On Wednesday, the media had a chance to talk to six out of the seven new transfers that transferred to Kentucky during winter break, with the exception being Jantzen Dunn (Ohio State). Each transfer is expected to come in and play significant roles, as they fill roster gaps.
With the influx of veteran talent to go alongside the young weapons that Kentucky displayed last season, the goal is to improve on an underwhelming 2022 season.
Let’s briefly look at what each player had to say in their introductory press conferences.
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Devin Leary
Committing to Kentucky in mid-December, Devin Leary has only been on campus for three weeks and is still rehabbing from his surgery for a torn pectoral muscle he suffered back in October. However, he is still trying to make an early impact on his new team.
“Really just being able to get around the guys and really just, you know, prove to them through my hard work, prove to them, you know, I’m eager to be here,” Devin Leary says during a media interview.
“I am very happy to be here, but at the same time, you know, it’s an honor and privilege to be here. I need to prove to them that I’m going to put in the work that it takes, you know, a lot of time and that I take it very serious, but at the same time it’s grabbing those guys on the side and, you know, diving into the playbook, doing extra film, and just really building that camaraderie, like right now.”
Spring practice starts in about a month and a half, so we will see if Leary will be fully healthy to go for spring ball, if not he should be fully healthy to start off the season in 2023.
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Ray Davis
In Liam Coen’s ‘re-introductory’ press conference, he talked about how important Chris Rodriguez and his ability to guarantee positive yardage has been to Kentucky. Now graduated, Coen and the program had to find another high talent back, which they found in the transfer portal.
Coming from Vanderbilt, new running back Ray Davis was tabbed as a four-star transfer and one of the best running backs in the portal. Kentucky will be Davis’ third stop in college football as he played at Temple University his freshman and sophomore years and most recently at the University of Vanderbilt for his junior and senior years.
One reason why Davis committed to Kentucky is he thinks UK was missing a few pieces towards the end of the year, that he thinks he can help with and get the Cats’ to compete in the SEC Championship
“Offensively, just knowing that they were missing just a few pieces once the season ended and I felt that, you know, if I come in and try to earn my spot, earn those reps, and try to get the starting job. I think I could help out the team and get us through that threshold of potentially competing for an SEC Championship,” Ray Davis says during a media interview.
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Tanner Bowles
Tanner Bowles was one of two offensive tackles that Kentucky landed in the transfer portal. Bowles, who is from Glasgow (KY), recently transferred from the University of Alabama to Lexington. In four seasons with the Crimson Tide (including a redshirt season), Bowles never became a starter, but appeared in all 12 games this season for one of the best offensive lines in the SEC.
“There’s a point in time, where you can lead with your words, but before that, you have to lead with your actions, so I think while I’m here right now, I don’t know when the time would be if I, you know, had a chance to lead with my words, but for now I am focused on, you know, just leading my actions, doing the little things right,” Tanner Bowles says during a media interview.
Marques Cox
Marques Cox was the second offensive tackle that Kentucky added from the transfer portal, coming from Northern Illinois University as a redshirt junior. Cox, like Devin Leary, suffered a season-ending foot injury, four games into the season when NIU faced off against UK.
As a proven veteran, Cox knows that the offensive line will have to improve this season, and he will bear much of that load. If they can succeed, Kentucky will be more capable of using their offensive weapons.
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“Just me and Tanner (Bowles) helping improve the offensive line and offense so they got weapons,” Marques Cox says during a media interview. “We got key players to do so, so it is just fixing everything.”
Keeshawn Silver
Now to the defensive side of the ball. One of Kentucky’s latest additions from the transfer portal was defensive tackle, Keeshawn Silver from North Carolina. Ranked as a five-star recruit in the 2021 class, the talent is there, but he could never get to a healthy playing weight at North Carolina.
One reason why Kentucky added him was due to Justin Rogers’s transferring to Auburn, leaving UK in need of another defensive lineman, which is where Silver comes in. Since arriving to campus, he feels like he has been able to build some great chemistry with his teammates.
“We talk daily, it’s really like the same things at Chapel Hill,” Keeshawn Silver says during a media interview. “I mean the guys, we bond together, have a good time, they like to have fun, I like to have fun.”
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JQ Hardaway
Finally, the last transfer that was interviewed was defensive back, JQ Hardaway, coming from Cincinnati. A native of Columbus, Georgia, Hardaway is “happy” to be in the SEC, a conference many poked fun at him for not joining out of high school.
The SEC is the highest level of football in the country, but Hardaway believes that he belongs and is confident in his skill set.
“I’m just a ballplayer, man, I feel like I am very confident in myself,” JQ Hardaway says during a media interview. “I like to have fun, I got kind of a swagger on the field, I would say. I’m just very comfortable, I feel like I can be myself, I don’t have to be anyone. I just kind of let my talent speak for itself.”
Over the last four seasons, Kentucky has sent three transfer corners to the NFL – Lonnie Johnson (Garden City CC), Kelvin Joseph (LSU), and Brandin Echols (Northwest Mississippi CC) – and Hardaway committed to Kentucky with that in mind. Will he be the next?
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Kentucky added some talented transfers this off-season and it will be interesting to see how they will have an impact on the team. Several questions should be answered over spring football, and hopefully, this group can help lead Kentucky to a better record in 2023.
Just one day after the spring transfer window opened on April 16, Kentucky football landed two familiar names: former commits Lorenzo Cowan and Hardley Gilmore IV, who both found their way back to Lexington after brief stints elsewhere.
Cowan, a 6-foot-3 edge rusher from Savannah, Georgia, originally committed to Kentucky on Sept. 10, 2023, but after picking up an offer from Southern California just three months later, he decommitted and left Lexington for Los Angeles.
As originally reported by Pete Nakos, Cowan turned back for Lexington after a redshirt season with USC and Gilmore came back after transferring to Nebraska in the winter portal.
Gilmore, a 6-foot-1 wide receiver, committed to play for Mark Stoops and the Wildcats on Aug. 25, 2023, but after just one season in the blue and white, transferred to Nebraska alongside Dane Key, who both followed former Kentucky wide receivers coach Daikiel Shorts Jr. to Lincoln.
Nebraska transfer wide receiver Hardley Gilmore has signed with Kentucky, @On3sports has learned.
Now, nearly two years since their original commitments, Cowan and Gilmore find themselves reunited with coach Stoops and BBN once again.
Amid a landscape of college football where players often take off without looking back, Cowan and Gilmore’s returns are rare. These guys didn’t commit to Kentucky just once – they made the decision to do it again.
So, what kind of impact will their return have, and how do they fit into the Wildcats roster?
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After the end of a disappointing 4-8 season, Kentucky’s wide receiver room has undergone a complete overhaul. The loss of starters Dane Key and Barion Brown via the transfer portal to Nebraska and LSU respectively, along with the loss of Anthony Brown-Stephens has left plenty of room for competition heading into camp this summer.
Adding to the disaster, former Louisiana Tech wide receiver, Tru Edwards, who committed to Kentucky in January, will also not be able to suit up for the 2025 season as the NCAA declared that he has used up all of his eligibility.
With that in mind, it’s looking that Gilmore will likely be taking on a significant role as the Z receiver in the Wildcat offense lining up alongside J.J. Hester at X and Ja’Mori Maclin at Y. This expanded opportunity likely played a key role in luring him back to Lexington after transferring to Nebraska for just a three month stint.
In his true freshman season at Kentucky, Gilmore turned heads in fall camp before a broken collarbone sidelined him for the first half of the season. Over the five games he played, he totaled six receptions for 153 yards and one touchdown – a 52-yard score in Kentucky’s blowout win against Murray State in week 10.
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On the other side of the ball, Lorenzo Cowan could also take on a meaningful role within Kentucky’s defensive front.
The versatile edge rusher fits well into defensive coordinator Brad White’s scheme, particularly as the ‘Cats look to replace key departures and reload their pass rush following a wave of departures – Deone Walker to the NFL, Keeshawn Silver to the transfer portal and J.J. Weaver, Tre-Vonn Rybka and Octavious Oxendine to graduation.
Preserving his redshirt status, Cowan didn’t appear in a game during his stint at USC, meaning that the high-upside pass rusher will return to Lexington with four full years of eligibility remaining.
Cowan is expected to line up opposite Mi’Quise Humphrey-Grace, a 6-foot-4 265 pound junior transfer from South Dakota and the 2024 Missouri Valley Conference Defensive Player of the Year.
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Together, the duo will bring a blend of youth and experience on the edge, and both are expected to play pivotal roles in helping reshape a defensive front that lost several key veteran contributors in the offseason.
As Kentucky looks to bounce back from an underwhelming season and a turbulent offseason, the returns of Cowan and Gilmore offer more than just depth – they bring familiarity, upside and a sense of unfinished business to Lexington.
With Kentucky Football coming off an excruciating one-point loss to the Georgia Bulldogs, let’s look ahead to some recruiting. The 2025 Recruiting Class is already taking place for Mark Stoops and company. The class is currently sitting at #25 in the country and #11 in the conference.
This past week Kentucky Insider had the opportunity to sit down with four-star ATH/CB Andrew Purcell. Andrew attends Enterprise High School located in Enterprise, AL. He is ranked as the 25th-best ATH in the Country.
Purcell was also on campus this past weekend for an official visit and in attendance for the showdown against Georgia.
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Andrew Purcell comes in at just 5-foot9, 185 Pounds. However, he is very explosive with huge, big play ability. He is a dual sport athlete who is a successful basketball player and track runner. He attributes a lot of this to his incredible athleticism on the field.
Purcell had offers from many Blue Blood programs such as Georgia, Miami, Clemson, and Florida among many others. When asked about what separated Kentucky from these other programs, Purcell said “Just the communication part, my connection with the Coaching Staff. They contacted me daily and that really separated them.”
This is a common statement from many recruits on Mark Stoops and the rest of the coaching staff. When asked about his lead recruiter he said that Defensive Backs coach, Chris Collins was primarily the guy whom he remained in close contact with.
There were many factors going into his ultimate decision to attend the University of Kentucky. However, when asked what made the decision much easier, he said, “I just loved everything about the school. They didn’t just care about #4, but they truly cared about me as a person.”
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Purcell also described himself as a “hard worker” and with these qualities, it will be hard for the Big Blue Nation not to enjoy getting to see him on the field.
A unanimous 4-star prospect and top 20 safety nationally, Carter chose the Cats over finalists Auburn Tigers, Colorado Buffalo, and Louisville. He also held offers from some of the biggest programs in the sport, including Alabama, Georgia, Michigan, and Oregon among others.
Originally from Chattanooga, TN, Carter moved to Paducah last summer where he starred for Paducah Tilghman High School, helping them to an undefeated regular season and a deep run in the 4A state playoffs, falling in the semifinals.
While it’s okay to celebrate his commitment, it will still be a battle until signing day. Auburn is seen as Kentucky’s biggest threat with Carter planning multiple visits, and he also has a family connection to Deion Sander’s Colorado program.
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That said, he will almost certainly take an official visit to Kentucky this fall. Vince Marrow has made Carter a priority of this class and will do everything in his power to retain the talented defensive back.
Carter makes the sixth commitment for Kentucky’s 2025 class, to go along with two talented offensive players and fellow four-star recruits Quintin Simmons Jr (WR) and Marquise Davis (RB).
Men's Basketball2 weeks ago