Kentucky to Host DB Tamarcus Cooley for Official Visit

Kentucky continues to be an active player in the transfer portal. They’re making a move to get one of the more talented defensive backs available to Lexington for an official visit.

Tamarcus Cooley is expected to tour UK’s campus on Saturday. Matt Zenitz reports the visit to Kentucky will be the last of four. The N.C. State defensive back was at Ole Miss today. He’ll follow that with trips to LSU and Missouri before landing at Blue Grass Airport.

Cooley was a mid-three-star recruit in the class of 2023 when the North Carolina native signed to play for Maryland. He only played in four games with the Terps to retain his redshirt season, giving him three seasons of eligibility.

The 6-foot-1 defensive back was a productive player for N.C. State in 2024. Cooley had 39 tackles, 3.0 TFLs, a sack, 3 interceptions, 2 forced fumbles, and 6 pass deflections. If that didn’t make it clear enough, Cooley is a havoc creator, an ideal fit to replace Zion Childress at the nickel position.

Cooley was a late entrant into the transfer portal. He did not decide to depart until after Dave Doeren hired D.J. Eliot to be the defensive coordinator of the Wolf Pack. The former Mark Stoops staffer may be giving his old boss a late Christmas gift.

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