Kentucky has made the top list of schools for a major target in the 2026 class

To no surprise, Kentucky has made the list cut for one of their top targets in the class of 2026. According to On3's Joe Tipton, the Wildcats have been included in 2026 five-star guard Deron Rippey Jr.'s top 12 schools. Other schools included on his list are Duke, North Carolina, Alabama, Kansas, Texas, Miami, Louisville, NC State, Indiana, Tennessee and Syracuse.

Rippey including Kentucky in his top 12 schools was expected, as he has become one of Kentucky's most prioritized targets in the class, and now their top point guard target, given their situation with Jason Crowe Jr., who will announced his decision on Friday. The staff has made him feel like a priority, and recently, the mutual interest has skyrocketed. Kentucky has potioned themselves as one of the top contenders for Rippey at the moment, with no signs of slowing down the interest. The top 20 guard has scheduled a number of official visits over the next few months, including one to Kentucky from August 1-3. He also has official visits scheduled to Miami (August 27-29), North Carolina (August 31-September 2), Alabama (September 12-14), Texas (September 19-21), Syracuse (September 26-28), Indiana (October 17-19), Tennessee (October 25-26), and Kansas (November 2-4). His recruitment will really take shape over that time.

The 6-2 guard recently spoke about his relationship with Mark Pope in a recent interview with On3's Jamie Shaw. “Things are good with Kentucky. I’m about to officially visit them as well. So them just expressing insane interest in me. They told me that they want me to get to campus as soon as possible, so it’s definitely a loving relationship," he told Shaw. "Coach Pope is a very nice, kind person. He loves to chat. He loves to check in on me, so being around a guy like that is always great."

The Kentucky staff has done a good job prioritizing Rippey, and they need to keep it up over the next couple of months as his visits ramp up.