Ponatoski has changed the outlook for the future of the Wildcats program.
Rivals300 has released its 2026 rankings for college football recruits, and Kentucky Wildcats quarterback commit Matt Ponatoski is ranked No. 100 on the list.
Ponatoski is ranked No. 100 out of 300 players on the list, which includes him as the No. 9 quarterback and No. 5 player in Ohio. The rankings are based on film from his junior season and production and hundreds of in-person evaluations by the Rivals national team over the past several months.
Here is what Charles Power, Rivals’ Director of Scouting and Ranking, says on Ponatoski and the star he has become at Cincinnati’s Archbishop Moeller.
“Matt Ponatoski is a prospect who came on our radar last fall. He had an awesome junior season at Archbishop Moeller and is one of the most productive passers we’ve seen in the cycle. He threw for over 4,200 yards with 57 touchdowns and just three interceptions while playing top competition. This guy is one of the top dual-threat athletes in all of high school sports. Ponatoski is also an All-American-caliber baseball player and was heavily recruited in both sports. He has a legitimate shot to be an impact player in football and baseball at the college level.
“What stands out to me about Ponatoski on the football field is his accuracy and his feel for the passing game. He’s a cool customer, one that’s hard to fluster. He has that natural feel for finding open receivers and spaces in the defense. He has a strong understanding of his high school offense and we saw his accuracy at the Elite 11 Finals. He’s a high-volume rhythm passer who’s super accurate. I feel, with very good conviction, that he’ll be a productive college quarterback, just based off what we’ve seen from his thus far.”
The Rivals Industry Team Recruiting Rankings has Kentucky at No. 39 with the addition of Ponatoski, up 10 spots from the previous rankings and currently in 12th in the SEC.
Ponatoski has a 90.38 Rivals industry ranking.
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