Chip Cosby on UK football

The University of Kentucky received a commitment this weekend from Kenarious Gates, a 6-foot-5, 295-pound offensive lineman from Greenville (Ga.) Gates is listed as a three-star recruit by Scout.com and Rivals.com and had offers from Mississippi State, Troy, North Carolina State and Vanderbilt. Gates is the 24th known commitment for Kentucky’s 2010 class. UK has two commitments for the 2011 class: Eastern tight end Jon Davis and Bryan Station offensive lineman Darrian Miller.

Known UK Commitments for 2010

*Josh Gibbs, DB

Mychal Bailey, DB

Tyler Brause, QB

Alvin Davis, DE

Nermin Delic, DE

Mike Douglas, DE

Brandon Dunn, DE

Teven Eatman, OL

Kenarious Gates, OL

Davin Hawkins, DB

Justin Henderson, DE

Jabari Johnson, LB

Brice Laughlin, DT

Joseph Mansour, K

Tim McAdoo, DT

Malcolm McDuffen, LB

Tyler Robinson, TE

Raymond Sanders, RB

Ronnie Shields, TE

Eric Simmons, DB

Anterio Sloan, DB

Ryan Smith, ATH

Dale Trimble, DB

Avery Williamson, LB

Ballard junior receiver DeVante Parker, one of Kentucky’s top prospects in the Class of 2011, has committed to the University of Louisville. Parker’s aunt, Tracy Parker, said that Parker committed to U of L on Wednesday night after a phone conversation with new coach Charlie Strong.

The 6-foot-3, 180-pound Parker, also one of the state’s top basketball prospects,  had received offers from Kentucky, Indiana and Purdue and has also received interest from Miami (Fla.) and Notre Dame.

Parker joins a growing list of prospects from Louisville to commit to Strong since he was hired last week, joining Seneca quarterback DaMarcus Smith and Fern Creek juniors Jerrell Moore and Jamon Brown, who also reportedly committed to U of L on Wednesday.

UK picked up a commitment last week from another top junior from Louisville, Eastern athlete Jon Davis.

Central senior linebacker Tim Patterson, perhaps the top senior in the city of Louisville, also holds offers from Kentucky and Louisville but has yet to make a decision.

Kentucky Coach Rich Brooks has been named SEC Coach of the Year by Collegefootballnews. com. Brooks led UK to a fourth straight bowl bid and 7-5 season despite a number of key injuries. The Wildcats won at Auburn for the first time since 1961 and at Georgia for the first time since 1977.

Junior Derrick Locke was named to CFN’s All-SEC first team as a kick returner, while senior linebacker Micah Johnson was rated 19th on a list of the top 30 players in the league.

University of Kentucky junior running back Derrick Locke has submitted paperwork to the NFL Draft Advisory Board to get a gauge on his prospects for the 2010 Draft, UK Coach Rich Brooks said on Friday. The 5-foot-9, 190-pound Locke overcame a devastating knee injury suffered midway through the 2008 to rank second in the SEC  in all-purpose yards at 150.9 per game.  Locke led UK in rushing with 843 yards, caught 25 passes for 254 yards and led the SEC and ranks eighth nationally in kickoff returns with a 29.6 yard average.

Brooks said Locke is the only UK underclassmen who is testing his draft status. Last year UK underclassmen Trevard Lindley, Micah Johnson and Jeremy Jarmon had their draft status evaluated before ultimately returning to school. Jarmon was later ruled ineligible by the NCAA for testing positive for a banned substance.

The University of Kentucky has obtained more tickets for the Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl after selling out the initial allotment. UK has received additional tickets from the bowl office and also from the opponent, Clemson University. With more than two weeks to go before the game, the 2009 Music City Bowl already has sold more tickets than last year’s edition, according to a story in Friday’s Tennessean.

Club level tickets are sold out, both at UK and the Music City Bowl office. Lower level tickets ($50 each) may be purchased in-person at the UK Ticket Office in the Joe Craft Center; by calling the ticket office at 800-928-2287; by mail or fax; print an order form from UKathletics.com and mail or fax (859-323-1269) to the ticket office.

The UK Ticket Office is the only place to get lower-level seats; the bowl office is sold out. UK also has a very limited number of upper-level tickets remaining at $35 each;

Quarterback Morgan Newton and offensive guard Larry Warford were chosen for the Southeastern Conference All-Freshman Team selected by league coaches.

Originally headed for a redshirt season, Newton started the last seven games after Mike Hartline sustained a knee injury at South Carolina on Oct. 10.  Newton guided the Wildcats to a 5-2 record in his starting assignments, including SEC road wins at Auburn, Vanderbilt and Georgia.

Newton completed 62 of 112 passes (55.4 percent) for 608 yards and five touchdowns.  He also rushed for 93 net yards and two TDs.    He was named SEC Freshman of the Week after completing 20 of 29 passes for 187 yards and two touchdowns against Eastern Kentucky.  Another top game came in the upset at Georgia, as he hit 9 of 17 passes for 137 yards and three TDs.

Warford played in nine games, seeing signification action as a reserve offensive guard and on special teams.  He earned more playing time as the season progressed.  The offensive line helped power UK to 193.2 rushing yards per game, the team’s best mark in 14 years.  UK ranks in the nation’s top 25 teams in rushing offense, fewest quarterback sacks allowed and fewest tackles for loss allowed.

Defensive end Taylor Wyndham was chosen second-team Freshman All-America by Phil Steele’s College Football.

Wyndham, a redshirt freshman from Swansea, S.C., played well as a reserve early in the season, then emerged into the starting lineup for the final six regular-season games.  He totaled 27 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, two quarterback sacks, two pass breakups, one fumble caused and one fumble recovery.

Kentucky was chosen as the “biggest surprise” of the Southeastern Conference for the 2009 football season by ESPN.com.’s Chris Low.

Wrote Low: “The Wildcats were on the brink of having their first eight-win regular season since 1984, but lost a heartbreaker to Tennessee in overtime. It was Kentucky’s 25^th straight loss to the Vols. Still, with all of the injuries the Wildcats suffered, and losing star defensive end Jeremy Jarmon before the season due to an NCAA suspension, it’s the kind of season few people saw the Big Blue having. Rich Brooks has done a super job with this program, and the Wildcats get a chance in the Music City Bowl to win their fourth straight bowl game.”

University of Kentucky senior defensive tackle Corey Peters was named to the Coaches All-SEC first-team announced on Tuesday.

Peters had 52 tackles, 11 tackles for loss, four sacks, and five pass breakups this season and was named SEC Defensive Lineman of the Week twice. Offensive lineman Zipp Duncan, linebacker Micah Johnson and cornerback Trevard Lindley were named to the second team.

Sophomore Randall Cobb, who was named a first-team all-purpose player by the media this week, was not named to the first or second team.

Florida quarterback Tim Tebow, Alabama running back Mark Ingram and Alabama linebacker Rolando McClain were the only unanimous selections. The league’s individual awards will be announced on Wednesday with the all-freshman team released on Thursday.

University of Kentucky sophomore Randall Cobb has been named first-team All-SEC by the Associated Press. Cobb, who has 1,656 total yards on the season, made the team as an all-purpose player.

Cobb caught 37 passes for 426 yards and four touchdowns as a receiver, and ran 84 times for 537 yards and 10 touchdowns while passing for 37 yards as a quarterback in the ‘Wild Cobb’ formation. Cobb also averaged 13.5 yards on 23 punt returns and 26.5 yards on 13 kickoff returns.

Senior defensive tackle Corey Peters, linebacker Sam Maxwell and all-purpose man Derrick Locke made the second team, while offensive lineman Zipp Duncan was named honorable mention.

SEC champion Alabama swept the individual awards, with running back Mark Ingram earning Offensive Player of the Year, linebacker Rolando McClain getting Defensive Player of the Year and Nick Saban being named Coach of the Year.

Vanderbilt tailback/kick returner Warren Norman was the league’s Freshman of the Year.