– Feb. 12
Three UK Juco Recruits in Nation?s Top 100: Three of Kentucky?s junior-college signees, wide receiver Scott Mitchell, offensive lineman Ernie Pelayo, and defensive end B. Jay Parsons, are listed in the SuperPrep magazine list of the nation?s top 100 juco recruits.
The list features Mitchell at No. 76, Pelayo at No. 77, and Parsons at No. 96. Following junior-college signing day in December, recruiting analyst Bobby Burton listed Kentucky as one of the top-five schools in juco recruiting this year.
In addition to Mitchell, Pelayo, and Parsons, Kentucky?s junior-college signees included tight end Jamir Davis and linebacker Cedric Koger.
Three UK Jucos Named to All-USA Team: Three of Kentucky?s junior-college signees, tight end Jamir Davis, defensive end B. Jay Parsons, and offensive lineman Ernie Pelayo, were named to the junior-college All-USA team selected by JucoFootball.org.
Davis was named first-team All-USA and Parsons and Pelayo were honorable-mention selections.
Davis played for the 2003 juco national champion, City College of San Francisco. In the 2003 season, he caught 16 passes for 369 yards, an average of 23.7 yards per catch, with two touchdowns. His blocking helped CCSF rank first in the state of California (72 teams) in rushing offense and third in total offense.
Parsons totaled 76 tackles as a sophomore at Saddleback College in Mission Viejo, Calif. He was a dominant pass rusher with 15.5 quarterback sacks. His agility also was demonstrated by breaking up eight passes and intercepting two passes, returning both pickoffs for touchdowns (68 and 8 yards).
Pelayo earned first-team all-state honors among the 72 California junior colleges while playing for Southwestern College in Chula Vista, Calif. He also was chosen All-Foothill Conference and was honorable-mention All-America by JC Gridwire.
Booker, Marchman, Fowler Not Enrolled in the Spring: Three projected returnees for the Kentucky football team, Brad Booker, Maurice Marchman, and Bruce Fowler, are not enrolled at the University of Kentucky for the current semester.
Booker, a linebacker from Bowling Green, Ky., played in 10 games as a true freshman in the 2003 season. He made five tackles, seeing most of his action on special teams.
Marchman, a safety from Louisville, Ky., played in all 12 games as a true freshman in 2003. He played wide receiver early in the season and caught one pass for 25 yards. He switched to safety in mid-season and made 15 tackles, mostly on special teams.
Fowler, a tight end from New Orleans, La., was a redshirt freshman in 2003. He played in all 12 games, including two starting assignments. He caught three passes for 36 yards and also made one tackle on special teams.
It is not known if any of the three will return to UK in the future.
Abney, Lorenzen Featured in Draft Diaries: Former Wildcats Derek Abney and Jared Lorenzen will write diaries for a couple of entities as they prepare for the 2004 NFL Draft in April.
Abney?s diary will be featured on CNNSI.com. The first installment is expected on Fri. Feb. 20. Lorenzen?s diary for the Lexington Herald-Leader began on Sun. Feb. 15.
