Vermeil Atkins with his parents and UK coaches, from left, Mark Stoops, Eric Wolford and Vince Marrow. (X Photo)
Kentucky football didn’t let July 4th festivities slow down its recruiting mojo.
Dayton, Ohio, three-star offensive tackle Vermeil Atkins verbally committed to UK over Minnesota, Virginia Tech, Arizona State, West Virginia and others Thursday.
The 6-8, 290-pound Atkins is ranked 797th overall in the 2025 recruiting class by 247Sports and 47th among offensive tackles. He’s an athletic offensive lineman who also plays basketball.
Offensive coordinator Bush Hamdan has emphasized the need to rebuild UK’s Big Blue Wall and new offensive line coach Eric Wolford has been actively adding pieces. Atkins joins Tucker Kattus, Darrin Strey and Bryan Auguste as offensive linemen in UK’s 2024 recruiting class.
“Coach Wolf and coach (Vince) Marrow, they are just great people overall and they get people in the NFL,” Atkins told 247Sports analyst Allen Trieu. “So for the school, it’s a great place to be with loving people.
“I am going to study business and finance so after football is done I can have something to fall back on. Also, my family can make it up to every home game.”
He called Kentucky a “powerhouse school” with an offense he likes a lot.
“They are a downhill running team and a great passing team when they have to pass,” he said.
Atkins had visited Virginia Tech early in June and his only other visit was to Kentucky.
Kentucky offensive linemen Darian Kinnard, Laondon Young and George Asafo-Adjei have been drafted in the last six drafts. Jeremy Flax signed a free agent contract with the Minnesota Vikings following this year’s draft.
3 Responses
Stoops and the gang are on fire. 2-3 more good players and it will be the best class ever. Four top 200 players for the first time ever with another one could be on the way. Go Cats!
I thought for sure we were going to get Galloway. That would have catapulted us to a top 15 class. Atkins is long and that’s what the coaches are going for at Tackle kids that are long because they are harder to get around. Darrin Strey is a stud who could be starting at left tackle his freshman year. He’s a coach Wolf type of guy. I’m super excited about this year l, but the future is very bright here as well. Hardley Gilmore will take the reigns from Barion Brown this year. I just hope Dane Key comes back and breaks all the receiving records here at Kentucky. He’s the perfect guy to do it. A Kentucky boy and he will also be in the NFL idk about after this year but definitely after his senior year. Really Key is a more polished receiver than Brown, but Brown has something you can’t teach and that’s lightning bolts ⚡ for feet.
How about this kid filling in the 13th spot on Mark Pope’s team too? Imagine this kid, Williams, and Almonor on the floor at the same time. NOBODY would bully a frontline like this…not even in the NBA!