Predicting Kentucky’s 2026 Record

It's a new era for Kentucky football as Mark Stoops is out after 13 seasons in Lexington. The Cats replaced the league's elder statesman with the youngest coach in the SEC, 36-year-old Will Stein. A Louisville native, Stein played college football for the Cards while his father played for Jerry Claiborne and the Wildcats in the 1980s. Stein's moved up the coaching ranks pretty quickly. He comes to Kentucky after three years as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Oregon. With a new era comes new excitement, and that's certainly been the case for the Big Blue Nation. Now, it's time to prove it on the field. It won't be easy as 10 of the Wildcats' 12 opponents are ranked in the Top 35 of the preseason AP poll. Can the Cats get back to a bowl game for the first time since 2023? Let's go game by game we're predicting Kentucky's 2026 record.

Predicting Kentucky's 2026 Record

September 5th- Youngstown State– UK gets their annual SEC+ plus game out of the way in the season's first game. The Penguins come into Saturday ranked seventh in the FCS rankings. In addition, they've already played a game. Last Thursday they rolled up 484 yards of offense in a 43-10 win over Mercyhurst. Reigning Walter Payton Award winner Beau Brungard, the FCS equivalent of the Heisman, accounted for five touchdowns. Look for this one to stay close early before the Cats pull away in the second half.