Kentucky football transfer portal tracker: Courtland Ford commits, Wildcats lose 2 DBs

LEXINGTON, Ky. — The spring NCAA transfer portal opened April 15 and closes April 30 for football players seeking to enter their names.

Kentucky and coach Mark Stoops hope the spring window is as fruitful as the winter one, a 45-day stretch from Dec. 5 through Jan. 18, when the Wildcats added three players who are in line to start this fall: quarterback Devin Leary, running back Ray Davis and offensive lineman Marques Cox.

UK landed its first portal commitment Saturday in former USC offensive lineman Courtland Ford. It didn't take long for a Wildcat to hit the portal, however, as defensive back Andre Stewart entered his name shortly after it opened on the 15th.

Keep checking this page throughout the month to see who the Wildcats add, and lose, to the portal.

What is the transfer portal anyway?Explaining the NCAA's process for switching schools

Kentucky football incoming transfers

Courtland Ford, OL 

A native of Cedar Hill, Texas, Ford's name was linked to Kentucky as soon as he entered the portal April 16. He committed to UK on Saturday after a visit to Lexington, becoming the Wildcats' first pledge during the spring transfer window. While Ford has yet to publicly announce his commitment, tight end Josh Kattus and other Kentucky players and coaches welcomed him on social media. Ford (6-foot-6, 305 pounds) started 12 games, 11 at left tackle and one at left guard, over the past three seasons at Southern Cal. Exiting the spring, Kentucky appeared to have four of its five spots on the offensive line fairly settled — Marques Cox at left tackle, Kenneth Horsey at left guard, Eli Cox at right guard and Jager Burton at center. That means Ford likely will battle Jeremy Flax and others — junior Deondre Buford, sophomore David Wohlabaugh Jr. and redshirt freshman Nik Hall — to become the starting right tackle this fall. Ford was a consensus three-star prospect in the 2019 class, according to the 247Sports Composite ratings.

Kentucky football outgoing transfers

Londyn Craft, DB

Commitment: Undecided

Craft, who will be a sixth-year senior this fall, entered the transfer portal Tuesday, a UK spokesperson confirmed to The Courier Journal. A New Mexico native, Craft has rarely played the past two seasons because of injury. He joined Kentucky as a transfer prior to the 2022 campaign but missed the entire season because of a knee injury. Craft started his career at Mississippi State, and in his final year with the Bulldogs in 2021 he saw limited action due to ongoing injuries. His best season came in 2020, when he appeared in 10 games with eight starts. The best outing of his college career also came that season, when he recorded seven tackles in a loss to Georgia. He redshirted as a freshman in 2017 before playing in just eight games over the next two seasons. The 6-foot, 207-pound Craft was a two-star prospect out of IMG Academy, per the 247Sports Composite rankings.

Andre Stewart, DB

Commitment: Undecided

Stewart entered the transfer portal April 15. He was an early enrollee in January 2022, but he departs Lexington having never appeared in a game. The 5-foot-11, 184-pound cornerback out of Atlanta, Georgia, played at three high schools and helped Marietta High School win the Class 7A state championship in 2019. Stewart signed as a three-star recruit with UK over offers from SEC rivals Arkansas, Auburn, Florida, LSU, Ole Miss and Tennessee as well as a handful of other Power 5 programs, including Louisville.

Reach Kentucky men’s basketball and football reporter Ryan Black at rblack@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter at @RyanABlack.