Rating:

5.0 (1 vote)

Walk-on defensive tackle Luke McDermott knows that most true blue fans are wondering who he is and how he won the starting job against Louisville.

McDermott knows those fans are surprised, and they're not alone.

"I'm surprised, yeah," said McDermott.

The junior from Trinity came out of no where on Monday when Joker Phillips named him the starter. From that point on, it's been a whole new world for McDermott. On Tuesday, he was the most sought after interview by the media.

There's the nickname "Freaky Luke", given to him by former UK star Corey Peters, the stories of how he eats for an hour longer than the rest of his teammates and lifts weights when he's not eating.

Yes, Mr. McDermott has become quite a legend in a very short time, all because he was named the starter and he didn't even see it coming.

"I get a lot of jokes from my family, they are trying to get a story out of me. I really don't know what it is."

That doesn't mean Luke isn't planning on taking full advantage of his opportunity. He believes he can play at this level.

"I wouldn't have come here if I didn't think I could play. I wouldn't go through all this work if I didn't think there wasn't something in it," McDermott said.

As a Trinity grad, Luke admits he grew up a Louisville fan. He even talked to now UK assistant coach Greg Nord while he coached for the Cardinals. But McDermott never really got any scholarship offers and decided to walk on at Kentucky. Now he'll get the chance to start against Louisville in the season opener, a pretty unbelievable feeling for McDermott.

"They put me in there. They will take me out just as fast as they put me in. As long as I stay focused on football I'll be fine. I just need to stay focused."

Whether McDermott remains the starter all season or is replaced doesn't seem to affect him. Sure, he wants to contribute. He wants to play. He believes he can play. But he's also just enjoying the moment he's in now in case it's fleeting.

"I like coming out here and working everyday. I love football. I just pretty much do what I want to do. I'm trying to become a coach when I'm done playing so I'm trying to get as much knowledge about that game that I can. It works out because the more I learn the better I become."