When the Kentucky football staff needed a new coach for its wide receivers, offensive coordinator Bush Hamdan turned to a familiar face – L’Damian Washington.

While at Missouri, Hamdan and Washington worked together. In fact, Washington says that it was Hamdan who encouraged him to get into the coaching profession.

“I had just retired (from the NFL) when COVID hit, I was back in Columbia, I was a volunteer middle school head coach, I was running a non-profit with Gary Pinkel, who was my college coach,” Washington said. “(Missouri head coach Eli Drinkwitz) asked me to speak to the team and he offered me a job. Bush had just transitioned from being the Falcons’ quarterback guy and we would just talk. That spring, I became director of player development. And every day, Bush would tell me that I had to go coach and finally, that May, I eft to take a job at Southern in Louisiana, where I’m from.”

In addition to working with Hamdan again, Washington sees plenty of upside in joining the UK football staff.

“One, it’s Kentucky football,” Washington said. “Lexington, the city, is an awesome city. Then, the relationship with Bush Hamdan and Coach (Mark) Stoops. Anytime you make a transition like this and a leap of faith, you want to be surrounded by good people. And everybody speaks so highly of Coach Stoops and what he’s done at this university.”

Washington, who has also been the wide receivers coach at Oklahoma and South Florida, knows what he brings to his new position.

“I hope some enthusiasm, I hope some passion,” Washington said. “The relationship piece is huge for me. You want to bring passion, you want to bring grit. I have played they position, have been through what they’re going through right now. And hopefully they will be able to see the steps I have taken and hopefully I can help them through the same steps.”

Washington, who spent time with the Dallas Cowboys, the San Francisco 49ers, the New York Giants, the Cleveland Browns, the Miami Dolphins, the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Kansas City Chiefs, knows that he needs to be himself and get to know his unit as quickly as possible.

“A pitch to me is that you’re trying to sell something. I’ve got no pitch (other than) to be as authentic as I can be,” Washington said. “My job is to go earn those guys’ trust. My job is to meet them where they are right now and bring them along. My job is to coach them and get the best out of them.”

Washington is excited to be back in the Southeastern Conference and to be working with Hamdan again. The duo hopes to produce big results at the wide receiver position in 2025.