Former Tennessee transfer, two signees missing from updated Kentucky football roster
The Kentucky football roster release for SEC Media Days on Sunday was missing three expected scholarship players.
Former Tennessee transfer Dee Beckwith, Livingstone College transfer Kevin Larkins and Philadelphia prep offensive line signee Austin Ramsey were not included on the roster dated June 27. A UK spokesperson confirmed Monday that Beckwith and Larkins would not be with the team for the 2023 season but said Ramsey’s status for the upcoming season was still uncertain.
Beckwith, a former four-star high school recruit, bounced around multiple positions in his first season at UK. He was initially viewed as a hybrid receiver and tight end, but saw most of his snaps come at running back. In three games last season, Beckwith totaled 21 yards on five carries.
After playing sparingly in his first season on campus, the Florence, Alabama, native received an expanded opportunity in spring practice when injuries sidelined multiple Kentucky running backs, but he was still likely to open the season no better than fifth on the depth chart after the additions of Vanderbilt transfer Ray Davis and North Carolina State transfer Demie Sumo-Karngbaye. UK also signed four-star high school running back Jamarion Wilcox and will welcome former Sam Houston State transfer Ramon Jefferson back from a torn ACL. Senior JuTahn McClain and sophomore La’Vell Wright, who both were ahead of Beckwith on the depth chart when healthy last season, are set to return for the 2023 season.
“He’s just learning,” UK offensive coordinator Liam Coen said of Beckwith after UK’s public spring scrimmage. “He’s a big, strong guy. I was interested to see him in a live situation too just because he’s such a big dude. Do they really like tackling him and all that kind of stuff?
“Right now Dee is just trying to work on all the little things. How are you doing academically, socially, in the meeting room? Carrying it over to football and being consistent as a player, especially when he doesn’t have the ball in his hands.”
Even with the crowded depth chart at running back, Beckwith was a frequent target of fan excitement due to his massive 6-foot-5, 236-pound frame. The path to snaps at tight end is even less clear though with six scholarship players already on the roster there.
Larkins committed to Kentucky in May. He grabbed eight interceptions in eight games played as a freshman for Division II Livingstone, the same school that sent cornerback Jordan Robinson to UK as a transfer last year. UK announced Larkins as part of its seven-man spring transfer class on May 19.
Ramsey was rated as a three-star prospect in Kentucky’s 2023 high school signing class. He picked the Wildcats over reported offers from Penn State, Pittsburgh, Miami, Illinois, Boston College, Virginia Tech, Nebraska, Maryland, West Virginia and others.
Beckwith and Larkins join at least two confirmed departures since the spring transfer portal window closed.
Earlier this month, UK confirmed junior defensive lineman Sam Anaele and junior offensive tackle Josh Jones had retired from football due to medical reasons. Anaele had appeared in seven games across three seasons, totaling two tackles. Jones did not appear in a game in three seasons as a Wildcat. He missed all of the 2022 season with a knee injury but had returned to the field for spring practice.
Since their playing careers were ended by injury, both Anaele and Jones can remain on scholarship to finish their degrees without counting against the 85-man scholarship limit for the 2023 roster.
SEC Media Days
When: Monday through Thursday
Where: Grand Hyatt hotel in Nashville
TV: SEC Network
Order of team appearances
Monday: LSU, Texas A&M, Missouri
Tuesday: Vanderbilt, Georgia, Auburn, Mississippi State
Wednesday: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Kentucky
Thursday: Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee
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