When you are 6'3 and 345 pounds, you have to have a great nickname. And Kentucky's latest commitment, Jamarrion Harkless, has just that. You can call him Chops. Years ago, it was his aunt who started calling him Porkchops, which later became just chops, according to Sam King. Now he is coming back home to Lexington.
Jamarrion Harkless is a big man with big talent
Out of Frederick Douglass in Lexington, Harkless originally committed to Purdue in the class of 2023, but Vince Marrow could not reel the big man in. At Purdue he was asked to clog the middle, stop the run, and make it hard for lineman to get to the second level of the defense. He did his job very well.
He compiled 19 tackles and 2.5 sacks through 2 years in the black and gold, but saw limited action as a freshman appearing in 5 games. That does mean he was not able to use a redshirt year like a lot of young developing players do, that will be an option while he is in Lexington if the staff deems it needed.
Kentucky football's defensive line gets an upgrade
Harkless becomes the second interior defensive lineman to commit to Kentucky. Former LSU Tiger Ahmad Breaux committed to the Cats earlier this week. Breaux is a little smaller at 6'3 and 278 pounds, but was used as an explosive inside rusher. One of the quarterback's worst fears is a defensive line that can generate pressure up the middle. It is not always the sacks, but they can affect throwing lanes, throwing angles, cause picks, or allow others to come through and make the sack.
When Harkless committed Breaux took to X to welcome him back home:
Big ones in the middle 👌🏽💙 https://t.co/4C9PU6cjCX
— AHMAD BREAUX 🩸 (@breaux_ahmad) January 7, 2026
Big ones in the middle indeed.
Kentucky is just getting started in the portal, though, so keep an eye out on our tracker for all the latest news.