KSR Today: College Basketball's Opening Day and Florida Week

For the first time in a long time, a Monday morning feels a little lighter around Big Blue Nation. Kentucky Football finally got one in the win column with Saturday’s victory at Auburn, and now turns its attention to Florida under the lights in Kroger Field later this week.

Meanwhile, college basketball officially tips off today, with Mark Pope’s Wildcats opening tomorrow night in Rupp Arena in the BBN United Tipoff Classic presented by Kentucky Tourism, and Kenny Brooks’ new team starting tonight. There’s plenty to keep us busy today and the rest of this week. Let’s dive in. Happy College Basketball Opening Day, my friends.

Florida Week for the Wildcats

It’s officially Florida Week in Lexington, and for the first time in a while, there’s a little optimism around Kentucky Football. The Wildcats finally broke through in SEC play with Saturday’s win at Auburn, snapping a long conference losing streak and showing signs of life behind a great defensive effort.

Now, the challenge gets tougher. Kentucky returns home this upcoming Saturday to host Florida under the lights in Kroger Field for a 7:30 p.m. kickoff on SEC Network. The Gators enter as a 3.5-point favorite despite dropping their rivalry game to Georgia over the weekend in Jacksonville. Both teams are fighting to finish strong in SEC play, and for Kentucky, it’s the final home conference game of the year and a chance to build momentum before the final stretch.

Monday with Mark Stoops

Mondays mean we hear from Mark Stoops, first with his weekly press conference around lunchtime and then again on his call-in radio show tonight. Stoops will take questions from the local media about the win at Auburn and the pride in his team in getting it done. Also, what’s next for the Wildcats with the Gators traveling to Kroger Field for the SEC home finale. Find all of those comments here on KentuckySportsRadio.com later today.

You can hear Stoops chat with Tom Leach, and maybe a caller, at 6 p.m. on the UK Sports Network. You can also watch his postgame press conference from late Saturday night in Jordan-Hare Stadium.

Auburn fires Hugh Freeze after loss to Kentucky

Just a day after his Tigers lost 10-3 to Kentucky at home, Hugh Freeze was dismissed as the head football coach at Auburn. The move comes amid mounting frustration with a 4-5 overall mark and a 1-5 SEC record, as well as the three points scored in Saturday’s loss.

Freeze finishes his tenure at Auburn with a 15-19 record and a 6-16 mark against SEC opponents. The decision underscores how quickly the coaching carousel is spinning in college football, and serves as a pointed reminder for programs like Kentucky about how thin the margin for error can be in today’s landscape.

Tune in for a new KSR Football Podcast at 2 p.m.

Finally, a win to talk about on the KSR Football Podcast. Today, the crew will discuss Kentucky’s win at Auburn and what it means for the season on a new episode, streamed live on KSR’s YouTube channel at 2 p.m. Tune in for football thoughts from Nick Roush, Adam Luckett, Van Hiles, and me, with a look back to Luckett’s trip to the Plains and what’s next with Florida coming to Lexington for a November game.

The top five of the AP Top 25 didn’t move

Ohio State is still the No. 1 team in the land in the new AP Top 25 poll, released Sunday. The two other unbeaten teams in the country, Indiana and Texas A&M, are second and third, then Alabama and Georgia round out the top five.

Still on UK’s schedule, Vanderbilt fell six spots from ninth to No. 15 and Louisville climbed two spots to No. 14. Tennessee dropped nine spots to No. 23 after losing at home to Oklahoma, now ranked No. 11.

Kentucky Volleyball swept No. 2 Texas

Third-ranked Kentucky Volleyball picked up one of its biggest wins of the season on Sunday, sweeping No. 2 Texas 3–0 in front of a sold-out crowd in Austin. Eva Hudson led the way with 20 kills and 10 digs, while Brooklyn DeLeye added 18 kills as the Wildcats handed Texas its first home sweep loss in more than a decade.

The win moves Kentucky to 18-2 on the season and 11-0 in SEC play, putting the Wildcats alone in first place in the league standings. They’ll look to keep the momentum rolling Thursday night at Missouri.

No. 3 Kentucky VB sweeps No. 2 Texas on the road to take control of SEC

Max Hairston picked off Pat Mahomes

A former Kentucky Wildcat sealed one of the biggest wins on NFL Sunday, when Maxwell Hairston intercepted Patrick Mahomes late in the fourth quarter of the Bills-Chiefs game. Facing a 3rd-and-11 at the KC23, Mahomes threw one up toward Xavier Worthy, only for Hairston to haul in his first career interception. It was Hairston’s second career game in his rookie year in Buffalo, where the Bills moved to 6-2 by beating the defending AFC champs.

Joey Bosa gets the pressure and the rookie Maxwell Hairston picks off Mahomes!

KCvsBUF on CBS/Paramount+https://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/oMCbSYaFEn

— NFL (@NFL) November 3, 2025

Opening Day of College Basketball

The 2025-25 college basketball season tips off today. Here are the 19 games featuring ranked teams on today’s viewing schedule. It’s here!

• No. 2 Houston vs. Lehigh, 8 p.m. | CBSSN
• No. 3 Florida vs. No. 18 Arizona (in Las Vegas), 7 p.m. | TNT/truTV
• No. 4 UConn vs. New Haven, 7 p.m. | ESPN+
• No. 5 St. John’s vs. Quinnipiac, 6:30 p.m. | FS1
• No. 7 Michigan vs. Oakland, 8:30 p.m. | FS1
• No. 8 BYU vs. Villanova (in Las Vegas), 9:30 p.m. | TNT/truTV
• No. 11 Louisville vs. South Carolina State, 9 p.m. | ACC Network
• No. 12 UCLA vs. Eastern Washington, 10:30 p.m. | Big Ten Network
• No. 14 Arkansas vs. Southern, 7 p.m. | SEC Network
• No. 15 Alabama vs. North Dakota, 8 p.m. | SECN+
• No. 16 Iowa State vs. FDU, 8 p.m. | ESPN+
• No. 17 Illinois vs. Jackson State, 8:30 p.m. | Big Ten Network
• No. 18 Tennessee vs. Mercer, 7 p.m. | SECN+
• No. 19 Kansas vs. Green Bay, 8 p.m. | ESPN+
• No. 20 Auburn vs. Bethune-Cookman, 8 p.m. | SECN+
• No. 21 Gonzaga vs. Texas Southern, 9 p.m. | ESPN+
• No. 22 Michigan State vs. Colgate, 7 p.m. | Big Ten+
• No. 24 Wisconsin vs. Campbell, 8 p.m. | Big Ten+
• No. 25 North Carolina vs. Central Arkansas, 7 p.m. | ACC Network

Kentucky tips off tomorrow

Kentucky fans will have to wait one more day to see the Wildcats take the floor. UK hosts Nicholls State tomorrow night at 7 p.m. in Rupp Arena, with the game streaming on SEC Network+. More than the season opener, it’s the first game in the BBN United Tipoff Classic presented by Kentucky Tourism.

Brandon Garrison and Jasper Johnson will preview the game

Today, Brandon Garrison and Jasper Johnson will represent the Wildcats with a Monday press conference previewing tomorrow’s game. Garrison and Johnson will hold the first pregame Q&A of the season, and we’ll be there to relay their comments to you. Make sure you’re subscribed to KSR on YouTube.

Kentucky Women’s Basketball opens its season today

While the men wait a day, the women will play their opener tonight, hosting Morehead State at Historic Memorial Coliseum. Kenny Brooks’ second Kentucky WBB team tips off its season at 6:30 pm. on SEC Network+. Get ready for the new year with KSR’s 2025-26 Kentucky Women’s Basketball Staff Predictions.

Koby Brea scored his first NBA points last night

A night after Amari Williams’ first NBA point, Koby Brea got in the NBA scoring column for the first time. Brea made one of two shots and two free throws for four points in four minutes in a 130-118 win over the Spurs.

FUEGO 🔥

Koby Brea recorded his first NBA basket in tonight's win! pic.twitter.com/VEsEdKmukw

— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) November 3, 2025

Listen to KSR at 10 a.m.

We’re in the iHeart studio for today’s show, live from 10 a.m. to noon. Tune in via the KSR radio affiliate network for takeaways from the Auburn win and what’s next for the football team and basketball beginning tomorrow. Go Cats, and have a great Monday.