LEXINGTON — Kentucky football's 2024 freshman class finished 25th in the nation, according to the 247Sports Composite Rankings. This was 11th out of 14 schools competing in the SEC last season.
The road ahead will be even tougher. Oklahoma and Texas will join the league when the 2024 campaign begins.
Still, the Wildcats' 2024 signing is only the fourth in coach Mark Stoops' tenure (since he first started sign language classes in 2013) and ranks the program among the nation's top 25. Named in class. (Other events he had were in 2014, 2020 and 2022.) Stoops aims to make another top-25 effort in the 2025 cycle.
However, the UK has been working on its 2025 outlook over time and has only made three commitments so far.
Quarterback Stone Sanders committed to the Wildcats' 2025 class in August. Kentucky did not add any players to its class until February 5, when wide receiver Quintin Simmons Jr. joined the group. On Friday night, a third offensive player took the pledge when Philadelphia running back Isaiah West committed to UK.
Bookmark this page as The Courier Journal tracks Kentucky's 2025 class, ranked No. 42 in the nation as of Friday night.
Kentucky football seeking 2025 commitments
stone sanders
position: quarterback
high school: Bishop McDevitt (Harrisburg, Pennsylvania)
247 Sports Composite Rating: 4 stars
commitment status: Verbally committed on August 4, 2023
What you need to know: Sanders appeared live on Harrisburg affiliate ABC27 News on Aug. 4, 2023, and chose UK over the other four finalists (Georgia, Miami, Michigan and Nebraska). Sanders is a four-star prospect, according to the 247Sports composite. He ranks as the No. 27 QB in the nation and the No. 12 player in the state of Pennsylvania. Four major recruitment services are divided on his talent. Rivals and ESPN each gave him four stars, while 247Sports and On3 rated him a three-star prospect. Sanders led Bishop McDevitt to a 13-1 record last season and a berth in the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association Class 4A state semifinals. He threw for his 3,522 yards in 2023, according to MaxPreps, and he scored 56 touchdowns against five interceptions. His total TDs led the state and his passing yards ranked second. In 2022, Sanders won the MaxPreps Pennsylvania High School Player of the Year award after leading Bishop McDevitt to its first state championship since 1995. That season, he threw 54 touchdowns against five interceptions, had six touchdown passes in four games, and had two more touchdown passes. Five.
quintin simmons jr.
position: wide receiver
high school: Withrow (Cincinnati)
247 Sports Composite Rating: 4 stars
commitment status: Oral offense committed on February 5th
What you need to know: Simmons Jr., a four-star wideout, chose UK over the other five finalists on Feb. 5: Cincinnati, Michigan, Penn State, Syracuse and West Virginia. According to the 247Sports Composite, Simmons is the No. 30 WR in the 2025 cycle and No. 10 overall player in his class in Ohio. According to the Cincinnati Enquirer, Simmons appeared in 11 games with Withrow last season, finishing with 31 catches for 533 yards and eight touchdowns, along with 119 yards and three more scores on the ground. This followed a 2022 campaign in which he caught 40 passes for 556 yards and five touchdowns. Simmons helped Withrow set a single-season school record (12 wins) in 2023 and advance to the Ohio High School Athletic Association Division II, Region 8 championship game. He was his high school teammate with defensive back Terion Nichols, a member of the Wildcats' 2024 signing class.
isiah west
position: run back
high school: St. Joseph Preparatory School (Philadelphia)
247 Sports Composite Rating: N/A (Not yet rated by 247Sports)
commitment status: Oral offense committed on March 1st
What you need to know: West, who plays at St. Joseph's Preparatory School in Philadelphia, chose Kentucky on Friday night. He chose UK out of four finalists, including Nebraska, North Carolina and Wisconsin. 6-foot, 208-pound tailback; West announced his decision regarding X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. West was one of the many visitors to Kentucky's Junior Day event in Lexington last month. He has not yet been rated by 247Sports, but the other three major recruiting services (Rivals, On3, ESPN) all rate West as a three-star prospect. In high school at St. Joe's, he was teammates with David Washington Jr., a wide receiver signed by the Wildcats in the 2024 recruiting class.
Contact Kentucky men's basketball and football reporter Ryan Black at rblack@gannett.com and follow @RyanABlack on X.
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