Bio Blast: Tyler Knaak

Kentucky has five open scholarships remaining on the 2023 roster. Despite adding USC transfer Courtland Ford over a week ago, offensive tackle still remains a position of need in Lexington. Utah transfer Tyler Knaak is now on the radar.

After one season in the Pac-12, Knaak is on the move and looking for a new college football home after entering the transfer portal on April 27. Could Kentucky add a second Pac-12 transfer at tackle within a month?

After touching on Knaak’s offer, KSR’s Bio Blast is here to dig a little deeper on the latest Kentucky transfer target. With only six scholarship tackles currently on the roster, the Big Blue Wall needs some depth before the 2023 season gets off and running in August.

Power Five high school recruitment

Tyler Knaak was ranked just outside the top 1,000 in the 2022 On3 Industry Ranking. The offensive tackle recruit was a top-15 prospect in Utah. Despite the low ranking, Knaak had some legitimate Power Five interest.

!!!TOP 5 SCHOOLS!!!
Thank you to everyone who’s gotten me this far! I will be concentrating my recruitment to these 5 schools!@Utah_Football @coachjharding @USC_FB @ClayMcGuireUSC @ASUFootball @CoachCavASU @BeaverFootball @FBCoachM @UVAFootball @Coach2J

Graphic by @recruitgfx pic.twitter.com/U52TocVsLU

— Tyler Knaak (@tk_naak) November 17, 2021

Knaak had a late developing recruitment that ended with consecutive official visits to Virginia, Utah, and Oregon State during November of his senior season. In-state Utah got the last visit on Thanksgiving weekend and a commitment followed one week later.

The early enrollee would spend three semesters in Kyle Whittingham‘s program before entering the transfer portal last month.

New to offensive tackle

Part of the reason that Tyler Knaak had a late developing recruitment in high school was due to the prospect’s lack of playing experience. The 2022 season was just the second that the Utah native had spent at offensive tackle.

Playing for Cottonwood Heights (Utah) Brighton, Knaak began his prep career at defensive line and stayed there until his senior season. As a junior in 2020, Knaak recorded 19 tackles. The prospect shifted to tackle as a senior and recorded 72 pancake blocks.

Due to Knaak’s length and size, there appear to be some raw left tackle tools giving this young player some upside. After rotating in with Utah’s two this spring, Knakk decided to enter the transfer portal.

Limited Power Five interest as a transfer

Tyler Knaak was a late entry into the spring transfer portal window and has zero college playing experience on top of limited tape due to just one season of high school at offensive tackle. Therefore, this could be a limited recruitment this late in the process.

That has played out in the type of scholarship offers that Knaak has received in the last week.

There has been a plethora of Group of Five interest with Appalachian State, Buffalo, Central Michigan, Hawaii, Liberty, Nevada, Old Dominion, UMass, and Utah State all issuing offers. Kentucky became the first Power Five school to offer.

Knaak’s recruitment will be one based on upside and projection due to the limited amount of playing experience. Whoever takes the transfer will be on the hook to honor this scholarship offer until Knaak graduates or turns pro. There will be some level of risk involved. However, with scholarship capital available and a lack of numbers at tackle, this could be a calculated gamble that Kentucky will need to take.

The Wildcats need another tackle. Tyler Knaak requires development but could become a future answer at left tackle for the Big Blue Wall.