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Impressions on the Football Cats after week 1

T

theKybluedude

All-Conference
Jul 2, 2025
869
1,901
93
Thought they came out ready. Scored on the first 3 possessions. Running game and o line were strong. Baxter looked the part. Special teams solid and made a hustle play leading to a score. QB Minchey with 4 td passes and 300 yards. I liked the way the offense distributed the ball. Lots of motion and misdirection. Could see a little bit of influence from his time at Trinity with the changes in tempo and balance and distribution. Not a bunch of penalties. Fr WRs are high potential, clever, fast and our tight ends are very good and involved. Balanced with 500 yards almost split evenly.

Not looking at the play clock every down was a relief. Sideline was overly full of staff but seemed organized. No noticeable confusion.

Unsure on the defense. Not much pass rush but did limit the rushing attack of Youngstown. Seemed a bit undersized in spots but quick. Secondary .. corners filling in are young… not sure. Good safety play. Casteel and Bryant might be the best pair in the SEC.
 
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L

LongliveWildcatDon

Senior
Jun 23, 2026
283
776
93
Biggest improvement is usually between week 1 &2.

Defense didn’t play as bad as some are making it out. Just too many plays where we looked lost. That will happen with two starting CB’s out.

Offense…would like to see more than 4yds from out top 3 receivers but not much to complains about.
 
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BlueWorldOrder74

BlueWorldOrder74

Heisman
Oct 9, 2015
14,191
37,710
78
LongliveWildcatDon said:
Biggest improvement is usually between week 1 &2.

Defense didn’t play as bad as some are making it out. Just too many plays where we looked lost. That will happen with two starting CB’s out.

Offense…would like to see more than 4yds from out top 3 receivers but not much to complains about.
Click to expand...
Im hoping our D Line is better than it looked at times Saturday. And no, I don’t want Stoops back, it was just my own personal observation. I thought overall our guys did what they were supposed to do; they followed assignment and were where they needed to be, just aren’t as big and strong as I think they’ll need to be in SEC.
 
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H

Haggin_Hall_1983

Senior
Jan 27, 2024
388
707
62
theKybluedude said:
Thought they came out ready. Scored on the first 3 possessions. Running game and o line were strong. Baxter looked the part. Special teams solid and made a hustle play leading to a score. QB Minchey with 4 td passes and 300 yards. I liked the way the offense distributed the ball. Lots of motion and misdirection. Could see a little bit of influence from his time at Trinity with the changes in tempo and balance and distribution. Not a bunch of penalties. Fr WRs are high potential, clever, fast and our tight ends are very good and involved. Balanced with 500 yards almost split evenly.

Not looking at the play clock every down was a relief. Sideline was overly full of staff but seemed organized. No noticeable confusion.

Unsure on the defense. Not much pass rush but did limit the rushing attack of Youngstown. Seemed a bit undersized in spots but quick. Secondary .. corners filling in are young… not sure. Good safety play. Casteel and Bryant might be the best pair in the SEC.
Click to expand...
A million things to like. But our sideline energy and engagement (the players) is D-E-A-D. No jumping up and down. No big reactions when players make great plays. I thought this was a Stoops thing, and that the energy of the team would change with Stein. We are way too stoic- football is a game of high energy and emotion. Maybe this will change with this weeks opponent!!
GBB!!!
 
W

wildcatdon

Heisman
Oct 17, 2012
10,629
13,619
113
theKybluedude said:
Thought they came out ready. Scored on the first 3 possessions. Running game and o line were strong. Baxter looked the part. Special teams solid and made a hustle play leading to a score. QB Minchey with 4 td passes and 300 yards. I liked the way the offense distributed the ball. Lots of motion and misdirection. Could see a little bit of influence from his time at Trinity with the changes in tempo and balance and distribution. Not a bunch of penalties. Fr WRs are high potential, clever, fast and our tight ends are very good and involved. Balanced with 500 yards almost split evenly.

Not looking at the play clock every down was a relief. Sideline was overly full of staff but seemed organized. No noticeable confusion.

Unsure on the defense. Not much pass rush but did limit the rushing attack of Youngstown. Seemed a bit undersized in spots but quick. Secondary .. corners filling in are young… not sure. Good safety play. Casteel and Bryant might be the best pair in the SEC.
Click to expand...
Well said.
 
S

Skyguyb27

All-American
Feb 12, 2008
4,971
8,275
113
I thought the defense looked a little concerning but I guess I also didn’t realize so many starters were out. This offense is gonna be fun to watch and I don’t think that was maximum effort. Stoops would've won that game by maybe 7 or 10. I’m not worried about energy, Stein knows how to build a culture.
 
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K

kyhankypanky

All-American
Mar 21, 2004
4,551
7,953
113
theKybluedude said:
Thought they came out ready. Scored on the first 3 possessions. Running game and o line were strong. Baxter looked the part. Special teams solid and made a hustle play leading to a score. QB Minchey with 4 td passes and 300 yards. I liked the way the offense distributed the ball. Lots of motion and misdirection. Could see a little bit of influence from his time at Trinity with the changes in tempo and balance and distribution. Not a bunch of penalties. Fr WRs are high potential, clever, fast and our tight ends are very good and involved. Balanced with 500 yards almost split evenly.

Not looking at the play clock every down was a relief. Sideline was overly full of staff but seemed organized. No noticeable confusion.

Unsure on the defense. Not much pass rush but did limit the rushing attack of Youngstown. Seemed a bit undersized in spots but quick. Secondary .. corners filling in are young… not sure. Good safety play. Casteel and Bryant might be the best pair in the SEC.
Click to expand...
Good summary.

I would put it like this: not sure how much high end talent we have at this point, but we looked like a well coached team who knew what they were doing. Good execution. No stupid mental mistakes. Promising start for Stein.
 
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B

BigBlueGuru

All-Conference
Feb 10, 2007
1,932
3,303
103
I think most others hit it. Offense was good. Defense needs alot of work. Teams that have a good quarterback and passing game will score at will on us.
 
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*Fox2Monk*

*Fox2Monk*

Heisman
Jun 10, 2009
47,594
87,240
113
theKybluedude said:
Thought they came out ready. Scored on the first 3 possessions. Running game and o line were strong. Baxter looked the part. Special teams solid and made a hustle play leading to a score. QB Minchey with 4 td passes and 300 yards. I liked the way the offense distributed the ball. Lots of motion and misdirection. Could see a little bit of influence from his time at Trinity with the changes in tempo and balance and distribution. Not a bunch of penalties. Fr WRs are high potential, clever, fast and our tight ends are very good and involved. Balanced with 500 yards almost split evenly.

Not looking at the play clock every down was a relief. Sideline was overly full of staff but seemed organized. No noticeable confusion.

Unsure on the defense. Not much pass rush but did limit the rushing attack of Youngstown. Seemed a bit undersized in spots but quick. Secondary .. corners filling in are young… not sure. Good safety play. Casteel and Bryant might be the best pair in the SEC.
Click to expand...
If we can get our defense to play solid football and get timely stops or takeaways we could win maybe 6 games. Tough tough schedule but our offense may surprise and keep us in games we had no shot under Stoops in.
 
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M

megablue

Heisman
Oct 2, 2012
16,534
17,212
113
If our offensive line is good enough to help produce 4-5 yards on running attempts, versus 2-3 yards, I think our offensive balance will allow us to compete against good teams. Hopefully, our defense will be good enough to pick up some wins against SEC teams and Louisville.

I think 4 wins is probable, 5 wins is certainly doable and 6 wins would be a very successful debut season for Stein, his staff and our players. I am looking forward to seeing the progress we make each week ... especially with such a tough schedule. GO CATS !!!
 
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KyWilson239

KyWilson239

Senior
Jan 17, 2016
220
495
63
It was a very vanilla game plan, as it should've been. This good to see the te involved in the passing game, is the middle of the field as well, and a good run pass balance. Defensive line just bull rushed and the dbs played zone. Expect more exotic looks next week to confuse the freshman QB, but we have to stop the run.
 
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L

L.O.D.

All-Conference
Feb 4, 2024
1,309
1,698
77
Offense is pretty good and about where I expected maybe better . The defense is bad and honestly looked like it regressed.
 
K_TIME

K_TIME

Heisman
Jan 2, 2003
18,436
25,823
113
1. The offense schematics appear to have purpose....Coen seemed to run a very good/clean operation his first go round...but under Stoops this has been the norm to be struggling to snap ball, get a rhythm, attack a Defense weakness besides running the ball, set up plays, etc... So we got what we paid for in a smoother offensive operation.
2. We appear to have a high level Oline...in talent but also give Leftwich some props....they play cohesively. Plugged in Knox at last moment and operartion was sound. Like the guards and tackles playing off each other....the offensive coordinator has a lot to do with that....but that group is impressive.
3. TE Room is impressive....adn we finally scheme them the ball alot more.
4. Mincey looks fine in pocket....throws an easy to catch ball in short traffic. Not a ton of ball too high, too low, a bit behind...tons of YAC.
5. Ilike Bryant and Casteel at Safety.
 
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theBlues

theBlues

All-Conference
Oct 18, 2025
1,856
4,132
113
I liked the offense a lot. I agree that the defense we saw against Youngstown would not get it done against an SEC team but fortunately, I don't think we'll see that defense again. Against Youngstown State they played the type defense Stoops used, passive, little blitzing resulting in not much pressure on the other team's qb. Stein went out of his way before the season to say that he would have an aggressive defense so I think what we saw in game one was a tactical choice with Alabama in mind. Aside from sitting both starting cornerbacks and Afari not having enough practice time to learn his role in a new defensive scheme, I think Stein is hoping that Alabama bases their offensive gameplan on the defense they saw in the first game. I expect the defensive line to look better in the pass rush when helped out by a few blitzes.
 
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B

Beatle Bum

Heisman
Sep 1, 2002
43,446
66,098
113
Delk4three said:
We were missing our starting corners and Afari is probably a starter also. I think we did okay for the first game.
Click to expand...
I would have to watch again but I am not sure Bateman did too much. Played run-game contain and seemed a little vanilla.
 
G

gobigblue812_rivals29381

Heisman
Jun 11, 2012
15,742
16,701
113
“New staff in general, I’m familiar with coach Stein and his offense,” DeBoer said. “Different play-caller now obviously. But they defensively got one game, offensively got one game to look at, and it was a game that wasn’t contested for very long, so there’s going to be a lot of things that they’ve worked on that they’re going to hold. We would do the same. So there’s just that piece of it.”
 
B

bleedsblue5

All-Conference
Jul 1, 2025
520
1,122
93
I was impressed, that QB for YTS is pretty dang good and we did okish against him with our starting corners out.
Offense was a breath of fresh air, we looked ready.
 
Artlaibesghost

Artlaibesghost

All-Conference
Nov 30, 2022
1,302
2,668
113
We thrashed a tomato can, which we were supposed to do. As many well know that didn't always happen with coach Stoops so that's encouraging. The oline looked physical and capable. Our running backs looked fast and physical.Minchey proved he can deliver the ball accurately when not under stress. We finally have a coach that knows how to incorporate tight ends into an offense.The defensive line is undersized and not very physical. Hard to judge the secondary as we are currently shorthanded.
We get the real answers to many of the questions about the team this week, especially Minchey. If he can perform under stress and pressure of a good SEC team we could have a really good season.
 
LineSkiCat14

LineSkiCat14

Heisman
Aug 5, 2015
39,679
62,547
113
Im not sure how good the starting D-backs are, but missing two of your back end is gonna show up whether its HS football or the NFL.

So its hard to think Kentucky could have performed much better than they did. Seems like an A-grade to me, or B+ at minimum. Even if it was a nobody school, this was game 1 and kentucky executed very well considering.

And compare that to Pope, who, with 1/5th the team, still looked lost in year 2. Which isnt to dog Pope because MOST coaches take time.. ut instead illustrate how good of a performance this was in year 1/game 1
 
M

megablue

Heisman
Oct 2, 2012
16,534
17,212
113
KyWilson239 said:
It was a very vanilla game plan, as it should've been. This good to see the te involved in the passing game, is the middle of the field as well, and a good run pass balance. Defensive line just bull rushed and the dbs played zone. Expect more exotic looks next week to confuse the freshman QB, but we have to stop the run.
Click to expand...
I don't expect us to get crazy on offense, but I hope the shovel pass, flea flicker and reverse are in our playbook to keep the defense guessing.
 
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