Signing Day Q&A: Kentucky's six early enrollees

Six members of Kentucky football's 2015 signing class – four high school players and Nebraska transfers Courtney Love and Greg Hart – enrolled last month and have already been hitting the weight room with the Wildcats. They'll participate in spring practice and hope to contribute right away for UK. All six met with the media Wednesday as coach Mark Stoops and his staff were putting the finishing touches on a top-40 class nationally. Here's everything the new guys had to say:

LB COURTNEY LOVE

On what attracted him to Kentucky: "My biggest attraction – obviously Coach Marrow was a big factor in my recruiting coming here. Coach Stoops, I've been knowing these guys ever since I was a little kid growing up in Youngstown, Ohio. Also, a little bit closer to home. Been having a tough time with my grandmother, so that was a big deciding factor. I originally enrolled at Nebraska early and it was too late for me to try to come here. I loved everything at Nebraska and I enjoyed the people there. I just think it was a new chapter and a new step for me. I can't wait to be here and really be a part of the team and get a chance to play."

On if he's heard anything about being able to play in the fall: "Something we're still looking into. Still writing, getting everything sorted out with the hardship waiver and things like that. So, I have a good feeling that it will go through."

On if he had a prior relationship with Mark Stoops: "I had a prior relationship with him. I've been knowing him and his brothers an all the guys for years. My first time really getting a chance to talk to him I was speaking at a Hall of Fame banquet my junior year in high school. Coach Stoops, he spoke also, because I received an athletic scholarship, academic scholarship from the Stoops family to help pay tuition at Cardinal Mooney."

On how aware his of the need at his position: "I feel like middle (linebacker) would be my best (position) and that's what the coaches have talked to me about. I can't wait to get on board. I know it's a spot that we need guys, and I can't wait to join Josh Forrest, Khalid Henderson, Nico Firios. It's going to be a good deal, I think. I love my teammates so far. I don't expect that to change."

On how much UK has become a factor for all Youngstown, Ohio, players with Stoops and Marrow here: "I think it's a huge focus, just because obviously you have guys from your hometown who you know are going to take care of you. They're just hard-working guys who are going to have your back through everything, gonna make sure you do everything right, gonna make sure you get everything you need – within reason – and I feel like with Coach Stoops, Coach Marrow, I have that second father figure away from home, rather than a coach that's really not around. But these guys, they're really into it and it's more personable, I think. It's a really good deal."

On what's jumped out to him so far at Kentucky: "Definitely the food. After working out, we can go right into the nutrition room and Miss Monica, she gets those girls going and they cook for us and it's really sweet. I like it a lot, because we don't have to work about going somewhere else, like McDonald's or something to get food. She has everything set up for us right in there and we can just go in there and eat at the training tables. Also, I saw a big thing about development here. I feel like with Coach Ed and his staff, Coach Stoops and his staff, players come here and they develop, not only as athletes but as men and good, hard-working people in the community. And that's what I see from the nature of this team and from guys that have been here in the past."

On whether the food's better at UK than Nebraska: "Uh, not yet, but it'll get there, I think. With that new facility going up, with Greg (Hart) and I coming in, it's the right timing. I feel like everything is just – the sky's the limit here."

On if he was saying he would've come to UK had he not enrolled early at Nebraska out of high school (right before Marrow got UK job): "It was something I thought about doing. I had a lot into Nebraska because Coach Marrow was there. And then when he came here, obviously talked about staying an extra semester at Mooney, but I wanted to go and get ready for college."

On how much new UK facilities swayed him: "I would say it wasn't a big factor, but with the way everything's going to be, it's going to be a lot of good things, with the new sports-science things that are going in there. It's going to be good for the fans, good for new recruits coming in, because that's what people want to see, things like that. But other than that, I feel like the coaches are what got me here. The people are what got me here."

On the strength and conditioning staff compared to Nebraska: "I would say it's definitely a lot more speed work, which I like, because that's what I think I need to improve on, is my speed and things like that. That's what Coach Ed is going to do. He's going to make sure we get the right amount of work that will allow us to get more speed and allow us to do more reps, things like that."

On comparing Nebraska talent to the eyeball test on UK's roster so far: "I wasn't surprised. I watched games last year and we've got the talent. I feel like next year, we can do some things as long as everybody buys in and does what we're supposed to do, me included. And if that waiver doesn't go through, my biggest thing is to be the best teammate I can be, to push these guys to get to a bowl game, to get that sixth win, to get even more than six wins. I feel like we can with the talent that we have."

On if he talked to fellow Youngstown guys Braylon Heard and Marcus McWilson about his decision: "I talked to them quite a bit. It wasn't really a hard decision to make for me, because I've just seen people here, seen the coaches – Coach Marrow, Coach Stoops – (and) I know these guys are going to do us right. That was a big thing for me."

On why so many recruits are drawn to Marrow: "Yeah, I mean, he's a really good guy. He and my dad, they went to high school together, so I've been knowing him for a long time. He's like an uncle to me. But he's just a special person and he has that thing for recruiting. He gets guys and it works, so …"

On how much having the name Courtney Love has been a part of his life: "(Laughing) Oh, it's been huge. Everybody's been like, 'Courtney Love, that girl who killed Kurt Cobain!' Things like that. I go to an airport or something and give them my idea and they're like, 'No, this is fake.' I'm like, 'No, I can't give you a fake ID.' No, but it's pretty funny. My dad's name is Courtland. I have a little brother whose name is Courtland also. I have a sister whose name is Cor'Rae, and I have another sister; her name is Cori. So it kind of falls in line."

On if he's listened to Courtney Love's music: "I never really have. I don't know why. I just never really have. I may start, though."

TE GREG HART

On status for fall: "Nothing is definite. Courtney and I are pretty much in the same boat. We've sent in the paperwork; we're working on it and whatever happens, happens. You never know with the NCAA. So obviously we hope that it goes through, the paperwork, I don't see a reason why it shouldn't. But the NCAA is – we'll see. It's still in the process."

On what attracted him to Kentucky: "Well, Kentucky has just always been. My mom's side of the family, everyone kind of went here. It's a good university for me, when I decided to transfer, you know it's close to home. I'm from Dayton, Ohio. It's about two hours away. Just like Courtney, Coach Marrow was big in that. He's the one that recruited me to Nebraska. He kind of got me there. He offered me at Nebraska, came to my high school back in my junior year and I've been talking to him ever since. It all fell in line when I decided to transfer and things kind of happened. I didn't see why I wouldn't go there. Coach Marrow has been there for my best interest. He's always been trustworthy and loyal to me so I knew he was somebody I could reach out to and he reached out to me right away when everything with the NCAA went through that I was leaving."

On why players are drawn to Marrow: "I think Coach Marrow is a real guy. He doesn't really give you anything in the gray; he's very black and white and I think that he's there for your best interest and he makes that known that he's going to develop you and get you better and he's very invested in you and I think that's really important for a player, especially with experience, you want someone that's invested in you and you want somebody that can make you feel like you're wanted and you're needed and he does a good job of that and he does a good job of developing his players. He's played the game; he's coached the game for a long time. He just knows what he's doing and a lot of people take that a long way."

On if UK recruited him: "Yeah, Joker Phillips came into my school and he was my first offer in high school. I came to camp here my sophomore year because it was right down the street from the high school I went to. I knew a lot about it; when Joker was here, that's kind of the program I knew. Ever since then I think it's been flipped around 100 percent. It's been a completely different place. I knew about it and when Joker got fired, these coaches kind of were all over the place when I was in high school When Coach Marrow came here, he was telling me on the phone that he was coming here. I could've came right away, but I chose to stick to my word and stick to my commitment with Nebraska and that's what I did."

On what kind of tight end he is: "I think if you were to ask me in high school, I was definitely a pass catching guy, I caught, that's really all I did in high school aside from defense. I played a lot of defense, but I split out a lot and I caught balls. Being at Nebraska for two seasons, we blocked a lot. I put a lot of weight on. I focused a lot on the blocking game. I think that's a strength of my game now is blocking. It's kind of made me an all-around tight end. I can still run out and catch the ball in pass catching, I also can block better than I ever have. So I think I've become an all-around player."

On talent level at UK: "I think at Kentucky, we're very skilled here. They recruit extremely well. The skill positions, the guys are fast, the guys are tall, lanky receivers, whatever it may be. Here you have a lot of young guys, offensive line, defensive line, you have a lot of young guys. At Nebraska, I think it was a lot of older guys. As time goes on, I think Kentucky definitely has it going in the right direction. We have the talent to do it for sure. It's college football and college football is what it is, whether you're at Nebraska or you're at Kentucky. You have big, talented guys. It's just a matter of coaching at that point."

On what jumps out at him about program: "The development, the hunger of the strength staff. They just want us to get faster; they want us to get better and they have a purpose. That's for sure. That's really what I've noticed No. 1, just the commitment from those guys since I've been here, the coaches have been on the road this week, so I've just been with the strength staff a lot and those guys really want us to get better: Coach (Corey) Edmond, Coach Chris (Ronald), all those guys. I've really noticed that there's a sense of urgency with them and I appreciate that a lot."

On if he's worked with C.J. Conrad much and how much tight end is a position of need: "Me and C.J., we throw, we work together. It's kind of, I'm the oldest tight end now. It's kind of weird. C.J., Darryl Long, I wouldn't count any of those guys out. New offensive coordinator, new offense, it's just time to work. If my waiver doesn't pass, one of those guys needs to step in and be a player because that's what needs to happen. Even if I can't play, you still need a couple tight ends. I think we're in a good spot. We have the right mindset. It's all going to work out."

On if development is key if his waiver is denied: "That's all I'll do. Me and Courtney room together in an apartment. That's all we're focused on: We go to bed on time, we get up early and go to work. I'm not transferring to go to school and not be the best I can be. I'm here with a purpose, I'm here to make Kentucky better. I'm here to make Kentucky better and I know that every resource is at hand in order for that to happen. If that waiver doesn't pass, that's all my focus is is just getting better and I think I'll be a completely different player when it comes time to play."

On if he is happy where he's at weight wise: "No, I'm happy where I'm at. They've got me good, I'm about 250. That's perfect: 240, 250, that's perfect. I really don't see it being necessary to be lighter or heavier than that. So we'll see."

TE C.J. CONRAD

On what made him confident to stick with the commitment as some other guys decommitted: "I think relationships was big in my decision to come here. Coach Marrow is not only my recruiter but also my position's coach. I just saw the progress that we've made in the last two years from 2-10 to 5-7, and I think it's only gonna get better."

On how aware he was of tight end being a position of need: "Oh, definitely. That was a big influence in my decision. Now having me and Darryl (Long) and then possibly Greg (Hart) if he gets released this year, that's kind of a low amount of tight ends for a Division I college. So the opportunity to play early is just one of those big things that came into my decision."

On UK not having had many receptions at TE lately and if he can help fix that: "I played wide receiver at my high school all the way up to my junior year, so I've caught a lot of balls, and that was kind of a big thing that I can bring to this offense is a receiving threat at the tight end position that hasn't necessarily been there the last couple years."

On what made him switch to TE in high school: "My coach and me sat down and just realized that for me in the future the best thing was for me to play tight end and just put on some weight and learn to block a little bit better."

On the transition to TE: "It's been good. My junior year was a big transition from never even putting my hand on the ground to putting my hand on the ground all the time. Then my senior year I got a lot better and got way more comfortable, and now I'm just ready to improve some more here."

On the transition to college: "It's been good. The first couple weeks have just been completely workouts. We haven't done a whole lot of football stuff, because the coaches have been recruiting and finishing up for this day. It's been good so far. The reason why I came here was to get my body ready to compete for a spot, so that's what I'm doing right now."

On if Ohio kids coming to UK builds on itself: "I couldn't believe when I got here how many guys were from Ohio. I always focused on the 2015 class, but when I got here, so many guys were from Ohio. I think Ohio high school football is very, very good. I think Coach Marrow is a great recruiter and Coach Stoops, and I think we should keep it going."

On what impresses him about this recruiting class: "I think the fact that we can keep the momentum going. I think we stumbled a little bit towards the finish line, but the fact that we've just been consistent with it -- not necessarily putting up the greatest records in the world but still being able to get great recruiting classes, it's only going to get better from here."

On what he knows about new OC Shannon Dawson: "We haven't sat down a whole lot with him, just because they've been recruiting so much. But I'm excited to. I know it's gonna be very similar to what Coach Brown did."

On why the stumble happened toward the finish line: "At the end of the day, it's a process that, you have to trust what's going on here. And it takes a lot to trust Coach Stoops, and I have it and all the other commitments do. I think that if you actually give the coaches a chance to sit down and recruit you that you'll learn that it's going in the right direction here."

On how much weight he's gained since moving to tight end: "I was 175 pounds end of my sophomore year at wide receiver. Came into my junior year weight 205 playing tight end, and I got to 220 for my senior year. Now I've been here for like three and a half weeks and I'm already at 228 pounds, so I've already gained eight pounds since I've been here."

On what weight he's aiming for: "Ideal, I'd be 240. I played basketball in high school, so I was at 225 before the football season, but just the way of high school sports I lost a little weight. But I know my body can hold the weight I'm going to put on, so I'm excited."

On how he managed to gain all that weight: "I think good weight is the best way to describe it. From 175 pounds to 200 and upper 220s now hasn't been just eating bad and not training. I've been training for the last three years. Very hard to get where I am."

On if he feels any pressure to come in and contribute immediately: "No. Coach Marrow has always told me that from the beginning when I decided to commit here I have to get myself ready. I think that's the biggest reason why I came early. If I came in just the summer I feel like maybe I'd have a little bit more pressure just because I didn't have enough time to get myself ready. That's why I came here. I'm just trying to put that extra work in to get myself as ready as possible this spring and fall camp."

On what makes Vince Marrow so successful in recruiting: "Vince Marrow is funny. I don't know. He's just very honest with you. That goes a long way in the recruiting process. The biggest reason for me is just because he coaches my position, he's not only my recruiter."

On how much the high performance program helped sway him to UK: "Definitely. Coach Ed has done a great job so far. You get recruited by the coaches, but when you're here that's all I've spent my time with, the strength and conditioning staff. They're doing a great job so far with everyone."

OL GEORGE ASAFO-ADJEI

On what percentage of people get his name wrong: "Probably around 75 percent of people."

On what attracted him to Kentucky: "The players, they accepted me fast. Even thought I've been here – I feel like I've been here for years. The coaches too. They've been – Coach Marrow is a great guy, Coach Schlarman. I believe in what they're going to do, and I believe they're going to be here and we're going to get better."

On why he thinks so many players in class have decommitted: "I have no idea really, but I'm not really worried about it because I know where we're going. So, they're going to regret it, maybe, you know."

On what gave him confidence in program even after six-game losing streak to close the year: "I think maybe the team maybe lost focus or something, but just seeing what they did in the first couple games made me see the changes that were happening. And we're only going to get better from here on out."

On what position he is working at: "I'm not sure where I'm going to play yet. Probably offensive guard."

On his decision to enroll early: "I wanted to get in here early so I can have a chance to play early and just wanted to get stronger, get in the flow faster and just have a shot."

On the transition: "It's been pretty smooth. From high school, they were pretty strict on our grade and our football coach was a really good coach so the transition has been really easy."

On the chance he would play immediately and not redshirt due to enrolling early: "It just depends on how I adjust to the plays and the coaching schemes and stuff."

On the perception of UK football in Ohio: "I mean, people believe it's like a pipeline state, but I mean, I don't really focus on that stuff."

On Vince Marrow's personality: "Yeah. I like it a lot. He made me feel like I was wanted here. I like that too. I believe he's a good coach. I've seen him in practices, so I know what he can do."

On his impression of the high performance program: "I believe it's working well, because I've gotten stronger and faster already and I've only been here for two, two and half weeks. So yeah, it really works."

On what they have him working on in that program: "Just, they – first we warm up at the top, do a little cardio. Then like hip explosions. Then we go down and lift, and we have like a stretching session for about 15 minutes after practice."

On if he's focused on adding weight or losing it: "Just maintaining my weight."

DE KENGERA DANIEL

On what attracted him to Kentucky: "The atmosphere, the coaches, the opportunity to possibly play early. This will probably get me really far in life as far as development as a person and as an athlete."

On his impressions of UK so far: "So far? Everything's been pretty great so far. I've been working out, going to class; gotten pretty accustomed to everything over the last few weeks. The workouts have been pretty tough, of course, but that's with anything. It definitely escalated from high school, but I'm getting through it. I'm seeing improvements, so I'm ready for the season."

On the need at DE: "Oh yeah. Za'Darius and Bud leaving, both great players. Right now I guess I'll be playing Jack this year, more than likely. And right now we're maybe at three of four: me, Denzil (Ware) and Jason Hatcher, so I'll guess we'll see how that works out once the season starts."

On why UK instead of other big-time offers: "I felt like this was the place that would help me go further in life. I felt like the people here, they supported me, they wanted the best for me, so coming here would basically just boost me further in life."

On the other schools on his list: "My short list, I narrowed it down to five at the end. It was UK, of course, Virginia, Louisville, NC State and Alabama."

On what stood out about the staff: "My parents actually graduated from Florida State, so of course some of the coaches came from there and they knew them when they had a pretty great defense then, so knowing how they developed those players and what kind of schemes they run and stuff I figured I'd fit right in. The coaches obviously have a lot of knowledge, Coach Brumbaugh, Coach Eliot, Coach Stoops, so I feel like they'll get me to where I need to be."

On enrolling early: "It's very helpful. I'm trying to learn the plays, figure out how things work around here, what to do, what not to do, of course, so in the long run I guess it'll benefit me more than anything, being here early."

On if he's talked with Bud and Za'Darius about the position: "I see them just about every day, actually. They come in here and work out. They're getting ready for the combine and stuff. Yeah, I hang out with them, talk to them about what they did, of course how they worked to get there, what it took. So I want to follow that same path."

On the environment at UK: "All the teammates, they're very supportive, they're hard workers, everyone's athletic here. Of course moving from high school, where you're the big guy on campus, better than everyone else maybe to college where everyone is just about the same if not better, you have to compete, so everyone is competitive. Just the atmosphere around Nutter alone is pretty amazing, so just being here is pretty great."

On if the six-game losing streak had any effect on his decision process: "Nah, not really. I didn't look anywhere else towards the end of the season. I'm just going to stay committed."

On gave him confidence in spite of the losing streak: "I just knew that even still – what, this is their third year here, I think, I believe. So even still, they're just now getting their recruits in that they want to play. They had freshmen playing, doing pretty big things, so I know that I can come in early and do the same and it will progress."

LB JORDAN JONES

Opening statement: "I'm just here so I don't get fined."

On why he stuck with UK: "For me it was kinda different because Coach Stoops and Coach Marrow are from my high school, they graduated from my high school. That was a big part of me coming here, and also Coach Eliot was also, because I know he knows what he's doing. He did a great job at Florida State. So I feel like I have a lot of guidance coming here."

On saying initially he would redshirt and if that plan has changed: "Well, I was going to redshirt if I came in the summer, because it's always great to have that luxury. But since I graduated early, I feel like it helps me out a lot, graduating early. I already gained like seven pounds since I got here. Strength and conditioning coaches are great. Everything is going good. I guess we'll see how spring ball is when everything happens."

On if he's aware of the need at linebacker: "Before I came here Coach Eliot really wanted me here and felt I could make a difference my first year, so that's a big part of me coming too."

On what linebacker position he'll play: "Outside. Well, either outside or, like, I'm good because of my speed. I lack like size, but I'm fast and make up for it and stuff like that. Either outside or jack."

On linebacker pipeline to the NFL: "I'm very aware. It seems like everyone that came here that went to the league is defensive players."

On beefing up: "I'm trying to get as much weight as I can."

* For instant updates on the Wildcats, follow me on Twitter @KyleTucker_CJ. Email me at ktucker@courier-journal.com.