[LeeCoUKFan]

QB Barker breaks down trip to Tennessee, talks UK

Justin Rowland
Special to CatsIllustrated.com

Drew Barker's self-imposed deadline for making his college decision is drawing closer by the day so each encounter with the schools and coaches recruiting him is become that much more important.

Barker has always said he will make his college decision in late April or early May, and he seems to be sticking to that timetable.

He did tell Cats Illustrated this week that the spring evaluation period is approaching and he will let schools make their case, so it wouldn't be entirely accurate to characterize his recruitment as a three-horse race between Kentucky, South Carolina and Tennessee.

"Those three are probably the schools that are recruiting me the hardest as of now but with the evaluation period starting next Monday there will be a ton of coaches coming in," Barker said. "Notre Dame called my coach and they weren't originally going to take a 2014 quarterback, but then Gunner Kiel transferred. They said they'd be in on the first day of practice. So now new schools are popping up and I'll listen to what they have to say."

Barker's recent schedule may give some insight into what he's thinking however, and there has been no shortage of speculation surrounding his every move.

For instance, when Barker decided he will attend Kentucky's spring game, rather than South Carolina's, it set off a firestorm of questions.

Barker's explanation: He's seen all he needs to at South Carolina and wants to give other schools the same opportunity to show him what they have to offer.

He was at Kentucky on Monday for the Wildcats' spring practice and it was an important opportunity to watch the coaches and how they interact with their players.

"It was great besides waking up that early," he said with a laugh. "It was definitely different than Tennessee and South Carolina.

"South Carolina was a lot more laid back, maybe because (the coaches) had been there a while. Maybe that's just how they coach. They told me it's always kinda laid back. UK is really fast-paced, I guess because that offense is fast-paced and you've got to do everything fast. That doesn't really matter to me. I liked both practices."

Barker watched everything closely, from the quarterbacks meeting to how the players went through things of the field, and the demeanor of the coaches.

"All the players I talked to said they're players' coaches," Barker said. "They relate to their players really well and their players really liked them. I thought that was a good thing. They're all behind their coaches and what their decisions are and everybody was good. There really weren't any concerns on the team. Everybody had a good, supportive mindset.

"I talked to Coach (Neal) Brown, Coach (Tommy) Mainord, Coach (Vince) Marrow, Coach (Chad) Scott, Coach (Tyler) Sargent, Coach (John) Schlarman, Coach (Mark) Stoops … basically the whole offensive staff,” he said. "I talked to all of the coaches, really.

"I was in all the meetings so I was there when they were putting in their new stuff. I was just listening and watching film with the quarterbacks. I've already sat down with (Brown) before so he's already showed me the basis of the offense and we've gone over that. It would definitely be a good fit for my skill set."

Barker said he knows "a few" players at both Kentucky and South Carolina, but no more at one place than the other.

Prior to his trip to Kentucky, the 6-foot-3, 210-pound U.S. Army All-American quarterback was in Tennessee, listening to what Butch Jones and the Volunteers had to say.

"It was really good," he recalled. "I got to tour everything and went to watch their scrimmage. I sat down with their coaches for a few hours and with the players on Saturday night and we definitely had a great time. They definitely rose (on his list) a little bit)," he said.

As for Barker's decision to attend Kentucky's spring game, he said the South Carolina coaches didn't have a negative reaction.

"They were the ones that told me I needed to go see other places," he said. "They said this isn't a four year decision, it's a forty year decision. They were very supportive."

http://kentucky.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1493882