Mark Stoops on losing recruits: ‘We still love any guys that decommitted’
Published:
Despite losing a couple prospects in the spring, Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops still sounds quite optimistic when it comes to building toward and signing another strong overall class in Lexington.
“You don’t think I anticipate some ups and downs in that?” Stoops said at SEC Media Days according to Jon Hale of the Courier-Journal. “It’s going to happen. It happens to everybody in college football. You can’t panic about it. Stay the course. We’ll continue to recruit those guys.”
The prospects Kentucky has lost since the end of the latest season include elite quarterback Mac Jones (who flipped his commitment to Alabama), defensive lineman James Hudson, wide receiver Russ Yeast, running back Michael Warren, outside linebacker DeMarco Artis and tight end Charles Reeves.
Without a doubt, losses of that magnitude would hurt any recruiting class, however Stoops isn’t dwelling on the losses – and in fact, plans to continue to recruit several of the prospects.
“We still love any guys that decommitted or whatever,” Stoops said. “Listen, I want our fans to embrace them. They’re good people. These are hard decisions for these kids. They get pulled a million different directions. I don’t think anybody made these decisions very lightly. They still have great respect and feeling for Kentucky.”
Following the decommitments, the Wildcats currently have 10 total commitments lined up for the 2017 class and are expected to sign fewer than the typical 25-man class thanks to having a small senior class on the roster heading into the season.
A graduate of the University of Tennessee, Michael Wayne Bratton oversees the news coverage for Saturday Down South. Michael previously worked for FOX Sports and NFL.com
