Ever since that season ending loss to Louisville there’s been a lot going on with the Kentucky football program. That includes a number of high-profile players leaving the program. As it stands right now 23 players from the 2024 team have moved to other schools. One area hit pretty hard is the defensive live. However Mark Stoops got some good news over the weekend as a big-time target picked UK. Let’s introduce you to him as Kentucky lands David Gusta.
Washington State Defensive Lineman Chooses The Cats
From The West Coast To Lexington
The 6-3, 300-pound Gusta chose the Cats over Texas A&M and Tennessee. 247 Sports Gusta ranks him as third third-best defensive line prospect in the portal and 26th 26th-best player.
Former Washington State DT David Gusta has committed to Kentucky, per @Hayesfawcett3
🔵 84.5 PFF Grade in 2024 (6th Among DTs) pic.twitter.com/j30BGkGRqR
— PFF College (@PFF_College) January 5, 2025
During the recently completed season, Gusta recorded 21 tackles, three for loss, one sack, and three pass breakups for the Cougars. In addition, Pro Football Focus also gave him the fourth-best pass rush grade (82.4) by an interior defensive lineman.
A three-star recruit coming out of Cajon High School in San Bernadino, California Gusta originally committed to Fresno State on May 4th of 2020. However, two months later he flipped to Washington State where he spent four years. He redshirted his freshman year and appeared in nine games in 2022.
He became a starter in 2023 recording 3o tackles, two for a loss, and a half sack. Overall, Gusta had 62 total tackles, six tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, and four pass deflections with Washington State.
Now that we’ve told you about the Cats’ newest player let’s show you how he fits in as Kentucky lands David Gusta.
Instant Impact Player
As we mentioned at the beginning the Wildcats’ defensive line has been hit hard by the transfer portal. Keeshawn Silver, a player defensive coordinator Brad White was counting on for a big 2025, is now at USC. In addition, Deone Walker is off to the NFL where he’s likely a first or second-round pick.
That means lots of immediate playing time for not only Gusta but Jaden Williams, a transfer from Wyoming. How quickly they adapt to the system will go a long way in determining the Wildcats’ success in 2025 against another brutal SEC schedule.
Thanks for checking out this profile as Kentucky lands David Gusta. We’ll be back later this week with updates on how the Cats fared overall in the portal.
