Oxendine gives Cats' D-Line another strong option

There was no shortage of impressive individual efforts in Kentucky's season-opening win over Louisiana Monroe.

Among them on the defensive side of the ball was that of Octavious Oxendine, who took full advantage of his playing time in the Wildcats' deep D-Line rotation.

The sophomore defensive tackle had a career-high five tackles, three unassisted stops, and one tackle for loss in the 45-10 win over ULM. He wasted no time getting involved, coming off the bench to make all three tackles during a 3-and-out series by the Warhawks on their second series of the game.

"I didn't even know I did it, honestly, until I got to the sideline and everybody was telling me I made every tackle," Oxendine said of his fast start at Kroger Field. "I was just out there playing football."

Oxendine was part of a UK defensive effort which saw the Cats hold ULM to 87 total yards and just 1.4 yards per play.

“Octavious did a really good job," UK head coach Mark Stoops said. "I thought he played faster than he has in the past. He’s worked hard in the off-season. He took to the coaching. He scraped and played fast and played with great energy. I was excited about that.”

Added UK defensive coordinator Brad White: "I was pleased with how Ox played. There's the one series where he made all three tackles in a row -- first, second, and third down -- so I thought he played at a high level. We need him to continue to do that."

A four-star prospect out of North Hardin High School, Oxendine got his feet wet with three games during the Covid-shortened 2020 season that will ultimately serve as a redshirt year.

The 6-foot-1, 318-pounder is expected to be a much bigger part of the UK defense this season, rotating at the boundary tackle position with Game 1 starter Abule Abadi-Fitzgerald to present a formidable three-man front that also includes veteran standout Josh Paschal at defensive end and budding star Marquan McCall at nose tackle.

"He's really coming into his own right now," said UK defensive line coach Anwar Stewart. "He's playing really fast, and the game is slowing down for him. I'm really excited for him again this week (against Missouri). It's just one of those things where let's see how many back to back weeks he can put up because we're waiting for some of these young guys to step up."

A strong commitment to the off-season strength and conditioning program helped put Oxendine in a position to be an impact player this season.

"I feel like I'm pretty much quicker on my feet, like my lateral movement and quickness," he said. "I've been working out with Coach Ed (Corey Edmond) and these guys. We had a crazy off-season that's prepared us a lot for this season."