Spring Briefing: Kentucky Completely Flipped the Wide Receiver Room

Preparations for the 2025 college football season are already underway at the Joe Craft Football Training Facility. In a few short weeks, cleats will be hitting the grass practice fields and/or the turf at the Nutter Field House as Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops oversees his 13th team at Kentucky. The Wildcats underwent a drastic roster change this offseason and the biggest changes were at its most volatile position, wide receiver.

There was only one coaching change and it was the leader of the wide receivers. L’Damian Washington replaced Daikiel Shorts, who departed for Nebraska, to become the third wide receiver coach in as many years and the seventh to work for Stoops.

Dane Key and Barion Brown were staples at the position for three years. They were among five wide receivers who transferred this offseason, leaving only three holdovers. To add reinforcements, Kentucky recruited four players from the transfer portal and five true freshmen.

Let’s take a closer look at the players who are filling this enormous void and what to expect from them as they get acquainted with Bush Hamdan’s offense this spring.

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The Room

Ja’Mori Maclin (5-11, 190, Super Senior)

Maclin started his career at Missouri where Bush Hamdan was his position coach. After two years in CoMo, he transferred to North Texas and had a breakout year in 2023. Maclin led the American Athletic Conference in explosive pass plays, catching 57 balls for 1,004 yards and 11 touchdowns. The most anticipated offseason addition ahead of 2024 didn’t do much until the end of the season. He caught a 32-yard touchdown at Tennessee and picked up 52 yards at Texas. Against Louisville he reeled in a couple of scores, including an 83-yard touchdown. It led many to ask the question, why didn’t they throw it deep to this guy more often?

Fred Farrier (6-1, 182, Redshirt Senior)

The former Franklin County Flyer was under-recruited out of high school. He found a landing place at UAB where coaching turnover nearly derailed his career. Thanks to a family connection with Vince Marrow, he transferred to Kentucky and immediately impressed everyone who watched practice. He was a reliable fourth option for the Cats, particularly in traffic, and finished his first season in Lexington with 13 catches for 126 yards.

Kendrick Law (6-0, 203, Senior)

A former Blue Chip prospect from Shreveport, he spent the first three years of his college career at Alabama. Most of his snaps were logged on special teams as a returner. He also tallied 33 receptions for 343 yards. Law will be the most physically impressive pass-catcher on the roster. It may not help him run routes, but he has a reputation as an exceptional blocker in the open field.

J.J. Hester (6-5, 201, Super Senior)

The lengthy wide receiver started his career in the same wide receiver room with Maclin and Hamdan at Missouri. After catching 12 passes for 225 yards and two scores, he transferred to Oklahoma. During his three years in Norman, he consistently dealt with injuries. If he can remain healthy, he will be a deep threat for the Kentucky offense.

Troy Stellato (6-1, 178, Senior)

Stellato was a Top-200 recruit when he signed with Clemson. Primarily a possession receiver in the slot, he had a breakout year in 2023 that was capped off by an exceptional performance against Kentucky in the Gator Bowl. He has 65 receptions for 600 yards and two touchdowns in his career. Expect him to be a go-to guy in traffic out of the slot.

David Washington Jr. (5-11, 204, Sophomore)

The Philadelphia native was a jack-of-all-trades in high school, playing receiver, running back, linebacker, and returner for St. Joseph’s Prep. During his true freshman season, he played in every game on special teams.

The Freshmen

DJ Miller — The 6-foot-3 pass-catcher was one of the highest-ranked recruits in the 2025 class. He picked Kentucky over prolific passing programs like Ole Miss and Tennessee. Hailing from the same school that made Jameson Williams a star, he’s a physical player that can develop into a quality SEC starter.

Montavin Quisenberry — The undersized superstar from Boyle County was Mr. Kentucky Football in 2024. In his career, he won three state titles, scored 92 touchdowns, and totaled more than 5,000 receiving and rushing yards.

Preston Bowman — The athlete from Ohio had 1,248 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns as a senior. A physical player, he looks more like a running back when moving through traffic.

Cameron Miller and Quintin Simmons did not enroll early for the spring. A pair of speedsters, Simmons has some juice as a return man, whereas Miller will provide elusiveness in the slot.

An Underrated, Important Storyline: Tru Edwards’ Eligibility

Tru Edwards was one of the final additions to Kentucky’s 2025 transfer portal class. He ranked second in the C-USA in receiving last season, bringing much-needed proven production to the room. The only problem: He still has not been officially announced as an addition to the Kentucky football roster.

Diego Pavia filed an injunction to receive an additional year of eligibility for the years he spent at the JUCO ranks. Edwards is one of the “Injunction Boys” as a former JUCO player looking for an extra year to play college football. It appears that he has still not received the green light for the 2025 season. That is a very, very big deal. He could be the Wildcats’ best wide receiver or not on the roster.

WHAT A CATCH AND RUN @LATechFB pic.twitter.com/d0NQID7tce

— CBS Sports College Football 🏈 (@CBSSportsCFB) November 9, 2024

Top Storyline: Did Kentucky Find Adequate Replacements for Key and Brown?

Dane Key and Barion Brown had their faults, but they were still productive players. Key finished his three-year career ranked third all-time in receiving yards (1,870). Brown was a highlight waiting to happen and good for 2-3 games a year where he took over. In addition to their departures, Hardley Gilmore was a rising star the program wanted to build around until he ultimately decided to join Key and Shorts at Nebraska.

In a game of quantity vs. quality, we know the Cats used the offseason to check the first box. The question is, did they find enough quality targets for Zach Calzada? Maclin and Edwards had great single seasons at the G5 level, but were those one-offs? Hester and Stellato have struggled to stay healthy throughout their careers. After missing on previous slot targets, can Law be what this Kentucky offense needs? You probably won’t be able to answer these questions until they start playing this fall.

What to Watch: Investing in Explosive Plays

Kentucky tried to make Barion Brown a go-ball winner, especially in 2023, but they could never make it work. The Cats ranked near the bottom of the SEC in consecutive years of pass plays of 30+ yards. This roster has the make up to change that.

One of quarterback Zac Calzada’s best traits is his ability to put a deep ball on the money and he has some players who have been able to do it in spurts. Ja’Mori Maclin only caught 13 passes last fall, but five of them were for 30+ yards. Tru Edwards had four such plays last season, and J.J. Hester has shown that ability throughout his injury-riddled career. The pieces are in place if they can create consistent connections.

Bold Prediction: A True Freshman Emerges

Kentucky sprayed the board in high school recruiting. They are desperate to find a consistent slot receiver. Troy Stellato and Kendrick Law have the profile to be reliable pass-catchers in the middle of the field, but my gut tells me that one of these true freshmen will be making an impact by the season’s end. The two Millers are most likely candidates. DJ has the pedigree and physical tools on the outside, while Cameron can bring some much-needed elusiveness to the slot.