College football’s opening weekend had already delivered enough chaos to fill a whole season, and then Sunday night found a way to top itself.
There were blocked kicks, last-second field goals, a two-point try inches from changing the result in Atlanta, a storm delay in LSU’s debut, a Hail Mary rescue for Michigan after a second was added to the clock, and an Ole Miss win sealed on a kick as time expired. The finale was the strangest of them all.
Just before kickoff in Tallahassee, at 7:29 PM EST, a transformer near Doak Campbell Stadium was knocked out and Florida State lost power. For a while, the game looked like it might not happen at all. When it finally did start, it did so without some of the most basic parts of the modern setup: full stadium lights, a working scoreboard, PA speakers, a mic for officials, sideline iPads, coach-to-player comms, and replay review.
Players couldn’t even see the clock. Officials handled time on the field, briefly dragging the game back to something closer to the mid-20th century.
Some of the missing technology eventually came back in the second quarter, with coach-to-player comms, replay review, and the game clock restored. Even then, the whole thing felt off in the best and weirdest way college football can.
The game itself matched the scene around it. Florida State had not converted a third down entering the fourth quarter, yet the score was tied at 17.
SMU had handed over the ball four times, missed a 38-yard field goal, and committed an offside penalty on an FSU field goal attempt that kept a drive alive and led to a touchdown. Kevin Jennings steadied things just enough for the Mustangs to end it with a game-winning chip-shot field goal with 21 seconds left.
Back in Lexington, Kentucky spent Labor Day getting ready for what comes next. Will Stein and the Wildcats were at the facility laying the groundwork for Saturday’s game plan against Alabama. Stein is scheduled to speak with the media after Tuesday morning’s practice at Kroger Field around Noon.
Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer opened his week Monday with a 14-minute press conference, though he didn’t give much away about Kentucky. “Week 2 SEC game, that’s an interesting thing,” he said.
“Can’t say I’ve played too many conference games this early in the year. Doesn’t matter, it’s on the schedule, we gotta be ready to go.
And you rely on your base, base rules, base techniques, your base fundamentals, so that’s what we continue to teach and that’s where it starts for us with our guys.”
One of the more compelling Kentucky stories from the weekend came from the offensive line. The Wildcats kept Kenny Minchey clean and carved out huge running lanes all afternoon, and Coleton Price was right in the middle of it at center.
His daily routine includes writing the words “Why Settle? Don’t Settle.” at the top of his notebook, a line his brother Tyler sent him.
Tyler Thompson detailed Price’s path to Kentucky in a feature on the lineman.
There’s also plenty going on off the field for Big Blue Nation. Steven Peake continues to roll out new content daily on the Kentucky Sports Radio YouTube Channel, and the evening lineup includes 11 Personnel at 6 PM EST with Clint Lamb from BamaOnLine for a look at Alabama. Fans can also catch KSR’s conversation with Coleton Price and a new edition of the KSR Football Podcast.
And if football isn’t enough, Kentucky men’s soccer is at The Bell on a night with no NFL or college football for a 12-day stretch. The Wildcats are chasing their first win of the season against No. 4 Ohio State, with free admission for the 7:30 PM EST kickoff.
In Other News...
Kentucky Gets Its First Real Chance To Back Up The Hype
Will Steins first game as Kentuckys head coach went about as well as the Wildcats could have hoped, with a season-opening win over Youngstown State giving the new staff a clean starting point. It also offered an early look at a roster that has talked plenty about its belief in the group, and the opener did enough to keep that optimism intact as Kentucky moved on to Alabama week.
Now comes the part that will tell the bigger story. Kentucky heads into this matchup as the underdog, facing a Crimson Tide team that brings a different level of talent and depth, and the Wildcats will have to translate the confidence they showed in Week 1 into something sturdier against a far sterner test. The opener featured encouraging performances from key players, but Alabama is the kind of opponent that quickly reveals whether the hype is real or just September noise. [Read more 🡒]
Kentucky Volleyball Just Made A National Statement On A Huge Stage
Kentucky volleyball did something few college teams ever get the chance to do, beating Penn State in four sets at Wrigley Field in front of a crowd of 43,067. The setting alone made it a marquee event, and the result turned it into more than a showcase, with Kentucky leaving Chicago with a victory on one of the sports biggest stages and a reminder that its rise now travels well beyond the usual gym walls.
The timing only sharpened the moment for Kentucky fans, with opening weekend across the SEC delivering the kind of conference-wide backdrop that makes every result feel bigger. While football headlines around the league centered on unbeaten starts and a slate of tight games, Kentucky was making its own statement in a different sport, and the Wildcats are still settling into a new weekly rhythm on the football side after moving press conferences and coach shows to different days. [Read more 🡒]
Alabama Heads Into Kentucky With One Big Problem Fans Will Notice
Kentuckys Week 2 meeting with Alabama comes with a strange kind of uncertainty for both staffs, the sort that only shows up this early in the season. Kalen DeBoer spent part of his press conference Wednesday talking through the usual mix of player evaluation, preparation and the challenges of jumping into an SEC game this quickly, while also acknowledging that the Crimson Tide are still trying to get a clear read on what Kentucky looks like under new head coach Will Stein.
The catch for Alabama is that the film bank is thin, and what is available does not offer much of a clean blueprint. DeBoer said the Tide are leaning heavily on fundamentals as they get ready for an early conference test, which makes this more of a game-plan-for-the-basics week than a deep-dive into tendencies. The matchup is set for ABC and Disney+, and for Kentucky, that kind of uncertainty can be a useful place to be when a heavyweight comes to town. [Read more 🡒]