Kentucky cruises to a win over Youngstown State to open the Will Stein era

The Will Stein era finally kicked off on Saturday in Lexington. After a long offseason of talking, the Wildcats were able to put it on display against the Youngstown Penguins to begin the new era of Kentucky football. With a new coaching staff and almost an entirely new team, Big Blue Nation was ready to see what their team has in store for the season.

Well, things couldn't have started off any better to open the new era, as the Wildcats cruised to a 45-13 win over Youngstown State on Saturday. Kentucky started the first drive with a CJ Baxter run before QB Kenny Minchey goes a perfect 5-5 to march the Wildcats down the field quickly, including a 33-yard pass to freshman Kenny Darby, who is expected to emerge as one of the team's top receivers already. That first drive really set the tone. Minchey drove his team down the field, but it was Baxter who put the first points on the board, scoring the first two touchdowns. He, Minchey and the Kentucky offense were efficient all game.

Don't let him get HOT 🔥

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— Kentucky Football (@UKFootball) September 5, 2026

As you can tell by the score, the defense did their job too, but there were some dull moments, which can be expected when your leading by a lot. The linebackers were swarming all game and continuously kept the Penguins out of field goal range. The linebackers were the stars on that side of the ball. Kentucky had some issues in the secondary, which caused some lapses at times, but it's worth noting that both starting conerbacks, Terhyon Nichols and Hassan Sykes, both sat out of this first game. Once they return next week, we'll really get to see what Jay Bateman and his defense fully have to offer. Either way, the linebackers looked very promising, as guys like Bo Barnes, Grant Godfrey, and the young Isaiah McMillian made their presence known up front.

QB Kenny Minchey looked really good in his first college start and first game as a Kentucky Wildcat. He was very efficient with his passing decisions and really got his recievers involved, even the tight ends, who fans have been wanting to see more of in the passing game for a few years now. Among the standouts on the stat sheet in the receiving game include Kenny Darby and tight ends Willie Rodriguez and Mikkel Skinner, who each had a touchdown and a couple of explosive plays, which were common to see in Saturday's season opener. Minchey totaled 301 passing yards on 18-27 throwing, as Darby led receiving with 74 yards and two touchdowns.

Strong connection 📶

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— Kentucky Football (@UKFootball) September 5, 2026

But it wasn't just through the air where Kentucky found success, it was on the ground as well. We mentioned CJ Baxter scoring the team's first two touchdowns, but his backup, Jason Patterson, put some numbers up and got plenty of reps in. rushing for 78 yards on the day. He and Baxter combined for 126 yards and two touchdowns. Kentucky went into this season worried about the depth at running back and if Patterson can continue to replicate the kind of production we saw on Saturday, their worries should go down. But, health remains a top priority and will throughout the season because there is still a lot of unknown outside of Jovantae Barnes, who hopefully will return soon from injury. He and Baxter will be major parts of the running game.

We've heard a lot about Will Stein's offense and how fun it is and he started to put it on display this Saturday. Now, the real big test comes when #13 Alabama visits Lexington next week. Can Kentucky shock the college football world?

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