Will Stein shared his message to his team ahead of the South Carolina game

The Kentucky head coach shared what he told his players in practice earlier this week ahead of another big road test.

Sep 12, 2026; Lexington, Kentucky, USA; Kentucky Wildcats head coach Will Stein pumps up the crowd as he enters the field before the game against the Alabama Crimson Tide at Kroger Field. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The #24 Kentucky Wildcats are gearing up to head down to Columbia to take on a South Carolina team that has struggled to start the season, with a 2-2 record that includes a blowout road loss to Alabama. Now, the Gamecocks have Kentucky coming in and are eager to turn their season around against the Wildcats.

For Kentucky, they're looking to come in with a similar mindset to what they had going into their big road win over top 10 Texas A&M two weeks ago. First off, In his press conference on Tuesday previewing the pivotal game, Will Stein was asked what makes him confident that his Kentucky team can continue playing well on the road.

Sep 19, 2026; College Station, Texas, USA; Kentucky Wildcats head coach Will Stein reacts during an on field interview after the win over Texas A&M Aggies at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

"I just go back to our preparation and our practice and what we do on a day-by-day basis to get our guys ready for these moments. You try not to make it bigger than what it is. It's still a football game, and if you let the crowd or the atmosphere dictate how you play, I think that's when you can become emotional. You become very distracted, and so we use crowd noise in practice and try to get them in that mindset and to make practice situations as hard or harder than the game."

What has practice been like this week leading up to the game? Stein said his team had very spirited and intense practices. The head coach then revealed his message to the team ahead of their second road game of the season. Stein wants his guys to attack every single rep and play desperate instead of prosperous.

"I told them today, are you somebody that's desperate or are you somebody that's prosperous? Desperate people usually act a different way -- they scratch, fight, claw for everything that they want. The prosperous people are sitting back there, fat and happy, sipping on their mai tai and just enjoying life. Be desperate. This is the SEC. Everybody's desperate for wins, so we have to go attack this week like we have never attacked another week."

That's a great mindset to remind your players of. Playing desperate sounds bad, but when you think about it, that type of mindset is what brings success and Stein is making sure his guys understand that as they go through the course of this season.

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