Official Visit Preview: Kentucky Loads Up On Big Recruiting Weekend

The month of June kicked off with a half-dozen official visitors on the Kentucky campus. It resulted in the commitment of OT Darrin Strey, and he might not be the only player they locked up from that eventful first weekend.

Kentucky is doubling up this weekend with more than a dozen official visitors expected to spend time with the UK coaches. There’s a significant group of committed players receiving the blue carpet treatment, along with some high-profile prospects and a player or two on commitment watch.

Kentucky Commits

Before the recruiting calendar was expedited and most official visits were moved to the month of June, the biggest official visit weekends of the year were a week or two before signing day. Coaches paired their top targets with large groups of committed players to build a sense of camaraderie to help seal the deal. Kentucky is taking a similar approach this summer by bringing future Cats who are solid in their commitment to campus along with some of their top targets.

QB Brennen Ward will be back in for an official visit just a few weeks after working out with Bush Hamdan at a Kentucky football camp. The Wildcats will also host their three highest-ranked players this weekend: WR Quintin Simmons, RB Marquise Davis, and DB Martels Carter.

Athletic Kentucky Targets

It’s easier to recruit wide receivers when they know who they will be catching passes from in the future. Ward will be on campus when Daikiel Shorts hosts a pair of talented pass-catchers, Ja’Kayden Ferguson and Samari Reed.

Ferguson is a Texas native who Shorts began recruiting during his time on Dana Holgerson’s staff at Houston. A two-way star, LSU appears to be Kentucky’s biggest competition and the Tigers apparently want him to play in the secondary at the next level. Ferguson showed in a viral clip that he’s pretty great on the other side of the line of scrimmage and it could give Kentucky the upper hand in his recruitment.

The Cats are in more of an uphill battle for four-star wide receiver Samari Reed. Penn State and Ole Miss are aggressively pursuing the Florida native who had an incredibly productive junior season, catching 56 passes for 1,311 yards and 15 touchdowns.

Cornerbacks coach Chris Collins has two significant official visitors in town this weekend. Demarcus Gardner committed to UCF in March, but it did not deter Kentucky from pursuing the Georgia athlete. After starting the summer in Orlando, Kentucky is the only other official visit he has on the docket for this summer.

Andrew Purcell is a highly-coveted cornerback from Alabama who has official visits planned this month with Miami, Georgia, and Tennessee. Auburn is also lurking in this recruitment. Since Jon Sumrall’s departure, Kentucky has struggled to close in competitions within the SEC footprint. This could be a big one that bucks that trend.

TWINS!

Package deals are often discussed in the recruiting world, particularly for AAU basketball teammates, even though they rarely come to fruition. The Desir twins would be an exception to that rule.

Mandrell Desir and Darryll Desir are pass-rushing athletes with some positional flexibility. The Miami natives have been pursued by all of the schools in Florida, but UCF has been the most aggressive, hosting the brothers for official visits on May 31. It may be tough selling the two to leave the state of Florida, but it’s not deterring Mike Stoops.

These TWINS are TOUGH 😤⭐️ @MandrellDesir19 @darryll_desir

3⭐️ DE’s Mandrell Desir and Darryll Desir are going to DOMINATE this season. These twins play as a unit. pic.twitter.com/qmaVbE7sdv

— 305 Sports (@305Sportss) May 27, 2024

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Commitment Watch

Kentucky does not need to load up on tight ends in the 2025 recruiting class, but there is one player who has caught Vince Marrow’s eye. Brody Lennon is not your traditional road-grader, but an exceptional athlete who can flex out and make plays in space. Penn State is the Cats’ top competition at the moment for the Cleveland athlete, but that may change this weekend at the closing table.

Kentucky needs multiple offensive tackle commits in the 2025 recruiting class. A week after locking up Strey, Bryan Auguste may be next up for Eric Wolford. A teammate of Samari Reed’s at Monarch High School in Coconut Creek, FL, August fits the profile of what Kentucky is looking for at the position. He’s officially visited Boston College and Syracuse, but in the SEC, it just means more.