Kentucky

Since House Bill 415, known as the texting while driving law, was signed into law by Gov. Steve Beshear in April 2011, the Nicholasville Police Department and Jessamine County Sheriff's Office have yet to issue a warning or citation in violation of the law. NPD Officer Kevin Grimes cited difficulty in detecting whether or not a driver is texting for the lack of ticketing. “We have to be able to prove an individual was texting, and it's hard to determine what an individual is doing with their phone,” Grimes said.

He came into his sophomore season with seven Division I scholarship offers and now Madison Southern running back Damien Harris says the number is around 15 or more, including Kentucky and Louisville. That's how impressive the 5-11, 205-pound Harris, who runs the 40-yard dash in 4.4 seconds, has been. He ran for 742 yards and 11 touchdowns on just 76 carries in 2011 as a freshman and came back last season to gain 1,911 yards on 160 carries and score 37 times. He also caught five passes for 176 yards and three more scores.

Over a month ago Huntington (W.Va.) Prep sophomore point guard Nevell Provo said that teammate Andrew Wiggins had Kansas No. 1 on his recruiting list. That came as a bit of a shock because the logic was that Kentucky and Florida State were the leaders for the nation's top high school prospect. However, Provo's proclamation came true Tuesday when the 6-8 Wiggins announced he was going to Kansas and not UK, Florida State or North Carolina. So why Kansas? Provo said at the time Wiggins had listed the pros and cons of each team on his recruiting list and Kansas was the clear winner.

Andrew Wiggins, considered the top prospect in the Class of 2013, will make his college decision Tuesday and Kentucky is in the mix to sign the Huntington (W.Va.) Prep standout. Wiggins has narrowed his choices to Florida State, Kentucky, Kansas and North Carolina. Despite the hype surrounding Wiggins, he will sign the national letter-of-intent at 12:15 p.m. Tuesday in a light setting. “He will not hold a press conference type ceremony,” Wiggins' coach Rob Fulford said in a Twitter message Sunday night.

For Terry Barker, it's hard to put into words what it has been like to see his son go from a relatively unknown player to a high-profile national recruit. Barker is the father of Conner quarterback Drew Barker, who announced Friday during a ceremony at his school that he would sign with Kentucky in February. “As a father who grew up a sports fanatic and loved every sport and played sports, you dream one day of having a son that maybe will surpass you and what you accomplished,” Terry Barker said.

Former Kentucky quarterback Freddie Maggard says it's not hard to understand why the verbal commitment the Wildcats got Friday from four-star quarterback Drew Barker is so important to the program. “The significance of the commitment is yet another national recruit that coach Mark Stoops and his staff have been able to keep in Kentucky - first two being (Jason) Hatcher and (Ryan) Timmons (in the 2013 recruiting class,” Maggard said. Barker had basically been ignored by previous Kentucky coach Joker Phillips and his staff - they didn't even know he attended a summer camp at UK - yet Stoops and offensive coordinator Neal Brown convinced the Conner quarterback during the last five months to pick UK over South Carolina and Tennessee.

Drew Barker admitted six months ago that he didn't see any scenario where he would be coming to Kentucky after being ignored by former coach Joker Phillips and his staff. “But (Kentucky coach Mark Stoops and his staff) did a complete 180, and you can obviously see that by me committing to them today,” Barker said Friday after picking the Wildcats over South Carolina and Tennessee. Among the offers the Conner quarterback had were ones from Illinois, Louisville, Mississippi, Miami, Mississippi State, Purdue and Cincinnati.

Kentucky offensive coordinator Neal Brown got to make his second appearance at the Kentucky Footbal Coaches Association Clinic Saturday at Centre College. The first time he came he was offensive coordinator at Texas Tech and was back in Boyle County on vacation to visit family and friends. Now he's at UK and that has made life happier for his family. “My girls are great. Probably better for grandparents than anything. It has been a positive experience coming to Kentucky,” said Brown, a former three-sport standout at Boyle County High School.

A tip of the cap to our Republican Agriculture Commissioner James Comer and former Democratic State Treasurer Jonathan Miller for their inter-party field trip to Washington, D.C., this week. The duo, joined by Republican State Senator Paul Hornback of Shelbyville, visited Washington to drum up support among lawmakers  for lifting federal barriers to legal hemp in Kentucky. While it is too soon to tell whether the trip will pay dividends, the follow-through from Comer, and the bipartisan joining of forces with Miller, should make the state proud.

Andy Murray was a fierce competitor when he played fullback at the University of Kentucky and remains a hard-core UK fan. That's why he's become a huge Mark Stoops' fan already and believes that Conner quarterback Drew Barker will pick the Wildcats over South Carolina and Tennessee Friday when he announces his college choice. “He is a lock in my opinion. Kid is a blue blood,” said Murray. Because Murray's son plays at Simon Kenton, he's not been able to get out in northern Kentucky to see Barker play.