Kentucky Wildcats
SEC
0-0 (0-0 conf)
SP+ #66
Ratings
2025 final
- SP+
- 1.8 (#66)
- SP+ Offense
- 25.5
- SP+ Defense
- 23.7
- SRS
- 2.9
- FPI
- 5.1
- Elo
- 1465
- Talent
- 763
- Recruiting
- 197 (#60)
2026 Outlook
Projected wins
4.4p10 3.0 — p90 6.0
| Round | Prob | |
|---|---|---|
| Win conference | 0.0% | |
| Make CFP | 0.0% | |
| Quarterfinal | 0.0% | |
| Semifinal | 0.0% | |
| Natl. final | 0.0% | |
| Natl. champ | 0.0% |
Schedule
proj record 4.4–7.6
Schedule
11th
toughest of 136
Offenses faced
17th
toughest of 136
Defenses faced
12th
toughest of 136
Strength of schedule — how tough this team's opponents are, ranked 1 (hardest) to 136 (easiest) · by 2025 SP+ · 1 FCS game.
| Wk | Opponent | SP+ | Score | Proj | Win% | Res |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | vsYoungstown State | FCS | 45-4* | +40.9 | 99% | — |
| 2 | vsAlabama | +14.8 | 18-30 | -11.6 | 24% | — |
| 3 | @Texas A&M | +20.7 | 15-36 | -20.8 | 10% | — |
| 4 | vsSouth Alabama | -12.7 | 34-18 | +15.9 | 83% | — |
| 5 | @South Carolina | +5.9 | 19-29 | -10.1 | 27% | — |
| 6 | vsLSU | +10.3 | 24-29 | -4.6 | 39% | — |
| 7 | @Oklahoma | +18.3 | 17-37 | -19.9 | 11% | — |
| 8 | vsVanderbilt | +20.3 | 14-30 | -15.7 | 17% | — |
| 10 | @Tennessee | +15 | 16-34 | -18.6 | 13% | — |
| 11 | vsFlorida | +3.5 | 25-26 | -1.6 | 46% | — |
| 12 | @Missouri | +14.4 | 19-28 | -8.7 | 30% | — |
| 13 | vsLouisville | +12.4 | 25-27 | -2.2 | 45% | — |
* FBS-vs-FCS estimate from the SP+ gap — no per-game model for FCS opponents.
Quarterbacks · 5
2026 · 73
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| QB | 1st | Kenny Minchey← Notre Dame | SO | 6'2" | 204 | ★★★★ |
| QB | 2nd | Zach Calzada | SR | 6'4" | 230 | — |
| QB | 3rd | JacQai Long← Marshall | FR | 6'2" | 200 | ★★★ |
| QB | 4th | Brennen Ward | FR | 6'4" | 222 | ★★★ |
| QB | — | Beau Allen | SR | 6'2" | 211 | ★★★ |
Running Backs · 4
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RB | 1st | Jason Patterson | FR | 5'10" | 209 | ★★★ |
| RB | 2nd | CJ Baxter← Texas | SO | 6'1" | 227 | ★★★ |
| RB | 3rd | Jovantae Barnes← Oklahoma | SR | 6'0" | 211 | ★★★ |
| RB | 4th | Tovani Mizell | FR | 6'0" | 217 | ★★★ |
Wide Receivers · 9
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WR | 1st | Ja'Mori Maclin | SR | 5'11" | 191 | — |
| WR | 2nd | Xavier Daisy← UAB | SO | 6'3" | 210 | ★★★ |
| WR | 3rd | DJ Miller | FR | 6'3" | 204 | ★★★ |
| WR | 4th | Fred Farrier II | SR | 6'1" | 188 | ★★★ |
| WR | 5th | J.J. Hester | SR | 6'5" | 203 | ★★★★ |
| WR | 6th | Nic Anderson← LSU | JR | 6'4" | 208 | ★★★ |
| WR | — | Ja'Kayden Ferguson← Arkansas | FR | 6'2" | 182 | ★★★ |
| WR | — | Brock Coffman← Louisville | FR | 6'0" | 180 | ★★★ |
| WR | — | Shane Carr← Southern Utah | — | — | — | ★★★ |
Tight Ends · 3
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TE | 1st | Willie Rodriguez | SO | 6'4" | 252 | — |
| TE | 2nd | Josh Kattus | SR | 6'4" | 247 | — |
| TE | 3rd | Henry Boyer | JR | 6'6" | 265 | ★★★ |
Offensive Line · 4
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OL | — | Joshua Braun | SR | 6'6" | 342 | ★★★★ |
| OT | — | Lance Heard← Tennessee | JR | 6'6" | 330 | ★★★★ |
| OT | — | Mark Robinson← UTEP | SO | 6'5" | 320 | ★★★ |
| OT | — | Olaus Alinen← Alabama | SO | 6'6" | 322 | ★★★ |
Defensive Line · 14
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DE | 1st | Lorenzo Cowan | FR | 6'3" | 247 | — |
| DL | 1st | Mi'Quise Humphrey-Grace | JR | 6'4" | 255 | — |
| DL | 2nd | Kahlil Saunders | SR | 6'5" | 293 | — |
| DL | 3rd | Tavion Gadson | SO | 6'5" | 298 | — |
| DL | 4th | Dominic Wiseman← South Alabama | JR | 6'2" | 300 | ★★★ |
| DL | 5th | Ahmad Breaux← LSU | SO | 6'3" | 278 | ★★★ |
| DL | 6th | Jamarrion Harkless← Purdue | SO | 6'3" | 345 | ★★★ |
| DL | 7th | Cedric Works | FR | 6'5" | 254 | ★★★★ |
| DL | 8th | David Gusta | SR | 6'3" | 317 | — |
| DL | 9th | Jaden Williams | JR | 6'4" | 295 | — |
| DL | 10th | Josaih Hayes | SR | 6'3" | 322 | ★★★★ |
| DL | 11th | Kalen Edwards | FR | 6'4" | 328 | ★★★★ |
| EDGE | 1st | Tyler Thomas← South Alabama | SO | 6'5" | 259 | ★★★ |
| EDGE | — | Antonio O'Berry← Gardner-Webb | — | — | — | ★★★ |
Linebackers · 10
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LB | 1st | Daveren Rayner | SR | 6'2" | 217 | ★★★ |
| LB | 2nd | Alex Afari Jr. | SR | 6'2" | 227 | ★★★★ |
| LB | 3rd | Grant Godfrey | SO | 6'3" | 234 | ★★★★ |
| LB | 4th | Sam Greene | SO | 6'2" | 248 | ★★★ |
| LB | 5th | Kam Olds | SR | 6'4" | 252 | ★★★ |
| LB | 6th | Antwan Smith | SO | 6'3" | 215 | — |
| LB | 7th | Tavion Wallace← Arkansas | FR | 6'1" | 228 | ★★★ |
| LB | 8th | Quintavion Norman | FR | 6'3" | 224 | ★★★ |
| LB | 9th | Rushaune Vilane | SO | 6'2" | 237 | — |
| LB | 10th | Elijah Barnes← Texas | FR | 6'1" | 244 | ★★★★ |
Defensive Backs · 19
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CB | — | Mark Manfred III← Missouri | FR | 6'1" | 166 | ★★★ |
| CB | — | Hasaan Sykes← Western Carolina | — | — | — | ★★★ |
| DB | 1st | Ty Bryant | JR | 6'0" | 198 | — |
| DB | 2nd | Jonquis Hardaway | SR | 6'3" | 193 | ★★★★ |
| DB | 3rd | Jordan Lovett | SR | 6'2" | 208 | — |
| DB | 4th | Terhyon Nichols | SO | 5'11" | 198 | ★★★★ |
| DB | 5th | Grant Grayton | FR | 6'3" | 205 | ★★★ |
| DB | 6th | Jantzen Dunn | SR | 6'0" | 185 | ★★★★ |
| DB | 7th | Nasir Addison | JR | 6'0" | 204 | — |
| DB | 8th | Jaden Smith | FR | 6'3" | 208 | ★★★★ |
| DB | 9th | Kevis Thomas | JR | 6'0" | 181 | — |
| DB | 10th | Jackson Schulz | SR | 6'2" | 210 | — |
| DB | 11th | Martels Carter Jr. | FR | 6'0" | 200 | ★★★★ |
| DB | 12th | Demarcus Gardner | FR | 6'0" | 178 | — |
| DB | 13th | Andrew Purcell | FR | 5'10" | 193 | ★★★★ |
| S | 1st | Jordan Castell← Florida | JR | 6'2" | 213 | ★★★ |
| S | 2nd | Aaron Gates← Florida | SO | 6'0" | 198 | ★★★ |
| S | 3rd | Cyrus Reyes← Mississippi State | SO | 6'1" | 200 | ★★★ |
| S | 4th | Jesse Anderson← Pittsburgh | SO | 6'0" | 180 | ★★★ |
Special Teams · 5
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| K | — | Adam Zouagui← South Florida | JR | 5'11" | 188 | ★★★ |
| LS | 1st | Alex McLaughlin | SR | 5'10" | 228 | — |
| P | 1st | Aidan Laros | SR | 6'2" | 218 | — |
| PK | 1st | Jacob Kauwe | FR | 6'1" | 212 | ★★★ |
| PK | — | Zach Schreiner | SR | 6'0" | 181 | — |
Projected Season
2026 · win prob / game
Exp. Wins
4.4
Exp. Losses
7.6
Toss-ups
2
bars: model win probabilityfav / toss-up / dog
2025 · pct vs FBS
SP+ Off
25.542
Off PPA
+0.0921
Pass PPA
+0.1828
Rush PPA
+0.0943
Success
43%57
Explosive
1.147
PlayerMedian (50th)percentile vs league
SP+ Trend
points vs avg team
— Overall— Offense— Defense
SP+ = opponent-adjusted points vs an average team. Overall & Offense higher = better; Defense lower = better.
Advanced
2025 · opponent-adjusted PPA / play
| Split | Offense | Defense |
|---|---|---|
| Overall | +0.09 | +0.17 |
| Passing | +0.18 | +0.30 |
| Rushing | +0.09 | +0.07 |
| 1st Down | -0.06 | +0.02 |
| 2nd Down | +0.17 | +0.19 |
| 3rd Down | +0.29 | +0.46 |
Scoring Trend
2025 · pts/game
PPG For
23.0
PPG Against
26.4
Differential
-3.4
— Points for— Points against
dots: W / L2025
- Overall
- 5-7
- Home
- 4-3
- Away
- 1-4
- Conference
- 2-6
- Non-Conference
- 3-1
- One-Score (≤8)
- 2-2
- Avg Margin
- -3.4
Situational Splits
2025 · record · pts
| Split | Record | PF | PA |
|---|---|---|---|
| Venue | |||
| Home | 4-3 | 31.7 | 22.6 |
| Away | 1-4 | 10.8 | 31.8 |
| Competition | |||
| vs Ranked (SP+ 25) | 0-6 | 16.8 | 37.2 |
| Conference | 2-6 | 20.3 | 28.4 |
| Non-conference | 3-1 | 28.5 | 22.5 |
Season History · last 12
1 AP top-10 · 8 postseason
| Season | Record | Conf | SP+ | AP | Post |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 5-7 | 2-6 | #66 | — | — |
| 2024 | 4-8 | 1-7 | #45 | — | — |
| 2023 | 7-5 | 3-5 | #22 | #20 | 0-1 |
| 2022 | 7-5 | 3-5 | #25 | #7 | 0-1 |
| 2021 | 9-3 | 5-3 | #23 | #11 | 1-0 |
| 2020 | 4-6 | 4-6 | #55 | — | 1-0 |
| 2019 | 7-5 | 3-5 | #34 | — | 1-0 |
| 2018 | 9-3 | 5-3 | #25 | — | 1-0 |
| 2017 | 7-5 | 4-4 | #61 | — | 0-1 |
| 2016 | 7-5 | 4-4 | #78 | — | 0-1 |
| 2015 | 5-7 | 2-6 | #77 | — | — |
| 2014 | 5-7 | 2-6 | #51 | — | — |
Recent Form · last 5
3-2 SU · 3-2 ATS · O2/U3
Betting Profile
2025 · 12 w/ line
| Straight up | 5-7 |
| ATS | 5-742% |
| Over / Under | 7-5 O-U |
| — ATS splits — | |
| As favorite | 1-3 |
| As underdog | 4-4 |
| Home | 4-3 |
| Away | 1-4 |
vs closing line · splits show cover–no cover
Recruiting Classes
avg #32 · 59 blue-chip
■ 5★■ 4★■ 3★140 rated signees
| Class | Natl | Pts | 5★ | 4★ | 3★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | #60 | 197 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| 2025 | #29 | 224 | 0 | 7 | 8 |
| 2024 | #24 | 237 | 0 | 8 | 10 |
| 2023 | #32 | 212 | 0 | 7 | 3 |
| 2022 | #14 | 240 | 0 | 11 | 6 |
| 2021 | #32 | 205 | 0 | 4 | 3 |
| 2020 | #23 | 230 | 0 | 5 | 7 |
| 2019 | #34 | 203 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| 2018 | #37 | 207 | 0 | 3 | 20 |
| 2017 | #30 | 208 | 0 | 5 | 5 |
247Sports composite · class rank vs all FBS
Roster Talent
2026
Portal in 29net +2Out 27
Portal avg stars (in / out)3.2 / 3.0
Notable Portal Moves
| ▲ | Lance Heard | OT | 4★ | ← Tennessee |
| ▲ | Coleton Price | IOL | 4★ | ← Baylor |
| ▲ | Tegra Tshabola | IOL | 4★ | ← Ohio State |
| ▲ | Kenny Minchey | QB | 4★ | ← Notre Dame |
| ▼ | Dante Dowdell | RB | 4★ | → Georgia |
| ▼ | Cutter Boley | QB | 3★ | → Arizona State |
| ▼ | Darrin Strey | OT | 3★ | → LSU |
| ▼ | Cameron Miller | WR | 3★ | → Ole Miss |
returning PPA · portal · talent composite · 2026
Injury Report · 0
No injuries reported.
Team News
20 items
- New Kentucky head football coach Will Stein confidently believes Wildcats will win 'because of me'Stein's expression of strong belief at SEC Media Days drew comparisons to Indiana coach Curt Cignetti among observers.UK1h
- New coach Stein says Kentucky will win big 'because of me'Kentucky coach Will Stein says he has the right blueprint to win and that the Wildcats will have success "because of me."UK6h
- The Big Blue Wall is driving Will Stein and Kentucky FootballWill Stein gets it.UK7h
- Will Stein expands on Kentucky's vision, recruiting and new cultureStein explains how he plans to develop the Wildcats' QBs after finding success with multiple current NFL QBs at his last stop and emphasizes the change in culture coming to Lexington.UK7h
- Will Stein on why Kentucky can win: ‘Because of me’Give Kentucky football coach Will Stein credit for one thing: He certainly understands the concept of talking season in the SEC. The new Wildcats coach took the podium Monday at Day 1 of the SEC Media Days in Tampa by force, boldly declaring that Big Blue Nation can win on the gridiron for one simple … Continued The post Will Stein on why Kentucky can win: ‘Because of me’ appeared first on Saturday Down South.UK8h
- Five reasons why Kentucky could be SEC's biggest surprise in ex-Oregon OC Will Stein's first season as coachDon't overlook the Wildcats, who were big spenders in the transfer portal for Stein's first year in LexingtonUK9h
- How Will Stein can bring Kentucky to the top of the SECSEC Network analysts expand on Stein's successful stops and how he can continue that success with the Wildcats after building a loaded roster full of impressive transfers.UK9h
- Kentucky football adds commitment from JUCO RBKentucky football added a JUCO commitment RB on Sunday. The post Kentucky football adds commitment from JUCO RB appeared first on Saturday Down South.UK1d
- Kentucky football arrives at SEC Media Days with a planKentucky football heads to SEC Media Days with a new coach and a blueprint to define the program's future.UK6d
- Kentucky preview: 2026 preseason All-SEC defense predictionsWith SEC Media Days around the corner, we predict the preseason All-SEC teams on defense for the upcoming season.UK9d
- Toast Coach Holtz in StyleIn honor of the life of legendary Irish football coach Lou Holtz, L&T spirits, in cooperation with Coach’s family, is releasing a special expression of Play Like a Champion Today Kentucky bourbon. Only 4,800 bottles will be part of this collectable, one-time only release.UK10d
- Will Alabama Have a 1,000-Yard Rusher in 2026? Just a MinuteBrian Robinson Jr. in 2021 was the last Crimson Tide player to run for 1,000 yards in a season.
- Kentucky basketball target commits to Big Ten programKentucky basketball lost a key recruiting battle on Thursday morning as a top international prospect decided to commit elsewhere. The post Kentucky basketball target commits to Big Ten program appeared first on Saturday Down South.UK11d
- Running game will be vital for UKWith Kentucky’s offense undergoing a makeover under the Wildcats’ new staff, much of the offseason attention has been placed on the team’s potential passing attack — but first-year coach Will Stein’s running backs will remain an important piece this fall. In his three seasons as offensive coordinator at Oregon, Stein helped develop Heisman Trophy finalist quarterbacks Bo Nix and Dillon ...UK13d
- Former Kentucky edge Josh Hines-Allen named to All-Decade teamJosh Hines-Allen is an all-team great Kentucky football player, and was recently named to the SEC All-Decade team.UK13d
- Get to know the Kentucky football roster: No. 61 Jason EkperuohWe're getting to know the 2026 Kentucky Wildcats football team, and today we're looking at No. 61, offensive lineman Jason Ekperuoh.
- Ten potential All-SEC candidates for Kentucky football in 2026In two weeks, Will Stein will take the podium at SEC Media Days. With a revamped roster, we take a look at 10 Wildcats with All-SEC potential in 2026.UK14d
- UCLA basketball lands commitment from elite Serbian prospect over KentuckyUCLA added a commitment from an elite Serbian prospect on Saturday.UK16d
- UK seeing progress with new offenseWith former Oregon offensive coordinator Will Stein now at the helm for the Kentucky football program, the Wildcats’ offense will look radically different in 2026. Hopes inside the program are that those differences lead to renewed success. UK struggled offensively a season ago — the last year under previous coach Mark Stoops and offensive coordinator Bush Hamdan. The Cats mustered only 341.1 ...UK17d
- Top 5 Kentucky Wildcats player rankings in EA's College Football 27EA Sports College Football 27 is close to release, and they have released the top five rated Kentucky Wildcats players.UK23d