Pair of top 400 '25 football recruits include Kentucky in top schools list

Two of the nation’s top high school juniors have taken the next step in their recruitment. That next step includes the Kentucky Wildcats. Shortly after the calendar shifted over from 2023 to 2024, a pair of talented defensive prospects announced that they have cut their list of college options. Kentucky made the list for both.

One of them is four-star EDGE Justin Hill out of Cincinnati (OH) Winton Woods, who is down to 10 schools. The other is four-star CB Mason Alexander out of Fishers (IN) Hamilton Southeastern, who is down to 12 schools.

According to the On3 Industry Ranking, the 6-foot-3, 220-pound Hill is considered a four-star prospect and the No. 165 overall class of 2025 recruit while the 6-foot, 165-pound Alexander checks in at No. 369 as a high-end three-star.

Justin Hill: Need to Know

Starting with Hill, he currently plays for a high school that Kentucky (primarily associate head coach Vince Marrow) has plenty of history with. Most notably, former Wildcat linebacker Chris Oats hails from Winton Woods. UK has recruited plenty of players from the Cincinnati-based program over the last decade.

Along with Kentucky, Hill’s top 10 also includes Ohio State, Oregon, Penn State, Miami (FL), Cincinnati, Southern California, Michigan, Alabama, and Georgia. He holds roughly 25 scholarship offers. According to On3’s Letterman Row, Hill will take upcoming visits to the likes of Georgia (Jan. 13), Cincinnati (Jan. 20), Oregon (Jan. 27), and either Penn State or Ohio State on February 3.

Hill has already taken two visits to Lexington in 2023. UK was actually his first-ever Divison I, which he earned in Oct. 2021. In January 2023, Kentucky was included in Hill’s “First 6” list. Also of note, whenever Hill posts about Kentucky on social media, he typically does so with a picture of Oats in the latter’s No. 22 UK jersey.

Mason Alexander: Need to Know

As for Alexander, his connections to Kentucky aren’t as easily identifiable as Hill’s, but he’s someone the staff has been recruiting heavily since the spring. Defensive backs coach Chris Collins was the one who reached out to Alexander with a scholarship in April 2023, his fifth from a Divison I program.

Along with Kentucky, Alexander’s top 12 also includes Missouri, Florida, Auburn, Ole Miss, Wisconsin, West Virginia, Maryland, Purdue, Tennessee, Miami (FL), and Pittsburgh. Like Hill, Alexander also holds roughly 25 offers. No upcoming visits have been scheduled just yet, but he has been to Lexington in the past.

That being said, Alexander tells KSR that he intends to visit UK for the program’s annual Junior Day (typically held in January) and will eventually return for an official visit after that.