Kentucky Safety Jordan Castell Named Senior Bowl Defensive Player of the Week

Kentucky safety Jordan Castell was named the Panini Senior Bowl Defensive Player of the Week, it was announced Monday.

Castell joins outside linebacker Sam Greene as having been recognized for his performance in Kentucky’s road defeat of No. 9/8 Texas A&M, 31-21, in front of more than 100,000 Aggie faithful.

Castell, a 6-foot-2, 211-pound senior from Orlando, played a dominant game on the back end of UK’s defense. He had a team-high 13 tackles (also a career high), a pass breakup and a critical fourth-quarter interception that helped seal the Wildcats’ victory.

A transfer from Florida, Castell has made an immediate impact for UK and leads the team with 29 total tackles through three games. He has added 2.0 tackles for loss, a pass breakup and two interceptions. He has an interception in back-to-back games, both against Southeastern Conference opponents and both Associated Press Top-10 squads.

No play has been bigger than his interception of Texas A&M’s Marcell Reed with 6:34 remaining in Saturday’s game that ultimately led to UK being named the Pop-Tarts Bowl Crazy Good Team of the Week. Reed floated a pass that Castell hauled in at his own 12-yard line, thwarting any potential comeback bid for the Aggies.

It marked the second-consecutive season that Castell has earned an interception at Kyle Field. He also snared picks in back-to-back weeks against Texas and at Texas A&M a season ago.