Alabama may have found a useful edge heading into its Week 2 meeting with Kentucky, and it comes from an unusual place: inside the Tide’s own defensive line room.
The Crimson Tide’s matchup with the Wildcats carries the added wrinkle of a new Kentucky head coach in Will Stein, and Alabama defensive tackle Terrance Green knows that system well. Green spent the last three seasons at Oregon, where Stein served as offensive coordinator, giving the 6-foot-6, 313-pound senior a built-in familiarity with what Kentucky may want to do Saturday.
That knowledge matters because Green expects the Wildcats to lean on the ground game. Kentucky opened the season with 205 rushing yards in a 45-13 win over Youngstown State, with junior Jason Patterson leading the way on 78 yards on 11 carries.
Senior CJ Baxter added 48 yards and two touchdowns on nine attempts. Overall, Kentucky ran the ball 34 times and threw it 27 times.
“They love to run the ball,” Green said. “It's going to be a big week to stop the run. We've just got to play with good pad level, play with our hands, get out of blocks and make plays in the backfield.”
Green said his time around Stein gives him a pretty clear sense of what Kentucky wants to be offensively, even if the Wildcats mix things up along the way.
“I kind of know what he wants to do,” Green said. “I know he's probably going to change it up, but I was with coach Stein for 2-3 years there.
So just going against that every day, going against great O-linemen, that'll help a lot. But also going against our guys here.
Coach (Freddie) Roach is staying on me about my pad level and getting off blocks, so that's going to be big this week.”
Alabama will bring confidence to the matchup after opening with a 48-10 win over East Carolina, a game in which the Tide allowed just two rushing yards. That kind of run defense will be tested again if Kentucky sticks to the script Green expects.
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Kentuckys New Offense Just Unlocked A Weapon Fans Havent Seen Enough
Will Stein wasted little time putting his stamp on Kentuckys offense, and one of the clearest signs came through the tight end room. In the season opener, three tight ends combined for nine catches, 140 yards and two touchdowns, a workload and production level that stood out sharply from what the Wildcats had leaned on in recent years under Mark Stoops. It was the kind of shift that gives an offense a different shape, especially for a team trying to find more answers in the passing game.
The encouraging part for Kentucky is that this did not look like a one-off wrinkle. Players and coaches praised the tight ends performance and pointed to their value as real pieces of the system, which suggests Stein sees them as more than just check-down options or red-zone targets. If that usage holds, it could change the way defenses have to prepare for the Wildcats, and it may only be the beginning of how often these weapons show up. [Read more 🡒]
Kentucky Just Landed A Huge Big Blue Madness Recruiting Opportunity
Big Blue Madness is still a little ways off, but Kentucky already has one of the nights biggest recruiting storylines in place. The Wildcats are set to open the basketball season on Oct. 2, and five-star power forward CJ Rosser is expected to be there, giving Mark Popes staff a prime chance to put Kentucky in front of one of the elite prospects in the 2027 class.
Rosser, ranked No. 2 nationally by 247Sports, brings the kind of profile Kentucky has long targeted at the frontcourt: a 6-foot-10 forward with versatile skills and plenty of upside. He has visits lined up with several schools, but the chance to see the program in one of its most electric settings gives the Wildcats an important early opportunity to make their case and keep building momentum in a recruitment that figures to stay closely watched. [Read more 🡒]
Kentucky Heads Into Alabama Opener With Big Availability Questions
The first SEC test of the season is already taking shape as both Kentucky and Alabama sort through a long list of availability concerns heading into their Week 2 matchup. The second report of the week left each side dealing with significant uncertainty, with Alabama carrying several players on the out or doubtful lists and Kentucky also trying to piece together who will be ready for a road opener that suddenly looks a lot more complicated than a standard conference debut.
For Kentucky, the biggest concern is the mix of uncertainty along the offensive line and in the secondary, the kind of personnel questions that can change both protection plans and coverage looks in a hurry. Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer has already pointed to the Wildcats' offensive front and his familiarity with Will Stein's schemes, which only adds to the intrigue as both teams try to keep their cards close and survive the week with as many healthy bodies as possible. [Read more 🡒]