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True freshmen that are likely to play next year

C1180

All-American
Dec 21, 2001
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I predict that the following TFr and JUCOs will play not redshirt next year.

OL George Asafo-Adjei TFR

6'[5" 315 pound OL IMO will at least be in the two deep at RT and might start.

DL Courtney Miggins 6'5" 285 Pounds JUCO that will be give playing time at DE and DT.

DE Kengera Danials 6'5" 250 pounds, TFr that came in early and went through spring practice. He seems to already have a SEC body and he plays a need position.

TE CJ Conrad TrF 6'5" 245 is likely starting TE.

OLB Avonte Bell 6'5" 260 JUCO

ILB Jordon Jones 6'2" 215 pounds TFr Came in early and wen through spring practice aand ILB is a need position.

CB Derrick Baity 6'3" 180 pounds TFr a tall CB that Ansley has stated can play all six secondary positions.

Safety Marcus Walker TFr 6'1" 190 pounds Ansley says he just might be the most talented of the DBs recruited this year.

RB Sihiem King TFr 5'9" 185 Only RB recruited and the RB corp is a little thin with only 3 veterans returning so I think he plays.

There might be more but these are the ones I think ar most likely to play and not redshirt.
 
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George AA, Miggins & Kings are locks to get PT, 50/50 on Daniels and Baity.
There are always surprises but most of this class figures to be redshirted.
 
I personally hope that we can stick to two running backs next year. I really think running back is a position where you need a lot of carries in order to be successful and having a rotating door of running backs is not something I am a fan of. However, being so short on numbers there, I definitely think that they may have to use King.
 
baity, westry, and jackson are all 3 gonna get a shot a cb. whichever one of them gets the playbook down best is gonna play. i think all 4 of the early enrollees play... that means jordan jones is probably gonna get a few snaps at lb and play a lot of st. with just nico and hendrix getting reps this year at ilb'er i'd say they want to get him some experience (for next year)... unless love gets cleared to play this year.

i'd say walker plays this year as well... we are deep at safety but everyone you hear talk about him says the staff thinks he's really special and is gonna be a player... they may even try him at corner for this year as well.
 
Hopefully the vast majority of the frosh RS but unfortunately UK is so short handed at most positions many will be forced to play well before they should.
 
baity, westry, and jackson are all 3 gonna get a shot a cb. whichever one of them gets the playbook down best is gonna play. i think all 4 of the early enrollees play... that means jordan jones is probably gonna get a few snaps at lb and play a lot of st. with just nico and hendrix getting reps this year at ilb'er i'd say they want to get him some experience (for next year)... unless love gets cleared to play this year.

i'd say walker plays this year as well... we are deep at safety but everyone you hear talk about him says the staff thinks he's really special and is gonna be a player... they may even try him at corner for this year as well.

I agree that all of the CB recruits have a shot at playing but believe that Baity is the best of the lot and has the most likely chance to get playing time or even start.

Speaking of special teams. It would not surprise me if some of the incoming LBs and safeties get playing time on the special teams which were terrible in kick coverage last year. It will depend on how well the redshirts from last year look on those coverage units. A new comer could definite earn his stripes by being a special teams warrior.
 
Conrad will play and may start....watch Provitt he really intrigues me

Provitt might play this season if he qualifies. I thought of listing him but didn't because there is I believe some question if he will qualify. He seems to be physically ready to get some SEC playing time.
 
We had 4 OL that red shirted last year in Krok, LaRubbio, Stallings, and four star Richardson. George AA will have no cakewalk to secure a spot on the two-deep IMO. He may but he will not simply breeze in and take over which is a good thing. I would like to see his career at Kentucky resemble the careers we see at Bama and Miss. State, well developed fifth year Sr.s that have a bright professional career ahead of them.

On the DL we could see RS's Dubose, Middleton, and Ware make an impact.

At LB'r we'll see Firios, Hendrix, and Walker on the field this year after spending time in the weight room and with the 3-4 playbook.

Tucker will be coming off of a RS and he was offered by OSU as a CB, so somebody thinks he has the talent to play CB. Add to that S/CB Edwards and S West you have some RS's coming up to support the secondary with talented depth and versatility.

We may see some freshmen play and I expect we will, but it seems to me Stoops has been very disciplined about red shirting players, building a solid team with mature depth. I get the feeling we will see fewer freshmen playing under Stoops resulting in a stronger team overall. Like Vonburns1 pointed out in his thread we will see this year the real effects of the Stoops plan as more of his recruits who were red shirted take the field.
 
Provitt might play this season if he qualifies. I thought of listing him but didn't because there is I believe some question if he will qualify. He seems to be physically ready to get some SEC playing time.
Thought he made it already and was good to go?
 
If Big George plays, he will be the first HS commit to play as a true frosh for Stoops in the trenches. The bigs on the line are RSed under Coach Stoops. It takes a special player to avoid a RS, one who has talent and the physical presence. I do not see any interior frosh DLine player knocking the current players out of the 2 deep.

A HS DLineman with size and burst can have an impressive video. It takes much more than that to play in the SEC.
 
We had 4 OL that red shirted last year in Krok, LaRubbio, Stallings, and four star Richardson. George AA will have no cakewalk to secure a spot on the two-deep IMO. He may but he will not simply breeze in and take over which is a good thing. I would like to see his career at Kentucky resemble the careers we see at Bama and Miss. State, well developed fifth year Sr.s that have a bright professional career ahead of them.

On the DL we could see RS's Dubose, Middleton, and Ware make an impact.

At LB'r we'll see Firios, Hendrix, and Walker on the field this year after spending time in the weight room and with the 3-4 playbook.

Tucker will be coming off of a RS and he was offered by OSU as a CB, so somebody thinks he has the talent to play CB. Add to that S/CB Edwards and S West you have some RS's coming up to support the secondary with talented depth and versatility.

We may see some freshmen play and I expect we will, but it seems to me Stoops has been very disciplined about red shirting players, building a solid team with mature depth. I get the feeling we will see fewer freshmen playing under Stoops resulting in a stronger team overall. Like Vonburns1 pointed out in his thread we will see this year the real effects of the Stoops plan as more of his recruits who were red shirted take the field.


George A-A is the type player that you have to consider not redshirting because IMO he is not likely to be in college for 5 years. If this is the scenario with him all a redshirt does is give you one less year of his services. The fact that he came early and went through spring practice and summer conditioning makes me almost sure he is going to be in the two deep and play this year. The coaching staff has stated that he is physically ready and players not being physical ready is the most often reason for a redshirt. In the best of all world you always redshirt all of your linemen both offensive and defensive but there is exceptions and I believe George A-A is going to be one of those exceptions. The fact that UK is a little short at the offensive tackle spots makes me even more confident that he plays this year.

The three TFR that I am most confident that will play are OL George A-A, TE CJ Conrad and CB Derrick Baity. I would put Safety Marcus walker in this category if not for the fact that the Cats are so deep at safety.
 
C1180 I understand GeorgeA-A has a great deal of potential and you may very well be right. I'm just reminding you that Richardson, LaRubbio, and Krok were highly ranked OL with offers comparable to George A-A's, Richardson was ranked higher and they are a year older with even more time practicing at Kentucky. I know a few short years ago we couldn't afford to not play George and he may be good enough to play as a freshman now but there are other players on this team that were just as highly thought of when they were recruited.

A pretty enjoyable conversation we are able to have now in any case --- which one of the promising underclassmen OL might get to play at Kentucky this year!
 
C1180 I understand GeorgeA-A has a great deal of potential and you may very well be right. I'm just reminding you that Richardson, LaRubbio, and Krok were highly ranked OL with offers comparable to George A-A's, Richardson was ranked higher and they are a year older with even more time practicing at Kentucky. I know a few short years ago we couldn't afford to not play George and he may be good enough to play as a freshman now but there are other players on this team that were just as highly thought of when they were recruited.

A pretty enjoyable conversation we are able to have now in any case --- which one of the promising underclassmen OL might get to play at Kentucky this year!

Another reason George AA might play is that I've heard LaRubbio and another RS Freshman OL have struggled with injuries.
 
I look/hope for most of the incoming Freshman to redshirt. With that said, there are a few I think can play and contribute right away.

I think George AA, Conrad, and Daniel will all see lots of PT. The potential is definitely there for a DB or 2 to play as well. Especially Baitey and Walker if they are as good as advertised. But I would like to see most of the Freshman redshirt and get bigger, faster, stronger before playing.

King and Jones are interesting players. King will more than likely be the 4th RB in the rotation. If we can get through the year with Williams, Kemp, and Horton, I say redshirt him. He could be a huge factor in the return game. But do we want to use up a redshirt only to return kicks? I think we will have plenty of other options to do this. As for Jones, I know he came in early and went through Spring practice. I still would like to see him redshirt. We have a pretty good rotation at LB with Forrest, Hendrix, and Henderson in the middle and Firios coming off his redshirt and possibly Love getting a waver. The outside LB/DE spot is taken by Hatcher, Bell, Ware, and Johnson. And I don't think he is big enough for that position. I would like for him to redshirt and then compete with Brown, Love and Firios next year in the rotation.

Very seldom do you see a JUCO redshirt. So I expect to see them play.
 
I look/hope for most of the incoming Freshman to redshirt. With that said, there are a few I think can play and contribute right away.

I think George AA, Conrad, and Daniel will all see lots of PT. The potential is definitely there for a DB or 2 to play as well. Especially Baitey and Walker if they are as good as advertised. But I would like to see most of the Freshman redshirt and get bigger, faster, stronger before playing.

King and Jones are interesting players. King will more than likely be the 4th RB in the rotation. If we can get through the year with Williams, Kemp, and Horton, I say redshirt him. He could be a huge factor in the return game. But do we want to use up a redshirt only to return kicks? I think we will have plenty of other options to do this. As for Jones, I know he came in early and went through Spring practice. I still would like to see him redshirt. We have a pretty good rotation at LB with Forrest, Hendrix, and Henderson in the middle and Firios coming off his redshirt and possibly Love getting a waver. The outside LB/DE spot is taken by Hatcher, Bell, Ware, and Johnson. And I don't think he is big enough for that position. I would like for him to redshirt and then compete with Brown, Love and Firios next year in the rotation.

Very seldom do you see a JUCO redshirt. So I expect to see them play.

If Love gets his exemption it will put a whole different spin on the ILB positions. I however do not expect it to happen. Could you name the last time the NCAA made a ruling in UKs favor?
 
I predict that the following TFr and JUCOs will play not redshirt next year.

OL George Asafo-Adjei TFR

6'[5" 315 pound OL IMO will at least be in the two deep at RT and might start.

DL Courtney Miggins 6'5" 285 Pounds JUCO that will be give playing time at DE and DT.

DE Kengera Danials 6'5" 250 pounds, TFr that came in early and went through spring practice. He seems to already have a SEC body and he plays a need position.

TE CJ Conrad TrF 6'5" 245 is likely starting TE.

OLB Avonte Bell 6'5" 260 JUCO

ILB Jordon Jones 6'2" 215 pounds TFr Came in early and wen through spring practice aand ILB is a need position.

CB Derrick Baity 6'3" 180 pounds TFr a tall CB that Ansley has stated can play all six secondary positions.

Safety Marcus Walker TFr 6'1" 190 pounds Ansley says he just might be the most talented of the DBs recruited this year.

RB Sihiem King TFr 5'9" 185 Only RB recruited and the RB corp is a little thin with only 3 veterans returning so I think he plays.

There might be more but these are the ones I think ar most likely to play and not redshirt.
The 2 juco transfers are going to play, since we need more depth and bulk in our defensive front 7. That's why they were recruited. King, Conrad, Gosier, Richardson, Greenwood, Daniel, Jones, and Walker should play this year. GAA will play if he can win a starting job, which is a a realistic possibility. I think the other true freshmen will redshirt. Baity and Westry probably redshirt, because they have to get a lot stronger in the upper body to cover SEC receivers.
 
If Love gets his exemption it will put a whole different spin on the ILB positions. I however do not expect it to happen. Could you name the last time the NCAA made a ruling in UKs favor?
It has nothing to do with the last time the NCAA made a ruling in UK's favor. These requests are rarely made, and denied as often as not regardless of the school. By rule, Love is supposed to redshirt as a transfer from Nebraska. He applied for an exemption, and I hope he gets it, but you have to admit that a move to Lexington does not put him very close to his ailing relative in Youngstown, Ohio. But to answer your question, the last time the NCAA made a ruling in UK's favor was when former starting center Matt McCutchan was granted a 6th year of eligibility in 2006. Tommy Cook's 6th year of eligibility was another example of UK receiving a positive ruling from the NCAA.
 
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i dont see any of the wr's playing this year. we got 8 healthy and experienced wr's and thad coming off a rs. unless a wr comes in and is lights out... i dont see how they can play enough to merit burning a rs this year. i do think king plays this year. rb is a position that rs really doesn't help. they either go pro or get passed up by younger guys so might as well see what they can do.

miggins is gonna play a lot of snaps this year but i kinda hope bell can rs. i think he's got upside but he didn't do much in juco because of injury i read. would love to see him get a year to bulk up and learn from good coaching then have 2 years to go to war.... but because of depth i dont see it happening.
 
IMO the only thing that will keep George A-A from playing this year would be injury during fall camp. Stoops is really high on him and said he is one of the strongest players on the football team. He is physically a SEC player and has a head start having gone through spring camp. I think another thing that will figure in also is the fact that there is a good chance that George A-A will only be a 3 year player. A redshirt would just waste one of those years.
 
I personally hope that we can stick to two running backs next year. I really think running back is a position where you need a lot of carries in order to be successful and having a rotating door of running backs is not something I am a fan of. However, being so short on numbers there, I definitely think that they may have to use King.

I think it is pretty rare for a team to use only 2 RBs. Think of how great the UGA rbs were last year. They had 4 getting carries when all were healthy. Boom and Jo Jo will see a lot of carries. Horton is supposed to be better this year. But when one gets dinged up, we'll absolutely need the true frosh to step in and get some carries too.
 
On George AA, in spring he was being talked about as one of the best 5-7 OL on the team. If that is the case, he can and should play. It is extremely rare for a true frosh to be able to be effective as an OL for an SEC team, but it does happen, even at the big boys. UK needs to field the best team it can this year. Don't burn a redshirt unless its really needed, but if a true frosh can make a real impact at a position of need, gotta play em.
 
As far as GAA is concerned, I would keep a close eye on the right tackle position. Our guards are pretty stacked with good players with West, Meyers, Haynes, and Stallings. I'm not saying they are better than GAA, but they are 4 solid players with experience in the program. Stallings was considered 1 of the best players on our practice squad last fall. According to the spring depth chart I saw, Cole Mosier and Kyle Meadows have been fighting it out at right tackle. Both are promising, but GAA could win that job. In fact, I think GAA will probably be our right tackle. If he doesn't win it, then I think he probably redshirts. He is going to be a very good player. But you need a cohesive unit on your offensive line, and there is no point in removing GAA's redshirt unless he is going to start.
 
As far as GAA is concerned, I would keep a close eye on the right tackle position. Our guards are pretty stacked with good players with West, Meyers, Haynes, and Stallings. I'm not saying they are better than GAA, but they are 4 solid players with experience in the program. Stallings was considered 1 of the best players on our practice squad last fall. According to the spring depth chart I saw, Cole Mosier and Kyle Meadows have been fighting it out at right tackle. Both are promising, but GAA could win that job. In fact, I think GAA will probably be our right tackle. If he doesn't win it, then I think he probably redshirts. He is going to be a very good player. But you need a cohesive unit on your offensive line, and there is no point in removing GAA's redshirt unless he is going to start.

Than again why redshirt if a player is likely to be gone after 3 years.
 
IMO the only thing that will keep George A-A from playing this year would be injury during fall camp. Stoops is really high on him and said he is one of the strongest players on the football team. He is physically a SEC player and has a head start having gone through spring camp. I think another thing that will figure in also is the fact that there is a good chance that George A-A will only be a 3 year player. A redshirt would just waste one of those years.

That is probably right, but there were OLine injuries this spring that opened up the 2 deep.
 
Than again why redshirt if a player is likely to be gone after 3 years.
Likely? Not. The same thing was said about Darrian Miller. These hysterical predictions seldom pan out. It is extremely rare for a Kentucky football player to leave for the NFL after 3 years. Compared to that, it is much more common for a redshirt year to improve a player and help the team. Redshirting is a sign of a healthy football program.
 
If a frosh makes the 2 deep on the roster, he should play. He knows it. His team knows it. The fans know it. No need to RS those players, at any program.
 
Likely? Not. The same thing was said about Darrian Miller. These hysterical predictions seldom pan out. It is extremely rare for a Kentucky football player to leave for the NFL after 3 years. Compared to that, it is much more common for a redshirt year to improve a player and help the team. Redshirting is a sign of a healthy football program.

Very true. I think sometimes people feel because basketball players come out early that any sport can. The NBA can hide guys at the end of the bench or the D League for 2-3 years. In the NFL guys have to be ready to play and help their team win NOW. UK needs to RS as many football players as possible.
 
Do more basketball players leave school early than do football players?

Bud Dupree almost left early. Toth may have to decide this year. Stamps considered it. Heard left. If Towles has a big stat year, he may be tempted.

UL lost a few guys this year to early entry.
 
Likely? Not. The same thing was said about Darrian Miller. These hysterical predictions seldom pan out. It is extremely rare for a Kentucky football player to leave for the NFL after 3 years. Compared to that, it is much more common for a redshirt year to improve a player and help the team. Redshirting is a sign of a healthy football program.


I counter with the fact that UK signs few four star OL that come in physically ready to play in the SEC. I stick with my statement that George A-A is unlikely to be at UK five years and if not you have wasted a year of his eligibility. IMO it is not smart to redshirt any player that you do not think will be around for a fifth year. I do not think George A-A will be at UK five years.
 
Provitt might play this season if he qualifies. I thought of listing him but didn't because there is I believe some question if he will qualify. He seems to be physically ready to get some SEC playing time.
I'm hoping that with the signing of Miggins we've built enough depth to RS a kid like Provitt. Better for him and the team.
 
I think it's fair to say that planning the careers of high school players five years out with specificity of whether or not they will be playing in the NFL is presumptuous at best. Not saying it can't be done, but I do think it is not done with much accuracy. It is after all merely a prediction that is not based on a single moment of college performance. Just saying.
 
When healthy, West was our best interior lineman but unfortunately that wasn't very often. He can be a real brute in there.
 
If provitt makes it he'll redshirt. We are deep enough at Dline to rs from here on out but we will still probably take a jucos every other year at nose just cause that is a hard spot to get right recruiting hs kids
 
If Love gets his exemption it will put a whole different spin on the ILB positions. I however do not expect it to happen. Could you name the last time the NCAA made a ruling in UKs favor?

Boy, you sure like to tax memories don't you? Maybe as far back as 1953 when they let the three All Americans not involved in the scandal play a fifth year, when Hagan, Ramsey, and Lou Tsiropaulos (SP) led maybe UK's best team ever, not really challenged all year and they beat the NCAA champ easily in the regular season. But since they were good students also and had already graduated they were declared ineligible for the tournament so it was a mixed blessing, not really challenged all year and they beat the NCAA champ easily in the regular season.

The OL is similar to the WR position in that we return 8 of the 10 in the two deep, unfortunately both the seniors were at LT which leaves a bit of a hole. Eatmon was a two star but Miller signed a free agent contract with the Browns and he and West were quite a coup for UK when they signed, probably both from Lexington a big factor. They were the two highest rated OL signed since early this century, and while Miller is gone West could have a breakout fifth year if he can stay healthy. And we have a bevy of OL on campus that wee rated as high as those two, several rated higher (and lower), with some four stars. With several excellent redshirt, true freshmen, and backups available, UK should be improved with more experienced starters AND backups at four of the five positions and with both talent and experience available to fill the one hole
 
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