Kentucky Opens Will Stein Era With 45-13 Win

The Will Stein era at Kentucky is off to a fast start.

Behind a four-touchdown performance from quarterback Kenny Minchey and contributions from several newcomers, the Cats rolled past Youngstown State 45-13 on Saturday at Kroger Field.

Minchey looked comfortable in his first collegiate start. He completed 18 of 27 passes and threw for 301 yards and four touchdowns. He spread the ball around throughout the afternoon, connecting with nine different receivers and giving Kentucky fans an early glimpse of what Stein’s offense can become.

The Cats wasted little time getting started. Minchey completed his first five passes for 61 yards on Kentucky’s opening drive before CJ Baxter punched in a 15-yard touchdown run.

Baxter added another touchdown later in the first quarter as the Cats continued to build an early lead.

From there, the passing attack took over.

Mikkel Skinner caught the first touchdown pass of the Stein era while Kenny Darby and Prince Jean also found the end zone later on. Darby —who was recently named as one of the best freshman receivers this year — finished his debut with a 37-yard touchdown. Additionally, Jean turned his first career reception in a 26-yard score.

Kentucky’s tight ends also made their presence felt. Willie Rodriguez, Skinner, and Henry Boyer totaled 143 yards of offense.

Rodriguez added a touchdown before halftime following one of Kentucky’s biggest plays on special teams. Youngstown State muffed a punt, and Ty Bryant recovered the ball to give the Wildcats excellent field position.

The Wildcats finished with more than 500 yards of total offense and averaged 6.6 yards per carry before the second-team offense entered the game. Jason Patterson added 78 rushing yards as they utilized depth in the backfield.

Defensively, Kentucky wasn’t at full strength today. They played without starting cornerbacks Terhyon Nichols and Hasaan Sykes.

For Stein, Saturday marked the beginning of a new chapter for Kentucky football. The Wildcats scored 45 points in his debut, the most ever scored by a Kentucky head coach in their first game.

Kentucky play Alabama in their SEC opener next week on Sept. 12 at Kroger Field.