"Big men lead" has been a mantra of the Kentucky program during its climb to college football relevance.
On Wednesday, the Wildcats unveiled what some are calling the best recruiting class in school history, and it came as no surprise that the guys in the trenches played a major role.
Kentucky, which currently boasts the No. 20 class in the nation, signed nine linemen during the first day of the December early signing period. The 20-man class included five offensive linemen and four defensive linemen.
"I think it's a really good class when you look at that," UK head coach Mark Stoops said. "... It's a really strong class with our front guys."
The crown jewel of the class to date is Justin Rogers, a five-star defensive tackle from Oak Park (Mich.) High School who chose the Cats from an offer sheet that included the likes of Alabama, Clemson, Michigan, Georgia, Florida, LSU, and Tennessee.
Rated the No. 15 overall prospect in America, Rogers is considered to be the highest-ranked signee for the Cats during the Rivals era. The only comparable UK signees in the pre-Rivals era are believed to be Moe Williams, Tim Couch, Dennis Johnson, and Antonio Hall.
The 6-foot-4, 314-pound Rogers is flanked by four-star defensive tackle Tre'Vonn Rybka (6-4, 300) of Dickson County, Tenn., four-star defensive end Josaih Hayes (6-2, 315) of Horn Lake, Miss., and four-star defensive tackle Octavious Oxendine (6-3, 296) from the Bluegrass State's North Hardin High School.
Rybka held offers from Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Oregon. Hayes, the No. 2 prospect in the Magnolia State who originally committed to Ole Miss, was also pursued late by Auburn and Mississippi State. The Cats won a fierce battle against Tennessee for Oxendine.
"You know how I feel about the front guys," Stoops said. "You've got to have them in this league. To have (four) players like that in one group is special."
Some may also consider Sam Anaele in that elite group. The 6-foot-4, 250-pound athlete from Deerfield Beach, Fla., is a four-star prospect whose physical attributes and highlight film remind many of recent UK All-American Josh Allen. Anaele is slated to play Allen's old hybrid outside linebacker/defensive end position.
"And he's a great big guy, probably even thicker coming out of high school (than Allen)," Stoops said. "... I think -- we saw him, oh, just over a week ago or so -- I want to say he was over 243 or something like that. Six-foot-five. Big old joker."
Kentucky, which lost two star offensive linemen last season and will say goodbye to guards Logan Stenberg and Mason Wolfe at the end of this year, reloaded with five linemen for John Schlarman's unit.
Stoops said offensive tackles were the primary focus, adding that some current players could shift inside to play guard next season.
"We needed some tackles and felt like we met that need," he said. "Definitely four of the guys are prototypical tackles."
That group includes four-star Louisville Christian Academy tackle John Young (6-7, 290); three-star Phenix City, Ala., tackle Josh Jones (6-6, 300); Independence, Kan., Community College tackle Jeremy Flax (6-6, 320); and three-star Detroit MLK tackle Deondre Buford (6-5, 285).
The lone interior offensive lineman is Reuben "R.J." Adams, a 6-3, 325-pound guard from Woodbridge, Va.
Like their defensive counterparts, the O-Linemen had no shortage of major suitors. Young chose the Cats over offers from Louisville, Florida State, Auburn, and Georiga. Jones held offers from programs like LSU, Florida State, and Tennessee. Flax came down to a battle between UK and Auburn, while Buford was courted by Auburn, LSU, Penn State, Tennessee, and Miami. Adams' offer sheet featured Penn State, Florida State, Miami, and Oregon, among others.
It was a Who's Who of College Football for almost every man.
"This is probably the most I've seen that we've signed up front, and that's where you win in this league," said UK associate head coach and recruiting coordinator Vince Marrow.
"That's when you start getting up there and start competing with some of those other guys in the league that we're starting to catch. We've still got one more school (in the East) to catch before we can say that we've arrived."
