West coast receiver details connection that led to UK offer

Kentucky has not recruited the west coast under Mark Stoops as much as it did in the decade or two prior to his arrival but occasionally a player from the region lands an offer from the 'Cats.

That happened for Portland (Oreg.) Tigard receiver Keenan Speer-Johnson not long ago, and he spoke with Cats Illustrated to detail the process.

"Some of my film landed in the hands of Coach (Darin) Hinshaw and he liked the way I moved around for how long and big I was," said Speer-Johnson, who is 6'3, 190 pounds.

While Darin Hinshaw is the coach who apparently extended the offer, new receivers coach Jovon Bouknight knew about him since he was at Oregon last year. In that role Bouknight knew about Speer-Johnson as a then-local recruit for the Ducks.

"I knew Coach Bou from Oregon and went to camp in his group last year," Speer-Johnson said. "I was getting coached by him at Oregon's SNL (Saturday Night Lights). That made me more interested in Kentucky."

While Speer-Johnson has not been to UK he is interested because of the offer and what he has learned.

"They are a program on the rise in the SEC," he said.

Kentucky was the first school to offer but Speer-Johnson said several Pac-12 programs and others out west are showing interest.

"I'm looking for a good education and a place where I can track the deep ball," he said.