Where Kentucky football's 2023 recruiting class stands heading into early signing period

Vince Marrow likes to listen to Lynyrd Skynyrd during long drives on the recruiting trail. When day turns to night, he often queues up sermons by Dr. Tony Evans, T. D. Jakes and Joyce Meyer.

In the weeks leading up to college football's early signing period (Dec. 21-23), Kentucky's recruiting coordinator deserves to add another song to his road trip playlist: Johnny Cash's "I’ve Been Everywhere."

"I've been in, man, probably over 30 schools within a week," Marrow told The Courier Journal on Dec. 14. "I've been in Detroit; I've been in Cleveland; I've been in Pittsburgh; I've been in Kentucky ... I mean, just all over."

After watching several members of UK's incoming class play in state championships to wrap up the 2022 season, Marrow has a good feeling about the recruits who will begin putting pen to paper this week. But another place in the ever-changing landscape of college sports is demanding his attention: the NCAA transfer portal.

Marrow said he approaches the portal the same way NFL front offices handle free agency. It giveth (Will Levis and Wan'Dale Robinson) and, this past Friday, it taketh away (Kiyaunta Goodwin).

Kentucky football recruiting:These players have committed to the Wildcats' 2023 recruiting class

"I still believe, just like through the (NFL) draft, you build your team through recruiting high school kids," he said. "You build that culture, and then you bring in guys that you might have recruited before they went somewhere else — and now they want to come back.

"When you're putting this class together, we're going to draft (Dec. 21), and then we're going after the draft and getting four or five unrestricted free agents."

Kentucky has already made progress on that front, scoring two experienced offensive linemen (Tanner Bowles and Marques Cox) and two defensive backs: Ohio State's Jantzen Dunn and Cincinnati's Jonquis "JQ" Hardaway. Another potential acquisition, former Vanderbilt tailback Re'Mahn "Ray" Davis, visited Lexington over the weekend and signs are pointing to him joining the Wildcats.

Kiyaunta Goodwin:Kentucky offensive lineman, former star prospect, enters transfer portal

And then there's the matter of replacing Levis, a projected first-round NFL draft pick, at quarterback. Reports have tied Wisconsin's Graham Mertz and NC State's Devin Leary to the vacancy, but neither player has made a formal announcement; and Marrow on Dec. 14 said there's still more work to be done.

"We got young guys that have promise, and we like them, but we'll find an older guy who can play right now," he said.

Who Kentucky targets at quarterback — both this offseason and the years to come — may come down to the person hired to replace Rich Scangarello at offensive coordinator. Marrow couldn't confirm a Dec. 9 report from ESPN senior NFL insider Chris Mortensen that Liam Coen of the Los Angeles Rams is once again bound for Lexington but said it would be "a great thing" for the program's recruiting profile.

"You have to stay tuned for that," Marrow said. "If it's that one guy, it makes it easier to recruit offensive skill (players), because Liam's a really, really good coach."

Since joining Mark Stoops' staff as its lead recruiter in 2012, Marrow has prided himself on his ability to "lock the fence around" the commonwealth. In his words: "We haven't lost out on any (in-state) kids in the last three years that we've wanted."

That may change with Louisville native Jeff Brohm taking the helm of his alma mater as the successor to Scott Satterfield. Brohm, who signed 11 players from the Bluegrass State as the head coach at Purdue, has already flipped a pair of highly touted in-state prospects: St. Xavier's Micah Carter and Henderson County's Saadiq Clements.

"That's gonna up the game," said Marrow, who is friends with Brohm and recently had to shoot down rumors on Twitter that he would be joining the Cardinals' staff.

For now, Marrow seems more than content with continuing to be a thorn in his rival's side. As he and other UK staffers continue their drive down the never-ending recruiting trail, here's what you need to know about where the Wildcats stand heading into college football's early signing period:

Kentucky football's 2023 recruiting class members

• Nasir Addison (three-star athlete from Irvington, New Jersey)

• Khamari Anderson (three-star tight end from Detroit)

• Jaremiah Anglin Jr. (four-star defensive back from Lake Wales, Florida)

• Ardell Banks (three-star wide receiver from Massillon, Ohio)

• Anthony Brown (three-star wide receiver from Springfield, Ohio)

• Ty Bryant (three-star athlete from Lexington's Frederick Douglass High School)

• Jakob Dixon (three-star wide receiver from Louisville's Pleasure Ridge Park High School)

• Grant Godfrey (four-star linebacker from Suwanee, Georgia)

• Koby Keenum (three-star offensive lineman from Florence, Alabama)

• Tanner Lemaster (three-star tight end from Washington Court House, Ohio)

• Shamar Porter (four-star wide receiver from Nashville, Tennessee)

• Austin Ramsey (three-star offensive lineman from Philadelphia)

• Avery Stuart (four-star defensive back from Montgomery, Alabama)

• Malachi Wood (three-star offensive lineman from Madison Central High School in Richmond)

• Tommy Ziesmer (three-star defensive end from Boyle County High School in Danville)

Where does Kentucky football's 2023 recruiting class stand on national rankings?

• 247Sports: 42nd (See full rankings here)

• On3: 33rd (See full rankings here)

• Rivals: 47th (See full rankings here)

Last updated at 7 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 18.

Fake out:After reaching for U of L hat, 3-star OL Koby Keenum picks Kentucky football

Top of the class: Shamar Porter

After watching Nashville native Barion Brown emerge as an electrifying playmaker during his freshman season at Kentucky, Wildcats fans should be excited about bringing another four-star wide receiver from the Music City into the mix.

That would be Ensworth's Shamar Porter, who with a 247Sports Composite rating of 0.9152 will join Brown as one of the top 20 prospects to ever sign with UK since the recruiting database's inception. Checking in at 6-foot-4 and 200 pounds, Porter is the No. 4 overall recruit in the state of Tennessee and the No. 31 wideout nationwide. He committed to the Wildcats on Jan. 28 over the likes of Georgia, Ole Miss, Arkansas and others.

Porter was named to an All-Region team after his final season with the Tigers. He spent the weekend before the early signing period playing in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl in Frisco, Texas. Stoops and other Kentucky staffers paid him an in-home visit Dec. 12.

Brown introduced himself to the Big Blue Nation by showcasing his speed on a 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown during UK's season-opening win against Miami (Ohio) — the program's first since 2009. With 247Sports reporting Porter posted a time of 10.89 seconds in the 100-meter dash in May, there's a chance fans could see more highlight-reel returns when he dons the blue and white.

Key de-commitments from Kentucky football's 2023 recruiting class

Kaden Moorman: One of the first players to commit to Kentucky's 2023 class, the Franklin County running back reopened his recruitment in October but said Lexington "could still be a landing spot" when all's said and done.

Khalifa Keith: The lone running back pledge remaining in the class after Moorman's departure de-committed in early November and flipped to SEC rival Tennessee less than two weeks later.

Kaden Moorman:Franklin County star RB decommits from UK football's 2023 recruiting class

Potential recruiting flip for Kentucky football: Tavion Gadson

Gadson, one of the top 70 defensive line prospects in the country, committed to Florida State nine days after receiving a scholarship offer from Kentucky, but the Wildcats are making a late push for his pledge. Stoops, defensive coordinator Brad White and other UK staffers visited the three-star Georgia native at Jenkins High School on Dec. 9, and he visited Lexington the weekend before the early signing period began.

Stoops and company will have until National Signing Day in February to keep selling Gadson on their vision. In some good news for the Wildcats, Ryan Wright of Rivals reported the 6-4, 280-pound lineman delayed his signing with the Seminoles so he can tour UK's campus. He will, however, also be visiting Tennessee before making a decision.

Reach recruiting and trending sports reporter Brooks Holton at bholton@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter at @brooksHolton.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: A guide to Kentucky football recruiting before early signing period