Kentucky lands top 2022 kicking prospect Jackson Smith

The Kentucky Wildcats have kept an important home state prospect in the Commonwealth, as 2022 kicker and punter Jackson Smith committed to the Cats Thursday. He made the announcement on KSR.

Smith is the only player in the class of 2022 graded as a five-star kicker and punter by ProKicker and is a native of Danville, Kentucky by way of Boyle County High school.

His father, Andy Smith, was a First Team All-SEC punter for UK in the late 1990s and set a then-school record of 43.7 yards per punt in 1999.

Given Kentucky’s woes in the field goal kicking game since Austin MacGinnis’ 2017 graduation and questions at punter with former Ray Guy Award winner Max Duffy graduated and going pro, Smith will be a welcome addition in 2022 and should challenge Chance Poore, who will be a redshirt junior with eligibility through the 2023 season for the starting placekicker spot.

Smith chose UK over an offer from Eastern Kentucky, but KSR reports schools such as Ohio State, Louisville, Florida, West Virginia, Tennessee, Harvard, Dartmouth and Princeton also reached out.

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