Five Freshmen to Start for Kentucky Against Miami (Ohio)
In this story:
Kentucky football released its first official depth chart of the season on Monday, and while the focus is on who isn't featured, there are a plethora of storylines revolving the makeup of the starters that'll take the field on Sept. 3 against Miami (Ohio).
Five freshmen will lineup alongside quarterback Will Levis for UK's first offensive play this season:
- Left Tackle - David Wohlabaugh Jr
It was a long preseason camp battle for the final question mark on the offensive line over at left tackle. Ultimately, the redshirt freshman Wohlabaugh beat out another freshman, coveted recruit Kiyaunta Goodwin, as well as sophomore Deondre Buford.
"You know, we've experimented at left tackle and gave everybody a chance. David has been the most consistent, that's why he's getting the start," Mark Stoops said. "Kiyaunta is still doing some very good things and coming along, and Deondre is as well."
- Left Guard - Jager Burton
Burton, the redshirt freshman out of Frederick Douglass High School in Lexington will start over veteran Kenneth Horsey, who is not fully healthy entering game week.
"We hope to get him out there today, but he's not at 100 percent right now," Stoops said of Horsey. "We love what we see in Jager, so it'd be easy for me to list Jager as a starter. He's really played well, and we're excited about it."
- Tight End / Fullback - Jordan Dingle
The "Swiss army knife" will man the tight end role alongside starters Brendan Bates and Keaton Upshaw.
Tight ends coach Vince Marrow labeled Dingle as the "most complete guy" in the room during fall camp. "When I say he's ahead of those guys, it isn't big separation, but it's separation to the point where the other guys are good, but Dingle's really doing some good stuff," Marrow said.
- Wide Receiver (X) - Dane Key
It's no surprise to see Key manning one the starting wide out spots, as the Lexington native has impressed since his arrival to campus. Levis has called Key a starter since the beginning of camp and has already built a good on-field connection with the rookie.
- Wide Receiver (Z) - Barion Brown
Joining Key and Virginia Tech transfer Tayvion Robinson is freshman Barion Brown. Like Key, Brown impressed heavily throughout camp, earning that final starting role over the likes of DeMarcus Harris and Chauncey Magwood.
Brown will also feature on kick returns alongside running back JuTahn McClain:
"I feel like Barion on kick returns can give us some juice, give us a guy that can really hit it," Stoops said.
As a whole, Stoops is enthralled with the group of freshmen that he's called his "best ever."
"I'm very pleased. I mentioned that a couple of times. Just really like the way they're preparing Whether playing you know, consistency is what we're looking at. And you know what? We've covered it a long time in football. There's ups and there's downs and there's highs and those lows. And freshmen have a tendency to you know, to go through that. And how they respond to it will determine you know, how much playing time and how they how they do this season. They've been very consistent to this point. Not perfect, but I really like the athleticism, the work ethic and the attitude of these guys as a group."
"Some guys are getting headlines, and they should, they're playing and doing very well. And there's others that are just not quite ready. But I absolutely love their athleticism, their attitude and the way they're complex. You know, there's guys and there's even redshirt freshmen and they just need to continue to stay the course. And I really feel like there's some really good players in there."
