New Kentucky football coach Will Stein needed less than a week to land his first four-star uncommitted football recruit.
Four-star Louisiana prep receiver and former LSU commit Kenny Darby picked the Wildcats on Friday, the last day of the December signing period. Darby was recruited to LSU by new UK offensive coordinator Joe Sloan when he was an assistant there.
“The biggest reason is I picked Kentucky because I wanna start my own trend,” Darby told Rivals Friday. “I wanna be a part of something big. Obviously, they have a new coaching staff and I wanna be a part of that with Coach Sloan.”
New UK football coach Will Stein picked up his first four-star commitment since being hired by the Wildcats. Ryan C. Hermens rhermens@herald-leader.com
Darby is the second four-star pledge in Kentucky’s 2026 high school signing class, joining Cincinnati prep quarterback Matt Ponatoski, who committed to UK under Mark Stoops but elected to still sign with the Wildcats after the coaching change this week.
UK’s previous staff also held a verbal commitment from four-star Illinois prep safety Messiah Tilson, but he is the only Stoops commitment who has not signed with Kentucky this week.
At Kentucky, Darby could see an early path to snaps, especially if the Wildcats lose any receivers to the transfer portal.
UK will definitely lose leading receiver Kendrick Law and backups Ja’Mori Maclin, Fred Farrier and J.J. Hester, because they have no eligibility remaining. Keeping freshmen DJ and Cam Miller in the receiving room could be an early priority for Stein, but there is little other proven depth. Sophomore Hardley Gilmore would likely be the favorite to start alongside the Millers if everyone returns at the position.
Jon Hale
Lexington Herald-Leader
Jon Hale is the University of Kentucky football beat writer for the Lexington Herald-Leader. He joined the Herald-Leader in 2022 but has covered UK athletics for more than 10 years. Hale was named the 2021 Kentucky Sportswriter of the Year.
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