The Big Dawg takes a bite out of Kentucky football's recruiting class

Vince Marrow chipping away at Mark Stoops 2026 recruiting class

While Mark Stoops awaits his next Wagyu ribeye at Jeff Ruby’s, Vince Marrow just took another bite out of Kentucky football's future.

Jarvis Strickland, a four-star offensive tackle from Paducah Tilghman, has decommitted from Kentucky’s 2026 class. The 6-foot-6 in-state product was UK’s only commitment from a Kentucky high school. Now, he's expected to follow Marrow to Louisville — and take a piece of the Big Blue wall with him.

This one hurts.

Strickland is the No. 2-ranked player in the state. His exit means Kentucky now has zero of the top 10 in-state prospects committed. Louisville has four — and that’s without Strickland officially flipping yet. The Cardinals already boast a top-25 class nationally. Kentucky? No. 68. That gap isn't just eye-opening. It’s program-defining.

For a decade, Marrow helped UK lock down the state. It wasn’t always rich with blue-chippers, but when they emerged, they wore blue. That pipeline is now bleeding red, and the staff in Lexington looks either unaware or unable to stop it. And even more concerning, no commitments from Ohio either.

This isn't just a recruiting miss. It's a symptom.

Kentucky football’s recruiting has flatlined. This isn’t year five in rebuilt. It’s year thirteen. And the same cracks are still showing — not just in signing top talent, but keeping it. The program’s best classes haven’t paid off because the players don’t stick around. From the 2022 class, three of the top four signees (Kiyaunta Goodwin, Barion Brown, Tyreese Fearbry) are gone. The 2023 class has the same issue losing 3 of the top 4 commits: Khamari Anderson, Jaremiah Anglin Jr., and Shamar Porter.

That’s six highly touted prospects — supposed senior leaders in 2025 and 2026 — now contributing nothing to Kentucky’s future. The “development program” pitch falls flat when there’s no one left to develop.

Mitch Barnhart can dismiss last year’s 4-8 disaster as a one-off. He can double down on “stability” as a virtue. But if this trend continues — both in-state and out — the results won’t change. The trajectory is clear. Louisville is building. Kentucky is fading.

Can Stoops and staff turn it around? They have to. Because without a major recruiting rebound, 2025 will look a lot like 2024 — and 2026 could be even worse.

In-state talent used to come to Kentucky. Now it’s going to Louisville — and Kentucky’s footing in the commonwealth is vanishing one bite at a time.