5 Things You Need to Know About the Toledo Rockets

It is, once again, Football Time in the Bluegrass. Overall moral and optimism may be low, but it is still a College Football Saturday. The Kentucky Wildcats will take the gridiron on Saturday afternoon to take on the Toledo Rockets. There will be several new faces for Big Blue Nation to cheer for in 2025. A new quarterback, new running back, new wide receivers, and a revamped Big Blue Wall will hopefully lead to exceeding expectations in Coach Mark Stoops’ 13th season at the helm of the Kentucky Football program.

Last season’s 4-8 mark completed a three-year downward trend for the program since going 10-3 in 2021. It was the Wildcats’ first time missing a bowl game since 2015 and, in the minds of a vocal portion of the fanbase, put Coach Stoops on the hot seat. However, an eight-year run of relatively unprecedented success would hopefully buy the program’s all-time winningest coach a bit of grace. Things could admittedly turn ugly though if the ‘Cats don’t show some serious signs of improvement in Week One. The Toledo Rockets are a high-quality opponent who were picked to win the MAC. Toledo received some national preseason acclaim as well coming in at 36th in the preseason AP Poll while the Wildcats did not receive any votes.

As always, Kentucky Sports Radio’s football experts Nick Roush and Adam Luckett have spent the week providing in-depth breakdowns of the Wildcats’ opponent. 11 Personnel and the KSR Football Podcast have you covered as well if you prefer preparing for Saturday’s game via audio. However, for those looking for a more surface level preview you have come to the right place. Here are five things you need to know about the Toledo Rockets.

Toledo has High Expectations for Veteran Quarterback

Kentucky quarterback Zach Calzada has been at the butt end of some jokes for entering his seventh season of college football. However, Toledo Rockets quarterback Tucker Gleason isn’t far behind entering his sixth year on the gridiron. Gleason became the full-time starter for the first time in 2024 and made the most of his opportunity throwing for 2,808 yards. He finished with 24 touchdowns, 8 interceptions, and completed just over 60% of his passing attempts. The 6’3″ quarterback leaned heavily on the short passing game with an average depth-of-target under 10 yards, but proved to be highly efficient while marching the Rockets down the field.

Not only was Gleason successful through the air, but the veteran QB also was highly effective as a runner. He recorded just shy of 500 non-sack rushing yards and accumulated over five yards per carry. Gleason added seven touchdowns on the ground to account for a total of 31 for the Toledo offense. His return is a major reason for the preseason optimism surrounding the MAC favorites. In fact, in 50 simulations by the FOX College Football crew of the season via EA Sports College Football 2026 Gleason came away with the Heisman Trophy one time. If Gleason takes another step forward in his sixth season it will go a long way towards the Rockets being one of the best Group of Five teams in college football.

Two All-MAC Wide Receivers Give Gleason Some Playmakers

Jerjuan Newton capped off an outstanding six-year career with the Toledo Rockets racking up 1,048 receiving yards on 72 receptions with a league-leading 11 touchdowns. However, despite Gleason’s favorite target graduating he will still have two All-MAC wide receivers at his disposal. Junior Vandeross III returns as a First Team All-MAC performer that led the Rockets in receptions last season with 85 which he converted into 957 yards and five scores. The small, explosive slot receiver should once again be a favorite target of Gleason.

Meanwhile, Toledo landed Northern Illinois transfer Trayvon Rudolph in the portal who has multiple All-MAC selections to his name. His best season came all of the way back in 2021, but he did collected 37 catches for 392 yards last year along with 14 rushes for 179 yards. When healthy, the 5’10” pass catcher has proven to be one of the best in the conference. There will be other targets, including Holy Cross transfer tight end Jacob Peterson, but expect the bulk of Toledo’s passing game to run through Vandeross III and Rudolph.

High Offensive Expectations Despite Middling Production

Being picked to win the MAC in the preseason polls, a Top 40 national ranking by the AP voters, and dark horse Heisman talk for quarterback Tucker Gleason would make you think the Toledo Rockets are a proven juggernaut. However, they finished .500 in the MAC last season are coming off of their worst offensive season of the Coach Candle era. The Rockets finished 64th in scoring and outside the Top 100 in success rate, yards per rush, third down conversions, and red zone touchdown percentage. In order to cash in on preseason expectations Toledo will have to take some major strides offensively, especially via the ground game.

One of those offensive steps forward in the backfield could come from a former Kentucky Wildcat. Chip Trayanum will be playing his sixth season of college football having rushed for 1,257 yards and 13 touchdowns. However, the former Sun Devil and Buckeye couldn’t stay healthy in Lexington last season playing in just three games. The former blue-chip recruit has plenty of talent, but it has never fully translated to high levels of production on the field. A move to the MAC could unlock his abilities though. North Carolina A&T transfer Kenji Christian and Rockets’ returner Connor Walendzak will also see carries within Toledo’s rushing attack.

Plenty of Unknowns Among the Rockets’ Defensive Front

Utilizing a 4-2-5 defensive scheme, the Toledo Rockets will rely heavily on a bunch of new faces in what is, for them, a front six. Two defensive line starters, including NFL Third Round pick Darius Alexander, are gone. However, Esean Carter and Martez Poynter bring back over 250 snaps to help fill those shoes in the middle while Malachi Davis is another returning piece that got quality rotational opportunities a year ago. All three have experience, but will be in larger roles than they have ever been asked to fill in their combined 12 seasons of collegiate experience.

A pair of defensive end transfers could be the most talented commodities on the line for the Rockets. Redshirt senior Louce Julien recorded 43 tackles, five sacks, and a pair of forced fumbles last season at Massachusetts. Meanwhile, sixth year senior Avery Dunn is a veteran of Michigan State’s defensive line rotation.

At linebacker the Rockets have even more unknowns than they do along the defensive line. Nobody who played a significant role in 2024 is back and Toledo will be forced to rely heavily on transfers and/or guys returning from injury. Purdue transfer Hudson Miller is probably the most proven commodity of the bunch, but even he only started five games for a bad Boilermakers team last season. Chris D’Appolonia may have the most physical upside, but he missed last year due to injury. Kentucky should be able to win the battle in the trenches on Saturday.

Toledo’s Strength is in the Secondary

For all of the potential worries and unknowns up front, the Toledo Rockets have a sure thing in the secondary. Avery Smith is a ball-hawking cornerback that earned Second Team All-MAC honors as a junior. Look for him to be one of the top defensive players in the conference this season. Nasir Bowers and Brandon Awls are veterans of the Rockets’ defense as well. With Kentucky featuring a new quarterback and a new crop of wide receivers it will be interesting to see if the ‘Cats can win battles through the air.

Toledo has a strong group of safeties as well. Emmanuel McNeil-Warren is back from injury after missing the final six games of last season. He has some legitimate NFL Draft buzz and could be another All-MAC performer in the Rockets’ secondary. Additionally, the secondary loaded up in the transfer portal to provide even more talent and depth. Andrew Wilson-Lamp comes in with experience from West Virginia and East Carolina while both Amare Snowden and Braedyn Moore played at Wisconsin. This secondary is going to be really, really good.