2023 Alabama Football Early Opponent Preview | Game 10: Kentucky

If the transfers pan out, watch out for Kentucky this season. There's a lot of retooling to do, but Wildcats won't be a cakewalk for Bama.

James Keen / USA Today Network

One thing you can’t say these days about the Kentucky Wildcats is they are an SEC East cellar dweller.

You can’t chalk up a victory before the season starts with this program. Granted, Kentucky hasn’t been in the mix to win an SEC title, but Mark Stoops has turned the Wildcats into a respectable, and sometimes dangerous, team.

You have to get the sense that sooner or later Stoops and the Wildcats will be poised to be in the SEC title conversation.

It won’t likely be this season, but there is potential for a finish near the top of the standings.

One team standing in the way is on the other side of the SEC bracket. When it comes to facing Alabama, Kentucky is in a perpetual nightmare. Only twice in 107 years as a program has Kentucky defeated the Crimson Tide (1922, 1997).

They square off in mid-November. A lot can change between now and then, but let’s check in with what Kentucky looks like now before the season starts.

Offense

Will Levis moved on to the NFL, which left a giant void at quarterback. Fortunately for the Wildcats, Devin Leary was happy to fill that spot. He’s a big acquisition for Kentucky. The NC State transfer passed for more than 3,000 yards in 2021 before an injury in 2022 sidelined him.

There should be no dropoff in the passing game with Leary at the helm and a veteran group of receivers. Barion Brown and Dane Key started as freshmen and led the Wildcats in receiving last year, combining for 1,147 yards and 10 touchdowns. Add fifth-year senior Tayvion Robinson (497 yards) to the mix. Tight end Jordan Dingle, another freshman starter last year, is also back.

The passing game is in good hands. The running game? Just like at quarterback, the Wildcats lost its starter, but the transfer portal came to the rescue again. Re’Mahn Davis left San Francisco (1,042 yards) to join Kentucky, and he should be a nice fit.

Overall, the transfer portal was good to Kentucky. The Wildcats picked up some key offensive line additions, including former Alabama player Tanner Bowles, who played in 12 games at Alabama. He’s from Kentucky, so the transfer makes sense. Also transferring in is Marques Cox, a top-rated left tackle out of Northern Illinois and tackle Courtland Ford from Southern Cal. Kentucky needed help on a weak offensive line, and the new additions should help.

Defense

The transfer portal giveth, and the transfer portal taketh away. Starting nose tackle Justin Rogers left for Auburn, leaving a hole in the middle. Backup Josiah Hayes and transfer Keeshan Silver will compete for the open spot. Deone Walker, Octavious Oxendine and Tre’vonn Rybka return to round out the front line.

Stopping the run has to be a priority. The Wildcats did a nice job in this category last year, ranking sixth in the SEC (140 yards per game).

With a solid group up front, Kentucky also has a decent group at linebacker, including J.J. Weaver. He had six tackles for loss with three sacks and three fumble recoveries. Kentucky will need more of the same this year from the senior.

The Wildcats were hard to pass on last year. They were behind Georgia in the SEC for least yards allowed with 170, which was also good enough to finish seventh in the nation. The bad news is Kentucky lost three starters in the secondary.

Schedule

In the 107 years of Kentucky football the Wildcats have just four 10-win seasons. Two of them came under Stoops (2021, 2018).

A lot has to happen in 2023 for a fifth 10-win season. Georgia, Alabama, Florida and LSU on the schedule doesn’t help. The first half of the schedule sets up Kentucky for a possible 4-0 start when Florida comes to Lexington. If the offense finds its identity with a retooled offensive line and a new quarterback, there’s reason to be optimistic for a 5-0 start.

The back portion of the schedule is rough. After a home game with Tennessee, the Wildcats travel to Mississippi State, host Alabama and finish up on the road against South Carolina and Louisville.

Outlook

Kentucky gets a shot at Alabama in November. It actually sets up nicely for Kentucky. The Crimson Tide has to deal with Texas A&M, Arkansas, Tennessee and LSU before hitting the road for Kentucky. That’s one heck of a stretch.

The key is the same as it’s always been when facing Alabama. You have to shut down the run game, something Kentucky hasn’t done against Alabama in forever. This year might be different. Kentucky has the players up front and at linebacker to do the job. But Alabama has an ace up its sleeve with mobile quarterback Jalen Milroe. That wrinkle in the game plan changes a lot.

Prediction

Alabama 35, Kentucky 21

Alabama at Kentucky

The Game

Date: Nov. 11

Time: TBD

TV: TBD

Location: Kroger Field (Commonwealth Stadium, 61,000)

Series: Alabama leads 37-2-1

Last meeting: 2020, the Crimson Tide won in a blowout, 63-3. DeVonta Smith broke the SEC record for career receiving touchdowns early in the second quarter when he caught a 10-yard throw in the back of the end zone from Mac Jones, giving him 32. He later hauled in another, on a 18-yard pass from Bryce Young. Smith finished with 144 yards, while Jones was 16 of 24 for 230 passing yards with two passing touchdowns and an interception. Jase McClellan led all rushers with 99 yards. He was one of four running backs to score a rushing touchdown, joining Najee Harris with two and Brian Robinson Jr. and Roydell Williams with one each. 

Alabama Athletics

The Team

The Coach: Mark Stoops 

Offensive Coordinator: Liam Coen 

Defensive Coordinator: Brad White

2022 Record: 7-6 (3-5 SEC)

2022 Rankings: None, but the Wildcats did reach No. 7 after a 4-0 start.

Returning Starters: 15 (10 on offense, five on defense).

Player to Watch: Devin Leary, a transfer from North Carolina State with one year of eligibility remaining, could be the biggest wild card of the SEC this season. The ACC's preseason player of the year in 2022 missed a big of last season after suffering a torn pectoral muscle on his right side against Florida State on Oct. 8. He finished with 1,265 passing yards, 11 touchdowns and four interceptions after having 35 touchdown throws with just five picks the previous season. After also dealing with a broken leg in 2020, Leary's out to show that he's not injury-prone. 

Top Newcomer: It's Leary, but since we already listed him as the player to watch, it goes to the only new face on offense, left tackle Marques Cox. Listed as 6-5, 211 pounds, the senior transferred after five seasons at North Illinois (2018-22), where he started 34 games and according to PFF allowed just three sacks. But how will he fare against many of the nation's best pas rushers? Another player to keep an eye on is former Alabama offensive lineman Tanner Bowles, but he's stuck on the depth chart as Kentucky returned four starters up front.  

Biggest Question: Can the Wildcats make things interesting in the SEC East and challenge Georgia and Tennessee? Liam Coen is back as offensive coordinator after serving one season as the offensive coordinator for the Los Angeles Rams. When he was last at Kentucky it ranked fifth in scoring offense (32.3 points per game) and eighth in total offense (425.2 yards per game) in the Southeastern Conference, including fifth in rushing offense at 199.5 yards per game. He did so with Will Levis, who was a second-round selection in the 2023 NFL Draft, but this offense could be better. If the defense, which has five returning starters, can avoid any sort of regression, the Wildcats could turn into a very dangerous team. 

Jeff Faughender / USA Today Network

The Program

Coaching Changes During Saban Era: Two

Last Time Beat Alabama: 40-34 overtime victory in 1997 behind Heisman Trophy finalist Tim Couch.

Last Time Won Conference Championship: 1950

National Championships: None

Playoff Appearances: None

Conference titles: 2

Bowl Appearances: 21 (12-9)

Last Time Didn’t Play in a Bowl: 2015

Heisman Trophies: None

Consensus All-Americans During Saban Era: Four. LB Josh Allen in 2018, all-purpose selection Lynn Bowden Jr. and punter Max Duffy in 2019, OL Darian Kinnard in 2021.

First-Round NFL Picks During Saban Era: Three, and all were linebackers, Bud Dupree in 2015, LB Josh Allen in 2019, and  Jamin Davis in 2021. However, the Wildcats have had four second-round picks over the last three drafts. 

2023 NFL Draft: Led by QB Will Levis, a second-round pick of the Titans, Kentucky had three players selected including RB Chris Rodriguez in the sixth round. 

Last Four Recruiting Class Rankings: No. 31 in 2023. Previously, was No. 14 in 2022, No. 35 in 2021, No. 25 in 2020.  

The Schedule

Sept. 2: Ball State
Sept. 9: Eastern Kentucky
Sept. 16: Akron
Sept. 23: at Vanderbilt
Sept. 30: Florida
Oct. 7: at Georgia
Oct. 14: Missouri
Oct. 38: Tennessee
Nov. 4: at Mississippi State
Nov. 11: Alabama
Nov. 18: at South Carolina
Nov. 25: at Louisville

Did You Know?

Even though Kentucky only won seven games last season, Mark Stoops set the program record for coaching wins with No. 61 when No. 20 Wildcats topped No. 12 Florida, 26-16, on Sept. 10. Paul “Bear” Bryant previously held the record for most wins in program history with 60. Bryant notched the wins over four seasons, from 1949-52. Steeps has been Kentucky's head coach since 2013. 

Joe Reister / USA Today Network

This is the 10th story in a series previewing Alabama's 2023 opponents:

Middle Tennessee

Texas

South Florida

Ole Miss

Mississippi State

Texas A&M

Arkansas

Tennessee

LSU