Record-setting kicker Alex Raynor has an agent and is training now in hopes of getting a spot with a NFL team. (Vicky Graff Photo)
Some transfer portal additions the last two years have not worked for Kentucky but one that certainly did was kicker Alex Raynor of Georgia Southern.
He was the first Kentucky player to be named Southeastern Conference Special Teams Player of the Year this season and also was named a second team all-American by The Sporting News after making 15 of 16 field goals in 2024 after he made 10 of 11 in 2023. He made 12 of 13 field goals of 40 or more yards at UK including a school record 55-yard kick against Georgia last season.
Raynor, a Lou Groza Award finalist, broke the UK and SEC career records for field goal percentage at 92.6 (25 of 27) in his two years.
“It’s an honor to get awards and is a tribute to how hard we worked as a special teams unit,” Raynor said. “Every year I have kicked I have always found a way to get better and feel like that is what separates me from the rest of the field. There is always little stuff you can fix and work on.”
Raynor’s favorite UK memory was beating Florida in 2023.
“I grew up a Florida State fan. Both my parents were there and my dad played there,” Raynor said. “I always hated the Florida Gators so beating them was pretty nice.”
Raynor’s goal is to become a starting kicker in the NFL, something he knows is easier said than done,
“I am going to do everything in my power to get there,” he, who is in Florida training, said. “Until August I had never talked to an agent and now I have signed with one after talking to multiple agents. I had a great two years at Kentucky. It was everything and even more than I thought it would be. Playing at the highest level is any kid’s dream.”
Raynor also did his part to give back. He worked with the Scott County Humane Society trying to get pets adopted and visited the UK Children’s Hospital weekly during the season with teammates Josh Kattus and Marques Cox.
“Going room to room and helping put a smile on a kid’s face and signing a football or something was easy for me to do but meant a lot to those kids,” Raynor said.
