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Transfer offensive lineman Wallace Unamba of New Mexico was a three-star recruit out of high school who has had an interesting path to SEC football.
The 6-4, 330-pound tackle was a three-time junior college All-American who started playing football in the fifth grade and said he was “pretty good” in the defensive line and even played fullback and tight end. As a seventh-grader, he played linebacker and he liked former NFL star linebacker Ray Lewis so much that he picked his number to wear.
“I decided in eighth grade that I was too big to play linebacker because they are shiftier and faster and I switched to defensive line,” Unamba said. “I still thought I was better at linebacker but I was more suited for defensive line with my size.”
During his Rowlett (Texas) High School career in Texas he played defensive end but got bigger and his sophomore year his coach moved him to the offensive line. He went the junior college route at Kilgore Community College before transferring to Florida Atlantic for one year and then New Mexico.
“I want to play the best. I want to prove myself in that atmosphere,” Unamba said. “I want to be the best. I am not going to get better playing average competition. I don’t settle for average. It wasn’t fun playing average. I want someone to challenge me and I know that will happen in the SEC.”
Unamba, 23, admits his Nigerian parents don’t know a lot about football in the SEC but want him to reach his dream of playing in the NFL.
“They support that dream,” he said. “They want the best for me. I told them Kentucky is the place if they want to see me go to the NFL and I can prove to those who doubt me that I can do that.”
Unamba thinks his Nigerian ties can help him reach the NFL.
“Both my parents are tall. Nigerian genes are a little stronger than most. We don’t eat regular stuff that most Americans eat. We eat more structured stuff and have stronger bones and I think that helps me against most players,” he said.”
2 Responses
I think he’s going to be the dark horse on the line this year. Usually foreign athlete train much harder than American athletes. Oscar was a perfect example of this. He wasn’t athletic he wasn’t fast he just wanted every rebound and like he said he’s at war when he was on the court. Alot of American athletes are pampered and babies and leave the game fora broken fingernail. Yes this isn’t the case on everyone but mostly yes. Will Levis was a athlete who also constantly trained and was a warrior. But its few and far between especially with the nil money. I bet you this… This will be Mark Stoops best year since 2021. Everyone will look at Kentucky as a doormat and thats when we play our best football. At worst I see a 7-5 type of season which might buy him another year. I don’t think he coaches Kentucky in 2027. Maybe not in 2026 depending on how next year goes. They could hire Jon Sumerall on a 3 year contract just to see how things go but I think they have one more chance to get him and that will be 2026. If Tulane has another great year he’s gone to whoever needs a coach maybe her the best mid.major coach in college.football. If Wilcox stays and doesn’t transfer after spring practice then I think we will have a excellent run game. Wilcox isn’t a 25-30 carry a game back. 10-20 carries is all he needs and 20 is alot for a fast back. If he would have averaged about 10-12 carries in 2024 I think he would have has a couple more 100 yard games. He’s set to take off this year. I’m also excited about the WR we got from clemson. I think he’s extremely underrated. If he wouldn’t have gotten hurt last year he would have had over 60 catches on a team full of.great wide receivers. On Kentucky I think he can have a 50-80 reception season. I think Farrier takes a big step forward this year and also Maclin improves a ton. What makes this team great will be the o line. We have recruits that we have developed over the last 2 years and alot of freshman from last year should be able to at least provide breathers for this years line. Barring injuries we will have the best line we’ve had in 4-5 years. Instead of going after SEC rejects Stoops made a smart move and got mid major All Americans which means they are ready to take the next step. There are a ton of offensive lineman in the NFL from.mid major schools so its not like they won’t shine in the SEC. I’m excited to see what we have this year. The running back from Nebraska started for a run first team and if they needed 3-4 yards it was almost automatic. He will also be improved. The thing about mid major talent is they want to prove there worth at this level. When you get transfers who bounce around SEC programs there is a reason they do this because nobody wants them. Or they are a bad teammate. Mincey was a perfect example of this. He would get at least 2 penalties every single game. He hurt us more than helped us. I think also when you dig into the mid majors you get guys who.are.more humble. Our defense will be better against the pass next year. With JQ Hardaway back who improved alot last year. We will also habe DJ Waller who will be in his third year of football and should be much improved. That’s 2 great corners. We also brought in some great backups. With Walker and Hairston going probably in the late first round or in the second round you will see alot of recruits that see that and say I can go to the league in 3 years at Kentucky if I work my tail off. I’m glad Brown and Key are gone. I also like the receiver Tru he dominated conference USA but so did Maclin. The defensive line will be surprisingly just as good with Josiah Hayes leading the way. He was the second best lineman behind Walker before he got injured. Then Silver took over. Hayes and Henry Young will be studs on the defense. Rainer will be a great linebacker in year 6. We also got some good transfers for the line and linebacker positions. I think this team will surprise alot of people. We will win some games we aren’t supposed to win and then win the games we should win. We need our pay back against louisville. So circle that game on the schedule. If things get real bad early look.for talks.of Stoops stepping down at the end of the year. He will notice that the fan base is done with his bs and I think he would leave on his own. We are usually better when we are picked to have a down year that’s why I’m optimistic. A good year will buy him another year and that year will be the deciding factor on his future here. He’s starting to get old and I think we need someone to motivate the players with there energy.
Wallace seems like a terrific young man