Kentucky defensive lineman Kendrick Gilbert will enter transfer portal
The spring transfer portal window does not open until Wednesday, but the expectation was that news would start to slowly leak out before college football free agency officially begun in April. We knew that Kentucky would need some more roster attrition to get down to 85 scholarship players after losing 21 scholarship players to the portal in December.
The Wildcats are now down to 14 scholarship players in the defensive line room. Kendrick Gilbert is looking for a new college football home after spending two seasons with the Wildcats
The Indianapolis (Ind.) Cathedral product was a four-star recruit in the class of 2023 who picked Kentucky over Purdue, Iowa, LSU, and others. Kendrick Gilbert committed to Purdue but didn’t sign with the Big Ten program after head coach Jeff Brohm left for Louisville. The ultimately led into Kentucky flipping and signing the No. 3 player in Indiana.
Kendrick Gilbert played in only two games and took a redshirt in 2023. As a redshirt freshman, the defensive lineman was primed to receive more playing time but the inability to maintain weight was a factor. Despite UK’s limited depth in 2024, Gilbert played only 53 defensive snaps. The redshirt sophomore went through spring practice before deciding to move on from the program
Wildcats also signed David Gusta (Washington State), Mi’Quise Humphrey-Grace (South Dakota), and Jaden Williams (Wyoming) out of the transfer portal. There did not appear to be a clear avenue for playing time for Gilbert in 2025.
Kendrick Gilbert is the first departure from Kentucky’s roster this spring but he probably won’t be the last
