Elijah Groves, 4-Star Tennessee Linebacker, Commits to Kentucky

The Wildcats went to the Volunteer State and brought back one of the best prospects to the Big Blue Nation. Saturday morning Elijah Groves announced his commitment to Kentucky, choosing the Cats over Purdue and NC State.

A 6-foot-3, 210-pound athlete, Elijah Groves took official visits to Raleigh and West Lafayette. He saved his Kentucky official visit for the fall, but an unofficial trip in early June to hang out with Brad White and Co. was still enough to seal the deal.

A small-school superstar, he’s a late riser in the recruiting rankings. This week 247 Sports bumped him up to No. 144 overall as the second-ranked player in the state of Tennessee. A four-star talent, he’s the No. 352 overall player in the On3 Industry Ranking, a proprietary algorithm that compiles ratings and rankings from all four primary recruiting media services.

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Elijah Groves is an ELITE Athlete

The more I learn about Elijah Groves, the more I like this prospect. The dude just has it.

East Robertson is a small school just across the Kentucky border off I-65 in Cross Plains, TN. There he stars in three sports: football, basketball and track and field.

On the hardwood he averages right around 20 points per game and has already eclipsed 1,000 points in his career. He dominated the landscape with his cousin Taylor Groves, a former four-star safety prospect that played for Ole Miss last fall. With the elder cousin fouled out in the state tournament, Elijah Groves delivered a dagger to advance East Robertson to the state semifinals.

On the football field he does a little bit of everything for East Robertson. He catches passes as a wide receiver and busts heads as a linebacker. Sometimes he’s off the ball, other times he’s rushing the passer. Even if he doesn’t wrap up, he might blow an opponent back 3-4 yards. Oh, and he returns kicks for touchdowns, something you rarely see from a linebacker prospect. Brad White has found an ideal athlete to mold into a playmaking linebacker in Kentucky’s 3-4 defense.

* Allow me to be candid for a moment. There aren’t many highlight tapes I’ve enjoyed more than Elijah Groves’. This guy looks like he’s playing a different sport than his opponents. Grab some popcorn and enjoy.