First Down Kentucky: The Summer Grind Begins

It’s the first Monday of June, which means the Kentucky football team has officially kicked off summer workouts at the Joe Craft Football Training Facility.

Freshmen are first up to the plate with early alarms set to shock their systems into action. Workouts are staggered throughout the day and on day one the UK Athletics photogs were kind enough to share a few snapshots. Mark Hill and Corey Edmond started the summer with a bang, putting the team on the hill for strenuous sprints. Barion Brown looks like he’s put on some good weight ahead of his third season in Lexington.

Jamon Dumas-Johnson looks ten years too old for college football. That is one grown-ass man.

Speaking of grown-ass men, Deone Walker did not participate in spring practice but he’s spent the whole offseason working out. North Texas transfer wide receiver Ja’Mori Maclin was also sidelined during spring ball but is back in action for summer workouts.

DeAndre Square joins the Coaching Staff

They couldn’t keep DeAndre Square away from the Kentucky football program for long. The linebacker from Detroit was a Team Captain who became just the 20th member of the Kentucky 300-Tackle Club during his super senior season in 2022. The year prior he limped through the end of the Citrus Bowl to clinch the victory with an interception.

Square signed with the Rams as an undrafted free agent in 2023, but like so many times in his career, an untimely injury put him behind the 8-ball. Rather than pursuing more professional opportunities, this summer he’s joining Mark Stoops’ coaching staff as a volunteer assistant. He’ll be working with the inside and outside linebackers as he waits for a grad assistant vacancy.

A cerebral player, between Square and Dumas-Johnson, those two guys can coach the entire defense. Square will be a valuable asset in the development of the young linebackers. The Wildcats have 11 underclassmen at EDGE and linebacker. They’ve invested heavily in the future with elite talents and Square will play a role in ensuring those investments pay dividends down the road.

Kentucky Outside of the Preseason FPI Top 25

ESPN uses two different power ranking systems, SP+ and FPI. The former is bullish on Kentucky, ranking the Wildcats at No. 25 in the preseason. FPI, as usual, isn’t as kind to the Cats. In the first updated edition of FPI since spring practice, Kentucky is No. 34 overall, one spot behind South Carolina. The Wildcats rank 14th nationally in returning production compared to No. 52 for the Gamecocks, so yeah, I can’t explain it either.

Three Kentucky opponents are Top 10 in the FPI — Georgia, Texas, and Tennessee. Ole Miss, Auburn, Florida, and Louisville are also in the Top 25.

No Kentucky Reps on the CFB Hall of Fame Ballot

For the first time in a long time, Kentucky Sports Radio did not have to publish a “Tim Couch is on the Hall of Fame ballot” post. The All-American Kentucky quarterback will be inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in December. Even though there are no candidates from the BBN this year, there are still some eye-opening entries. Nick Saban, Urban Meyer, Mike Vick, Sean Taylor, Manti Te’o, Haloti Ngata, and Garrison Hearst are just a few of the impressive candidates on this year’s ballot.