LB Offers (known)Anthony Wallace, Antonio Poole, Demarcus Sherod, Desmond Wills, Eric Muldrow, Justin Garrett, Lamar Dawson
LB Watch List
Adrian Jones, Brandon McGowan, Chad Polk, Jacob Johnson, Jared Barber, Jeremiah Henderson, Josh Harris, Kendall Walker, Matt Redfield, Miles Pace, Nathan Broussard, Regis Ball, Rue Hockensmith, Spencer Garneau, Steven Daniels, Taven Howell, Troy Gray, Vinnie Sunseri
Already Committed
Jarrett Grace (Notre Dame)
Updates
It’s no secret the Cats really wan to sign Lamar Dawson in their next class. Dawson could be the top player in the state for 2011. Are the Cats the favorite to land him? Absolutely, but there is no guarantee. The Cats haven’t had much luck in Texas so inking Anthony Wallace appears to be a long shot. Antonio Poole is a candidate, but the Cats will have their hands full in pulling him from Big 10 country. Desmond Wills is an option as he would continue the Lincoln pipeline, but if Clemson offers, he could become a Tiger. Eric Muldrow is an option to continue the Georgia pipeline, but other SEC schools are starting to get involved. The Cats have offered Justin Garrett, but he seems like another long shot at this point. Don’t be surprised if the Cats offer Brandon McGowan, Regis Ball or Kendall Walker. All three have teammates who currently hold offers from the Cats.
Most likely to be a Cat
Lamar Dawson, Antonio Poole, Desmond Wills, Kendall Walker, Brandon McGowan or Regis Ball.
Aaron, I believe LB will be one of the most-prioritized positions in UK's 2011 recruiting class. Even though the 2011 class will be small, I look for Joker to sign three LBs.
ReplyDeleteWe might even see Jon Davis end up as a LB. Davis recently committed to UK as a TE, but he has the right athletic skill set to be developed as a high-upside "Sam" LB.
There are a lot of vacancies to fill on UK's LB roster. With the exception of Danny Trevathan, virtually all of UK's LBs with significant SEC experience are gone. In their last two graduating classes, the Cats have lost Braxton Kelley, Johnny Williams, Mikhail Mabry, Sam Maxwell, and Micah Johnson. In 2011, Jacob Dufrene will graduate. A year later (in 2012), Trevathan will graduate. So the position needs to be restocked with more SEC-caliber athletes.
Secondly, when I talk with UK insiders, many say Lamar Dawson is the most important priority among uncommitted prospects on Joker's current recruiting board. Dawson is a prototypical MLB prospect, probably the best MLB the Commonwealth has produced since Joe Federspiel.
Desmond Wills is another intriguing LB prospect. Wills plays for Lincoln HS, the same program that produced current Wildcat Jon George. He projects as a "Will" LB, and would be an ideal successor to Trevathan's current role. Wills won't be easy to sign, but UK's staff has been recruiting him for a long time. If Bama and Auburn pass on Wills, this could boil down to UK and Clemson, and the Cats might pick up a late commitment.
Antonio Poole's recruitment should be very interesting for UK fans. For one thing, Poole is from Cincinnati, and Joker has already made it clear he wants to recruit Cincinnati hard. For another thing, Poole is big and athletic enough to be developed at any of the three LB positions. He runs well enough to play on the outside, but he could easily fill out to 235-240# in a D-1 strength program. Poole has some interesting scholarship offers from Big Ten schools, including Michigan State and Purdue. However, he hasn't drawn much SEC interest yet, aside from UK's offer. So this seems to be shaping up as another UK vs. Big Ten recruiting contest. As such, Poole represents an early test for Joker's ability to produce recruiting success in the neighboring states.