Everything We Know About Kentucky Football on Will Stein's First Day on the Job

It’s been a frenetic 24 hours for Big Blue Nation. Everything is happening all of the time all at once. One minute, Mark Stoops is the Wildcats’ coach. The next, it’s a former Louisville quarterback.

The Will Stein era has arrived in Lexington. Kentucky went from a defensive-minded head coach who struggled to develop quarterbacks to one of the most productive offensive coordinators in college football. Let’s unfold what we know about the Kentucky football program after a neck-twisting 24 hours.

Kentucky Wasted No Time

On Sunday, Big Blue Nation played the waiting game. On Monday, it was hard to keep up.

The long, drawn-out process to let Mark Stoops go made it appear as if the Kentucky decision-makers were sitting on their hands. They responded by hiring a coach before the sunset. How did it all happen?

The seeds were planted roughly six weeks ago. We shared on KSBoard back in October, during the middle of the roughest parts of Mark Stoops’ last season, that Stein and Kentucky had communicated to gauge interest. Clearly, some headway was made in those conversations that made Mitch Barnhart and the rest of the administration confident enough to quickly move forward in the process once a settlement was reached with Mark Stoops.

Big Blue Nation spent the day tracking planes and following smoke signals. We heard that Ohio State’s Brian Hartline would accept a job offer from Kentucky, but that offer never came. By lunchtime, Steven Peake and many others around the city of Louisville were talking. It was Stein’s job for the taking. Those all manifested with a report just after 6:30 PM ET that Stein would be Kentucky’s next head coach. The kid who grew up cheering on the Cats in Commonwealth Stadium is returning to Lexington.

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Stein will Coach Two Teams at Once

We do not know exactly when a formal announcement and press conference will occur. It makes sense to create a crowd pop during tomorrow night’s game at Rupp Arena, but there will be logistical issues for Stein and Kentucky for the next month.

Stein will continue to serve as Oregon’s offensive coordinator through the end of the season. He could be calling plays against Jon Sumrall’s Tulane Green Wave at Autzen Stadium in a few weeks. If the Ducks win, he’ll call plays in a CFP quarterfinal on New Year’s Day.

The transfer portal opens one day later on Jan. 2. If Oregon wins twice, Stein may have to juggle game prep in Eugene for a National Semifinal, along with roster-building across the country in Lexington. This will be a challenging needle to thread early in Stein’s tenure.

Stein Offenses Score Points

Kentucky has not had a 3,000-yard passer since 2010. Will Stein has had two 4,000-yard passers in the last four years. During each of his three years at Oregon, the Ducks have finished in the top five in points per drive. Oregon is the ninth-ranked scoring offense in the nation this fall (38.2), a clip behind the second-ranked group he put on the field during his first year in Eugene (44.2).

Most importantly, Stein has proven that he can have a successful offense, regardless of circumstance. He’s had four different quarterbacks over the last four years. All three Oregon quarterbacks were transfers, cast away by their previous programs. Dante Moore was benched at UCLA. Oklahoma decided to let Dillon Gabriel leave. Bo Nix was chopped liver after his time at Auburn. After a year at Oregon, he was a Heisman Trophy finalist en route to a first round NFL Draft selection. On Sunday, he won his ninth-straight game with the Broncos.

For a better perspective on Stein, allow me to share an opinion from one of Oregon’s most vocal fans. Geoff Schwartz is a Fox Sports analyst who played for the Ducks and admires the way that Stein adapts his scheme and play-calling to the given circumstances.

“For Kentucky fans looking for information on Will Stein’s offense and ability to create points you should look at the last month of Oregon football,” Schwartz wrote on Twitter.

“Down WR1, 2 and 4 + multiple OL injuries, and he adjusted the offense to score points. Games in the rain. On the road. Very controlled on offense. Continued to have success. And that’s what Stein does best. He uses the weapons he’s got to score. No ego. One game it’s heavy run. Next game it’s the pass. There’s balance. And creativity. Development of talent. He developed Bo Nix and now Dante Moore. The pass game is West Coast concepts. Read the triangle. It’s very NFL-based.”

An Experienced Staff is Needed

Kentucky went from the longest-tenured coach in the SEC to the youngest. There is great upside to this move, but also great risk. For this to work, he must have counterbalances on his staff with experienced assistants.

Who could that be? There are no obvious answers. Head coaches typically bring plenty of staffers with them, but it’s unlikely that the masses will leave Oregon in droves to coach at Kentucky. While most attention will be on building next year’s roster, his first move, assembling a staff, is the top priority. Making the right hires is crucial to Stein’s success in Lexington.

SEC head coach ages

Brent Venables: 54
Kalen DeBoer: 51
Sark: 51
Lane: 50
Kirby: 49
Mike Elko: 48
Shane Beamer: 48
Josh Heupel: 47
Ryan Silverfield: 45
Clark Lea: 44
Jon Sumrall: 43
Eli Drinkwitz: 42
Pete Golding: 41
Alex Golesh: 41
Jeff Lebby: 41
Will Stein: 36

— Adam Luckett (@AdamLuckettKSR) December 2, 2025

Recruiting Questions

The Early Signing Period begins on Wednesday. We saw a few significant developments, even before Kentucky made a move.

Garrett Witherington — The 6-foot-5, 295-pound defensive tackle from Alabama flipped his commitment from Kentucky to Virginia Tech.

Caleb Pyfrom — A former Missouri Tiger, this JUCO offensive lineman announced his commitment to Kentucky Monday afternoon. This leaves the Cats with 14 commitments in the 2026 class, and four-star safety Messiah Tilson is undecided on what he will do during the Early Signing Period.

Ben Duncum — The four-star EDGE remains locked in with the Wildcats. He attends Austin Lake Travis, the same school where Stein served as the play-caller for two seasons.

Matt Ponatoski — This is the big one. The Blue Chip quarterback shared on Sunday that he did not plan on putting pen to paper during the Early Signing Period simply because he didn’t need to. He’s playing baseball for Moeller this spring. However, he said he’s solid with the Cats, and before the news was announced, noted that he created a quality relationship with Stein when he was recruited by Oregon.

“I have a great relationship with Coach Stein,” Ponatoski told Rivals. “…That would be cool because I did build a relationship with him.” The quarterback shared this on Instagram Monday night.

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Will Cutter Boley be a part of the Stein Era?

“Nobody knows. It’s nebulous.” — Michael Scott.

In an interview with FootballScoop on Monday, Kentucky quarterback Cutter Boley said he’s keeping his options open after learning the shocking news that Mark Stoops was fired. “I think just moving forward, I’m trying to find the best place, wherever that may be, whether it’s here, or wherever I can kind of showcase what I can do in the best system for me,” he said.

It’s the right move for Boley. He could not commit to uncertainty. Will Stein might have the best system for Boley. Stein might also have somebody else in mind for his system who could come to Kentucky via the transfer portal. For now, we must play the waiting game.

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