Alex Afari Jr. has rejoined Kentucky’s program

The fight for an extra year of eligibility continues for class of 2022 recruits. Kentucky basketball is fighting to get former Missouri standout Mark Mitchell on the roster. Kentucky football is doing the same for a high-profile linebacker. Alex Afari Jr. has rejoined Kentucky’s program and is working with the team as the battle continues in the court system for these players to become eligibile. “Alex Afari has been cleared to practice with our team based on the guidance from our compliance staff and the SEC. So his competition eligibility remains under review like most of these cases,” Kentucky head coach said in his opening statement to the media after Kentucky’s first fall camp scrimmage. “We’re awaiting further clarification before he would be permitted to play in games with us this season.” “He cares a lot about UK, this place as a whole, and we would love for him to have the opportunity to come back and represent us and the University of Kentucky moving forward. I think he can help our team immediately.” Alex Afari Jr. is a former four-star recruit out of West Chester (Ohio) Lakota West in the 2022 high school recruiting cycle. The blue-chip prospect picked Kentucky over Cincinnati and made multiple position changes at Kentucky. After settling in at a hybrid Sam/Nickel position, Afari moved to linebacker in 2024 and became one of the defense’s better players in 2025. The second level defender has played 48 games with 42 starting assignments in his career. Afari has logged 193 tackles, 26.5 tackles for loss, and six sacks over 1,758 career defensive snaps. The multi-year starter went unpicked in the 2026 NFL Draft and signed a mini-camp deal with the Green Bay Packers. Afari was not with an NFL organization when training camps began in July. That could make him eligible following a court ruling in Colorado. Kentucky is playing the waiting game but the onboarding process has begun for Alex Afari Jr. in the Bluegrass. The Wildcats are working to add a key piece to the linebackers room in Lexington.