Oklahoma transfer WR JJ Hester signs with Kentucky

WR JJ Hester has signed with Kentucky out of the NCAA Transfer Portal per On3’s Pete Nakos.

Hester had spent the past five seasons in college with the Missouri Tigers and Oklahoma Sooners. That leaves him with one year of eligibility left to use next fall in Lexington.

Hester appeared in 34 games as a reserve receiver, with a lone start, for Mizzou and OU. He redshirted his first year in CoMo before injuries shortened each of his first two years in Norman.

In that time, Hester has posted 27 receptions for 553 yards and three touchdowns during his collegiate career. That includes a career-best year for him this fall with 14 catches for 315 yards. He also scored his one touchdown this past season in a career-best outing with four receptions for 112 yards against Maine.

Hester, a Tulsa native, played high school football at Booker T. Washington. He was the No. 295 overall recruit there as a four-star in the 2020 cycle. He also rated as the No. 52 WR in the class and the No. 3 player out of the state of Oklahoma. That’s according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

Now, Hester is the No. 114 WR and No. 762 overall transfer per the latest in On3’s 2025 Top Transfer Portal Players.

Hester was one of 24 transfers this cycle for the Sooners, including one of six receivers. He’s now the sixth addition from the portal so far for UK. The other five are all linemen with IOL Josh Braun (Arkansas) IOL Wallace Unamba (New Mexico), OT Alexander Wollschlaeger (Bowling Green) on offense and then DEs Sam Greene (USC) and Landyn Watson (Marshall) on defense.

To keep up with the latest players on the move, check out On3’s Transfer Portal wire. 

The On3 Transfer Portal Instagram account and Twitter account are excellent resources to stay up to date with the latest moves.