Position Breakdown

While Kentucky is favored against Toledo going into Saturday’s season opener for both teams it’s not your typical game between an SEC team and a MAC program.

Kentucky is coming off a very down year and the Wildcats have plenty of questions while Toledo is picked to win the MAC one year removed from two wins against power conference teams.

Here Cats Illustrated breaks down the matchup by exploring what each team is working with at every spot on the field.

Quarterback: Even

Zach Calzada and Tucker Gleason have had very different college experiences. Both have significant Division I playing time under their belt. Calzada is much older, 24 years of age, and it has been a few years since he took snaps in the Southeastern Conference. He has a tremendous arm and is comfortable pushing the ball down the field but Kentucky’s staff is working with him on managing situations and what they’re trying to accomplish at any given point in the game. Gleason has the ability to keep plays alive.

The 6’3, 245-pound Tampa native was 233/385 (60.5%) for 2,808 yards, 24 touchdowns and three picks last year, also rushing for 364 yards. Against Mississippi State last year Gleason was 23/28 for 285 yards and three touchdowns with no picks. Against Pitt he was 26/50 for 351 yards, two touchdowns and one pick. So against two power conference teams last year Gleason threw five touchdowns and one pick, averaging well over 300 yards in those games.

The one edge that Gleason clearly has over Calzada is familiarity in the offense he will be running.

Running Back: Advantage Kentucky

Chip Trayanum has earned a lot of praise from Toledo’s coaches since he joined their program earlier this year. Jason Candle has made it clear that Toledo is expecting Trayanum to be a very productive player for them. He has rushed for more than 1,200 yards in his college career. Kentucky will be leaning on Seth McGowan and Dante Dowdell, transfers from New Mexico State and Nebraska, respectively. It’s not obvious that McGowan and/or Dowdell will be better than Trayanum. But Trayanum is coming off a year that didn’t amount to anything for him and Kentucky has better depth. Kenji Christian comes in from Virginia Tech and should also get a workload and former Kentucky player Mike Drennen is in the backfield for the Rockets, too.

Wide Receiver/Tight End: Even

Junior Vandeross had 85 catches for 957 yards and five touchdowns last year but the Rockets have to replace Jerjuan Newton, their leading receiver who had 1,048 yards and 11 touchdowns. They will pair Northern Illinois transfer Trayvon Rudolph with Vandeross to give Gleason a great 1-2 combination in the MAC. That duo is one reason Toledo is picked to win the league. Mark Stoops made a point to praise Toledo’s top two receivers. Kentucky doesn’t have Barion Brown or Dane Key. It looks like more of a committee approach that will involve Ja’Mori Maclin, Hardley Gilmore, and a number of transfer pieces. There isn’t quite as much depth at tight end this year as there was last year but the group should complement the Big Blue Wall’s blocking well and Willie Rodriguez should have a quality year. What we said about Tucker Gleason’s advantage could also be an edge for Toledo here. Even if there isn’t the overall talent level on the Toledo side that Kentucky possesses, experience and comfort in the offense could be an equalizer for the Rockets’ receivers. Holy Cross tight end transfer Jacob Peterson is a capable pass catcher.

Offensive Line: Advantage Kentucky

We’ve mentioned this before but going into last season Toledo’s offensive line had zero total starts. That’s inexperience. This year they have more than 40 starts, collectively, but it’s still a relatively inexperienced group compared to the veteran-laden squad Kentucky will have in the trenches. But there is a lot of unknown even with Kentucky because both tackles, Shiyazh Pete and Alex Wollschlaeger, are part of a power conference program for the first time and Jager Burton is moving back to center where it didn’t go well last time. Given the overall scale of offseason investment in the offensive line Kentucky needs to have an advantage here. Last year Toledo was pass happy, a deviation from its usual balance. Candle hopes the line is able to give them more of a run game this year. While Toledo won eight games a year ago the offensive line’s regression was a reason for the overall unit producing less than usual and that issue became acute in the Rockets’ five losses. Pitt transfer center Terrence Moore will be key for the Toledo line.

Defensive Line: Advantage Kentucky

It’s an almost totally new defensive line for Kentucky with all the losses from last year, as well as the guys who have returned from injury. It isn’t quite as massive a line as Kentucky has rolled with in recent years but there’s still plenty of size. Anwar Stewart’s position room has some of the most highly-ranked former recruits currently in the Kentucky program with David Gusta and Mi’Quise Humphrey-Grace two of the top transfers the Cats brought in this offseason. If you think Kentucky lost a lot on its line, Toledo was really wiped out. It’s hard for a MAC program to replace an NFL pick like Darius Alexander. Toledo will be relying heavily on former backups and portal additions. Senior defensive tackle Martez Poytner is one of the better players on the team and Anthony Dunn Jr has been around a while. Michigan State transfer Avery Dunn could be a player for the Rockets, too. But Kentucky is bigger and deeper than the Rockets on the defensive line.

Linebacker: Advantage Kentucky

Both teams are turning over a lot of players here. Kentucky returns Alex Afari but will be leaning heavily on Daveren Rayner, Sam Greene, Steven Soles, Kam Olds, and some others. Toledo lost an awful lot at linebacker from last year’s team. They bring in three power conference transfers, from Virginia, Purdue, and West Virginia, and there’s a lot left to the imagination. Langston Long is a transfer from USF who should factor into what Toledo is doing defensively.

Defensive Back: Even

The secondary is expected to be one of the stronger units on Toledo’s team. While the Rockets lose almost everybody from last year’s front seven, almost the entire secondary returns. There’s talent, enough size, and plenty of experience. Several of the best players on Toledo’s team are defensive backs. Kentucky’s secondary has a lot of experience and that’s one reason they didn’t attack the portal looking for more players back there. Jordan Lovett and Ty Bryant need to be strong in terms of communication and assignments on the back end. They are in pretty good shape at cornerback with a trio of starting-caliber players there. Toledo’s secondary posted great numbers a year ago. They did surrender 2,703 passing yards but allowed 16 touchdowns against 13 picks and opposing quarterbacks completed only 57.5% of their pass attempts. Kentucky’s secondary allowed only nine touchdowns and had 10 picks, but opposing quarterbacks completed 63.4% of their passes for 2,204 yards.

Special Teams: Even

Kentucky had some things going for it last year with Alex Raynor nearly automatic on field goals (for two years running) and Barion Brown returning some kicks. Both players are gone. Kendrick Law gets a chance on returns while Jacob Kauwe will get first crack at the placekicking. Aidan Laros will handle the punting duties but there’s no way to know which way the special teams unit will go for Kentucky in 2026. Toledo is breaking in new return men but Emilio Duran and Dylan Cunanan gained experience last year.