Saturday’s matchup with No. 10 LSU is creeping closer, and Kentucky fans got the kind of news that actually brightens a Wednesday morning: the Power K is back.
The program rolled out its throwback uniforms on social media, and they hit the mark. Ty Bryant modeled the look, which fits neatly with the family connection behind it - his father, Cisco, wore the Power K at Kentucky in the mid-1980s alongside Matt Stein, Will’s father. Cisco also appeared in the reveal video, which mixed in highlights of Kentucky teams wearing the Power K from 1975-96.
The uniforms lean hard into the old-school feel. The blue jersey keeps the “CATS” on the sleeves with stripes, and there’s no “Kentucky” across the chest, only numbers.
The pants are white with a large Power K on the right hip and stripes down the side. The helmet carries a big Power K on each side, a triple stripe down the middle, and “CATS” above the facemask.
That reveal may have grabbed the most attention, but the more serious business is still what’s waiting later today in the SEC Availability Report. Kentucky is already dealing with a pile of injury questions, and Will Stein made it clear Tuesday that the situation could get messy again.
The Cats were listed with seven players out on the final SEC Availability Report before the South Carolina game, including DJ Miller, Tavion Wallace, and Alex Afari. Aaron Gates was a late scratch, and Jason Patterson, Antwan Smith, and Jaden Smith all left that game hurt.
Stein said the group is “scary” thin at linebacker, and he hinted that tonight’s report could be a rough one. The report is expected around 8 p.m.
ET.
LSU has injury concerns too, most notably at quarterback. Sam Leavitt is dealing with a hamstring issue, though he says he will be 100% by Saturday.
Stein knows Leavitt well from the recruiting process, and if the injury does limit him, that changes the picture. Leavitt can hurt teams with both his arm and his legs, so any restriction in his mobility would matter.
Stein spent about 20 minutes with reporters on Tuesday, wearing a Power K hat and hoodie, and a lot of the conversation circled back to the offense’s third-down problems. Kentucky sits dead last in the country on third down, converting less than 25% of the time, and the defense isn’t much better.
Stein said the team has to improve there, but also pointed out that the offense isn’t even getting into many third-down situations. Only four teams that have played five games have fewer third-down attempts than Kentucky.
There’s more on the way from Stein today. He’s scheduled to speak on the SEC Coaches Teleconference around lunch and then appear on Tom Leach’s radio show at 6 p.m.
ET. More comments from Lane Kiffin are also expected on the call.
Players will talk after practice as well, and Kentucky will have boots on the ground at the Joe Craft Football Training Center this morning. Live updates are expected first, followed by a full recap and interviews later.
Away from football, Kentucky basketball had a promising night at Pro Day. The annual event drew representatives from all 30 NBA teams and included drills, scrimmages, and a full hour of 5-on-5.
Ousmane N’Diaye was the surprise standout, knocking down shots from both inside and outside. Malachi Moreno, Milan Momcilovic, and Alex Wilkins also looked strong.
Kentucky backed up the shooting it showed at Big Blue Madness, and the overall showing only added to the sense that this year’s team could look more like Mark Pope’s first group in Lexington.
“It was a good day,” Pope said on the SEC Network+ broadcast after the event. “I mean, we have almost every NBA team represented here-a bunch two- and three-deep-and it’s a great opportunity for our guys to come perform in front of these guys, and for them to get an inside look at how our guys operate, how they communicate and how they work in practice. It was a really positive day, a really, really positive day for us.”
The weather could also end up playing a role in the weekend. Tropical Storm Isaias formed in the Gulf overnight and is expected to make landfall as a hurricane.
The current forecast has it reaching Kentucky in the early hours of Sunday morning, which would leave Kentucky vs. LSU unaffected, but it should have an impact on Alabama vs.
Georgia in Tuscaloosa.
That game is currently set for 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC, though that could change as the storm gets closer. College Gameday may also have to move locations.
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