Tuesday Headlines: Kenny Minchey Commits, and Xavier Chaplin Watch

SB Nation

Good morning, BBN!

It is a wild time for the Kentucky Football program, as the transfer portal is wide open. With visits happening and plenty of roster spots needing to be filled, Will Stein and his staff

are starting to hone in on a couple of big names at two positions of need.

Let’s start with Kenny Minchey. The Notre Dame transfer was committed to Nebraska, but on Monday night, Kentucky managed to flip him to become Stein’s first quarterback pledge at UK. Minchey is now slated to be QB1 for the Wildcats when the 2026 college football season kicks off.

This comes after Kentucky heavily pursued. Sam Leavitt. The Arizona State transfer quarterback wrapped up a visit to Lexington over the weekend, but then, LSU and Lane Kiffin came calling.

Leavitt arrived in Baton Rouge on Monday, and now the commitment watch will begin as he continues his visit through today. It looks like Stein wasn’t willing to take a chance on Leavitt committing to the Tigers, or another potential contender like Miami and Oregon, and ending up with someone way down the QB transfer list.

Another key position is offensive tackle, and the Cats will be hosting one of the top ones in the portal this week. According to Jacob Polacheck of KSR, Auburn transfer Xavier Chaplin is a name that the BBN should get familiar with.

“Sources tell KSR+ that Kentucky is expected to meet with people close to Chaplin on Monday night. Chaplin is expected on campus on Tuesday,” Polacheck said.

Kentucky may now be on commitment watch for Chaplin. Can the Cats land the talented tackle? Let’s hope so.