2026 Kentucky Wildcats football position preview: Wide Receiver
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The offseason is underway and before we know it the season will be right around the corner. Spring practice is in the books and the energy around the Kentucky Wildcats is infectious. Everyone is curious to see how year one goes for head coach Will Stein. Breaking down position by position and what to expect this fall, we now turn our attention to the wide receiver room.
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X Wide Receiver
- Starter: Nic Anderson
- Backup: Hardley Gilmore
At the X wide receiver spot, the starter will be former LSU and Oklahoma wideout Nic Anderson. Anderson was incredible as a true freshman at Oklahoma, and unfortunately his progression was halted due to injuries when he transferred to LSU. He has that typical mold for an X receiver, a big-bodied playmaker that is extremely fluid when running routes. He moves with ease and has a massive catch radius to make plays down the football field.
A lot is riding on Anderson to get back to 100-percent and find the recipe that he had as a true freshman at Oklahoma. The talent cannot be denied when watching what he did for the Sooners, but the health is a legitimate question. If Anderson can get back to that, he could become the leading receiver for the Wildcats. The 6'4, 205-pound wideout has the skillset to be a dangerous X receiver.
Behind him will be Hardley Gilmore, who has plenty of experience. He entered the transfer portal in back-to-back years, but he always finds his way back as he has only taken a snap in blue and white. Gilmore is listed at 6'1, 183-pounds, however, he plays with the physicality to fill that X receiver mold. We have seen in his time in Lexington the ability to make tough catches down the field and play much bigger than his listed size.
Z Wide Receiver
- Starter: DJ Miller
- Backup: Shane Carr
DJ Miller showed some flashes last season as a true freshman and is guy that is expected to take another step this fall. He has the versatility to play X and Z for the Wildcats, and he has the speed to create separation and attacks the catch point. Miller is a guy that will be a focal point of this wide receiver room. It would not shock me if the 6'3, 208-pound wideout becomes the leading receiver this season.
Behind him will be Shane Carr, who was limited in the spring game but mainly played on the outside when he was out there. Miller, Anderson and Gilmore all were non-participants in the spring game. Carr is just a solid target who can run good routes with reliable hands. I expect him to be the most involved player that might not technically start.
Carr seems to be a guy that could play inside and out. It is not out of the realm of possibility that we see him play the Z, the X or even lineup in the slot this fall. He is 6'2, 185-pounds which is a recurring theme throughout this article. Kentucky has a lot of receivers with good frames that can move well.
Slot Receiver
- Starter: Kenny Darby
- Backup: Ja'Kayden Ferguson
True freshman Kenny Darby will certainly make an early impact this season. Darby was the first big time recruiting win for Will Stein and his staff, the Louisiana product was originally committed to LSU and offensive coordinator Joe Sloan kept that relationship which is a key reason he ended up in Lexington. He is listed at 6'1, 180-pounds but has the best mold of being a slot receiver of this group.
Darby is electric with the football in his hands; he can run downfield routes, but I expect most of his work to come in the short to intermediate levels of the field. He will be catching screens on the perimeter and running jet sweeps to just get the football in his hands. Darby will be the most dynamic yards after catch threat in this offense which is why I believe he will start as a true freshman. Coach Stein said after the spring game regarding Darby, "If you are good enough, you are old enough."
Ja'Kayden Ferguson was the backup slot in the spring game. He was also fielding kickoff returns, so it seems that will be his main role on the team. Ferguson is listed at 6'2, 184-pounds but is another guy who moves effortlessly at his size. With the versatility of Miller and Carr being able to line up in multiple spots, I would expect him to get offensive snaps in a limited capacity.
Overall Thoughts
The way I see it playing out, I think Kentucky will heavily rely on four guys in this receiver room: Nic Anderson, DJ Miller, Kenny Darby and Shane Carr. I expect Hardley Gilmore, Ja'Kayden Ferguson and Brock Coffman to fill out depth and sparingly get snaps. Coffman, the Lexington-native who transferred from Louisville, could have a legitimate deep threat role. I don't expect Coffman to be on the field frequently, but when he is I expect him to be running a deep route tree to get behind the defense.
Outside of them, you have two prime redshirt candidates in Prince Jean and Denairius Gray. This wide receiver room was a concern for some, although it seems to have filled out nicely. The overall theme of the room is quite unique, bigger targets that are fluid movers for their size. This group could surprise this season.
This article originally appeared on UK Wildcats Wire: Kentucky football: Previewing the 2026 wide receiver position