Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 1 game
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 2 | L 17-45vs Alabama | 2 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 2 tackles |
| Total | 2 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 |
#28
Demarcus Gardner
Sophomore defensive back on Kentucky's 2026 roster.
6′0″ · 177 lb · Cedartown, GA
Returning to Kentucky for 2026
Recruiting
3★
CB recruit
No. 571 nationally · Signed with Kentucky
No college snaps yet.
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
2 defensive back on Kentucky's 2026 roster.
- Signed as a 3-star recruit to Kentucky in 2025.
Demarcus Gardner
Two seasons at Kentucky, two different head coaches: Mark Stoops and Will Stein. The receipt: 2 tackles against Alabama — Week 2, 2026.
2 TACKLES · 0 SACKS
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- season totals
- head-coach lineage
- game log
His career
2025
- Signed with Kentucky3-star out of Cedartown
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★
CFB
College
Kentucky
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Coaching lineage · 2025–2026
2 coaches2025
Kentucky
2026era →
Will Stein
Kentucky
Coaching transition mid-career: Mark Stoops → Will Stein. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
2025Kentucky5-7HC: Mark Stoops · Run-leaning
2026Kentucky1-1HC: Will Stein · Balanced, slow tempo
Where this defender ranks vs the field
Box-score production percentiles vs the position cohort
Concern: tackles (0th percentile).
Box-score production (6)
Percentiles are versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score production. There are no play-by-play efficiency bars here: CFBD's play-value model credits offensive players only, so no defensive EPA exists to rank.
Splits & context
Splits
Per-game splits
Through 1 game: 2.0 TKL/g, 0.0 TFL/g, 0.0 SACK/g, 0.0 PD/g — splits start at 3 games.
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Will Stein
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Awards
Player standing · 2026
Backup
On the two-deep and pushing for snaps.
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Career stats
Game log
How he plays
2026 Outlook
Kentucky
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Defensive back · Kentucky
Returning around him
- 4 Kentucky players drafted to NFL
- Transfer portal: +4 net (31 in / 27 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Kentucky · Last season: 5-7 · Talent rank #23 · 2026 recruiting class #60
The secondary · Kentucky
- #14Ty Bryant76 tackles · 2025
- #5Jordan Castell54 tackles · 2025
- #20Terhyon Nichols18 tackles · 2025
- #30Grant Grayton16 tackles · 2025
- #28Demarcus Gardner2 tackles · 2025
17 more on the roster · Kentucky team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology