First college offer for class of 2023 linebacker Jaden Yates comes from Kentucky

(Photo courtesy of Jaden Yates)

Jaden Yates only has one scholarship offer, but his summer schedule would indicate that plenty more are on the way.

A linebacker prospect from the class of 2023, Yates is an under-the-radar recruit out of Gahanna Lincoln High School in Columbus, OH, who has quietly been receiving college interest from programs across the country. He’s heard from a wide list of schools, including a powerhouse program right near his current hom: Ohio State. But Kentucky and associate head coach Vince Marrow were the first to pull the trigger, as the coaching staff has continually done time and time again.

The scholarship offer didn’t just come in, though. Yates told KSR on Tuesday that he initially received the offer back he was just a freshman.

“Honestly no I didn’t expect to hear from them, I was just a freshman and I didn’t even know I could get offers that young if we’re being honest,” Yates told KSR. “The conversation was very brief between me and Coach Marrow but it was still a good conversation. He asked about more than just the typical height and weight, he asked about myself as a person and what my grades were like.”

Happened a little while ago, but still very blessed to know I received an offer from the university of Kentucky pic.twitter.com/3eVwLiZswn

— jaden (@jadenyat5s) May 18, 2021

Yates is a 6-foot-2, 220-pound rising junior with a busy month of June ahead of him. Earlier on Tuesday, he posted to Twitter his list of camp visits for next month and Kentucky (June 14) made the cut along with the likes of Ohio State (June 16) and Wisconsin (June 3). Yates will also camp at Marshall (June 6), Cincinnati (June 8), and Pittsburgh (June 19). He told KSR that along with the camp dates, he will make an unofficial visit to Ohio State and is in the process of scheduling a visit to Louisville.

❗️June camps 2021❗️

Wisconsin-June 3rd @CoachJoeRudolph

Marshall-June 6th @CoachSpringerST

Cincinnati-June 8th @CoachMikeTress

Kentucky-June 14th @vincemarrow

Ohio state-June 16th @CoachWash56

Pittsburg-June 19th@Coach_Manalac

–@DJRSwework / @Hopefitness_

— jaden (@jadenyat5s) May 25, 2021

Kentucky stands out to Yates for one primary reason: they were the first to offer, which “meant a lot for them to have enough faith in me”, he said. His relationship with Marrow, who is famous for recruiting out of the Ohio area, has been in the works since UK offered back when Yates was a freshman.

Getting in early with Yates could pay off down the road as his stock expects to boom in the coming year. Don’t be shocked if he picks up an offer or two during his June camping tour–there is serious interest across the board about how good Yates could be.

“I think my best on-field attribute is my combination of strength, size, and mobility,” Yates told KSR. “I’m not slow, but I’m also not the fastest straight-line speed guy but my footwork is very solid and I’m able to move around better than a lot of LBs.”