** Samuel Williams-Dixon was in to officially visit but as you may have seen, he seems to be trying to keep as good a relationship with Ohio State as he can, basically apologizing for going without telling them.
A while ago we mentioned there being three solid running back options for Kentucky, and that was before the reemergence of SWD. Johann Cardenas and Tovani Mizell... But we mentioned a third, Jason Patterson. Rivals reported not long ago that Patterson will be officially visiting Kentucky just before next weekend and he's someone that I think is very interesting.
Patterson is at Boston College this weekend, follows that with Kentucky, and then Cincinnati right after Kentucky..
I would keep a close eye on him over the next week or so because I do think the Cats like him quite a bit and that list of schools probably isn't prohibitive for Kentucky when it comes to recruiting against them. In other words, while I have no clue how the RB sweepstakes shakes out, Patterson may be the one that I'm looking at most closely for now. He seems to have a little of everything they're looking for.
** The situation with Brian Robinson is very interesting right now. So to bring ourselves up to speed, he came out of the Michigan visit with positive things to say about the trip. But there was talk from that side that UM might eventually move on other EDGE prospects. That was apparently due to the perception that Kentucky was in a strong position and not for lack of interest on their part. But the interesting thing has been Robinson and Ohio State. There was talk that he would camp there Thursday but that didn't happen. There's some talk he may still work out for them next week after his official visit to Kentucky this weekend but I can't confirm anything about that and it seems like it might be in flux if we're to believe reports and the timeline. Needless to say, Kentucky seems like its in a good position without claiming inside knowledge on the situation, but there could be an x-factor.
** I know an analyst on another network made a pick for LB Antwan Smith to Kentucky. He is supposed to officially visit this weekend with the caveat that I'm not promising finality on that until anybody steps on campus, as crazy as the scheduling has been. That's from a Duke guy so it could be word gotten through a side channel.
** WR Emmanuel Ross had been planning to officially visit Kentucky this weekend but he committed to Stanford two days ago.
** UK had been planning to bring WR Cameron Monteiro in this weekend but they moved on.
** Still don't have much in the way of details on the trips for 4-star Philly receivers Brandon Rehmann or David Washington. Sure is interesting how quickly the options at receiver are being burned through with Monteiro and Ross bound for other places.
** Connecticut EDGE defender Dominic Nichols has included Kentucky in his top eight:
** Kentucky made a strong impression on big-time 2025 Florida linebacker Elijah Melendez while he was on campus.
Both Mike Stoops and Chris Collins have spent a lot of time talking to Melendez. "It was different. I loved it," he told me today. "The way the people there treat you (was the highlight). They're all really good people and care about you past football. It's more than football. It's a family." Fairly generic comments but very responsive and seemed eager to connect so that can't be a bad sign.
Melendez said he's visiting Alabama, Auburn, and Texas A&M next.
Some of the official visits this weekend will be:
QB Cutter Boley (commit) ... Rivals100 QB commit who was also visiting on Tuesday
WR Shamar Rigby ... 6'4 Florida receiver who will visit Kentucky, Iowa State, and Purdue this month.
TE Willie Rodriguez ... I like UK's position especially since the Boley commitment.
TE Damarion Witten ... Ohio State is the main X-Factor to watch here as it has seemed increasingly likely the Buckeyes would be willing to take Witten. But UK does like both TEs that are coming in.
OL Aba Selm (commit) ... Can play all 5 positions on the line
OL Hayes Johnson (commit) ... Never anything less than solid since he picked UK
OL Fred Johnson ... Interior line prospect who has been high on UK for a long time now. Has Louisville and Pitt OVs lined up, but if Kentucky wants him they're in the best shape.
OL Johnathan Daniels ... One of the nation's top OTs with other scheduled OVs for Georgia and Florida State.
LB Brian Robinson ... The context for the visit is outlined above.
LB Antwan Smith ... Arriving with some apparent momentum for Kentucky.
DB Cameron Keys ... Keys visits Kentucky, Vanderbilt, and Missouri over the next three weeks.
Bear in mind that I said some and even not all of these are 100% confirmed so will be checking in often.
A while ago we mentioned there being three solid running back options for Kentucky, and that was before the reemergence of SWD. Johann Cardenas and Tovani Mizell... But we mentioned a third, Jason Patterson. Rivals reported not long ago that Patterson will be officially visiting Kentucky just before next weekend and he's someone that I think is very interesting.
Patterson is at Boston College this weekend, follows that with Kentucky, and then Cincinnati right after Kentucky..
I would keep a close eye on him over the next week or so because I do think the Cats like him quite a bit and that list of schools probably isn't prohibitive for Kentucky when it comes to recruiting against them. In other words, while I have no clue how the RB sweepstakes shakes out, Patterson may be the one that I'm looking at most closely for now. He seems to have a little of everything they're looking for.
** The situation with Brian Robinson is very interesting right now. So to bring ourselves up to speed, he came out of the Michigan visit with positive things to say about the trip. But there was talk from that side that UM might eventually move on other EDGE prospects. That was apparently due to the perception that Kentucky was in a strong position and not for lack of interest on their part. But the interesting thing has been Robinson and Ohio State. There was talk that he would camp there Thursday but that didn't happen. There's some talk he may still work out for them next week after his official visit to Kentucky this weekend but I can't confirm anything about that and it seems like it might be in flux if we're to believe reports and the timeline. Needless to say, Kentucky seems like its in a good position without claiming inside knowledge on the situation, but there could be an x-factor.
** I know an analyst on another network made a pick for LB Antwan Smith to Kentucky. He is supposed to officially visit this weekend with the caveat that I'm not promising finality on that until anybody steps on campus, as crazy as the scheduling has been. That's from a Duke guy so it could be word gotten through a side channel.
** WR Emmanuel Ross had been planning to officially visit Kentucky this weekend but he committed to Stanford two days ago.
** UK had been planning to bring WR Cameron Monteiro in this weekend but they moved on.
** Still don't have much in the way of details on the trips for 4-star Philly receivers Brandon Rehmann or David Washington. Sure is interesting how quickly the options at receiver are being burned through with Monteiro and Ross bound for other places.
** Connecticut EDGE defender Dominic Nichols has included Kentucky in his top eight:
** Kentucky made a strong impression on big-time 2025 Florida linebacker Elijah Melendez while he was on campus.
Both Mike Stoops and Chris Collins have spent a lot of time talking to Melendez. "It was different. I loved it," he told me today. "The way the people there treat you (was the highlight). They're all really good people and care about you past football. It's more than football. It's a family." Fairly generic comments but very responsive and seemed eager to connect so that can't be a bad sign.
Melendez said he's visiting Alabama, Auburn, and Texas A&M next.
Some of the official visits this weekend will be:
QB Cutter Boley (commit) ... Rivals100 QB commit who was also visiting on Tuesday
WR Shamar Rigby ... 6'4 Florida receiver who will visit Kentucky, Iowa State, and Purdue this month.
TE Willie Rodriguez ... I like UK's position especially since the Boley commitment.
TE Damarion Witten ... Ohio State is the main X-Factor to watch here as it has seemed increasingly likely the Buckeyes would be willing to take Witten. But UK does like both TEs that are coming in.
OL Aba Selm (commit) ... Can play all 5 positions on the line
OL Hayes Johnson (commit) ... Never anything less than solid since he picked UK
OL Fred Johnson ... Interior line prospect who has been high on UK for a long time now. Has Louisville and Pitt OVs lined up, but if Kentucky wants him they're in the best shape.
OL Johnathan Daniels ... One of the nation's top OTs with other scheduled OVs for Georgia and Florida State.
LB Brian Robinson ... The context for the visit is outlined above.
LB Antwan Smith ... Arriving with some apparent momentum for Kentucky.
DB Cameron Keys ... Keys visits Kentucky, Vanderbilt, and Missouri over the next three weeks.
Bear in mind that I said some and even not all of these are 100% confirmed so will be checking in often.
