[LeeCoUKFan]

Hackett has two favorites as offer list grows

Justin Rowland
Special to CatsIllustrated.com

Khalia Hackett attended the UK spring game and even before that trip the Wildcats were in good shape with him.

Hackett's experience at the spring game ensured that Kentucky would remain near the top of his list and it cemented Mark Stoops program's status as his favorite.

The 6-foot-2, 200-pound prospect from Douglasville (Ga.) South Paulding has picked up several new offers in recent weeks. His offer list now includes UK, Georgia Tech, Syracuse, Marshall, Troy and most recently Wisconsin.

The offer from the Badgers immediately caught his attention.

"I like that they're a really good winning program. They've got a nice program. I like that they've [been to] three Rose Bowls in a row," Hackett said. "That might be an official visit. I might go up there for that.

"Coach Thomas Hammock is my recruiter and they've been talking to me for a while now. I'd be okay with (the distance). I just want to get up there and see it. I've never been up there for a visit.

"My favorites would probably be Wisconsin and Kentucky."

But the Badgers still have some ground to make up and it's probably too early for Kentucky to start worrying about their front-runner status.

"I would say Kentucky is probably ahead," he said. "I'm talking to coach (Derrick) Ansley from Kentucky and we talk about once every two weeks. He's told me a lot about the school and I went up there for the spring game. I liked that real well. It was a real good experience. It's a real good school and a real good atmosphere to be around. It was about 50,000 people there at the spring game.

"I'd put Kentucky ahead of Wisconsin just because it's SEC football."

Hackett said he plans to camp at Mississippi State on June 14 but that is the only thing he has scheduled for the foreseeable future.

http://kentucky.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1510510