Kentucky CB Target Kosci Barnes Sets Commitment Date

The month of June concluded with a flurry of commitments for the Wildcats. Six players joined the 2026 Kentucky football recruiting class in the final ten days of the active recruiting month. They don’t want that recruiting momentum to stop as the calendar turns to July.

Kosci Barnes was among the dozens of players who spent a few days of their summer officially visiting the Kentucky campus in Lexington. Barnes has narrowed his final list of suitors to six: Mississippi State, Rutgers, Miami, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Kentucky. He will share his final decision on July 26.

A 6-foot-2 cornerback from Greensboro, NC, Barnes is a three-star prospect. Of his six finalists, he took official visits to every school except for Mississippi State. Even though the Cats got the last visit, South Carolina appears to have the momentum following the live recruiting period.

If Kentucky cannot turn the tables in the month of July, the cupboard is not bare in Chris Collins’ meeting room. Kentucky added a pair of cornerback commits in June, Isaiah McMillan and Jordan Crutchfield.

More Upcoming Kentucky Football Recruiting Decisions

Barnes isn’t the only one eyeing a decision in the month of July. Multiple players who officially visited last month will be announcing a decision in the near future.

Wide receiver Larry Miles is making a commitment today. Kentucky picked up three pledges from pass-catchers last month. After taking a couple of trips to Nebraska, the Huskers are the favorite ahead of his decision.

Adam Balogoun-Ali is a three-star linebacker from Florida who took official visits to North Carolina, Kentucky, and Auburn. He’s announcing his decision on July 6, but in the last few days Auburn has received multiple picks in the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine (RPM).

The biggest fish left in the Kentucky football recruiting pond is quarterback Matt Ponatoski. The Wildcats received multiple RPM picks last week and appear to have all of the momentum. He previously indicated that he planned on announcing his final decision after he completed a baseball tournament over the weekend in Georgia. We’re still playing the high-stakes waiting game without a definitive date for his decision.

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