Big Blue Preview: Kentucky vs. Youngstown State
Info to Know
| Kentucky vs. Youngstown State | When: Sat., Sept. 5, 1 p.m. ET | Where: Kroger Field, Lexington, Ky. | TV: SEC Network Plus | Radio: UK Sports Network |
Preview
Kentucky football will open the Will Stein era against Youngstown State on Saturday. Stein was named Kentucky’s 39th head coach on Dec. 1, 2025.
Stein returns to the Bluegrass after spending the last three seasons as the offensive coordinator at Oregon under Dan Lanning. He was responsible for directing one of the most explosive offenses in the country as the Ducks reached the College Football Playoffs in each of the past two seasons.
The new UK head coach built his first Kentucky team largely through the transfer portal. Stein’s first portal class ranks No. 8 by The Athletic, No. 9 by ESPN and No. 10 by 247Sports.
Youngstown State opened its season last weekend, beating Mercyhurst 43-10. Quarterback Beau Brungard leads one of the top offenses in all of the Football Championship Subdivision.
Cat Scratches: Stein Excited for First Opener as Head Coach
Kentucky kicks off its 2026 football season on Saturday, facing Youngstown State at Kroger Field (1 p.m. ET, SEC Network Plus). It will be the first game as a head coach for new UK mentor Will Stein, who met the media on Tuesday for his first game-week press conference. Stein likes how his team has come out of fall camp.
“First of all, we had a great camp, just to finish it off,” Stein said. “I thought our guys competed very well. They braved the heat, they braved practice, but that’s what you sign up for when you play football. That’s what it is. So, I thought our guys were really good over the last three, four weeks. We created toughness in our unit. I thought we found out who we are in all three phases of the game.”
Stein knows that, despite the fact that fall camp has ended, the work for his team cannot stop…Read More
Kentucky-Youngstown State Series History
• Kentucky will take on the Penguins from Youngstown State for the second time in program history. The Cats earned a 31-0 victory at Kroger Field on Sept. 17, 2022, in the team’s only other meeting:
• The Wildcats are 6-0 all-time against current Missouri Valley programs.
• UK has outscored MVC foes by a 271-22 margin.
• Kentucky has two shutouts against MVC teams (North Dakota in 1950 and Youngstown State in 2022).
• Five games have been decided by 20 or more points.
• Kentucky is 22-0 all-time against teams from the Football Championship Subdivision/IAA at the time of the game.
• Since 1998 when FBS opponents were able to schedule FCS/I-AA teams, UK is 22-0 in those matchups.
• Kentucky has won by an average margin of 29 points per game against FCS opponents since 1998.
By the Numbers
5
Consecutive wins in home openers for Kentucky
7
Number of Kentucky’s opponents who are currently ranked
18.5
Career sacks for Kentucky’s Mi’Quise Humphrey-Grace
62
New players on the 2026 UK roster
210
Career games played by Kentucky’s projected starting offensive line
