2026 Missouri Football Opponent DEEP DIVE: Kentucky Wildcats

Welcome backmost to Rock M Nation’s yearly force preview bid of nan upcoming season. Each week we will break down 1 force from nan schedule successful chronological order. Given that rosters are ever fluid - and this is done by a hobbyist alternatively than a pro - location could beryllium immoderate errors successful history and existent roster makeup. All mistakes are done connected intent and pinch sick intent because Nate Edwards doesn’t for illustration you aliases your team.

Should Missouri fans still beryllium unreasonably fearful of playing tackle shot against Kentucky now that Mark Stoops is gone? Or does his specter linger successful Lexington forever?

When Missouri joined nan SEC successful 2012, nan communal belief was that nan Tigers would struggle successful football, swipe nan level successful basketball, and look to nab yearly wins against SEC doormats Vanderbilt and Kentucky while hoping to build up to return down Tennessee, South Carolina, Florida, et al.

What happened alternatively was nan Missouri shot deed nan crushed moving - winning 2 section titles successful 3 years - while hoops struggled to propulsion distant from nan middle-bottom of nan convention AND OH YEAH Missouri was 3-5 against Kentucky from 2012-2020, including a five-year losing streak.

For nan longest clip Kentucky was nan barometer of occurrence successful nan SEC: if you hit them you were good, if you mislaid to them you were bad, and nan Wildcats played a marque of antagonistic shot that took distant what you did good connected discourtesy and many times pummeled you connected defense until you broke. It was disfigured but it worked highly well, starring Mark Stoops to beryllium perpetually renewed successful statement while challenging for section titles and sending NFL-caliber defenders into nan league.

But whether it beryllium an unimaginative attack successful offense, and decaying protect scheme, a deficiency of NIL support, aliases nan nationalist bickering pinch nan astir important coach connected campus, Stoops’ tyrannical tally successful Lexington yet came to a adjacent past twelvemonth and, for nan first clip successful 13 years, Kentucky will person a caller look to them.

But, first, here’s what Kentucky did past year:

Kentucky played for illustration full garbage six times and mislaid each six, including a one-score nonaccomplishment to Ole Miss successful Week 2 and nan absolute detonation astatine nan hands of rival Louisville to adjacent retired nan year.

The Wildcats besides played very good successful a one-score nonaccomplishment to Texas, and decently good successful a one-score triumph against Auburn.

But, boy, they hit nan ever-loving snot retired of Toledo, Eastern Michigan, Tennessee Tech and…uh…Florida.

Mark Stoops seemed to beryllium tempting destiny successful his nationalist comments connected his employment status, seeming to judge that location was nary measurement that Kentucky would walk nan cookware to raise capable money to occurrence him. And that mightiness person been correct initially! But you can’t get unopen retired by your rival while giving up 41 points. People will beryllium motivated to find money successful that scenario, and they did!

Obviously that image was backmost erstwhile Coach Stein was a walk-on astatine Louisville. It’s 1 of nan bigger viral moments successful nan nascent College Football Twitter ecosystem, and you tin browse nan images from Card Chronicle to spot each nan nosy photoshops (remember that?) that were done pinch his image.

Early 2010’s memery aside, Coach Stein has only been successful coaching for astir 13 years yet already has 1 of nan coveted “SEC Head Coach” chairs pinch his sanction connected it, a feat that’s uncommon among those successful this occupation and astatine that age. Stein worked for his alma mater erstwhile he graduated past moved to Texas arsenic a value power coach earlier getting a coordinating gig astatine Texas precocious schoolhouse powerhouse Lake Travis. His activity location caught nan oculus of mega-Texas High School Football Coach networker Jeff Traylor astatine UTSA, and Stein’s improvement of nan Roadrunner receivers landed him nan gig astatine Oregon.

That past move is nan large jump, going from G5 position coach to Power 2 coordinator, but evidently nan move worked retired really well. Oregon mightiness beryllium a self-perpetuating violative instrumentality astatine this constituent but Stein still had entree to nan gears, and Oregon’s discourtesy classed 1st, 2nd, and 10th nether his tutelage.

Steins youth, knowledge, and - yes - sunny demeanor are going to beryllium looked to arsenic reasons why Kentucky will get steered retired of nan ditch.

My simplest appraisal of this unit is simple: I emotion it.

Start pinch nan coordinators. Joe Sloan has been astatine LSU for 4 years, including coaching Jayden Daniels during his Heisman run. Brian Kelly is simply a garbage personification and a bad fresh astatine LSU but his offenses were consistently great, pinch Sloan having beforehand statement seats to each of that work.

Jay Bateman is nan caller protect coordinator and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed that guy’s activity ever since he was creating matchup headaches astatine Army. Bateman turned that Army occurrence into roles astatine North Carolina, Florida, and Texas A&M, but Bateman is astatine his champion erstwhile he’s pinch an underdog programme and paired pinch a funky offense, 2 boxes which are checked successful Lexington.

But past you get 2 position coaches from UTSA to capable retired nan remainder of nan unit (which is wherever Stein sewage his start), positive Arkansas’ fantabulous moving backs coach, and an o-line coach from Oregon, 1 of nan champion o-line improvement programs retired there. Add successful immoderate large sanction protect assistants from Ohio State and Texas A&M and you spot a awesome blending of anterior success, recruiting chops, and a request to “prove it” from nan full staff. It’s a cleanable blend for a programme for illustration Kentucky.

In comes a caller coach, retired spell each nan players for nan roster that sewage nan erstwhile feline fired. In this case, 26 portal defections isn’t astir arsenic bad arsenic I thought it would be, but you are seeing aggregate losses astatine each position, positive a agelong snapper. And they aren’t each transferring downs, arsenic 15 of them transferred laterally to adjacent programs aliases upwards to bluish bloods.

The bully news, then, is that Kentucky perfectly crushed it successful nan portal acquisition game, reeling successful nan 11th champion portal people successful nan nation. Kenny Minchey from Notre Dame and Lance Heard from Tennessee are nan large names, but nan roster is littered pinch defectors from programs for illustration Ohio State, Florida, LSU, Texas, Oklahoma, Notre Dame…you know, those precocious tier schools.

Also, erstwhile Missouri cornerback Mark Manfred III transferred to Kentucky. Boo, sir. Boo.

Of course, nan contiguous portal occurrence is location to salve nan lackluster precocious schoolhouse recruiting people that classed 59th successful nan federation and dormant past successful nan SEC. There are immoderate absorbing pieces successful present - including bluish spot backmost Matt Ponatoski - but, for nan astir part, nan banner roster additions for Kentucky will beryllium portal side.

Last year’s Kentucky discourtesy was awful. 81st successful nan nation, to beryllium exact. And they classed 60th aliases worse successful each awesome class isolated from moving nan ball, successful which they were 33rd. They were neither businesslike (63rd) nor explosive (125th) which is astir apt why nan Kentucky encephalon spot hired nan explosive-minded Stein to return over. The Duck discourtesy was consistently elite nether Stein, but moreover his “worst” discourtesy classed 10th overall, 13th successful efficiency, and a wellness 22nd successful explosiveness. Stein’s offenses for illustration to person nan backmost make safe, businesslike throws pinch a precocious completion complaint while besides peppering successful plentifulness of heavy shots (11th successful percent of completions of 20+ yards). The Duck crushed crippled was besides formidable, ranking 16th successful 2025 and being a coagulated root of explosions arsenic well. Granted, Kentucky’s roster is not Oregon’s roster but nan strategy and attack should beryllium nan same: find a seasoned backmost who has bully accuracy and likes heavy shots and adhd successful immoderate explosive-oriented moving backs to tally done nan holes that a mauling violative statement creates. Simples successful theory, reliable successful execution, but I for illustration what I spot truthful far.

Kenny Minchey narrowly mislaid nan Notre Dame backmost conflict past year, and has only thrown 29 passes successful his 3 twelvemonth career, truthful this surely isn’t immoderate proven, knowledgeable guy. But nan talent is location and respected fixed nan alleged hefty value tag tied to his services. Minchey is nan clear QB1 contempt ne'er starting a crippled and his acclimation to nan Stein discourtesy will spell a agelong measurement to wide violative effectiveness.

The keyword to nan Wildcats unchangeable of moving backs: potential. Jason Patterson has talent but ne'er had capable carries to beryllium anything. Former Texas Longhorn C.J. Baxter and Oklahoma Sooner Jovantae Barnes had precocious recruiting rankings and flashed a ton of talent but couldn’t enactment patient capable to make an impact. Between those 3 nan Wildcats should beryllium capable to find an effective superior back; nan question, then, is if there’s capable to person immoderate extent down nan feline who earns nan superior load of carries.

Shane Carr was a dynamo astatine Southern Utah, but will beryllium successful his first twelvemonth of FBS competition. Willie Rodriguez was effective arsenic hellhole from nan tight extremity position but his drawback rates were lackluster. Much for illustration nan moving backs, erstwhile LSU Tiger Nic Anderson has 1 of nan highest talent ceilings connected nan squad but struggled pinch wounded past year. Again, Stein portalled successful talent that should electrify connected insubstantial but needs to beryllium seen successful existent life to beryllium legitimately recognized.

If you heard thing astir Kentucky’s portal prowess it was astir apt from nan o-line group. Pilfering prized recruit/portal entrant Lance Heard was won of nan biggest coups of nan portal season, and each different o-line summation was a feline who had a higher portal ranking than precocious schoolhouse ranking. Alabama, Tennessee, and Ohio State each mislaid players to 5-7 Kentucky. KENTUCKY.

Mark Stoops ever had a great-to-elite defense to backmost up immoderate type of crummy discourtesy he rolled out, but past twelvemonth was nan worst defense he constructed since 2017 and, subsequently, Kentucky mislaid 7 games and Stoops was shown nan door.

For nevertheless bad nan defense was, location surely wasn’t a deficiency of talent, highlighted by nan truth that Stein and DC Jay Bateman actively worked to support immoderate cardinal defenders from past year’s squad, including exquisitely named Mi’Quise Humphrey-Grace, positive linemen Tavion Gadson and Sam Greene, positive linebacker Grant Godfrey and Terhyon Nichols.

The biggest rumor pinch Kentucky’s defense past twelvemonth was a rash of injuries that ransacked nan protect secondary, forcing younger guys - who were not fresh - to measurement up and play. They were subsequently burned often but that tin beryllium viewed arsenic a parting gift, pinch a harvest of knowledgeable (and possibly unwanted?) young protect backs to group arsenic a instauration to build around. Or, astatine least, that’s really I position it fixed that nan portal additions were mostly focused astir imaginable complete production.

Florida defectors Jordan Casteel and Aaron Gates will adhd immoderate fantabulous extent to nan safeties, arsenic will nan telephone up of Western Carolina area Hasaan Sykes. As has been nan lawsuit pinch astir of my appraisal of this team, I for illustration a batch of what they’re bringing in, and if it clicks together it could beryllium incredibly effective.

This is nan second-to-last crippled for some Missouri and Kentucky, and it’ll beryllium astatine Columbia connected November 21st. What will some teams beryllium playing for astatine that point? And really bumpy has nan roadworthy been to that point? So overmuch of nan nightmarish Kentucky losing streak of nan precocious teens was driven by nan truth that Kentucky was nan gatekeeper of SEC mediocrity, beating bad SEC teams and losing to bully ones and Barry Odom’s Missouri squads could ne'er beryllium amended than mediocre.

But that’s ground-and-pound discourtesy paired pinch a devastating defense will astir apt not beryllium typical of this loop of Kentucky football, and there’s truthful overmuch “newness” crossed nan committee that it’s difficult to get a publication connected what’s going to happen. In mentation it should work, but erstwhile has mentation ever been nan driving facet of assemblage sports?

Add to that, Kentucky will person conscionable played Tennessee and Florida earlier hitting nan roadworthy to Columbia, while Missouri will beryllium successful nan mediate of its sadistic closing streak of Texas, Georgia, Kentucky, and Oklahoma.

I seldom cognize really things will spell but I really don’t cognize what these 2 teams will look for illustration erstwhile we get here. It’ll beryllium breathtaking to spot really nan Stein rebuild goes and if Drinkwitz tin nab different triumph against 1 of nan much amazingly difficult SEC opponents for Mizzou.