Kentucky’s first real measuring stick of the Will Stein era arrives Saturday, and the assignment is a stout one: No. 12 Alabama in Kroger Field.
This isn’t the same Nick Saban-era machine that used to roll into town looking inevitable, but Stein made it clear Wednesday night on his radio show that the Crimson Tide are still loaded with problems for the Wildcats. Alabama opened with a 48-10 win over ECU, leaning on the run game and showing enough on defense to remind everyone they’re still operating at a high level.
Stein pointed first to the man in charge.
"Coach DeBoer has done an outstanding job with their roster, and he seems to win every single spot he's ever been at," Stein said. "He's, I think, 125-20 overall head coaching record, which, to me, it's like Hall of Fame numbers.
Starting on the offensive side of the ball, I think they're really strong. They got a young quarterback, but a guy that's mobile, can move around.
They got really good receivers. They got a big offensive line and and really good scheme. ...
Just looking back again at Kalen DeBoer, Ryan Grubb, what they've done offensively at all their stops, they're extremely explosive. They're multiple.
They're a lot like us, to be honest. ... Defensively, they're stout up front.
They have experience in the back end and multiple up front. So it'll be a great test for us."
That young quarterback is five-star Keelon Russell, and Stein spent time breaking down what makes him such a tough matchup. He said he recruited Russell at Oregon before the quarterback’s stock exploded late in the process, and he described him as a smart player who won plenty at Duncanville in Dallas.
"He's an excellent talent," Stein said of Russell. "I recruited him at Oregon for a little bit, but his recruitment really blew up kind of midway through.
I guess it'd be the 24 season, towards the end is when he became really a national type kid, and so I got to know him a little bit. He's really smart.
He won a lot of games in high school at Duncanville and in Dallas, Texas, and goes to Alabama. He's playing in a really good system with Ryan Grubb as OC and Kalen DeBoer as a head coach, offensive guys.
He can make all the throws he's extremely fast but looks like he wants to be a pocket passer or pro style passer, but when he does escape he causes a lot of troubles on the outside."
On the other side of the ball, Stein zeroed in on Alabama’s secondary, starting with the safeties and a boundary safety he views as the tone-setter.
"Both the safeties are really good players," Stein said of the Alabama defense. "(Bray Hubbard), the boundary safety has played a lot of games for them.
You can tell he's more or less the captain of that defense. They got a long-rangey corner that's a projected first-round pick.
They have guys up front that definitely look the part and play hard. So, I think Kane Wommack does a really good job on defense and takes away what you do best at times.
So it's our job to find our advantages that we can on offense and try our best to exploit those."
So Kentucky heads into Saturday with the crowd behind it and a clear challenge in front of it: find the soft spots, take advantage where they appear, and try to make Alabama uncomfortable.
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Kentucky Heads Into Alabama Opener With Big Availability Questions
The second availability reports for Kentucky and Alabama only sharpened the uncertainty around Saturdays SEC opener, with both teams dealing with notable absences as they prepare for their first conference game of the season. Alabamas list includes several players out or doubtful, among them three cornerbacks, while Kentucky also enters the matchup with multiple players listed out or questionable, adding another layer of concern to a game that already carries early-September pressure.
Kalen DeBoer spent part of his pregame discussion on Kentuckys offensive line and on his familiarity with Will Steins offensive approach, a reminder that even with the injury questions hanging over both sides, the matchup still comes down to more than availability. For Kentucky, though, the latest report leaves the Wildcats waiting on clarity at several spots before they head into one of the toughest openers on their schedule. [Read more 🡒]
Kentucky Is Making A Serious Early Push For One Elite Visitor
Kentucky is already moving aggressively on the 2027 board, and Lewis Uvwo sits near the top of the Wildcats wish list. The highly regarded defensive prospect, originally from Nigeria, is set to spend time in Lexington as part of an early push by Mark Pope and his staff, a clear sign that Kentucky is not waiting around to identify the next wave of frontline talent.
Uvwo has climbed quickly into the national conversation, and his rise has made him a priority target for a program that always has to think several steps ahead in recruiting. Pope recently made the trip to Florida to connect with Uvwo and a teammate at Prolific Prep before the visit, another indicator that Kentucky is treating this one with real urgency as the Wildcats try to build momentum with one of the classs most coveted young players. [Read more 🡒]
Kentucky Gets An Early SEC Test Fans Will Measure Closely
Kentuckys second game of the 2026 season arrives with an early measuring-stick feel, and not just because it comes in SEC play. Both the Wildcats and Alabama opened with wins, which gives Saturdays matchup a little more weight than a typical Week 2 conference game. For Kentucky, it is the kind of early test that can quickly clarify how far along the roster really is, especially against a program that rarely offers much room for error.
Alabama enters with a fresh face under center in Keelon Russell, and his first start gave the Crimson Tide plenty to build on. Kentucky will have to sort through that on the fly while trying to keep the game from getting away from it early, which is where the market has already started to lean in one direction. The numbers will matter, of course, but for Kentucky the bigger question is whether this is the kind of spot where it can hang around long enough to make the afternoon interesting deep into the fourth quarter. [Read more 🡒]