Three-star New Jersey ATH Nasir Addison picks UK
Kentucky picked up a commitment from three-star New Jersey athlete Nasir Addison on Saturday. the 6'2, 181-pound prospect from Irvington, N.J., is a top-25 prospect in the Garden State and announced his commitment to Kentucky on Instagram late Saturday afternoon.
Kentucky receivers coach Scott Woodward served as Addison's lead recruiter from the staff.
Addison is listed as a wide receiver on Rivals.com but is slotted to play defensive back at Kentucky, according to Cats Illustrated sources. Whether that means corner, where he has played for Irvington, or safety, only time will tell. UK has made a habit of starting defensive backs out at corner before deciding whether to play them there or move them.
Eight of UK's first 11 commitments from the 2023 class were players on the offensive side of the ball, but expect things to balance out over time with commitments such as Addison's on the other side.
While Addison has put up bigger numbers at receiver than defensive back his film does showcase some work at corner, where he has some experience playing press. Most of Addison's defensive highlights show him taking on blocks, chasing plays down, or as a willing tackler. His length and physicality in the secondary appear to be reasons for Kentucky's interest.
Michigan State, Ole Miss, and Florida State were other schools that had recruited Addison from the Power Five level of late. For much of Addison's recruitment he was committed to Maryland but he decommitted several weeks ago. It was immediately clear that Kentucky was interested, but only recently did it become apparent that UK had the inside track.
Boston College, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, and West Virginia are among the other schools that offered Addison over the course of his recruitment.
With Addison's commitment Kentucky now has the No. 42-ranked recruiting class in the nation, and that is in spite of H-Back Jakob Dixon not having any ranking as of yet.
Kentucky has commitments from safety Ty Bryant and cornerback Avery Stuart so Addison is the third defensive back to commit to UK from this class.