Offensive tackle solution might have to come from current Kentucky roster

Will Levis is an NFL talent at quarterback. Chris Rodriugez Jr. could be an All-American at tailback. Kentucky has depth and talent at both wide receiver and tight end due to recruiting, development, and key transfer portal usage. Eli Cox, Kenneth Horsey, and Tashawn Manning will create one of the better interior offensive line trios in college football.

New offensive coordinator Rich Scangarello and offensive line coach Zach Yenser are seemingly inheriting a great situation at Kentucky. However, offensive tackle is the biggest position of concern heading into the season. With both Darian Kinnard and Dare Rosenthal expected to hear their names called at the NFL Draft in two weeks, Kentucky is rebuilding on the edges of the Big Blue Wall.

After Vanderbilt transfer Tyler Steen committed to Alabama on Tuesday, Kentucky must be willing to enter the season with a solid plan for the personnel currently available on the roster.

During spring practice, KSR got in the door for both an open practice and this past Saturday’s intrasquad scrimmage at Kroger Field. In both settings, a rotation seems to be emerging on the offensive line.

Jeremy Flax is now in his third season with the program, and the redshirt junior finally seems primed to take over a starting position. A former four-star recruit out of junior college did not seem to mesh with former offensive line coach Eric Wolford. However, a change has been made to the coaching staff, and Flax has settled in at right tackle.

“I feel like I’ve progressed a lot — physically and mentally. A lot of the game started to slow down for me this year, and I’ve been getting in the gym consistently losing weight over the time that I’ve been here,” said Flax. “This year feels like a good spot for me. I feel like I’m ready.”

Flax is the clear No. 1 at right tackle, and Yenser has confirmed that the coaching staff is not moving him around after he served as a swing tackle last season. Optimism is high for the Detroit native.

At the other tackle spot is another Detroit native. Deondre Buford was a top-500 recruiting win for the coaching staff in the class of 2020 as the offensive tackle prospect picked Kentucky over Missouri and Pittsburgh. Yenser likes the positional versatility that the redshirt sophomore brings to the unit.

“I think he’s athletic enough — and he’s built well enough — that I could put him anywhere on the offense,” Yenser told reporters. “I don’t know if he can snap, but he can protect well enough.”

However, Buford has found himself in the middle of a position battle. David Wohlabugh Jr. is a redshirt freshman out of Stow (Ohio) Walsh Jesuit who flashed as a true freshman and appears to be pushing for a spot in year two. The former hockey player has good length on a 6-foot-6 frame and quality movement skills for the position. Kentucky is giving him a long look at left tackle with the ones and right tackle with twos.

“Deone’s playing really well for us right now,” said Yenser. “He’s playing on both sides. Him and Dave rotating back and forth kind of splitting reps at both left and right.”

However, there is a wild card in the room. Early enrollee Kiyaunta Goodwin was a top-100 recruiting win out of Louisville as the Wildcats beat out Michigan State in a long battle for the blue-chipper. Goodwin has tremendous size (6-8, 355) and has done a good job of holding his own early.

“His head’s spinning a little bit with some of the protections, but we expect that being a young guy,” Yenser said. “But I tell you what, when he knows what he’s doing — and he’s right about 95 percent of the time right now. He’s very, very talented.”

As the summer months quickly approach, Kentucky will likely monitor the transfer portal for any potential players that could help enhance any position on the team. Most notably, tackle will get most of the attention. Just last summer, Kentucky added starters Jacquez Jones and Dare Rosenthal to the roster after Memorial Day. However, that might not be feasible this season.

We currently are dealing with a small sample size in the portal so finding accurate trends can be difficult. However, good and proven offensive tackles aren’t typically transferring. When they do, the competition is stiff as we all saw with the Steen recruitment. Odds are, another quality tackle like Rosenthal will not fall to the Wildcats. Currently, Kentucky’s roster is in a position where an addition isn’t needed just for depth purposes.

The Wildcats must start preparing themselves for the possibility of no more additions to the offensive line room. That means Scangarello and Yenser must get their current group ready. As of now, it appears the Big Blue Wall has four legitimate options.

“Feel like we’ve got a lot of depth there. Just trying to develop guys. Nothing has to be set in stone right now. Just trying to get guys a lot of reps,” said Yenser about offensive tackle.