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Opinion – Keith Taylor: 7-5 sounds about right for Kentucky football this season – NKyTribune

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Opinion – Keith Taylor: 7-5 sounds about right for Kentucky football this season – NKyTribune


Kentucky hasn’t missed a bowl game in eight years but that streak could be in jeopardy this season, considering a schedule that no longer includes permanent Southeastern Conference opponents such as Missouri and Mississippi State.

The Wildcats will play eight home games and just four road encounters in Mark Stoops’ 12th season at the helm. A quick glance at the schedule forecasts a 7-5 record and an ninth straight bowl appearance.

Keith Taylor

The following is a breakdown of what could be in store when the season kicks off against Southern Mississippi on Aug. 31 at Kroger Field.

SOUTHERN MISS, Aug. 31

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Surprisingly, the Golden Eagles have played the Wildcats closer than expected in the previous two games between the two teams. Southern Miss stunned Kentucky 44-35 in 2016 and escaped with a 24-17 victory in Hattiesburg a year later in 2017.

Prediction: Kentucky 34, Southern Miss 13.

SOUTH CAROLINA, Sept. 7

Kentucky had a three-game wining streak against the Gamecocks snapped last season when Shane Beamer’s squad defeated the Wildcats 17-14 last year in Columbia for one of South Carolina’s five victories last season.

Prediction: Kentucky 28, South Carolina 20

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GEORGIA, Sept. 14

It’s been 14 years since Kentucky defeated Georgia and the Bulldogs continually are one of the top teams not only in the Southeastern Conference, but in the nation. Kentucky surrendered 51 points to Kirby Smart’s squad last season and the Bulldogs are poised to make a run for the national title again and the Wildcats will likely have to wait to end the losing skid against the Bulldogs.

Prediction: Georgia 48, Kentucky 17

OHIO, Sept. 21

Kentucky will play the Bobcats in the last of four straight home games to open the season. Ohio has won 10 games in each of the past two seasons but will be hard pressed to continue the trend again. Kentucky lost to the Bobcats in 2004, but defeated Ohio 20-3 in the last meeting between the two teams in 2014.

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Prediction: Kentucky 34, Ohio 13

At OLE MISS, Sept. 28

Lane Kiffin has the Rebels on the national stage and poised for a breakout season. Kentucky’s first road game of the season in Oxford won’t be an easy task in the SEC opener for Kiffin’s squad. Ole Miss has won three in a row over the Wildcats, all by three points or less.

Prediction: Ole Miss 41, Kentucky 24

VANDERBILT, Oct. 12

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In the Commodores’ last visit to Lexington in 2022, Vandy stunned Kentucky 24-21 but the Wildcats returned the favor with a 45-28 win a year ago in Nashville. The Commodores went winless in the league last season and enters the season on a 10-game losing streak.

Prediction: Kentucky 42, Vandy 10

At FLORIDA, Oct. 19

For the longest time, Kentucky couldn’t beat the Gators, but ended a 31-game losing streak to Florida with a memorable 27-16 stunner in 2018. Since then, Kentucky has won three of the past five games and carries a three-game winning streak into this year’s contest in Gainesville.

Prediction: Florida 23, Kentucky 20

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AUBURN, Oct. 26

The two teams haven’t played since 2020 and Hugh Freeze hopes to take the Tigers to the next level in his second season on The Plains. Auburn has won three in a row over Kentucky and 18 of the last 19 encounters between the two teams.

PREDICTION: Auburn 28, Kentucky 24

At TENNESSEE, Nov. 2

The Volunteers have scored at least 30 points in the past three games against the Wildcats and Volunteers coach Josh Heupel is 3-0 against Kentucky. Tennessee edged the Wildcats 33-27 a year ago in Lexington after surrending 89 points to Tennessee in the previous two encounters.

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Prediction: Tennessee 31, Kentucky 21

MURRAY STATE, Nov. 16

The Racers will provide a relief for the Wildcats going into the final three games of the season. Kentucky is 2-0 against Murray State and defeated the Racers 48-10 in the last game between the two teams at Kroger Field in 2018.

Prediction: Kentucky 42, Murray State 14

At TEXAS, Nov. 23

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The last time the Wildcats and the Longhorns played, Texas escaped with a 7-6 victory in 1951. The two teams will produce more scoring this time but the Longhorns will be too much for the Wildcats as Texas makes its first tour of duty through the SEC.

Prediction: Texas 38, Kentucky 13

LOUISVILLE, Nov. 30

Jeff Brohm guided the Cardinals to 10 wins last season and an appearance in the ACC Championship game in his first season as coach of the Cardinals, but Kentucky’s 38-31 win was the first of three straight setbacks by the Cardinals to end the season. Kentucky carries a five-game winning streak into the 30th anniversary of the series renewal between the two in-state foes.

Kentucky 34, Louisville 31

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FINAL RECORD: 7-5.

Keith Taylor is sports editor of Kentucky Today, where this column first appeared.



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Kentucky

Mark Pope says Kentucky got ‘punished’ for ‘not playing the right way’

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8 hours ago

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November 12, 2025

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Mark Pope says Kentucky got ‘punished’ for ‘not playing the right way’


Mark Pope began his press conference with congratulations for Louisville, but quickly turned to a brutally honest assessment of his own team, calling the performance “extremely poorly” and an “incredibly disappointing” product for Kentucky basketball.

But the entire game —and Kentucky’s core issue —was summed up by one stat line.

Louisville had 20 assists and 6 turnovers. Kentucky had 14 assists and 14 turnovers.

“The 20 to 6 compared to the 14-14 tells the really the whole story of the game,” Pope said.

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The Wildcats were “sticky with the ball,” as Pope put it, and completely abandoned their offensive principles. The result was a 20-point deficit and a final score that wasn’t as close as it looked. The Cats were able to get it to 4, but bad shot selection and bad defense allowed the Cardinals to end on an 8-4 spurt over the last 3 minutes.

How Kentucky got “punished”

Pope was clear that this wasn’t just a bad shooting night; it was a failure of execution that led to a confession you hate to hear, but know it is true:

“We’re going to lose a 20-to-6, 14-to-14 game. We’re just going to lose it,” Pope said. “And… we got punished for not playing it the right way.”

That punishment was clear. Louisville scored 19 points off turnovers and had 11 steals, constantly hounding Kentucky’s primary scorers. Otega Oweh, who finished with 5 turnovers on 4-for-13 shooting, was a primary target of the Cardinals’ defense.

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“I thought they were physical with them. I thought they brought a crowd. They did everything we didn’t do,” Pope said of the plan against Oweh. “They were really good at bringing a crowd and… making them play through multiple defenders.”

Kentucky has a tune-up against Wright State on Friday, and it is really needed after the overall display put on tape last night. The good news is they still were in the game after playing so badly for long stretches. So, if you are a silver lining kind of fan, there you go.



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KFCA names top players, linemen, coaches for each of state’s 48 football districts

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2 days ago

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November 11, 2025

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KFCA names top players, linemen, coaches for each of state’s 48 football districts


The Kentucky Football Coaches Association has named its Players of the Year, Linemen of the Year and Coaches of the Year for all 48 districts, eight in each class.

Players of the Year, Linemen of the Year and Coaches of the Year for all six classes will be named during the state finals Dec. 5-6 at the University of Kentucky’s Kroger Field in Lexington. The KFCA Mr. Football and statewide Coach Haywood Lineman of the Year and Jimmie Reed Coach of the Year awards will be announced in mid-December.

Louisville-area Player of the Year winners are Christian Academy’s Ja’Hyde Brown, North Oldham’s Colin Daniels, Spencer County’s Keyon Davis, Atherton’s Garyon Hobbs, Bullitt Central’s A.J. Lee, Manual’s Gerian Traynor, Male’s Steron Davidson and Trinity’s Zane Johnson.

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Louisville-area Lineman of the Year winners are Kentucky Country Day’s Kris Mandy, Christian Academy’s Kellan Hall, Valley’s Josh Vaughan, Spencer County’s Richard Gilbert, Iroquois’ Jeremiah Jackson, Fairdale’s Chaz Tutt, Male’s Christian White and Trinity’s Nate Shields.

Louisville-area Coach of the Year winners are Christian Academy’s Hunter Cantwell, Butler’s Gary Wheeler, Fairdale’s Louis Dover, St. Xavier’s Kevin Wallace, Male’s Chris Wolfe and Oldham County’s Jamie Reed.

Here are the award winners for each district, with Player of the Year listed first and followed by Lineman of the Year and Coach of the Year.

District One – Zayden Kinney (Fulton County), Drake Thorpe (Fulton County), James Bridges (Fulton County); Two – Kace Eastridge (Campbellsville), Kris Mandy (Kentucky Country Day), Dale Estes (Campbellsville); Three – Eddie Bivens (Newport Central Catholic), Will Sandfoss (Newport Central Catholic), Steve Lickert (Newport Central Catholic); Four – Charles Oglesby (Covington Holy Cross), Beckett Meersman (Bishop Brossart), Curt Spencer (Covington Holy Cross); Five – Caden Jones (Sayre), Wyatt Moore (Sayre), Chad Pennington (Sayre); Six – Landen Stiltner (Raceland), Jacob Litteral (Raceland), Michael Salmons (Raceland); Seven – Deakon Partin (Middlesboro), Christian Davis (Middlesboro), Larry French (Middlesboro); Eight – William Shoptaw (Hazard), Caden Thacker (Pikeville), Brian Melvin (Paintsville).

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District One – Caden Howard (Crittenden County), Ashton Rodgers (Mayfield), Cliff Dew (Mayfield); Two – Miles Edge (Owensboro Catholic), Caden Conkright (Owensboro Catholic), Robert Eubanks (Hancock County); Three – Kris Hughes (Somerset), Andrew Houk (Green County), John Petett (Monroe County); Four – Tyler King (Lexington Christian), Sasha Wade (Danville), Lawrence Smith (Washington County); Five – Tyler Fryman (Beechwood), Lucas Tillery (Owen County), Steve Tarter (Bracken County); Six – Waylon Abner (Breathitt County), Waylon Abner (Breathitt County), Mark Easterling (Morgan County); Seven – Devan Maynard (Martin County), Preston Shepherd (Knott County Central), Randall Mullins (Knott County Central); Eight – Jonah Bartley (Shelby Valley), Bo Wolford (Belfry), Matt Varney (Belfry).

District One – Wyatt Robbins (Murray), Ryan Walls (Murray), Melvin Cunningham (Murray); Two – Hudson Gumm (Glasgow), Matt Stephens (LaRue County), Josh Robins (Butler County); Three – Ja’Hyde Brown (Christian Academy), Kellan Hall (Christian Academy), Hunter Cantwell (Christian Academy); Four – R.J. Blair (Garrard County), Mark Hosinski (Lexington Catholic), David Clark (Lexington Catholic); Five – Kaleb Evans (Lloyd Memorial), King Lee (Bourbon County), Kyle Niederman (Lloyd Memorial); Six – Jayden Frasure (Russell), Zach Brown (Russell), T.J. Maynard (Russell); Seven – Blake Burnett (Bell County), Spencer Phipps (Bell County), Dudley Hilton (Bell County); Eight – Luke Fetherolf (Lawrence County), Ty Brooks (Lawrence County), Alan Short (Lawrence County).

District One – Avery Thompson (Paducah Tilghman), Ben Myers (Paducah Tilghman), Coby Lewis (Calloway County); Two – Cavalli Pittman (John Hardin), Bryten Close (Taylor County), Josh Boston (Nelson County); Three – Colin Daniels (North Oldham), Josh Vaughan (Valley), Brock Roberts (North Oldham); Four – Keyon Davis (Spencer County), Richard Gilbert (Spencer County), Eddie James (Franklin County); Five – Tayden Lorenzen (Highlands), Max Merz (Highlands), Bob Sphire (Highlands); Six – Logan Music (Johnson Central), Drew Ferguson (Johnson Central), Jesse Peck (Johnson Central); Seven – Seneca Driver (Boyle County), Trashaun Bryant (Wayne County), Justin Haddix (Boyle County); Eight – Cole Stevens (Corbin), Malachi Brown (Corbin), Jacob Saylor (Harlan County).

District One – Markezz Hightower (Madisonville-North Hopkins), J.W. Muster (Owensboro), John Edge (Apollo); Two – Davis Chaney (Greenwood), Zach Jordan (Bowling Green), William Howard (Greenwood); Three – Garyon Hobbs (Atherton), Jeremiah Jackson (Iroquois), Gary Wheeler (Butler); Four – A.J. Lee (Bullitt Central), Chaz Tutt (Fairdale), Louis Dover (Fairdale); Five – Cam O’Hara (Cooper), Noah Reichel (Cooper), Randy Borchers (Cooper); Six – Timmy Emongo (Scott County), Justyn Perez (Woodford County), Dennis Johnson (Woodford County); Seven – Cooper Swaim (West Jessamine), Isaiah Wilkinson (West Jessamine), Scott Marsh (West Jessamine); Eight – Mason Griffin (South Laurel), Brady Hull (Pulaski County), Steve Nelson (North Laurel).

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District One – James Bradley (Hopkinsville), Foster Jackson (Hopkinsville), Tyler Brooks (McCracken County); Two – Kayden York (South Warren), Malik Butler (South Warren), Brandon Smith (South Warren); Three – Gerian Traynor (Manual), Josiah Hope (North Hardin), Kevin Wallace (St. Xavier); Four – Steron Davidson (Male), Christian White (Male), Chris Wolfe (Male); Five – Zane Johnson (Trinity), Nate Shields (Trinity), Jamie Reed (Oldham County); Six – Jacob Savage (Ryle), Bo Gay (Ryle), Mike Engler (Ryle); Seven – Darnell Burnside (Tates Creek), Josiah Hernandez (Paul Dunbar), Jon Lawson (Lafayette); Eight – Dakari Talbert (Frederick Douglass), Camden Burke (Madison Central), William Blair (Madison Central).

More high school football: Check out the Louisville-area all-district selections

Jason Frakes: 502-582-4046; jfrakes@courier-journal.com; Follow on X @kyhighs.



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Addictive kratom byproduct could become a Schedule I drug in Kentucky

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3 days ago

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November 9, 2025

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Addictive kratom byproduct could become a Schedule I drug in Kentucky


FRANKFORT, Ky. (FOX 56) — Gov. Andy Beshear’s administration is taking steps to classify a form of kratom, a popular legal stimulant known to possess opioid-like qualities in low doses, as a Schedule I narcotic.

According to a press release on Nov. 5 from Beshear’s office, leaders are targeting the 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH) byproduct, making it illegal to sell, possess, or distribute in any isolated or concentrated form.

 “We have marked three straight years of declines in overdose deaths in Kentucky, and that is progress we’re committed to building on as we work to protect more lives in the fight against addiction,” said Gov. Beshear. “Deadly and addictive drugs like 7-OH have no place in our communities, and this step will help us get these drugs off the streets and provide us more tools to keep Kentuckians safe.”

Officials wrote that while 7-OH is a naturally occurring component in the kratom plant, it’s only found in small amounts. Highly concentrated forms of it are put in shots, powders, and capsules at dosages that make it highly addictive and dangerous.

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State leaders said that back in August, Beshear issued an emergency designation of bromazolam, also known as “designer Xanax,” as a Schedule 1 drug. The Cabinet of Health and Family Services is reportedly working to put 7-OH kratom in the same category alongside heroin, LSD, and fentanyl.

More information about the Beshear administration’s work to ban 7-OH in Kentucky can be found here.



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