WHAT THEY'RE SAYING: Camp reactions from many recent visitors
CatsIllustrated.com has provided extensive and unprecedented coverage of Kentucky's football camps this summer.
With five consecutive days of camps in the books, here's what many of those recent visitors are telling CatsIllustrated.com.
Edwards, a four-star, Rivals250 Oklahoma defensive back commitment, has remained on board with the Sooners, but that hasn't stopped Kentucky and other schools from continuing to recruit him. He was active at Kentucky's camp, participating from start to finish and never giving less than 100-percent, and he was getting plenty of attention from the UK coaching staff.
This week Edwards told CatsIllustrated.com that he "loved it" at Kentucky, and he acknowledged, "Yeah, they're recruiting me hard." He didn't go in-depth on his interest in Kentucky or other schools, but he did say that defensive backs coach Steven Clinkscale "knows what he's talking about."
Williams landed an offer following Tuesday's camp and he told CatsIllustrated.com, "The head coach offered me. The assistant coach (Eddie Gran) came to see me in the spring." Williams, whose stock is rising, also said his time at Kentucky was "awesome," and mentioned that UK has an "excellent campus. ... I love it!"
Robinson landed an offer from Louisville just before arriving in Lexington. The massive OLB/DE prospect told CatsIllustrated.com, after his camp in Lexington, that the trip went very well.
"I had fun fun working with the coaches. It was great all around," the 6-foot-5, 250-pound Class of 2018 defensive prospect said. "They said I did good on both sides of the ball. The O-Line coach said he liked me and he said I did really good for a person that never played O-Line."
Robinson also mentioned that he thought Kentucky's facilities were "beautiful."
Barber is the younger teammate of Terez Traynor, the 2018 receiver who was offered on Sunday night. Doss is also home to UK target Shawnkel Knight-Goff.
Barber is a prospect in his own right. He told CatsIllustrated.com, following his camp at UK, "I enjoyed my time (at Kentucky) while learning some things to take back with me. I worked with Coach (Derrick) LeBlanc and the outside linebacker coach and I love their style of coaching. I took a tour of Kentucky a while back and their facilities are nice. One of the best ones I've seen."
Barber has an early offer from Louisville.
CatsIllustrated.com has not yet had an extensive conversation with Monday, but he did tell us "I loved it" in Lexington and that Kentucky is an option he's considering. The four-star defensive back was often under the watchful eye of Mark Stoops during the Monday camp he attended.
Richardson seemed especially excited about how the time in Kentucky went. "I liked it a lot," he said. "Really did. I think I was the underdog at the camp."
In some respects he was. Richardson has offers from Old Dominion and Valdosta State.
"I need some work in staying disciplined with my eyes on the hip and getting faster with my speed on deep routes," he said. "Other than that, I'm physical at the line, quicker than fast out of my breaks with great instincts."
Clinkscale made an impression.
"I love Coach Steven's energy and his passion for the DB position. He has that take no prisoner mentality and I can relate to it. Coach Eddie (Gran) and Coach (Mark) Stoops, just from talking to them, are very brilliant and intelligent coaches. The facilities were beautiful. Never seen anything like it before. Breathtaking."
He concluded: "Would really love to be a Wildcat!"
Giordano has MAC offers but he would love one from a Power Five school.
"I loved the campus. It was a great visit overall and the camp was lots of fun. Best I've seen so far. Definitely the best school I've been to on this trip," he said.
Giordano said he felt pretty good about his camp performane although he "had a few mistakes." Overall, he's happy and said he wasn't locked down once by a defensive back; "just overthrown a couple of times."
One of the more talented players to come through UK so far this summer, Smith gave the school a positive review. "I enjoyed it," said the player with offers from Auburn, Kentucky, Louisville, Ole Miss, NC State and many others.
Smith also told CatsIllustrated.com that Kentucky has "great facilities. One of the best I've seen." Smith also said that he loves "the way Coach (Eddie) Gran coaches and I know he's about winning."
Crowder has a big summer as a rising senior and one with legitimate big school aspirations.
He told CatsIllustrated.com, "The trip was great. The coaches show love and the facilities were very nice. I loved the stadium. I talked to Coach Clink and he told me I was a great player. He liked me and Coach Eddie Gran told me great job every time I made a play. He said I did a nice job."
Crowder went on to say he has "100-percent interest in UK."
Kentucky was the first Power Five school to offer Tyson, Darin Hinshaw visited his school in the spring, and his great grandfather, Bear Bryant, left a huge family history in Lexington.
"It was a lot of fun!" Tyson told CatsIllustrated.com, referring to his camp at Kentucky. "It was great seeing the way he coached." Tyson also said he loved the facilities and thought they were very nice.
Though Huff is only a Class of 2020 recruit he landed an offer after camping at Kentucky and could turn out to be one of the South's top defensive backs from his class. That's good news for Kentucky, because he likes the Cats ... a lot.
"Trust me, I'm coming back soon," Huff said. "UK is at the very TOP (all caps are his) of my list."
And why?
"UK's training facility is by far the nicest I've seen. And trust me, I've seen quite a few," he said. "I REALLY enjoyed UK. It was a very nice, clean campus. Me and my family plan on visiting again soon."
Huff also has very early offers from Syracuse and Louisiana Tech.
Saunders-Johnson loved it at Kentucky, but he might be looking elsewhere.
"I enjoyed my time well there. Really loved everything about Kentucky. It's a great place," he said. "I loved everything from the coaches all the way to the facility. Would love the opportunity to have the chance to play for Kentucky."
But ... and yes, there's a but.
"Personally, I think I couldn't have done any worse (at the camp)," he said. "It was a bad day for me. Coach Clink pulled me aside and a few other guys and said he liked me a lot but my size doesn't fit their defensive scheme. But he told me to stay in touch. If I would've played how I usually play, for a fact I would've been given the opportunity to play for Kentucky."
Boateng was one of the more physically impressive offensive linemen working with John Schlarman's group on Monday.
"I enjoyed myself very much while I was at the campus as a whole," he told CatsIllustrated.com. "I loved the football program and it was very family-oriented. I could picture myself playing there one day in the future. It's definitely a school that's in the front of my mind."
Boateng said the facilities at Kentucky are "amazing," and "the weight room was beyond measure with the music and team environment. On top of that all the team and positional meeting rooms were spacious. Plus the art on the walls was pretty cool."
To top it off, he likes Schlarman a lot.
"I loved the way he coached," Boateng said. "I got the feel that he loved his job and (would be) helping us (as) student-athletes. His intensity was the best part to me because that's what wins games at every level of football."
Kentucky could use some more big defensive linemen and Pete could fit the mold.
He told CatsIllustrated.com, "I loved everything about UK. The dorms and the coaches (most). They really treated me like family."
He went on to say that Derrick LeBlanc seemed to love him.
"He played pro (football) with my coach, Junior Rosegreen. I'm hoping for the offer soon."
The Kentucky commitment didn't participate in the camp he attended on Sunday night, but he did watch and spent a lot of time around the coaches.
Alexander told CatsIllustrated.com that the trip was great, but also "nothing like I expected."
"I didn't expect the facilities to be so nice. And the way the coaches treated me, it was just all so good. Everything about it."
Alexander also said he was able to reconnect with former Chaminade-Madonna teammates while he was in Lexington.
When asked what he liked about Kentucky, after saying the trip went well, Boyles laughed and said, "Literally everything. Everything looked brand new. I loved the way the coaches teach their players."
Boyles also said the facilities were a highlight of the visit.