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Kentucky’s defensive front shows off depth in win over Toledo

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Kentucky’s defensive front shows off depth in win over Toledo


Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops told us that the strength of Kentucky’s team would be the team in 2025. Kentucky defensive coordinator Brad White told us that the defense was going to lean into its depth more than it had in the past.

That all played out in the Week 1 win over Toledo.

UK’s defense controlled the game and kept Toledo out of the endzone until the fourth quarter. While the game was very much still in the balance early, the Cats found a way to make some key plays in high-leverage moments. Players you wouldn’t think of a top contributors stepped up in some key moments.

Kentucky showed off its defensive depth on Saturday at Kroger Field. KSR is taking a look at the three biggest plays from Saturday’s slugfest.

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Sam Greene’s bull rush creates a big takeaway

Kentucky had a big need to fill at EDGE in the offseason. USC transfer Sam Greene became the program’s first addition from the transfer portal in December. The redshirt sophomore earned playing time last year in the Big Ten and flashed as a physical player who run with power and could be a real asset against the run. The pass rush needed development, but Green showed the ability to impact the game with a bull rush.

That showed up in the first game of the season. Greene’s pass rush win in the first quarter helped lead to the first takeaway of the season.

On a second-and-10, Greene gets under the pads of Toledo right tackle Cole Rhett and drives the second-year starter back into quarterback Tucker Gleason‘s lap. There isn’t any contact made with the quarterback but the pressure likely has something to do with the inaccurate throw. Veteran cornerback JQ Hardaway beats Toledo wide receiver Trayvon Rudolph to the spot for the game’s first big play.

Kentucky would take a lead they would not relinquish for the rest of the game just seven plays later. A young player not known for his pass rush helped flip this football game early.

Steven Soles Jr. helps create quick change stop

Following a goal-to-go stop by the Kentucky defense, Zach Calzada and the Kentucky offense took possession of the ball at their own two with 13:13 left in the second quarter. The Cats held a 7-0 lead just before disaster struck.

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Calzada took a safety on a poor RPO read and gave the football right back to Toledo’s offense just one play after an 11-play drive by the Rockets. The road team had some real momentum for the first time in this football game after that play.

Kentucky’s defense quickly bowed up.

The Cats quickly forced a third-and-eight before sophomore Steven Soles Jr. produced his splash big play of the season.

The undersized outside linebacker beats Cole Rhett with an outside rush move where an inside shoulder dip helps Soles turn the corner. Once he’s at the top of the rush, Soles is able to get his hand on Tucker Gleason’s throwing arm and dislodges the football. Kentucky is unable to pounce on the loose ball, but this pass rush win creates a quick win for the defense when Toledo had a chance to flip the game.

Kentucky’s backup outside linebacker came up big on a huge third down.

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Tavion Gadson creates a turnover on downs

Just one possession after taking a safety, Zach Calzada connected with tight end Willie Rodriguez for a 23-yard gain on second-and-seven to set up the Kentucky offense just outside the red zone. Unfortunately for the Cats, Toledo star safety Emmanuel McNeil-Warren punched the football out and gave the Rockets the football back.

Toledo quickly advanced the football to midfield following a 13-yard completion from Tucker Gleason to tailback Chip Trayanum. Head coach Jason Candle would call the former Kentucky running back’s number again on fourth-and-short a few plays later.

Kentucky bowed up again. Backup defensive lineman Tavion Gadson shows up in a big moment.

The redshirt sophomore shoots the gap to replace the pulling right guard and fights through the center’s block. Sam Greene does a good job of knocking the playside tight end back at the same time. The lead fullback gets caught in no man’s land while Gadson strains to finish the play. That effort leads to a tackle for loss that gets the defense off the field.

Kentucky would add three points on the very next possession to take an eight-point lead. The Cats would never lead by less than eight for the rest of the game. Gadson’s effort play is a big reason why UK was able to keep Toledo at arm’s length.

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We saw the defensive depth show up in big moments on Saturday. Sam Greene, Steven Soles Jr., and Tavion Gadson are each players with three years of eligibility remaining who will have key roles this season and in the future for this defense. Each looked the part on Saturday.



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Kentucky

UWM gets run off the floor in first half of 18-point loss to Northern Kentucky

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UWM gets run off the floor in first half of 18-point loss to Northern Kentucky


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That was rough.

An ugly first half from the Milwaukee Panthers led way to one of the most disheartening showings at home in recent memory Jan. 9, an 85-67 loss to the Northern Kentucky Norse. 

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Forward Kael Robinson poured in nine 3-pointers and a game-high 29 points as he and the Norse buried the Panthers with an onslaught of offense, especially early. 

“We’ve got to have two things,” Panthers head coach Bart Lundy said. “We’ve got to make less mistakes and have more toughness.”

BOX SCORE: Northern Kentucky 85, UW-Milwaukee 67

No amount of positive moments from true freshmen Josh Dixon and Stevie Elam – they combined for 18 points in the second half and 30 on the night – could wash away the overall feeling of the night. 

The Norse led by as many as 20 in the first half, which they ended with a 55-37 lead to ultimately handle the Panthers their worst home loss since coming up 36 points short against Northern Kentucky on Feb. 9, 2022. 

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Treacherous first half spells doom

The first 20 minutes may have been the worst half of the Lundy era. 

Only once in the past four seasons were the Panthers outscored more in a half than the 18-point deficit they faced against the Norse – and that came on the road against the second-place finisher in the Horizon League. Their previous worst home loss under Lundy was a 13-point defeat to Longwood on Dec. 13, 2023. 

Northern Kentucky had only four empty possessions in the first 11 minutes of the game, making six threes and grabbing six offensive rebounds. A putback dunk by x Dozier made it a 40-25 game and forced Lundy to use his second timeout of the game. 

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The Norse lead the nation in fastbreak points, averaging 18 per game and Milwaukee simply could not get back in transition, even after a made basket. The Norse had a whopping 20 points on the fastbreak in the first 20 minutes alone – and that doesn’t even include free throws courtesy of run-outs. Two of those transition trips to the foul line came in succession by Donovan Oday after made baskets for the Panthers, a rather inexcusable effort. 

“A complete breakdown in our systems,” Lundy called it.

Oday had 16 points in the half – which wasn’t even a team-high as big man Kael Robinson had 17 and went 4 for 5 from three. 

The Panthers went into the break down 18, but the largest lead was 20 on a Robinson triple to cap an 8-0 spurt across 59 seconds, forcing Lundy to take his third timeout. 

The Norse finished with 11 offensive rebounds and generated 19 second-chance points. They scored on 23 of 34 possessions, averaging 1.618 points per possession. 

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“Give them all the credit,” Lundy said. “They were physical and tough and came up with every ball and outran us down the floor.”

Panthers slipping in Horizon

Milwaukee’s defense the rest of the way was solid – perhaps even good; Northern Kentucky shot 38.5% from the field percent as it scored 30 points in the final 20 minutes. It still wasn’t nearly enough to erase the disaster of the first half. 

The Panthers now sit tied for sixth in the Horizon League having dropped three in a row after a 3-0 start.

Danilo Jovanovich exits game

Milwaukee’s active leading scorer Danilo Jovanovich played nearly 16 minutes in the first half, scoring only two points while appearing visibly hampered, but came out of the locker room in his warm-ups. 

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He continues to be bothered by a balky right shoulder, an injury that limited him to no contact in practice this week.

Jovanovich is day-to-day going forward, which could leave the Panthers without four projected senior starters at the beginning of the season: Jovanovich, Faizon Fields, John Lovelace and Seth Hubbard.

“I look down on that bench and I see all them dudes on crutches that are older and wish they were pretty available,” Lundy said. “…If you have Johnny Lovelace or Seth, that’s a whole different story. You’ve got length, athleticism, Faizon corrects a lot of things. What we have now on the floor, they’re talented but most of those guys have never seen Division-I basketball.”

(This story was updated to change or add a photo or video.)



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Virginia woman arrested 30 years after newborn was found in a Kentucky landfill

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Virginia woman arrested 30 years after newborn was found in a Kentucky landfill


More than three decades after a newborn’s remains were discovered in a Kentucky landfill, investigators say advances in forensic science have finally led to an arrest.

Jennifer Cummins of Fairfax County, Virginia, was taken into custody on January 6 in connection with the death of an infant known for decades only as “Baby Jane Doe,” Kentucky State Police announced this week.

The case dates to 1991, when a sanitation worker discovered the remains of a baby girl at the former Richmond Landfill in Madison County, near Eastern Kentucky University.

Despite early investigative efforts, authorities were unable to identify the baby or determine who was responsible, and the case eventually went cold.

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Kentucky State Police detectives recently reopened the investigation using modern forensic tools and updated investigative techniques. With assistance from the State Medical Examiner, it was determined that the infant was born alive and healthy before being placed in a dumpster on the campus of Eastern Kentucky University.

An arrest has been made in the death of a baby whose remains were found in 1991 by a sanitation worker at the former Richmond Landfill in Madison County, near Eastern Kentucky University

An arrest has been made in the death of a baby whose remains were found in 1991 by a sanitation worker at the former Richmond Landfill in Madison County, near Eastern Kentucky University (Google Maps)

The new information ultimately identified Cummins as a person of interest. In late 2025, the case was presented to a Madison County grand jury, which returned an indictment charging Cummins with murder.

“Even after decades of time that has passed, with the collaboration of new technologies, advancements, and persistence, we’ve been able to discover new leads in this case,” said Kentucky State Police Trooper Justin Kearney. “That’s why it’s so important for people to know these cases never go cold to us.”

Authorities have not released details about Cummins’ relationship to the child or the specific circumstances surrounding the infant’s death.

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Kentucky State Police say the investigation remains active, and that investigators say they are still seeking the public’s help to resolve some unanswered questions.

Cummins is being held at the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center while awaiting extradition to Kentucky.



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Kentucky Transfer WR Hardley Gilmore IV Commits to Louisville

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Kentucky Transfer WR Hardley Gilmore IV Commits to Louisville


LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Montavin Quisenberry isn’t the only former Kentucky wide receiver to switch out blue for red this offseason.

Hardley Gilmore IV announced Thursday that he has committed to the Louisville football program.

He’s the fifth Wildcat to transfer to the Cardinals in this cycle, following Quisenberry, who committed earlier in the day, cornerback D.J. Waller plus defensive ends Jerod Smith II and Jacob Smith.

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Gilmore is also the 11th portal pickup for UofL in the last three days, and their 15th transfer commitment overall in this cycle, beginning to offset 23 portal defections that UofL has seen so far. The 14-day transfer window officially opened up this past Friday, and is the only opportunity for players to enter following the removal of the spring window.

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Despite Kentucky’s instability at quarterback this past season, Gilmore put together a productive 2025 campaign. Playing in all 12 games while starting five, the 6-foot-1, 165-pound receiver caught 28 passes for 313 yards and a touchdown. His reception and yardage total was second on the team to Kendrick Law.

The Belle Glade, Fla. native got immediate playing time as a true freshman in 2024. Appearing in seven games, Gilmore was able to haul in six passes for 153 yards, including a 52-yard touchdown vs. Murray State.

While Gilmore has shown high end potential on the field, he comes with some off-the-field baggage from last offseason. Last January after opting to transfer to Nebraska following his true freshman season, he was charged with misdemeanor assault for allegedly punching someone in the face at a storage facility in Lexington. Then this past April, he was dismissed from the Huskers for unknown reasons, and wound up returning to Kentucky.

“Nothing outside the program, nothing criminal or anything like that,” Huskers head coach Matt Rhule said at the time regarding Gilmore’s dismissal. “Just won’t be with us anymore.”

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Gilmore and Quisenberry are the first of likely multiple transfer pieces that Louisville will add to their wide receiver room. Between graduation and the portal, the Cardinals are losing six receivers – including Chris Bell & Caullin Lacy.

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In their third season under head coach Jeff Brohm, Louisville went 9-4 overall, including a 4-4 mark in ACC play and a 27-22 win over Toledo in the Boca Raton Bowl. The Cardinals have won at least nine games in all three seasons under Brohm, doing so for the first time since 2012-14.

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(Photo of Hardley Gilmore IV: Jordan Prather – Imagn Images)

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