Kentucky football Spring Practice recruiting notes

Time for our weekly recruiting update presented by our friend Andy Luedecke at MyPerfectFranchise. Andy is a huge college sports fan and franchise veteran, having owned multiple franchises and businesses. Using his expertise, he helps others find their American Dream through a very thorough consultation and evaluation process.

If you are wanting to find a way out of corporate America, wanting a side-hustle business, or a way to diversify…..reach out to Andy, as he’s got a ton of knowledge in this world and best of all, his services are 100% free to you – always! 

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It’s been a busy start to the week for the Kentucky football program. Spring practice resumed on Monday with an open practice taking place on Tuesday. KSR was on the scene to get a first-hand glimpse at the new-look Wildcats, where offensive coordinator Liam Coen and several players spoke with reporters to talk about the offense (which is receiving rave reviews early on). Spring practice will continue throughout the rest of the week, capped off with Kentucky Football’s Pro Day on Friday morning.

News also broke Tuesday that senior defensive back Vito Tisdale has been dismissed from the program due to a violation of team rules. It’s safe to say the staff has its hands full right now. But that’s not all they’ve been dealing with the last couple of days. To start the week, loads and loads of high school recruits made the trip to UK’s campus for unofficial visits, with more expected to arrive in the coming days. A handful of prospects even received scholarships from the staff, including an eighth grader who already held an offer from Michigan before coming to Lexington.

And that’s what we’re here to talk about now. It’s hardly a complete list, but below is a rundown of some of the talented recruits that were on campus the last two days to check out everything Kentucky football has to offer.

Visitors

Brian Robinson (EDGE) 6-5, 255 | Austintown Fitch (Austintown, OH)
2024 4-star: No. 138 overall, No. 12 EDGE

• The prize visitor so far this week, Brian Robinson is being heavily recruited by several big-name programs, most notably the Michigan Wolverines. Robinson holds two RPM picks to land with the Wolverines from On3’s Michigan beat writers, although both came back in the fall. Penn State and Kentucky are the next two schools making a significant push. Robinson came to Lexington on Monday and stayed until Tuesday, his second time on campus since the summer. The ‘Cats have been all over Robinson, discovering him well before any other program and becoming the first Power 5 school to offer. The next step for UK will be locking him in for an official visit.

Zae Jennings (ATH) 6-2, 185 | Colerain (Cincinnati, OH)
2024 3-star: No. 761 overall, No. 69 ATH

• Part of the giant caravan that came with the Winton Woods prospects, Colerain’s Zae Jennings spent Tuesday at the Kentucky football facilities. He’s yet to pick up an offer from the Wildcats but does hold scholarships from the likes of Purdue and West Virginia, along with some smaller programs. Jennings will make return trips in the coming weeks to Cincinnati (Wednesday) and Marshall (April 1) along with a brief stop at Ohio State on Thursday. Don’t be surprised if an offer from the ‘Cats comes in soon.

Raphael Greene (OT) 6-6, 320 | Winton Woods (Cincinnati, OH)
2025 unranked

• One of several Winton Woods boys to visit Kentucky, Raphael Greene might be the one Kentucky is focused on the most. He’s already ranked as a three-star by Rivals and will surely receive the same status from other outlets in the near future. Greene holds several offers, headlined by Kentucky (his first DI offer), West Virginia, Purdue, and Pitt, but others are lurking. He visited Michigan earlier this month. Greene’s schedule moving forward is loaded with visits to the likes of Ohio State, Georgia, Louisville, Notre Dame, and Cincinnati. Kentucky got in on him early, but there will be plenty of competition.

Justin Hill (LB) 6-4, 205 | Winton Woods (Cincinnati, OH)
2025 unranked

• Another Winton Woods prospect, Justin Hill’s offer sheet far outweighs his lack of a star ranking. He picked up an offer from Notre Dame just a few days ago following a visit to South Bend, adding to a list that already included Michigan, Michigan State, West Virginia, Pitt, and Kentucky. Much like Greene, UK was the first Divison I program to extend an offer. Associate head coach Vince Marrow is very much all-in on keeping the Winton Woods to Kentucky pipeline alive.

Jayden Gwinn (RB) 5-9, 175 | Westerville Central (Westerville, OH)
2025 unranked

• Jayden Gwinn actually hasn’t made it to Lexington just yet, but he will on Thursday, the same day he also plans to take a trip to Louisville. Gwinn holds just two offers from Kentucky (May 19, 2022) and Akron (May 4, 2022), but is trending in the right direction heading into his junior season. He’s already taken visits to Ohio State, Toledo, Akron, Miami (OH), and Ohio, along with multiple trips to UK. An offer from the ‘Cats could be on the way.

Mikkel Skinner (ATH) 6-3, 200| Riverside (Greer, SC) –> KSR+ interview
2025 unranked

KJ Brown (LB) 6-3, 220 | Monroe (Monroe, OH)
2025 unranked

Jamier Bryant (EDGE) 6-1, 180 | Winton Woods (Cincinnati, OH)
2026 unranked

Cavin McDowell (CB) 5-10, 155 | Teays Valley (Ashville, OH)
2026 unranked

Recent Offers

Ethan Calloway (OT) 6-7, 300 | Lake Norman (Mooresville, NC)
2024 4-star: No. 189 overall, No. 12 OT

• While not as highly ranked as Brian Robinson, Ethan Calloway is certainly an intriguing prospect to receive an offer from Kentucky. Listed at a massive 6-foot-7, 300 pounds, he’s a top-200 recruit with an impressive offer sheet that features the likes of Florida, Georgia (which he visited for the first time last week), Tennessee, LSU, South Carolina, Penn State, Florida State, Auburn, and a long list of others. Kentucky is getting in later than those schools though, so there will be ground to make up.

D’Angelo Barber (LB) 6-0, 220 | Clay-Chalkville (Pinson, AL)
2024 3-star: No. 415 overall, No. 42 LB

• Auburn is currently in the driver’s seat for D’Angelo Barber, but Kentucky, which extended him an offer courtesy of offensive line coach Zach Yenser on Monday, is trying to wiggle its way into the mix. Already in the month of March, Barber has taken visits to Tennessee and Arkansas while earning scholarships from Texas A&M and Cincinnati.

Isaiah Garrett (RB) 5-10, 170 | Winton Woods (Cincinnati, OH)
2027 unranked

• The aforementioned eighth grader, Isaiah Garrett was part of the massive group from Winton Woods that made the trip across the state border. After earning an offer from Michigan back in January, Garrett has been hearing from Cincinnati and Ohio State, both of which he intends to visit later in the week. Coach Marrow was the one who extended an offer to Garrett, who will begin his freshman season at Winton Woods this fall. He’ll be one to keep a close eye on over the next few years.

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