Western Kentucky defensive back Upton Stout is ready to take his shot at the NFL.

The redshirt junior from Houston made his decision official Monday with a post on his X (formerly Twitter) social media account announcing his intention to enter the NFL draft and forgo his final season of collegiate eligibility.

Stout joins WKU running back Elijah Young in declaring for the NFL draft, with neither an unexpected decision.

Stout spent three seasons playing for the Hilltoppers after transferring from North Texas.

This past season, Stout earned All-Conference USA First-Team honors as a defensive back. He recorded 52 tackles, with 7.5 for loss and a sack, plus an interception, a pass breakup and three quarterback hurries. Stout plans to play in the Reese’s Senior Bowl set for Feb. 1 in Mobile, Alabama.

As a redshirt sophomore, Stout appeared in seven games with six starts for the Hilltoppers during the 2023 season. Despite missing five games to injury, he finished the year with 29 total tackles, including 1.5 tackles for loss and 0.5 sacks, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery, an interception, five quarterback hurries and eight pass breakups. His interception came in the 52-22 victory over Houston Christian, and he returned the ball 53 yards for a touchdown. He posted his second defensive touchdown of the season in the regular-season finale at FIU on Nov. 25 when he recovered a fumble and returned it 16 yards to the end zone.

Stout made an immediate impact for the Tops in his first season in 2022, starting 11 games and playing in all 14. In his first game in a Hilltopper uniform, Stout helped WKU beat Austin Peay by returning an interception 34 yards for a touchdown. He picked off another pass in the very next game at Hawaii, and finished the year with four interceptions overall. His final one came in the team’s 44-23 victory over South Alabama in the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl.

Stout made 44 tackles on the season, including a career-high eight in the New Orleans Bowl cictory. For his stellar season, Stout earned Freshman All-American Honorable Mention honors from CFN while also being named Conference USA Honorable Mention.

NEW ADDITIONS

WKU continues to add and subtract to the roster, with the program announcing a batch of junior-college signees Monday, including four offensive linemen.

The Tops picked up a commitment from Coahoma (Mississippi) Community College offensive lineman Branden Hollis. A Baltimore native, the 6-foot-8, 372-pound Hollis just completed his sophomore season at Coahoma. WKU also landed JUCO transfer offensive lineman Max Thurston out of Georgia Military College on Monday. Thurston, listed at 6-6, 290 pounds, played offensive tackle for the Bulldogs this past season. The Monroe, Georgia, native saw action in seven games as a freshman in 2024.

Also Monday, Holmes (Mississippi) Community College offensive lineman Jaylin Rogers announced his commitment to WKU. The Union, Mississippi, native played at 6-3, 285 pounds this past season as a freshman for the Bulldogs and appeared in 10 games. The Tops also landed East Central (Mississippi) Community College offensive lineman Willis Anderson. The 6-6, 330-pound native of Mobile, Alabama, played as a sophomore at East Central this past season and earned All-Mississippi Association of Community College Conference Athletics first-team honors.

The Tops also landed some help for the defense Monday as San Diego State outside linebacker Dominic Oliver announced his commitment to the program. Oliver, a native of San Jose, California, played in 11 games for the Aztecs this past season and tallied 15 tackles, including 2.5 tackles for loss and a pair of quarterback hurries. The 6-3, 250-pound Oliver spent four years at San Diego State and played as a junior this past season.

On Tuesday, WKU got a commitment from a former CUSA rival when ex-Louisiana Tech defensive lineman Jayden Gray announced on social media he will join the Hilltoppers. Gray played in all 12 games for the Bulldogs this past season as a redshirt junior with two starts — including against WKU — and tallied 14 tackles including three tackles for loss (two sacks), a pass breakup and a quarterback hurry. The 6-2, 271-pound native of Fort Worth, Texas, spent two seasons at Louisiana Tech after two seasons at Iowa State.

BARNES JOINS STAFF

WKU has a new wide receivers coach, with former Charlotte assistant Jason Barnes announcing on his X social media account that he is leading that position group.

Barnes, who served in the same role at Charlotte this past season under former head coach Biff Poggi, played collegiately at South Carolina (2007-11) and professionally for both the NFL’s San Diego Chargers and CFL’s Winnipeg Blue Bombers. Barnes is a native of Charlotte, North Carolina.

Zak Mizell coached the WKU wide receivers this past season.