UK will have a strong linebacker crowd

With a talented and experienced group leading the way, Kentucky’s linebackers are expected to be a strength of the Wildcats’ defense this fall.

JJ Weaver returns for his sixth season with UK and will handle the high-speed duties for the Cats, who also return three-year starter D’Eryk Jackson and welcome Georgia Pop Dumas- Johnson in their linebacking corps.

It will be one of the most experienced units in college football, and expectations from defensive coordinator Brad White remain high.

“Football is football,” White said after Thursday’s practice in Lexington. “When the pads come on, at the end of the day at that position, you’ve got to know what to do, you’ve got to know where the run fits, but, hey, listen, we don’t need robots; we need game makers.

“We need guys who can find the football, hunt it down and then catch it on the ground.”

Weaver, a 6-foot-5, 225-pounder from Louisville and a team captain, recorded 45 tackles, 8.5 stops for loss, seven sacks, two pass deflections, two fumble recoveries and a forced fumble in 2023. Throughout his career, he has played in 107 games for the Cats.

The 6-1, 244-pound Jackson is back after leading Kentucky in tackles each of the last two seasons. Last year, he had 89 tackles, eight tackles for loss, a pair of sacks, two interceptions (one returned for a touchdown) and four pass deflections.

A new face to the program but not to college football, Dumas-Johnson earned All-American honors as a sophomore in 2022 but played in just nine games last year due to injury. He finished with 34 tackles, 5.5 stops for loss, 3.5 sacks and two pass deflections.

They’ll also get a boost from Alex Afari Jr., a 6-2, 222-pound junior who has taken snaps at inside linebacker and nickel cornerback throughout camp. The hybrid standout racked up 49 tackles, a sack, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery last fall.

Tyreese Fearbry, a 6-5, 242-pound redshirt sophomore (six tackles) and Daveren Rayner, a 6-2, 217-pound senior (30 tackles) are also expected to play key roles spare.

“I’d say I’m glad we’ve got a couple weeks left (of training camp), but I think the energy and the intensity is there,” White said. “The way they go about their business is there. We still have to clean up some of the little things and clean up some of the technical stuff, but we’re right where we should be right now in camp.

“I think our guys are ready. If we were to play this weekend, are we as polished as we need to be? No, but with the energy level and the way they’re flying, I’m happy with that.”

Following last season’s defensive rollercoaster, White is relying on his linebackers to provide stability this time around.

“I would really like to see us stay nice and consistent throughout the season,” he said. “Last year, I was a little bit up and down at times. We could play really well, but then there were times when we didn’t play well and it might shake us a little bit.

“I just want to see, especially with a veteran group, keep our heads. There’s going to be ups and downs throughout a game, throughout a season, but we just stay poised and can go into the next game with confidence and an urgency and a hope”.