Kentucky football recruiting notes from another busy spring weekend

Kentucky football’s open spring practice was more than just an opportunity for the fans and media to get a first-hand look at the 2023 Wildcats. The coaching staff also made it into another opportunity to bring in big-name high school recruits for unofficial visits.

Throughout the weekend, Kentucky hosted plenty of high-profile prospects to check out practice, tour the facilities, and meet with members of the staff and team. So who made the trip to Lexington? Find out below. We’ve also got some notes on a pair of nationally-ranked prospects to discuss. Let’s dive right in.

Visitors from the weekend

Earl Kulp (CB) 6-0, 165 | St. Thomas Aquinas (Fort Lauderdale, FL)
’24 4-star: No. 348 overall, No. 30 CB

• The most important known visitor from this past weekend was Earl Kulp, a bonafide four-star cornerback out of football powerhouse St. Thomas Aquinas, the same school that current Kentucky freshman LB Jayvant Brown also attended. Michigan, which offered Kulp in June 2021, is the perceived favorite at this stage after getting him on campus for a gameday visit last fall, but other notable programs such as Penn State, Miami (FL), South Carolina, Ole Miss, Missouri, and Tennessee have also offered. Kulp has not publicly announced an offer from the Wildcats just yet, but after spending some time with defensive backs coach Chris Collins over the weekend, that could change in a hurry.

Kai Greer (OT) 6-6, 285 | Marvin Ridge (Waxhaw, NC)
’24 3-star: No. 477 overall, No. 30 OT

• Kai Greer returned to campus this weekend to check out Kentucky’s open spring practice. He mostly hung around offensive line coach Zach Yenser and graduate assistant Drake Jackson. Greer is a true 6-foot-6 and is quickly rising up the recruiting ranks. UK initially offered him in late January and he’s since earned scholarships from the likes of Penn State, Miami (FL), Vanderbilt, Oklahoma State, West Virginia, Ole Miss, and Arkansas, among others. He’s also taken recent visits to Florida and Clemson with an official visit to Penn State set for June.

Fred Johnson Jr. (OT) 6-5, 300 | Glenville (Cleveland, OH)
’24 3-star

• While he’s not ranked just yet by On3, 247Sports and Rivals both have Fred Johnson as a three-star offensive tackle. The 6-foot-5, 300-pounder came to Lexington on Friday for a visit with associate head coach Vince Marrow, who handles recruiting out of the Ohio area. Kentucky was Johnson’s first DI offer, which he earned back in April 2022. One year later, he’s now up to 13 scholarships, including ones from Michigan, Michigan State, Tennessee, Penn State, and Louisville. Johnson tells KSR that an official visit to UK could be in the works this summer.

Mason Kelly (QB) 6-3, 175 | Waverly (Waverly, OH)
’25 unranked

• Kentucky has three primary quarterback targets for the class of 2025 (Cutter Boley, Ryan Montgomery, and Stone Saunders), but Mason Kelly is at least a name to keep an eye on. While he doesn’t yet hold any DI offers, he’s now been to Lexington multiple times, the first coming for a gameday visit during the 2022 season and the second over the weekend. Kelly has also visited Ohio State, Penn State, Michigan, Purdue, Akron, Bowling Green, Ball State, and Marshall since the fall.

Pedro Reyes (WR) 6-0, 180 | Cardinal Newman School (Columbia, SC)
’25 unranked

• Pedro Reyes’ visit to Kentucky didn’t actually begin until Monday, but he’s worthy of a mention here. He’ll also visit Cincinnati on Monday. Reyes holds just two DI offers so far from Akron and Maryland but is gaining momentum with his recruitment. The rising sophomore prospect has already visited Penn State, Vanderbilt, and Tennessee in recent weeks with future trips set for South Carolina, LSU, and Maryland throughout the spring.

Jaxon Pyatt (LB) 6-1, 190 | Arvada West (Arvada, CO)
’26 unranked

• It was a busy weekend for rising freshman Jaxon Pyatt, who started with a trip to Notre Dame on Friday before making it down to Lexington on Sunday. He visited Miami (FL) to begin the month of March, Arkansas back in January, and has plans to check out UMass, Arizona, Nebraska, and Rutgers throughout April. None of these teams have yet to offer Pyatt just yet, but he’s clearly a prospect on the rise.

Ethan Carter (LB) 6-0, 220 | Hudsonville (Hudsonville, MI)
’25 unranked

Oliver Castaneda (K/P) 5-10, 165 | Hiram (Hiram, GA)
’24 5-star

Michael Buck (K/P) 5-11, 170 | Lake Norman (Mooresville, NC)
’24 4-star

Other recruiting notes

Bo Jackson (RB) 6-0, 205 | Villa Angela – St. Joseph (Cleveland, OH)
’25 4-star: No. 132 overall, No. 12 RB

• The appropriately named class of 2025 running back, Bo Jackson, will take a visit to Kentucky on Friday, he tells KSR. The 6-foot, 205-pound power running back received his first-ever Divison I offer from the Wildcats back in May 2022 ahead of a successful camp visit in Lexington the following month. Jackson has developed a sound relationship with UK safeties coach Frank Buffano and is looking to learn more about how serious Kentucky’s interest is when he arrives on campus. There is plenty of competition for Jackson though, as he recently visited Ohio State and Penn State during the month of March and is also hoping to make a trip to Notre Dame in the near future. OSU and PSU have both offered. Jackson lives up to his name as a star on the baseball diamond, too.

Justin Denson (ATH) 6-2, 185 | La Salle Academy (Providence, RI)
’24 3-star: No. 823 overall, No. 76 ATH

• Although Justin “Jet” Denson already holds scholarships from high-profile schools such as Alabama, Notre Dame, and Penn State, among others, Kentucky is going to stick out with the three-star athlete. Why? Because he hails from the same high school that UK’s offensive coordinator, Liam Coen, is also a product of: La Salle Academy in Rhode Island. Denson recently told Jacob Polacheck of KSR+ that Kentucky will “definitely” make his list of top 10 schools, which he plans to drop sometime this week. Coen and defensive backs coach Chris Collins have quickly established a connection. A final decision is planned for June 18 but he hopes to visit Lexington prior to that. He visited Texas A&M on Sunday, as well.