[LeeCoUKFan]

Late change of heart leads Tubman to Kentucky
T.J. Walker
CatsIllustrated.com Recruiting Analyst

LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- Mom was shocked.

If things had played out differently there's no way Lloyd Tubman would have put on a Kentucky hat Wednesday morning.

Had UK not hired Mark Stoops, had James Franklin not left Vanderbilt and had the Wildcats not done such a great job convincing Tubman Kentucky was the place for him, Tubman would have signed elsewhere.

But as fate would have it, UK ended up with the three-star defensive end from Louisville Seneca High School.

"I called (Stoops) earlier this morning and let him know that we were excited about our decision-making," Tubman said in a press conference before teammates, family, friends and media. "…It was all happy. Coach (Jimmy) Brumbaugh, (D.J.) Eliot and (Neal) Brown, the head coach and everybody."

Tubman said he knew UK was the place for him after last weekend. He visited Kentucky in January and also visited Louisville and Penn State. He was originally committed to Vanderbilt and figured he would keep his commitment to Franklin once he left the Commodores to lead Penn State.

But after visiting both schools, something changed. Mainly his status with the Nittany Lions.

"When Coach Franklin left his initial thing was to go with him because he had so much love for Coach Franklin," Seneca head coach LaVell Boyd said. "I think when he went up on the trip he saw it a little different because he went to Kentucky the week before. I think Kentucky did a great job of flipping him because his love for Coach Franklin was undeniable.

"Until a point last week I wasn't even sure. I didn't think he would go to Kentucky yet. But he made the best decision for him."

Tubman was surrounded at a table with five other teammates from Seneca. Those players announced where they were heading to college before Tubman, front and center, picked up a blue UK hat underneath the table.

The crowd erupted when he said he would attend the University of Kentucky.

"I liked every part of the visit, I liked it very much," Tubman said. "The coaches were very persistent as in the information of their history and their track record tells a lot leaving Florida State and coming to the University of Kentucky."

Tubman was the feather in the cap of UK's 2014 recruiting class. The Cats finished with 28 signees and currently rank No. 14 in the Rivals rankings.

The 6-foot-3, 228-pound end wasn't discouraged by Kentucky's 2-10 season.

"It tells a lot because you know last season, a season ago, didn't go as well but that's what happen when you have a transition coming from a different school and starting a solid foundation and bringing up a program," Tubman said. "I think Kentucky is going to be on the rise and reach higher peaks and everything.

"But it tells a lot even going 2-9, 2-10 last year and still having this recruiting class."

Tubman said he wouldn't have ended up at UK if Franklin never left Vanderbilt. It also seemed unlikely he would be a Cat because when he visited Kentucky his mom, Warneeta Cooper, didn't attend the visit.

She had to work, and didn't like the idea of Tubman being sold without her approval.

"I was shocked," Cooper said. "I was actually shocked. When I asked him why Kentucky because he did go on the visit I didn't go to Kentucky visit because I was working and his sister escorted him."

But it was just because she cared.

"Knowing who I am I want to be on top of things and be informed," she said. "I was so disappointed because he led me to other colleges for visits. But afterwards I understood. I got in touch with the coaches."

Cooper said she supports her son's decision 100 percent and plans on visiting UK next week. She and Tubman are happy the recruiting process is over.

"Yes, it's been overwhelming and so controversial…," Cooper said. "I am proud. It hasn't been easy to raise such a son like that but for the way he turned out I am one of the most proud mothers. He's a good child. He's my husband. He's my father. He's my everything."

And Boyd said he's everything the Cats should want in a football player.

"He's a great student, has over a 3.0 (gpa)," Boyd said. "I probably can say he's never had a (detention) since he's been in high school. He's a great kid and when people meet him they have nothing but great things to say about him."

On the field he'll only get better. He's only been playing football for three years. Tubman said he would be open to redshirting, which is rare among top recruits.

"What you have to understand is he understands what he is," Boyd said. "He's a very humble person. He's not a person that thinks he has all the answers yet. He's a kid that, you know, has a realistic outlook. He knows he has a lot to learn. Physically he's gifted, but when it comes to understanding football and playing football he's only been playing three years.

"You get a kid like that redshirt year, a year in the weight room with the numbers he already has you're looking at a monster. I really mean that, I think he's going to be a kid that's one of the better players in the country in three or four years."

But he's not scared to compete either.

"I'm a very competitive person," Tubman said. "I'll go down there and compete to my full potential.

"…Whatever the decision is when I go down there throughout the summer. Coach is going to tell me what's best for me and I'm not in a hurry getting on the field. I want to be fully developed and be ready for SEC football because it's not just going into any conference. It's one of the biggest and strongest conferences and you have to be ready for that."

In his senior season with Seneca, Tubman told Cats Illustrated he finished with seven sacks, 71 solo tackles, 23 tackles for loss, eight forced fumbles and six fumble recoveries.

"It's not every day you find a young man that's 6-5, 230-pounds, runs a 4.5, benches over 300 pound, jumps over 36 inches," Boyd said. "That's NFL numbers. What Lloyd needs is person that can hone him in and teach him all the things he needs to know about football. He hasn't been a football player his whole life. He's learning football and when he gets that program on him the sky's the limit."

http://kentucky.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1606623