Deone Walker (UK Athletics photo)
Five University of Kentucky football players have been named to the 2024 Preseason Media Days All-Southeastern Conference teams.
Junior defensive lineman Deone Walker and junior defensive lineman Maxwell Hairston were named to the defensive first team, while junior Barion Brown was named to the first team as a return specialist. He also earned a spot on the third team as an all-purpose player. Senior defensive lineman Marques Cox and senior linebacker Jamon “Pop” Dumas-Johnson were also named to the third team.
Walker, a 6-foot-6, 345-pound Detroit native, is coming off a sensational sophomore season in 2023. He led the Blue and White in tackles for loss (12.5), quarterback sacks (7.5) and quarterback pressures (8). He also added two pass breakups, including one in Kentucky’s win over Florida on Sept. 30 that was intercepted by UK and returned to the UF 15-yard line for an eventual touchdown.
The Wildcat was named one of seven permanent team captains last season, as he continued to play and start all 13 games. In fact, he improved his streak to 24 consecutive starts, a stretch that dates back to his freshman season in 2022. Walker set or tied career single-game highs in every category last season, including recording nine tackles at South Carolina, 4.0 tackles for loss (-7 yards) at Missouri, 1.0 sack (-6 yards) last time out at South Carolina, one pass breakup last time out at Georgia and two quarterback hurries against EKU.
Brown, a 6-foot-1, 182-pound all-rounder from Nashville, had three kickoff returns for touchdowns in 2023, tied for the most in the nation. He also set a UK single-season record (the previous record of two set by Derek Abney in 2002) and tied the SEC record (Willie Gault, Tennessee 1980; Brandon Boykin, Georgia 2009; Warren Norman, Vanderbilt 2009; Evan Berry, Tennessee 2015).
His four career kickoff returns for TDs also set a new UK record (the previous record was held by Craig Yeast for three years, 1995-98) and tied the SEC career record shared with seven other players.
The speedy point guard’s 36.0 kick return average (16 returns for 576 yards) led the nation and set a new UK single-season record. The previous mark was Calvin Bird’s 30.42 (14 for 426 yards) in 1959. He was named a first-team All-American by the Sporting News and a second-team All-American by 247Sports and CBS Sports.
Brown has also caught at least one pass in 26 consecutive games, or every game of his college career, and currently has 1,167 career receiving yards, which ranks him 28th in school history.
Hairston, a 6-1, 186-pounder also from Detroit, had five interceptions in 2023, including four in SEC action, and ranked fifth in the nation in that category. His five interceptions tied for the fifth-most interceptions in a single season in program history, the most since Sam Maxwell in 2009 (six). He had 131 interception return yards, the most since Greg Long had 176 in 1981 (the school record is 197 by Dave Hunter in 1968).
The Wildcat had two interceptions of his own at Vanderbilt, returning both for touchdowns, tying an SEC single-game record. He was named National Defensive Player of the Week and National Defensive Back of the Week for the game.
In addition to his five takeaways, Hairston ranked eighth in the SEC in passes defensed in 2023 with 11.
Cox, a 6-5, 318-pounder from Peoria, Ill., played left tackle on an offensive line last year that was on the midseason honor roll for the Joe Moore Award, which honors the nation’s top offensive line. He also helped create holes for one of the conference’s top runners last season in fourth-round draft pick Ray Davis and blocked on an offensive line that allowed quarterback Devin Leary, a sixth-round draft pick, to record the second-most touchdowns in the SEC (25).
Johnson, a 6-1, 245-pound senior from Hyattsville, Maryland, transferred to Kentucky in 2024 after three seasons at Georgia. He has appeared in 38 career games with 24 starts and helped the Bulldogs win back-to-back national championships in 2021 and 2022. He enters the 2024 season with 126 career tackles, including 17 tackles for loss, 9.5 sacks, seven pass breakups, one interception and one forced fumble. Last year, he started nine games, missing four with injuries, and totaled 34 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, two pass breakups and one quarterback hurry. He has earned spots on several national watch lists, including the Bronko Nagurski Trophy, Butkus Award and Lombardi Award.
#Cats #Named #Preseason #Media #Days #AllSEC #Teams
Image Source : www.yoursportsedge.com