Joey Gatewood picks Kentucky!

Auburn Tigers quarterback transfer Joey Gatewood has committed to the Kentucky Wildcats!

The 6-5, 233-pound redshirt freshman is originally from Jacksonville, Florida. He was ranked as the No. 49 overall recruit and No. 1 ATH in the country by the 247Sports Composite Rankings in the class of 2018.

The former Under Armour All-American chose Auburn over scholarship offers from the Alabama Crimson Tide, Clemson Tigers, Florida Gators, Florida State Seminoles, LSU Tigers, Michigan Wolverines, Ohio State Buckeyes, and Oklahoma Sooners, among others.

After sitting out the 2018 season, Gatewood completed 5-8 passes for 54 yards and two touchdowns with 32 carries for 176 yards and three more scores for the Tigers this season.

Gatewood entered the transfer portal on October 30th. He then visited Lexington twice in the month of November before pulling the trigger. He was there officially for the November 9th showdown with the Tennessee Volunteers, and then followed that up with an unofficial visit on November 30th against the Louisville Cardinals.

Despite gaining heavy interest from multiple schools, including the hometown Florida Gators, the Cats were able to win out.

Here’s 247Sports’ scouting report for the former four-star quarterback:

Gatewood, who possesses intriguing size for a young quarterback, is a dual-threat that can dismember defenses by extending plays with his legs. He is effective when throwing on the run, and shows good poise and anticipation in the pocket as well. Gatewood has big-play capabilities and does a nice job of evading pressure once the pocket gets congested, but is athletic enough to finish the play off for six points as well. He’s at his best when putting defenses on their toes in the read-option, but must continue to work on his release and weight transfer moving forward.

It’s unclear whether Gatewood would be able to play next season, but the most likely scenario is him sitting out due to NCAA transfer rules. Regardless, Kentucky returns Terry Wilson, so that would give Gatewood ample opportunity to learn the playbook before taking over in 2021.

This is a massive get for Mark Stoops, Vince Marrow, and the rest of the Kentucky coaching staff. Not to mention, Gatewood fits perfectly into UK’s run-heavy offense.

Go Cats!