and his status for 2012 isn’t clear. It’s not out of the question for Russell to overtake Smith or for Cobbins to remain at QB, but I think both are unlikely. I look for Maxwell Smith to lock down the starting position in the spring before battling with a (hopefully) healthy Newton and freshman Patrick Towles this summer.
RB
1. Josh Clemons (SO)
2. Raymond Sanders (JR)
3. CoShik Williams (SR)
4. Brandon Gainer (SO)
5. Jonathan George (JR)
Notes: Clemons was superb at times as a true freshman and he and Sanders should probably be listed as 1A and 1B due to their diverse skill-sets. Both will see plenty of time. Williams had a solid year in 2011 and Gainer didn’t see the field much, but I struggled to list Williams above Gainer still. A lot of my reasoning for keeping Williams at the #3 spot is his ability to be a third down option. In the event that Sanders and Clemons are both injured again, I would probably move Gainer up to the #3 spot. George is a promising player, but he is running out of time to make an impact.
FB
1. DJ Warren (SO)
2. Toba Omotinugbon (FR)
3. Cody Jones (JR)
Notes: Warren played well after winning the starting job as a true freshman and there’s no reason to believe he’ll be unseated at this point. Omotinugbon has drawn praises from the staff and Cody Jones will be available as a backup, but as little as the Cats use the fullback, I wouldn’t expect anyone but Warren to see much time on the field.
WR
1. La’Rod King (SR)
2. Brian Adams (JR)
3. Aaron Boyd (SR)
WR
1. Gene McCaskill (SR)
2. Rashad Cunningham (FR)
WR
1. Darryl Collins (FR)
2. Demarco Robinson (SO)
3. EJ Fields (SR)
Notes: Obviously Kentucky will not be in a three-receiver set all of the time, but the Cats have put three to four receivers on the field more frequently over the years. One has to figure that La’Rod King is as close to a guaranteed starter as there is, but after that, it gets tricky. Gene McCaskill and E.J. Fields are veteran Players that have struggled through injuries in their time at UK. The two of them plus Aaron Boyd and Brian Adams will have a serious fight on their hands to hold off the talented young players from the 2011 class. I put Darryl Collins into one of the starting roles based solely on potential and his 2011 camp performance prior to injury.
TE
1. Tyler Robinson (JR)
2. Anthony Kendrick (JR)
3. Jordan Aumiller (JR)
4. Ronnie Shields (SO)
Notes: The race for the starting tight end position should be one of the closest on the team. The wildcats really need one of the three juniors to step up as they did not bring in a challenger in the freshman class. Robinson is probably the best blocker on the team and brings the most to the table to support the run game. Kendrick is probably the most athletic of the three juniors and would be the best option as a pass-catcher. Aumiller has started the previous two seasons atop the depth chart but has never finished there for varying reasons. He is probably the most well-rounded player at the position, but I struggle to keep him as the starter after giving way to other players two seasons in a row. Shields might be the most promising player at the position, but he is still relatively raw.
LT
1. Darrian Miller (SO)
2. Nermin Delic (JR)
LG
1. Kevin Mitchell (JR)
2. Shquille Love (FR)
C
1. Matt Smith (SR)
2. Sam Simpson (JR)
RG
1. Larry Warford (SR)
2. Zach West (FR)
RT
1. Teven Eatmon-Nared (SO)
2. Trevino Woods (SR)
Notes: The starting center, left tackle and right guard positions are pretty easy to figure out. I went with size above all else at the other two starting spots and put Kentucky’s biggest bodies in as starters. The reality of the situation on the offensive line is that Kentucky will be replacing four of their top linemen from last season and several players will have to be moved around to fill out the depth chart.
DE
1. Collins Ukwu (SR)
2. Mike Douglas (SO)
3. Taylor Wyndham (SR)
DT
1. Mister Cobble (JR)
2. Christian Coleman (SO)
3. Tristian Johnson (JR)
DT
1. Donte Rumph (JR)
2. Alvin Davis (SO)
3. Travaughn Paschal (SO)
Notes: The defensive line is going to vary greatly depending on the formation Kentucky comes out in. If the Wildcats lean more on the four-man fronts, a guy like Mike Douglas or Alvin Davis will play a lot more. Regardless, Kentucky rotates defensive linemen heavily and most of the guys listed here will play a lot.
OLB/DE
1. Alvin Dupree (SO)
2. Justin Henderson (SO)
3. Farrington Huguenin (FR)
WLB
1. Malcolm McDuffen (SO)
2. Demarius Rancifer (FR)
3. Josh Forrest (FR)
MLB
1. Avery Williamson (JR)
2. Tim Patterson (FR)
3. Jabari Johson (FR)
SLB/ S
1. Miles Simpson (SO)
2. Kory Brown (SO)
3. Tyler Brause (SO)
Notes: The linebackers are pretty hard to figure out. I think penciling Avery Williamson and Alvin Dupree in as starters is pretty safe, but the rest of the depth chart is really just made up of guesses. The differences in this defense between the strong-side linebacker and the weak-side linebacker aren’t that great and the two positions could have players flip-flopped back and forth when spring comes around.
CB
1. Eric Dixon (SO)
2. Cartier Rice (SR)
3. Marcus Caffey (FR)
CB
1. Martavius Neloms (SR)
2. Eric Simmons (SO)
FS
1. Glenn Faulkner (SO)
2. Mikie Benton (SR)
SS
1. Ashely Lowery (SO)
2. Bookie Cobbins (FR)
Notes: I know I’ve written about the concerning depth in the defensive backfield for months now, but until I tried to put together a depth chart for the spring, I didn’t really understand how thin Kentucky is. To give Kentucky five corners and four safeties, I had to move Bookie Cobbins from quarterback and Marcus Caffey from running back in addition to switching Neloms back to corner. It’s unlikely that all those changes happen, but this brings the lack of depth to light to me. There is no question that several true freshmen will play and play extensively this season in the defensive backfield. For the spring though, I think moving Neloms back to corner is the first change that will happen. He, Dixon and Rice will give the Cats a nice set of corners for nickel situations. Caffey and Cobbins were both actually more sought after as defensive backs as high school prospects, so their moves make sense too.
K
1. Craig McIntosh (SR)
P
1. Joe Mansour (JR)
2. Jay Willmott (FR)
Notes: The specialists were easy to figure out. McInstosh has done nothing to loosen his hold on the starting placekicker position and Mansour can focus on punting and kickoff duties during the spring. Landon Foster should make things interesting this summer, but this is about spring practice. Wilmott will likely be the backup punter and may spend some time kicking as well.
While this depth chart has about a 1 in 1 million chance of mirroring the actual post-spring version, it does bring to light some areas that Kentucky will need some help in the summer. I would expect several defensive backs (maybe 3-4) to play as true freshmen and several rookie offensive and defensive linemen to get on the field as well.