Will Stein is Changing Kentucky QB Development Plan at Kentucky

The Kentucky football fans who grew up in Will Stein‘s generation learned to love the game of football through the quarterback position. Homegrown passers — Tim Couch, Jared Lorenzen, and Andre’ Woodson — were stars who lit up scoreboards and made the Wildcats competitive in the SEC. In the almost 20 years since Woodson’s departure, the quarterback position has not looked the same.

Mark Stoops used the transfer portal before the transfer portal became a thing to field a quarterback. Stephen Johnson and Terry Wilson were JUCO products who led the Wildcats to winning seasons. Kentucky cashed in when Liam Coen recruited Will Levis from Penn State, leading to a 10-win season. The Wildcats subsequently took big swings in the portal with Devin Leary and Brock Vandagriff, but neither mirrored the results of their predecessor.

Last year, Cutter Boley became the first full-time starter that Kentucky recruited from high school since Patrick Towles. After one year and a coaching change, he hit the transfer portal.

The quarterback position is the most transient in the sport. It’s why The Athletic recently asked the question, “Who was the last quarterback signed, developed, and retained by each SEC team?”

The answer is also the answer to the question, “Who was Kentucky’s last 3,000-yard passer?” Mike Hartline tossed for 3,178 yards and 23 touchdowns during the 2010 season. It’s been so long; last year, he was on Mark Stoops’ coaching staff.

Only one other SEC program has gone longer than Kentucky without developing and retaining a quarterback. Brandon Cox last tossed the pigskin at Auburn in 2007, but the Tigers had a guy named Cam Newton who washes away any sort of stink from this stat.

Will Stein is Fixing the QB Development Problem

Kentucky got stuck perpetually behind the 8-ball thanks to year-over-year turnover at offensive coordinator. Quarterbacks traditionally commit quicker than any other position. By the time one coach made inroads with a prospect, they were gone before it was time for a quarterback to commit.

Will Stein and Joe Sloan‘s reputations as quarterback developers have quickly changed the narrative on the trail. Kentucky was in the right place at the right time for Matt Ponatoski. The four-star talent’s desire to play baseball made many programs pause, whereas Kentucky was willing to do whatever it took to land him. Stein recruited Ponatoski at Oregon, giving the latter zero second thoughts on signing with Kentucky.

Once the new coaching staff hit the ground running in the 2027 class, all of the top quarterback prospects in the country wanted to see what Stein and Sloan were cooking at Kentucky. After navigating turbulent recruiting waters, the Cats emerged as the landing spot for Jake Nawrot, the No. 2 quarterback in the country.

“Knowing their track record and history, it’s hard not to be attracted to what they’re doing. I want to go win that spot and be that guy,” Nawrot told KSR+ shortly after announcing his decision. “It’s just his proven track record with all the quarterbacks he’s developed, what he’s done at Oregon, how smart he is when it comes to football, and what he can do with me.”

Baseball makes Ponatoski’s future a little cloudier than any Kentucky football fan would like. Regardless of what happens, Stein has positioned Kentucky to get out of the transfer portal cycle and into the business of developing high school quarterbacks into multi-year starters in Lexington.