Kentucky Football Countdown: No. 15 Jordan Wright

We are just over two weeks away from the start of the 2022 Kentucky football season. After battling through injuries last fall, No. 15 Jordan Wright returns for a Super Senior season with lofty expectations.

About Wright

When Jordan Wright signed with UK in 2017, it was a big-time recruiting win. In hindsight, he is the most productive player from the brief Eddie Gran-Darin Hinshaw South Florida recruiting experiment. A two-sport star in Broward County for Dillard High School, he led the basketball team to a state title as a junior, then secured 25 sacks as a senior. One of many talented athletes in his family, his sister played college basketball, while two of his cousins played power five football at Syracuse and Florida State.

As Brad White mentioned at UK Football Media Day, Wright is one of three starters on the 2022 Kentucky defense that played significant snaps on the 2018 team. As a redshirt freshman he played in nine games, rotating in with Josh Allen and Boogie Watson.

What Makes Jordan Wright Special

To put it plainly, Jordan Wright is a stat-sheet stuffer. He creates havoc plays that change the momentum of a game when he’s on the football field. Throughout his career Wright has not been dominant in one particular area, but he finds a way to make plays at opportune moments, whether it’s a tackle behind the line of scrimmage or forcing a turnover. How many power five defensive players can say they’ve scored two career touchdowns? Not many.

Two games in particular really pop from the 2020 season. He was named SEC Defensive Player of the Week after recording a pick six to help the Cats shut out Mike Leach’s Mississippi State offense. Against South Carolina he caused a fumble by ripping it out of a receiver’s hands, setting up a Kentucky touchdown. He also recovered a fumble that led to a UK field goal. He finished the season with a 12-yard sack and a forced fumble in the Gator Bowl win over NC State.

Jordan Wright Career Highlight

Of all the havoc plays Wright has created throughout his career, one play comes to mind first. In the Belk Bowl Virginia Tech had one last chance to make a desperate lateral-filled play down the field. One big field-flipping pass away from breaking it big, Brandin Echols lowered his shoulder to force a fumble that Wright picked up and returned for a touchdown.

2022 Forecast

Injuries prevented Jordan Wright from showing us his best work in 2021, playing in less than half of the Wildcats’ 13 games. JJ Weaver was also returning from an ACL injury, limiting what Brad White could call defensively. Wright is excited to show the BBN what he can do this fall.

“I can’t wait,” he told KSR. “I haven’t done nothing since the bowl game, so I’m ready.”

With two healthy, experienced outside linebackers, Brad White can completely open up the playbook. Not only should it lead to more quarterback sacks, but the turnover column is where you should see Wright make the biggest difference. Last fall the Wildcats ranked No. 125 out of 130 FBS teams in turnover margin, forcing only a dozen takeaways. That will dramatically change in 2022 with a healthy Jordan Wright on the Kentucky defense.