Recruiting boards around the country continue to shrink, and Will Stein has Kentucky surviving the cuts of some of the best recruits in the country.
We told you previously here that top-150 national prospect Aidan O’Neil possesses all the raw tools to be Kentucky football’s next great "sack merchant." It appears the coaching staff completely agrees with our evaluation, because they are currently locked in a massive battle for his commitment.
The elite 2027 edge rusher officially updated his recruitment this weekend, telling Hayes Fawcett of Rivals that he has narrowed his huge offer sheet down to a final seven schools.
Kentucky has officially made the cut.
Battling the national heavyweights
To understand exactly what kind of talent Will Stein is pursuing, you just have to look at the other programs remaining on O'Neil's list.
Kentucky is currently going toe-to-toe with Penn State, Tennessee, Indiana, Illinois, Texas A&M, and Notre Dame. Those are schools that are spending huge amounts of money to build football powerhouses. Surviving a cut list against that specific tier of deep-pocketed teams proves that Stein is aggressively trying to elevate the sheer talent floor at every position on the roster. He is already making the QB position a priority, with 5 of the top 25 2026 recruits listed as either visiting or having Kentucky in the top 10.
Now this adds a piece to the other side of the field.
The 6-foot-5, 250-pound defensive lineman from New Jersey is a relentless disruptor. Think JJ Watt. During his 2025 junior campaign, he terrorized opposing backfields to the tune of 16 tackles for loss and 7.5 sacks.
The crucial next step for Tony Washington Jr.
Getting into the final seven is a massive milestone, but closing the deal against national powerhouses is a completely different challenge. And that is where Kentucky will have to take the next step.
That responsibility now falls heavily on defensive ends coach Tony Washington Jr, who is serving as O'Neil's lead recruiter. Washington has successfully navigated the early stages of this recruitment after coming over from Ohio State, and he has successfully secured the next crucial piece of the puzzle: an official campus visit.
O'Neil is scheduled to be in Lexington this summer on June 5th. That will be a week before he heads to Happy Valley.
Make absolutely no mistake about it. To see Kentucky in this tier of company just months after Stein was hired shows you exactly the kind of program he is trying to build.
Can the Cats close it out?