SIGNING DAY PREVIEW: Wide receiver Joshua Ali
Cats Illustrated isn't waiting until National Signing Day to get you ready for all the action. We're rolling out Signing Day content all week.
In our new Signing Day Preview series we'll profile every single one of Kentucky's 2017 early enrollees as well as those who won't be signing until Wednesday.
STATUS: Will sign on Wednesday and enroll in January.
RESUME: Joshua Ali led Chaminade-Madonna (6-3) with 43 receptions for 805 yards and four touchdowns in 2016 as a senior. As a junior in 2015 he had 56 catches for 896 yards and 13 touchdowns.
RECRUITING HISTORY: Over the course of his recruitment Ali picked up many offers. Before he committed to Kentucky he had offers from schools in the ACC, the Big Ten, the Big XII and the Pac 12. At one point there was a lot of talk that Ali could be officially visiting other schools. Utah piqued his interest even after Ali had been committed to Kentucky and there were reports he might be officially visiting Central Florida. But he's remained steady with Kentucky. His official visit to Lexington, late in the process, helped seal the deal and convince him to shut down recruiting.
SCOUTING REPORT: He's a very good athlete, no question, but he lacks ideal size for an outside receiver. He could be a slot or he could spend time developing his strength to play different spots. He has a better wingspan as a receiver than you would expect from someone that size. He will have to work on not getting beat by press coverage coming off the line when he's facing bigger, more physical cornerbacks, but he can get behind a defense. At his best Ali will be able to take screens, sweeps and provide a deep threat. He has motioned into the backfield and taken handoffs as a home run threat as well.
CATS ILLUSTRATED PROJECTION: In a best-case scenario Ali could become the kind of deep ball threat that the recently-departed Jeff Badet was in 2016. It will probably take him a while to get there as Ali might be a bit of a project. Expect a redshirt and then we'll know more about his readiness from 2018-on.
| Size | Speed | Hands | Routes | Leaping |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
5/10 |
9/10 |
7.5/10 |
7.5/10 |
7/10 |