Monkell Goodwine, Top 100 Football Recruit, says UK is in his Top Two

Kentucky is on the verge of landing a commitment from one of the best football players in America.

Rivals ranks Monkell Goodwine as the No. 27 player in the 2021 recruiting class. The edge rusher released a top five ahead of Saturday’s decision that included Alabama, Kentucky, Texas A&M, Arizona State and Clemson. Tuesday afternoon he revealed on Twitter that the list is actually much shorter.

Top 2 😉 https://t.co/8rmiVOWqTu

— kelly (@MonkellGoodwine) August 11, 2020

He followed that up by Retweeting a message from Victory Vaka, a Texas A&M commit, who said, “lol good thing I’m committed to an SEC school.” Does this mean Goodwine is planning on committing to an SEC school as well? That would be excellent news for the BBN, unless A&M is the SEC school of choice.

Reading the Crystal Ball, A&M and Alabama seem to be split among experts. Four of five Rivals analysts predict the Crimson Tide over the Aggies, versus six of seven Alabama predictions from 247 Sports. Nobody forecasts a UK commitment from Goodwine.

The top 10 defensive end from the DMV (DC-Maryland-Virginia) is being recruited by UK defensive coordinator and pass rushing specialist, Brad White. Goodwine had plenty of nice things to say about White shortly after he announced his five finalists.

“Coach White and I have a good relationship,” Goodwine told Rivals. “I really like Kentucky because the communication and relationship with me and coach White is really good. Even if I don’t commit there, there’s still going to be that level of respect between me and him. Friendship goes a long way in life. He’s a good coach and if I did commit to Kentucky there’s probably a good chance I play my freshman year and do well.”

Can White pull off a class-defining coup by reeling in a commitment from beneath Alabama’s nose? We’ll find out Saturday.