Top recruits Weaver and Casey hoping to make early impact
Travis Graf and Justin Rowland
Cats Illustrated Staff
Since Kentucky landed the top four players in the state in 2016, the Cats’ in-state recruiting had taken a step backward until this past recruiting cycle.
Former four-stars and Louisville natives Jared Casey and JJ Weaver were two staples of Kentucky’s 2019 recruiting class and both were early enrollees.
“The biggest difference between high school ball and SEC ball,” Weaver said, “is these are grown men out here. You’ve gotta be physical, there isn’t any days off. No ‘I want to take this day off, I want to be lazy’, you can’t.”
The Moore product noted how he’s gotten bigger, stronger and faster since enrolling early, saying he’s now up to 239 pounds now.
“It was also nice getting the classes I needed out of the way, just coming in early and working out with the team. Coach Ed (Corey Edmond) is getting us right, getting us ready for the season.”
Weaver, Casey and the other new Louisville natives have had a long-time bond with one another that has carried over to their first days at UK.
“We were ready. We all talked," Weaver said. "We had been talking since we were freshmen. Me, Shawnkel, Tae-Tae and Jared. We’ve all stuck together since we were freshmen in high school, so we all knew.”
“It feels good,” Casey added. “I feel like me, JJ and them started the Louisville natives and the in-state kids coming to Kentucky. I feel like we started that and it’s just going to keep getting bigger and bigger. We’re going to get more in-state players and Louisville players heading to UK.”
Starting college in the spring gave Casey a chance to get a jump start on what’s best for his future on the field: extra repetitions and a position change.
“I just feel like I’ve got more experience under my belt than these freshmen that are coming in now. I’ve played more, I’m more experienced, I’m more comfortable.
"I started at weakside linebacker but they just moved me to strongside linebacker. After the spring game, I sat down with Coach Stoops and Coach White. They said SAM is going to be a better position for me in my future. I’ve got more space and I’m more of a space player. When I’ve got space, I’m better. I’m not a stand-up DE anymore.”
During media day, Mark Stoops said that Kentucky actually has good depth at the outside linebacker spots. Just not much experience.
Weaver knows that and believes, in spite of popular opinion, he has a chance to earn a lot of immediate playing time.
"Camp show everything. Nobody have no starting spot right now. So you're going to see," he said. "Me and Coach White wake up at 6 o'clock every day to watch film, break down plays. Amazing. Great man, great father figure. A great coach."
Weaver believes a series of recruiting events, including one put on by Rivals.com, have helped him immensely. Certainly his confidence.
"I mean, I've been in the Five-Star Challenge. I've played against the best," he said. "Playing against them, against the five-stars and going to camps helped me for this. It's different. Some of these older guys have been here. They've already been through the fight but I've just got to be physical, like I am."
Travis Graf and Justin Rowland
Cats Illustrated Staff
Since Kentucky landed the top four players in the state in 2016, the Cats’ in-state recruiting had taken a step backward until this past recruiting cycle.
Former four-stars and Louisville natives Jared Casey and JJ Weaver were two staples of Kentucky’s 2019 recruiting class and both were early enrollees.
“The biggest difference between high school ball and SEC ball,” Weaver said, “is these are grown men out here. You’ve gotta be physical, there isn’t any days off. No ‘I want to take this day off, I want to be lazy’, you can’t.”
The Moore product noted how he’s gotten bigger, stronger and faster since enrolling early, saying he’s now up to 239 pounds now.
“It was also nice getting the classes I needed out of the way, just coming in early and working out with the team. Coach Ed (Corey Edmond) is getting us right, getting us ready for the season.”
Weaver, Casey and the other new Louisville natives have had a long-time bond with one another that has carried over to their first days at UK.
“We were ready. We all talked," Weaver said. "We had been talking since we were freshmen. Me, Shawnkel, Tae-Tae and Jared. We’ve all stuck together since we were freshmen in high school, so we all knew.”
“It feels good,” Casey added. “I feel like me, JJ and them started the Louisville natives and the in-state kids coming to Kentucky. I feel like we started that and it’s just going to keep getting bigger and bigger. We’re going to get more in-state players and Louisville players heading to UK.”
Starting college in the spring gave Casey a chance to get a jump start on what’s best for his future on the field: extra repetitions and a position change.
“I just feel like I’ve got more experience under my belt than these freshmen that are coming in now. I’ve played more, I’m more experienced, I’m more comfortable.
"I started at weakside linebacker but they just moved me to strongside linebacker. After the spring game, I sat down with Coach Stoops and Coach White. They said SAM is going to be a better position for me in my future. I’ve got more space and I’m more of a space player. When I’ve got space, I’m better. I’m not a stand-up DE anymore.”
During media day, Mark Stoops said that Kentucky actually has good depth at the outside linebacker spots. Just not much experience.
Weaver knows that and believes, in spite of popular opinion, he has a chance to earn a lot of immediate playing time.
"Camp show everything. Nobody have no starting spot right now. So you're going to see," he said. "Me and Coach White wake up at 6 o'clock every day to watch film, break down plays. Amazing. Great man, great father figure. A great coach."
Weaver believes a series of recruiting events, including one put on by Rivals.com, have helped him immensely. Certainly his confidence.
"I mean, I've been in the Five-Star Challenge. I've played against the best," he said. "Playing against them, against the five-stars and going to camps helped me for this. It's different. Some of these older guys have been here. They've already been through the fight but I've just got to be physical, like I am."
