By LARRY VAUGHT
He’s not been mentioned prominently during Kentucky’s preseason practices but 6-3, 205-pound freshman receiver Shamar Porter of Nashville was a four-star recruit and a player that UK offensive coordinator Liam Coen believes is a future star.
“He’s ran the 100 (meter dash) in 10.8 (seconds). He’s a big boy. He is physically bigger than (UK sophomore receiver) Barion (Brown) who is long-armed and wiry and can bend and torque his body but Shamar is stronger,” Coen said. “Shamar might be more of a true receiver. Barion can just get the ball in his hands and score on any play. There is a difference in their play but I really hope Shamar can help us this year as a true freshman.”
Porter picked UK over Tennessee, Georgia and Mississippi and was a top 30 receiver nationally in the On3 Consensus rankings. He had 32 catches for 557 yards and a team-high 10 touchdowns in 10 games as a high school senior when he averaged 17.4 yards per catch.
“I am definitely committed to the offense, the weight room and being part of this team,” Porter said. “I am more of the quiet guy. I am the guy who just pops up and stuff just happens. I have got used to the offense. I am starting to get a mix of competing with the best.”
Porter said he was always the “fast guy” growing up and because his father is a bodybuilder who started him lifting weights at an early age.
“He wanted me to get physical and aggressive and put that in my skill set,” Porter said.
Porter knew Coen was going to come back to Kentucky when he committed. Coen visited his high school and the two started building a relationship before Porter arrived on campus.
“I really agree with his play calling, his offensive style, his spread offense. I just felt like this was a good spot for me and I am hungry to be part of his offense,” the UK freshman receiver said.
He admitted he was not sure if he would be at UK or not if Coen had not returned.
“I like the players. I get along with everybody. But I could not answer that question because fortunately he is at Kentucky,” Porter said.
He’s also really glad that quarterback Devin Leary is now at Kentucky.
“Devin is really good. He definitely fits our offense and is definitely a piece that really works,” Porter said. “I like how he plays and his throwing style. It not only fits me but it fits with everybody. He’s just that good.”
Coen really likes that Porter and Anthony Brown, a four-star freshman receiver from Ohio, are both high quality character individuals.
“When we recruit players we look at character first before athleticism. Now does production bring tolerance? Absolutely. That’s true,” the UK offensive coordinator said. “They come to work every day, they are at school, they are doing what they are supposed to do, they are going to get good grades.
“They have a lot of support and those are the kids who you feel can take off when they get into the program and do start to have some success. They have the ability to do these things. Now we got to see them go do it once the season starts.”
Former Woodford County standout Jasper Johnson leaves this week for Link Academy, the 2023 GEICO Nationals champion located in Branson, Mo. He is a top-25 recruit nationally and No. 1 combo guard in the 2025 recruiting class. He led Woodford to its first state tournament berth since 1986 last season and averaged a team-high 20.1 points per game as a sophomore.
On the Nike EYBL circuit, he helped Team Thad finish 14-3 and averaged 12.3 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game while shooting 51 percent overall, 40 percent from 3 and 84 percent at the foul line.
“Being able to play for Team Thad on the EYBL circuit helped me get a lot of exposure that I wanted,” Johnson said. “I worked hard for it and it helped me out in the long run. I thought I would do as well as I did. I worked hard all offseason to prepare myself and I think I did pretty well.”
He already has a Kentucky scholarship offer along with a lot of others including one from Baylor last week. Alabama, Cincinnati, Ohio State, Louisville, Memphis and North Carolina are other schools he feels are prioritizing him the most so far.
Johnson also attended several elite camps where he said there was no pressure on him.
“I just played and it was a great opportunity to play in front of a lot more eyes and scouts. I also made a lot of new relationships with players I did not know before,” he said.
He especially liked the CP3 Elite Camp put on by NBA star Chris Paul in California because he got to meet a lot of NBA players.
Johnson has taken a few days off recently but not many because he wants to be ready to play when he gets to Missouri this week. He’s also continuing to deal with recruiting.
“Coaches are still calling, reaching out and texting. Right now it is all going good with communication. I am starting to look at some schools and then take some visits in the offseason and then some during the season too,” he said.
There has been some speculation that he might reclassify to the 2024 recruiting class but his grandmother, Rosetta Johnson, talks about the value of him spending two more years in high school to prepare academically and athletically for college.
“As of right now, I will be staying in the 2025 class. I don’t think I will be reclassifying,” he said. “My grandmother shared a little bit of wisdom with me. She always says to follow my heart and she really helps me a lot but I know how much she values education.”
He will be spending a lot of time on the road next season as Link Academy only has two home games scheduled. Other games will be against top competition across the country with a chance he might return to Kentucky for a game or two with his team.
Kentucky defensive line coach Anwar Stewart watched players on “both sides of the ball getting bigger and stronger” during UK’s offseason.
“Guys were pumping iron and working really hard,” Stewart said.
One of those players working the hardest was senior defensive lineman Octavious Oxendine who dropped weight before the 2022 season and was not as productive as he had been.
“Ox, it is his time. It’s now or never for him. Two years ago he was really good before he was injured. Last year he lost all of that weight. That was not on us,” Stewart said.
“Sometimes kids listen to the wrong voices. He was not good last year. He got pushed around a lot. If you keep getting beat up you sit down and think how do I get back to where I was. Now he’s back up to 280 (pounds). He has worked his butt off to get ready to have a great season and that’s the great thing about having the competition in our group that we do.”
Kahlil Saunders, a 285-pound redshirt sophomore, is another one of those defensive linemen Stewart has seen blossom. He played in 11 games in 2022 and had 13 tackles, including five against No. 1 Georgia.
“I think Khalil is probably the X-Factor. I think he’s very special. He’s what the next level is looking for because he’s long, athletic and can run. He’s just a very athletic, talented kid,” Stewart said.
“He showed flashes of what he could do last year. He did a lot of good work for us and then he hurt his shoulder. He’s back 100 percent and we’re really excited about him.”
Kentucky football players and fans were not the only ones happy to have Liam Coen return as offensive coordinator this season.
“I just think Liam is a really good football coach but his personality is so impressive. The guy walks into the room and he is so confident. He has a little swag to him like, ‘We are here to put points up,’” Yenser said.
“He’s confident and feeds off everybody. He is a phenomenal X and O coach but his presence and how treat guys is even more impressive. Everyone on the offensive side of the ball feels like they have a voice in that room. No one is scared to bring stuff up. He allows others to have ideas and share them.
“He has his vision and knows what he wants to do and knows his product on the field but everybody on that offensive staff has a voice and that’s good for everyone.”
Quarterback Devin Leary certainly likes that quality in Coen.
“He’s a guy that is very open to being able to sit down and ask him questions about anything,” Leary said. “That’s exactly what we needed as an offense. I think he is happy to be back and that all of the Big Blue Nation is excited about what we can do under him this year.”
Former Kentucky quarterback Freddie Maggard has made it clear he believes quarterback Devin Leary could be a better college quarterback than Will Levis was even though Levis probably has the higher NFL ceiling.
Maggard also believes Kentucky is going to be a lot better than last year’s seven-win team even though the final record might not be a lot better.
“I don’t do season predictions but did this year,” Maggard, a high school/college football writer/analyst for Kentucky Sports Radio, said. “I said, ‘Eight or more (wins) good, seven or less bad.’
“They could win eight games and be much better because Alabama and Georgia are both on the schedule and there is a head coach in Louisville now who could win games, South Carolina is on the rise and Missouri has got some dudes on defense. And we are not even considering Florida as a potential loss and what world are we now living in to be thinking that.”
Maggard said the margin for winning and losing in the SEC is “minuscule” for most teams, especially since Kentucky is not a team loaded with four- and five-star players like Georgia and Alabama are.
“Kentucky does not have to overachieve but has got to be more efficient. Coach Mark Stoops has been efficient and patient in his approach and demands the best from everybody in that (football) building,” Maggard said.
There’s also a plus Maggard sees to Kentucky being doubted by many.
“Mark stoops likes to be the hunter instead of the hunted and this season sets up perfectly for him and his team to do the hunting,” Maggard said.
Kentucky volleyball started coach Craig Skinner’s 19th season by splitting matches in Colorado last week. The Cats were picked to win the SEC again and started the season ranked in the top 10.
Junior Erin Lamb had 203 kills in 23 matches she played in 2022. She’s dealt with a back injury most of her previous two years at UK but seems close to fully healthy now. She had 21 kills in UK’s first two matches.
“She is as healthy as she has been since she got here,” Skinner said. “She had a really good summer. She is hitting the ball as hard and moving as well as she ever has.
“It’s exciting to see her healthy and have that special look on her face. Her position is so important and her versatility and range will help us immensely if she can stay healthy.”
Lamb was an Under Armor second team all-American during her prep career in Minnesota where she also won a state championship. She was a top 30 player in her recruiting class.
Quote of the Week: “For me, it’s actually more of the delusional fan bases. NC State is definitely in the mix. Texas Tech in equation. Auburn somewhere in discussion as well. But the highest level of annoying fans hail from Big Blue Nation. The top one percent are as annoying as any top one percent,” national college basketball analyst Jeff Goodman when asked who has the nation’s most annoying fans.
Quote of the Week 2: “He is getting much better. Trying to get him to be totally consistent. What’s different about where he’s getting better is if maybe he’s going through traffic and maybe has a drop. You see him respond the next day and make a play,” Kentucky coach Mark Stoops on receiver Dekel Crowdus.
Quote of the Week 3: “He’s such a smart player that sometimes he’s just gotta cut loose and play. Not overthink the downs. But he’s made a lot of plays this fall camp. He looks ready to take that next step,” UK defensive coordinator Brad White on junior linebacker D’Eryk Jackson, who has 89 career tackles.