Kentucky Wide Receiver Target Removes Name from Transfer Portal

The first ten days of the transfer portal window were profitable for the Kentucky football program. The Wildcats landed a former five-star quarterback, an Ohio State running back, a former four-star pass-catcher from Texas A&M and a wideout who had more than 1,000-receiving yards last fall.

It was a great start, but only the start. The problem is that other players in Kentucky’s crosshairs are falling off the board.

Donaven McCulley visited Kentucky last weekend. The 6-foot-5 outside receiver has one more year before his name is called in the NFL Draft. Instead of making the move to Lexington, multiple reports indicate McCulley will remove his name from the transfer portal and return to Indiana.

Curt Cignetti is throwing a wrench into Kentucky’s transfer portal plan. This is the second big-time player the former James Madison head coach has brought back to Bloomington. Starting left tackle Carter Smith visited Ole Miss last weekend and was expected to be in Lexington this weekend. Instead, he chose to remove his name from the transfer portal.

The recent decisions by the Hoosiers are bringing the Kentucky coaching staff back to the drawing board.

Wide Receiver Outlook

As discussed on this week’s edition of 11 Personnel, next year’s offense needs six reliable wide receivers. Despite whispers of a departure from Barion Brown, the intel KSR has received indicates he’s in position to be on the field for the Wildcats in 2024. That gives Kentucky a solid first four:

• Barion Brown
• Dane Key
• Ja’Mori Maclin
• Anthony Brown-Stephens

As McCulley did for Indiana, Shamar Porter withdrew his name from the transfer portal. He’ll compete with newcomer Raymond Cottrell for one of the remaining slots to get Kentucky to five quality pass-catchers. Who will be the sixth?

Incoming freshman Hardley Gilmore has impressive speed and a prolific recruiting ranking, but he is reclassifying, which means a redshirt year is probably in the cards. Kentucky will likely need to go portal shopping for another and the options are shrinking in this window. There was some buzz around Houston transfer Matthew Golden, but that is dwindling as Texas gains momentum. The Cats likely need to wait until the second or third wave of transfers to find another wide receiver.

Kentucky Offensive Line Targets

The Big Blue Wall is returning four starters in 2024. USC transfer Courtland Ford is expected to emerge from the rotation into the final open starting spot, but Kentucky needs more depth in the trenches. It is difficult to discern who is a realistic option at this point.

Howard Sampson, another North Texas transfer, is a big option at offensive tackle. TCU appears to be gaining steam as some expect him to make a trip to Fort Worth this weekend. The Wildcats have extended an offer to Drew Azzopardi from San Diego State. They’ve also been in the mix for Devon Manuel, a player who picked up multiple starts last year for Arkansas, but that recruitment has been kept quiet for the most part.

Adam Luckett has a complete rundown of Kentucky transfer portal targets on KSR+. The transfer portal window will remain open until January, but most of the heavy lifting must be done between now and the start of the Early Signing Period on Wednesday.