Spring Briefing: Kentucky is banking on player development at EDGE

Preparations for the 2024 college football season are already underway at the Joe Craft Football Training Facility. Defensive coordinator Brad White is now in year seven with the Kentucky football program and has a room that is in pretty good shape. Are the outside linebackers now ready to take the next step?

The Wildcats got a big boost when a multi-year starter decided to return for his super senior season but also lost a contributor to the Big 12 via the transfer portal. However, recent high school recruiting wins have stacked up in this room, and there is much to like about the personnel on the roster entering 2024.

In KSR’s Spring Briefing series, we will cover every position on Kentucky’s roster before spring practice begins. Next up is EDGE where Kentucky seems to have a high floor that has a raised ceiling this season.

Spring Rundown: Quarterback, Tailback, Wide Receiver, Tight End, Offensive Line, Defensive Line

The Room

J.J. Weaver (6-5, 244, Super)

The Louisville (Ky.) Moore product decided to come back for year six in December. Weaver closed the season strong with his best performances of the year against Louisville and Clemson. Weaver brings 32.5 career tackles for loss to the defense and will be asked to be a front seven playmaker for the Wildcats this season.

Tyreese Fearbry (6-5, 233, Redshirt Sophomore)

A former four-star recruit out of Pittsburgh, Fearbry flashed in the Gator Bowl with five pressures in a career-high 32 defensive snaps. The twitchy edge rusher will have a bigger role in year three following Keaten Wade departing the program for Colorado via the transfer portal. Fearbry needs to add some mass, but looks like the second-best pass rusher on the team behind Deone Walker.

Noah Matthews (6-5, 237, Redshirt Sophomore)

The Delaware native is still looking to carve out a role on Kentucky’s defense. Matthews will look to make a strong impression during spring practice to become the No. 3 option at EDGE for Brad White.

Grant Godfrey (6-3, 227, Redshirt Freshman)

A former four-star recruit out of Suwanee (Ga.) North Gwinnett missed his first season with an injury and is looking to find a role in 2024. Godfrey projects to play off-ball Sam in Kentucky’s 3-4 scheme and can provide kick coverage value this season if healthy.

Jacob Smith (6-4, 225, Freshman)

A four-star recruiting win in the 2024 cycle, Smith is another young player who projects as an off-ball Sam linebacker in Kentucky’s scheme. An injury might keep the true freshman out of spring practice, but Smith is a candidate to play this season.

Caleb Redd (6-3, 215, Freshman)

The St. Louis (Mo.) DeSmet product will not arrive on campus until the summer. Redd tallied 34 total sacks over his last two high school seasons. A three-star prospect, the Show Me State native might be looking at a redshirt season due to some of the experienced depth ahead of him at Jack linebacker.

Top Storyline: Pass rush productivity

Kentucky’s pass rush made some positive strides in 2024. However, a lot of that was due to Deone Walker creating havoc on the interior. The Wildcats still need a more consistent pass rush from the edge. That came and went throughout the season.

The Wildcats got only eight sacks on 67 pressures from the position in 2024. White’s defense needs more production from the edge. With Tyreese Fearbry stepping into a more prominent role, Kentucky has a bendy edge rusher for the first time in a few years, and J.J. Weaver gives the unit a proven commodity to believe in on a down-to-down basis.

Getting a more consistent edge rush could allow this defense to hit another gear this fall. Much of that will fall on the plate of Fearbry and Weaver.

What to Watch: Tyreese Fearbry’s development

A case can be made that Tyreese Fearby is the most intriguing individual on the Kentucky defense. The redshirt sophomore flashed a different gear in the last game of the season and that could help unlock more havoc production for the Kentucky defense.

Fearbry needs to show that he can do other things that rush the passer, but it is clear that his skill set is needed. During spring practice, the third-year player could carve out a clear role and give the Wildcats a weapon they simply haven’t had on the edge in five years.

Bold Prediction: Kentucky will be happy EDGE position health entering the summer

J.J. Weaver has All-SEC potential if the super senior can stay healthy. Tyreese Fearbry can give the defense a consistent edge rusher. Grant Godfrey could become the athletic off-ball Sam linebacker that UK likes to use into the field.

Kentucky has recruited this position well over the years, and that should pay off once the games start. But there is a waiting period until we get there. Many outside the program believed that adding a transfer at this position was needed, but Kentucky decided to bank on roster retention and player development.

The Wildcats will feel good about that decision at the end of spring practice.