KSR

2026-03-09- KSR - Hour 2

43 min
Mar 9, 20263 months ago
Listen to Episode
Summary

Kentucky football's new head coach Will Stein discusses his vision for rebuilding the program, emphasizing offensive line development, quarterback Kenneth Minchin's potential, and a culture of toughness. The episode also covers Kentucky basketball's struggles and the upcoming SEC Tournament.

Insights
  • New coaching regime prioritizes foundational roster building through portal recruitment and strategic offensive/defensive line investment over quick wins
  • Coach Stein's philosophy centers on process-driven excellence and mental toughness ('six seconds of hell') rather than talent alone
  • Kentucky basketball faces significant roster gaps despite $22M in spending, requiring immediate portal acquisitions and unconventional solutions
  • Spring practice and early-season non-conference games are critical for establishing team identity and fan confidence in new football direction
  • Recruiting in-state talent remains foundational but cannot be the sole focus when competing for national-level players
Trends
College football coaches emphasizing process and culture-building over immediate results in rebuilding situationsIncreased reliance on transfer portal to rapidly assemble competitive rosters in first-year coaching tenuresOffensive line and defensive line recruitment as primary competitive differentiators in SEC footballIntegration of special teams as a third pillar of competitive advantage rather than afterthoughtHead coaches managing expanded responsibilities including donor relations, nutrition, and strength conditioning oversightQuarterback evaluation shifting toward pro-style mechanics and intelligence over pure athleticismCollege basketball programs exploring non-traditional roster solutions (G League players) due to portal volatilityFan engagement and stadium atmosphere as measurable program health indicators during rebuilding phases
Topics
College Football Coaching StrategyOffensive Line RecruitmentTransfer Portal StrategyQuarterback DevelopmentSEC Football CompetitivenessSpecial Teams InnovationCollege Basketball Roster ManagementIn-State RecruitingSpring Practice PreparationProgram Culture BuildingDonor Relations ManagementMental Toughness TrainingPortal Acquisition TimingFirst-Year Head Coach ChallengesSEC Tournament Preparation
Companies
University of Kentucky Athletics
Primary subject; new football coach Will Stein discusses rebuilding strategy and basketball program challenges
University of Oregon Athletics
Will Stein's previous employer; referenced for coaching philosophy and roster-building methodology
Indiana University Athletics
Cited as model program for rapid turnaround and alignment across coaching staff and administration
University of Alabama Athletics
Referenced as gold standard for consistency and process-driven excellence under Nick Saban
University of Georgia Athletics
Mentioned as example of sustained success under Kirby Smart following Alabama model
Notre Dame University Athletics
Kenneth Minchin's previous school; coaches consulted on quarterback evaluation
Texas A&M University Athletics
Referenced for defensive scheme excellence and third-down package innovation
Oklahoma University Athletics
Recruited top-ranked tight end Seneca Driver away from Kentucky; Jason Witten hired as tight end coach
People
Will Stein
New University of Kentucky head football coach; primary interview subject discussing program rebuild strategy
Kenneth Minchin
Kentucky's new starting quarterback from Notre Dame; praised for intelligence, competitiveness, and pro-style mechanics
Dan Lanning
Oregon head coach; referenced as mentor whose coaching model Stein is implementing at Kentucky
Nick Saban
Former Alabama coach; cited as gold standard for consistency and process-driven program building
Kirby Smart
Georgia head coach; example of sustained success following Saban's model at Alabama
Curt Cignetti
Indiana head coach; referenced as example of rapid program turnaround and alignment
Jason Witten
Hall of Fame tight end now coaching at Oklahoma; influenced recruit Seneca Driver's commitment decision
Mike Denbrock
Notre Dame offensive coordinator; consulted on Kenneth Minchin's quarterback evaluation
Gino Gadulli
Notre Dame coach; consulted on Kenneth Minchin's quarterback evaluation and development
Mark Pope
Kentucky basketball coach; program facing roster challenges and portal recruitment difficulties
Seneca Driver
Top-ranked tight end recruit; committed to Oklahoma instead of Kentucky despite Stein's recruitment efforts
Brayden Hawthorne
Kentucky basketball player; announced commitment to return for next season
Jay Bateman
Kentucky football staff member; credited with recruiting coordination during rapid portal assembly
Pat Biondo
Kentucky football staff member; credited with recruiting coordination during rapid portal assembly
Pete Nocta
Kentucky football staff member; credited with recruiting coordination during rapid portal assembly
Joe Sloan
Kentucky football staff member; credited with recruiting coordination during rapid portal assembly
Quotes
"If you're scared, go to church, bro."
Will SteinDiscussing challenging SEC schedule
"Six seconds of hell is that the phrase seconds of freaking hell"
Will Stein
"Potential is everything that you're not."
Will SteinOn program building philosophy
"I'm not going to beg, man. I'm not. You either want to be a part of this or you don't."
Will SteinOn in-state recruiting approach
"We have to score points, right? We have to stop people when it matters."
Will SteinOn winning formula for tough schedule
Full Transcript
Next Monday, our 2026 iHeart Podcast Awards are happening live at South by Southwest. This is the biggest night in podcasting. We'll honor the very best in podcasting from the past year and celebrate the most innovative talent and creators in the industry. And the winner is... Creativity, knowledge, and passion will all be on full display. Thank you so much, iHeartRadio. Thank you to all the other nominees. You guys are awesome. Watch live next Monday at 8 p.m. Eastern, 5 p.m. Pacific, free at veeps.com or the veeps app. Ego Wodham is your host for the 2026 iHeart Podcast Awards live at South by Southwest. Hello, is anybody there? Raised by a single mom, Ego may have a few father-related issues. Are we supposed to talk about your dad? Her podcast, Thanks Dad, is full of funny, heartfelt conversations with actors, including fellow SNL alums, comedians, musicians, and more about life and their wonderfully complicated relationships with their fathers. I think and hope that's a good thing. Get to know Ego. Follow Thanks Dad with Ego Wodham and start listening on the free iHeartRadio app today. Hey, I'm Jay Shetty, host of the On Purpose podcast. My latest episode is with Hilary Duff, singer, actress, and multi-platinum artist. You desire in family, like, this picture, and that's not reality. My sister and I don't speak. It's definitely a very painful part of my life, and I hope it's not forever, but it's for right now. Listen to On Purpose with Jay Shetty on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Amanda Knox, and in the new podcast, Doubt, The Case of Lucy Letby, we unpack the story of an unimaginable tragedy that gripped the UK in 2023. But what if we didn't get the whole story? How did this have been made to fit? The moment you look at the whole picture, the case collapsed. What if the truth was disguised by a story we chose to believe? Oh my God, I think she might be innocent. 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Stockton Mortgage, NMLS 8259, equal housing lender, NMLS, consumeraccess.org. Welcome to Hour 2 of Kentucky Sports Radio presented by Stockton Mortgage. Now, here's Matt Jones. Welcome back, Hour 2, Kentucky Sports Radio. Now, happy to be joined for only the second time since he's been coach and first time since he's been sort of around to know the job is head coach Will Stein. Will, people can't see this, but I'm looking at you through these cameras and love the hat you're wearing. How's everything going? It's going great, man. I'm so excited to be on the show. Thanks for having me. We actually just practiced our practice for tomorrow. What does that mean? Practice your practice. It means like, dude, there's so many moving parts in a football practice. If we were to go out there tomorrow and have not have walked where we're going to be, the spots on the field, what do these transitions look like? it would have looked like a hot pile of dog, S-H-I-T. So what you do as a football coach, you plan, you prepare. And now I believe the kids are going to go out tomorrow and be able to take all the anxious energy out because they know where they're going and those spots, they know what the drills look like. And so, yeah, we practiced the practice today. How much of a change is it? I mean, you haven't been a head coach. There's a sort of CEO management part of that. Is that something that – How much of a change is that from what you've done up until this point? I would say it's been definitely a change. You know, I'm used to being in the offensive staff room with just the offensive coaches, recruiting really the offensive side of the ball. So now when you're a head coach, you deal with every facet of the program, strength and conditioning, nutrition, training room, you know, donor relations, more media. But, you know, I get to be a head coach. Like, how cool is that? and to do it here in Kentucky where, you know, I'm so excited to be and just ready to get rolling with these guys in spring ball. I know they're eager to get out on the football field. They've been working now eight weeks straight in what we've called the hunt to get prepared for this phase two of our offseason. So tell me what that – what do you mean the hunt? What does that mean? You know, it's the grind. You know, it's everything leading up to spring football. It's the early winter workouts. It's just the drills that are combative and make you strain and make you want to tap out, which is the mental warfare of playing football. But one of our core DNA traits is toughness, and that's really what winter phase one, or the hunt, as we called it, was all about. Well, let's talk about your team and specifically how you built it. I mean, you had to essentially create a team from scratch. You obviously are keeping a number of guys. I look at the class you brought in in the roster, and it seems to me that you spent a lot of your rev share money, but also your attention on building this core offensive line. Am I correct in that? 100%. Yeah, when I got the job, it was December 2nd, and December 3rd was signing day. Think about that. Yeah. You have no – you can't build a 26 class in 12 hours. It's absolutely impossible. So, you know, I liked a lot of the kids that we kept on. I mean, all of them, we kept them. And I think there's actually some really good players in that group out of the 10 that we signed. And then I believe it was 34 portal guys. And think about this. We had 66 official visits in a 12-day span. That's freaking unbelievable, man. Like the work of Pat Biondo, Pete Nocta, Joe Sloan, Jay Bateman, And the guys that were here boots on ground while I was going back and forth between Oregon and Lexington. I mean, it's really incredible. There needs to be some sort of book or something written or documented about how they were able to be here working with me and Oregon and us all working together on different time zones to assemble what we believe is a really strong class. And you mentioned the offensive line. I think O-line, D-line in this league, man, that's where it starts. and it the winning football in november december january is up front like you think about indiana and what they're able to do in their run i mean fernando mendoza phenomenal player but how did they beat miami they ran the freaking football they ran the ball how did miami get to where they were they have a dominant offensive line and running backs that are big and physical so that's where it's one the georgia bulldog teams of old alabama saban teams it's a common denominator. It's having big, giant human beings that are physical up front on the O-line and D-line so we can throw the ball down the field, so we can run the ball in the fourth quarter wins, so we can stop the run, so we can affect the quarterback. That's where it's worn, and that was a major, major piece of this puzzle. And I think that surprised some people because we have this stereotype of Oregon as just throw it around and there's athletes everywhere, and you did that. You played Indiana twice last year, and they handled you guys fairly well. Was Do you see the way you build this Kentucky program? Is Indiana a model? I mean, Indiana was maybe the worst program in the major conference in the country, or is it kind of a model? How do you see that? Well, I mean, I think any team that wins it all is obviously doing something right. So the model of consistency has always been Nick Saban and what he was able to do with Alabama, and that really transitioned into Kirby Smart. And so I've learned that model, per se, in the vision and eyes of Dan Lanning, that's going to translate to now my vision and model for us here at the University of Kentucky. So, you know, I look at Kirk Signetti and what he was able to do there. Obviously, they're aligned from the top down. But I still remember looking at visuals of the first game at IU in that tenure, and it was a half full stadium. So, you know, they got momentum. They had, you know, big wins early and they've done it not just offensively, but defensively special teams. And you can see just as a program that they're extremely aligned and they have a plan and they're going and attacking that plan. So that's what I'm excited about is, you know, given, you know, the resources that we have at our disposal. I think we've done an excellent job so far, but it's potential. It's everything that we're not. And that's what I've always learned about that word is potential is everything that you're not. So how do we take the narrative of what Kentucky may have been in the past and push the envelope forward? And that's what we're doing right now. And I think we have great coaches, number one, phenomenal players that are bought in right now. And I'm just excited to get rolling. All right, let's talk about the team because we're all going to have to learn this team. Quarterback. Didn't know who he was until I heard he was about to come here, Kenneth Minchin. So tell everybody this is going to be kind of for a lot of people their first real description from someone they trust about who the quarterback is going to be next year. Tell me about Minji. Well, he went to Notre Dame, so we all know he's not very smart. He's extremely intelligent, right? Extremely intelligent, can fit in any room. Just talking about him as a person, old, young, white, black, rich, poor. It doesn't matter. You put Kenny minchi in the room and he's a glue guy so when i have glue guys as my quarterback to me that makes the locker room better makes the locker room more connected so i'm really excited about him just as a person um he's extremely competitive and then as a player like we all watch the tape and you could say well he played in mop-up time i get it right he did there's truth to that but when you watch the throws there's pro throws all over the tape there's anticipation there's timing there's touch, there's velocity, there's pocket mobility, he can throw the deep ball, he can throw it intermediate and short. So that's what I'm excited about. And it's been pretty impressive to see him take this offense that we've built up to this point. And it was almost like he's been in it for four years. So that gives me great excitement for his ability to transition and really show his ability to play football at a high level here. And I talked to Mike Denbrock, talked to Gino Gadulli, talked to these guys at Notre Dame that have coached him the last four years. And it was really like a coin toss. You know, obviously Coach Freeman had the final say in who was going to be the guy and they went with a younger player. But I'm just excited that Kenny's here with us. And I think our fans are going to be really excited as well. Has he been all that you hoped like has he been 100 he's an excellent player person and again ready to see him take the range of this offense over the next 15 practices all right let's assume that i was hosting kentucky countdown to kickoff and will stein was not the coach but he was our expert commentator give me a minute to minute and a half what do i as a fan look for in this kentucky team Who are some people that stick out to you? And when they come to the spring game here in a little while, who's going to be like, okay, that is the basis for who this team will be? Well, I think you just first look at just us holistically, like who we are as a team. We're going to be connected, like connected in every sense possible. Our players are going to be connected to each other. They're going to play their absolute butts off for each other, play relentless football from point a to point d six point point a to point b six seconds of hell like offense defense special teams six seconds of hell is that the phrase seconds of freaking hell get the t-shirts six seconds of hell that's the first time i've heard that got you yes so that's something that we're gonna you know hang our hats on is just the connectivity of the of the of the team um and like i mentioned player to player coach to player connection and then coaches that truly love each other and are passionate about working with each other. You know, that's one. Like, I want our team to play clean. Like, obviously, limit penalties. Limit explosive plays. Guys that can play the same call on offense, defense, and special teams every single snap. That's huge to us. You know, offensively, too, I think you're going to look at like a modern pro-style offense. What does that mean? Like, we change the tempo up. It's not fast-paced every single snap. We have the ability to go fast. We have the ability to slow it down, huddle. We can huddle, we can huddle speed break. We can do a bunch of stuff at the line of scrimmage to change the play to get us in the best possible scenario You going to see RPOs you going to see shots you see vertical passing game different run schemes You know I believe we put an exciting product on the field on offense And then defensively I mean we going to be extremely sound but attacking, like a team that will put pressure on the quarterback, cause havoc on the quarterback. A third down package to me that is the best in college football with what Jay was able to do at Texas A&M with him and Coach Elko. So that's really exciting as well. And then special teams is all about changing the game. That's our mantra on special teams. How do we change the game? You know, I'm a risk taker. Like, I want to get the ball back for offense. What does that look like each game? It can differ from, you know, surprise on sides, fake punts, punt block situations, you know, gate formations on special teams and extra points. Like, I want to put pressure on the opposing team through special teams. It is one third of the game. And you're going to see our best players playing on special teams. It's not just an opportunity to take a playoff. It's an opportunity for us to really change the game. So I'm really fired up. The players are doing a great job, you know, not to single out one person or two. I'm just excited for our fans to go out and watch the product that we're going to put on the field and make them proud. All right, so I know nothing, so I admit that to start. But I look at the roster and I go, okay, love what he did at offensive line. I'm excited about this quarterback. I wonder, do they have one thing Oregon always have? We're playmakers at receiver. Do you feel like you have the playmakers at receiver you need? I love Nick Anderson. I really do. I love DJ Miller. I love J.K. in the slot. I love Kenny Darby, who we signed. Shoot, I love a lot of our guys. I mean, I think we've got a strong core of receivers. I really do. Especially some younger guys, too, I think are going to show out. I love Willie Rodriguez at tight end, Mikel Skinner, Henry Boyer. What about Willie Rodriguez? People know him. What have you seen with him so far? He's got a ton of talent, a ton of talent. He's extremely willing in this area to put his face on people and block, but I think he can be a real matchup problem for teams in the slot and even on the perimeter. And a Kentucky kid, this place means a lot to him. So I obviously had Kenny Sadiq at Oregon. He was a special, rare talent. We also had Terrence Ferguson there. And, you know, this past season we even had Jamari Johnson. So Titans in our offense have really traditionally done really well. So I'm excited about him. I was really glad that he decided to come back, be a Wildcat, and that was somebody we definitely wanted to keep. All right, now I look at this – I can't be the first person to say, man, this schedule next year. I mean, I've been – Kentucky's football schedule is always hard, but you may have inherited the hardest one I've ever seen. So you look at it. See, you love it, though. You're like, let's go. Quit being scared, man. I'm not scared. If you're scared, go to church, bro. Come on. See, I love it, though. What are you supposed to do? You want me to call the schools up and say, can you please not play us? I'm so scared. Golly, man. I love it. We signed up for it. I love it. And I would assume that's partially why guys would be excited to play here, right? We get to play Alabama, LSU, Texas A&M. It's like the NFL, man, any given Saturday. Yes. I watched the freaking Wildcats. Should have beat Texas last year. I mean, come on. Yes, we should have. Should have beat Ole Miss. I mean, I just think about when we had Will Levis and we had Liam Cohen calling plays and won 10 freaking games, like on a tough schedule. Like we got to score points, right? We have to score. We have to stop people when it matters. That's not just true for Kentucky. It's true for everybody. You know, I mean, shoot, you could say all these teams are assembled well. Everybody's got players. We have the starting left tackle from Tennessee playing for us right now. Think about that. We have a guy that played at Ohio State playing left guard. Starting center for Baylor playing for us. We have good players, and we have good coaches. So, like, cut it loose, man. Don't be scared. Cut it loose. See, I love it. Whatever happens, happens. I'm not being scared. Drew, I'm not being scared now. We have a process. Yeah. We have a process. I love it. We go through that process throughout the week. We're doing it right now. and like when you have a great process do the results always happen the way that you want it no that's football even at Oregon we had the most elite process in the you know that I've been a part of that I'm building here and we got our asses kicked in the semifinal like that that doesn't mean we were a bad team that means that we had a bad result we didn't play well so it's up to us to create competition real competition and practice practice has to be hard football is a tough freaking game. It's hard to win. You've heard that from every coach, and it's so hard to win. It is hard. It's real, because every team, especially in this league, has great players. So you have to be able to run the ball. It matters. You have to have great quarterback play, and you have to affect the passer. You have to. So that's the plan. It's our job right now to build that plan out, to get real confidence with our guys. And then when we step foot in Kroger field on September 5th against Youngstown State. Let's see if our process is what we thought it was. And wherever it wasn't, wherever it lacked, we adjust, we make changes, and then we go attack the next week. So there's no guarantees in football at all. All I know is hard work, building a roster, and then going out and cutting it loose and not being afraid to fail. Just go cut it freaking loose. I was saying that I look at, in that week three, you play Alabama, And I know you got two games before that, but are we too, we two or three anyway, but play them at home. And I was thinking that's going to be one of the coolest days in Lexington. Like it really is. That's going to be one of the coolest days in Lexington. When you thought about doing this job, it's part of it. Thinking about that opportunity to have days like that, where you're playing these great programs in your home state. Well, I think the coolest day in Lexington is going to be September 5th. Number one, young town state. Gotcha. 100%. I know that's coach talk, but that's real. what I don't need to do is give those guys who are tough as hell a soundbite from the Matt Jones show about me thinking about the second game of the year gotcha fair enough I'm so focused on freaking spring dude I am and like I'm so jacked up for tomorrow getting on the grass get on the turf like like we got two practice shields out here I'm looking at them right now like it's it's beautiful I'm in Lexington Kentucky I get to coach the Wildcats that is what I'm so fired up about and really being entrenched in that process and when we get to those games in our League, man, it's going to be awesome. But what I can't wait is for Kroger Field to be packed, sold out for that first game against Youngstown State. What has been the part of the program since you've been here that has surprised you the most, or maybe been the thing that you didn't know about Kentucky football, that you've come here and going, oh, okay, that's a little different than I thought? I mean, shoot, man, there's so many to talk about i will say this the support from our fans and our uh you know the people that help us out on a day-to-day basis has been incredible it really has been i mean big blue nation is even more than i could have ever known i was a part of big blue nation as a fan but to see how dedicated they are to the wildcats all of our sports i mean i'm at the gymnastics meet and there's 2 000 people in there yes golly this is freaking unbelievable women's basketball against south carolina it's packed the memorial coliseum to the brim that's what i'm i'm just so thankful to be here to represent them i mean i'm at the legislature i'm there with uh our president dr capoluto and meeting people there and like i mean there's wildcat fans everywhere it's really cool to see how big of a of a poll we have throughout not just the state but the entire country i have two uh listener questions well listener friend slash questions and then we'll get you out here one is from a former ksr member max duffy ray guy winner here just a few years ago and he goes i got one question for will does he like australians punting we got one yeah we got It's Aussies. Heck yeah. Big Aussie guy then. Hey, whoever can change the field, I'm good with. We have an Aussie right now. And lastly, this comes from a listener of the show also who says, how does Will see recruiting in the state of Kentucky? Obviously it's important, but how important is it going forward in terms of who he will recruit out of high school? yeah i mean recruiting always starts within your state no matter where i've been you have to win the state always so um obviously i mean not to mention name we we got uh you know you know the news i have we heard it right so um that's something that uh you know can't allow to happen it can we have to win the state especially when you have uh extremely talented players which i'm excited about in this 27 class, you know, guys that are here. So, but here's what I'm gonna tell you too, right? I'm not gonna beg, man. I'm not. You either want to be a part of this or you don't. We have every resource possible to go sign great players. The way that you recruit is still old school. It's still communication. It's still waking kids up in the morning and putting them in the bed at night. It's still touching everybody in their life that matters to them. Parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, coaches, trainers, now agents, that's still the way to recruit. So it's our job to always start within the confines of the Commonwealth and then we'll go wherever we need to. I've said it before. I'll go to Alaska. I'll go to freaking wherever to get the best players possible for us to go win and win the way that we want to. You've created two sayings that will outlive this interview. Six seconds of hell, and if you're scared, go to church. I can just go ahead and tell you, I know this fan base. Both of those you're going to be hearing for a long time. Will, thank you very much for taking the time. Look forward to being out there at some point during spring practice, and go give them hell. Well, I appreciate it, Matt. Thanks for having me. Big fans, and we'll talk soon. All right, Will Stein. We'll take a break. Be right back. It's KSR. Next Monday, our 2026 iHeart Podcast Awards are happening live at South by Southwest. This is the biggest night in podcasting. We'll honor the very best in podcasting from the past year and celebrate the most innovative talent and creators in the industry. And the winner is... Creativity, knowledge, and passion will all be on full display. Thank you so much, iHeartRadio. Thank you to all the other nominees. You guys are awesome. Watch live next Monday at 8 p.m. Eastern, 5 p.m. Pacific, free at veeps.com or the veeps app. Hey, I'm Jay Shetty, host of the On Purpose podcast. My latest episode is with Hilary Duff, singer, actress, and multi-platinum artist. Hilary opens up about complicated family dynamics, motherhood, and releasing her first record in over 10 years. We talk about what it's taken to grow up in the entertainment industry and stay grounded through every chapter. It's a raw and honest conversation about identity, evolution, and building a life that truly matters. You desire in family like this picture, and that's not reality a lot of the time. It's for people. My sister and I don't speak. It's definitely a very painful part of my life, and I hope it's not forever, but it's for right now. Listen to On Purpose with Jay Shetty on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. In 2023, a story gripped the UK, evoking horror and disbelief. The nurse who should have been in charge of caring for tiny babies is now the most prolific child killer in modern British history. Everyone thought they knew how it ended. A verdict, a villain, a nurse named Lucy Letby. Lucy Letby has been found guilty. But what if we didn't get the whole story? The moment you look at the whole picture, the case collapses. I'm Amanda Knox and in the new podcast Doubt the case of Lucy Letby we follow the evidence and hear from the people that lived it to ask what really happened when the world decided who Lucy Letby was No voicing of any skepticism or doubt It'll cause so much harm at every single level if the British establishment of this is wrong Listen to Doubt the case of Lucy Letby on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts I'm Clayton Eckerd, and in 2022, I was the lead of ABC's The Bachelor. Unfortunately, it didn't go according to plan. He became the first Bachelor to ever have his final rose rejected. The internet turned on him. If I could press a button and rewind it all, I would. But what happened to Clayton after the show made even bigger headlines. It began as a one-night stand and ended in a courtroom, with Clayton at the center of a very strange paternity scandal. The media is here. This case has gone viral. The dating contract. Agree to date me but I also suing you Please search for it This is unlike anything I ever seen before I Stephanie Young This is Love Trapped This season, an epic battle of he said, she said and the search for accountability in a sea of lies. I have done nothing except get pregnant by the f***ing bachelor. Listen to Love Trapped on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. so i love that i thought he was great i think he's gonna i love the mentality that's exactly what this program needs i mean i love mark stoops but his youth and enthusiasm and excitement just came through the interview great job it was great uh kentucky skin cancer center is offering your listeners 50 off a glow 2 facial that's right you could get a facial at the kentucky skin cancer center $50 off just use my code KSR they've got it all over the state Glasgow Waverly uh was it Waverly that's not Waverly Powerly Waverly out my way Waverly's a different place go to the Kentucky Skin Cancer Center use my code KSR $50 off your official skin care facial they also have sets go to Kentucky Skin Cancer Center dot com Kentucky Skin Cancer Center dot com Drew what'd you think of will that was awesome i mean i know it's march madness and i've got my eyeballs on getting to the sec tournament but heck i'm ready to go kick off football season now man if you're scared go to church i love that and also yeah i mean he meant it he was i people can't see because we didn't we weren't able to show the video but he uh he looked at me like dude i'm not what do you mean we play good team good like like i got his face kind of was like a little bit like why Of course we're going to be ready. This is the SEC. But that's what you got to say. If you're going to play that schedule, you might as well be excited about it. 100%. No reason to dread it. Nope. Love it. All right. We will now take some calls. 859-280-2287. Talk Stein and basketball. Next. TJ Smith, personal injury attorney. Call TJ. He'll make them pay. Now, more of Kentucky Sports Radio presented by Stockton Mortgage. Here's Matt Jones. Let's do a couple news tidbits here first. I think this is what Will Stein was referring to. Seneca driver committed to Oklahoma. Tough loss for Kentucky. Number one tight end in the country. Will says we're not going to beg. I appreciate that. Tough, though, to lose him. He could be a star. That's tough. He is a star. Kentucky's been recruiting him for a long time. So is everybody else. Just a superstar player going to be a senior at Boyle County next year. Remember, Jason Witten is the tight end coach at Oklahoma now. You know, I don't like to lose a recruit. but when Jason went in a Hall of Fame tight end as the tight end's coach, you can understand why Seneca might lean that way a little bit. Maybe he can change his mind by the time it rolls around. Remember, it's a long road. Got another year before he plays college football. Also, we've learned in a year or two, might end up in the portal. They don't quit recruiting these kids just because you verbally committed to somebody. That's right. So, long road. Brayden Hawthorne told the Herald leader this morning he will return to Kentucky. So, we have one player next year. There we go. build the roster now seems early we haven't portal hadn't even open yet but i like it i hope it's i hope that stays firm if he can put on a little bit of weight this year i mean i think the red shirt was silly but he was so thin i don't know that it could help but thank you if he can bulk up he's very skilled i like it i wonder if he hadn't gotten hurt if he would have played this year because they were kind of you know maybe then maybe but uh it's good we now certainly have one We all won. I think that kid can be good. So I think that'll be a really positive addition. So with that, let's go through here. Mike, Mike, go ahead. Hey, guys. How are y'all? Take me off speaker. Go. Oh, my bad. So anyway, the reason I'm calling is thanks for letting me come on. But I appreciate you guys' show. Been a long-time listener for a long time. Um, so, so I guess me as a Kentucky fan for I'm 51 years old since I was, you know, probably seven, eight years old and seen a lot of great things, a lot of bad things, whatever. My, my fear, and I guess, you know, maybe I need to go to church and I do need to go to church, but go for it. Give me your point. Go ahead. So my point is this, is that next year, this is what I'm looking at right now is next year, you know, with what we – where are we standing with anybody right now? You know what I mean? And I'm just like, you know, with Pope, you know, this year, I mean, it was just a disaster. Next year, I mean, recruiting-wise, I mean, normally we have a stacked team, and, I mean, now we have nothing. It's a completely – and I appreciate the call – completely reasonable worry. um next six weeks will tell it i mean i can't i can't say anything that's going to make you feel better drew because there's nothing really to say i don't know who they might get i don't even know if they know who they might get so it's hard to say confidently anything completely agree with you if i were to give you a little optimism and this is a stretch but they seem to be in good uh communication with dink pate our guy jacob said they're going to talk to him again this week i know people are conflicted on the g league thing but we need bodies yeah and uh if he can come help out that's a 6-7 guard averaging 16 points for the Westchester Knicks and I don't know if he'll end up here but Pope's at least pursuing that I'm not conflicted if he's allowed to play getting period end of story that's it if the rules allow it you got to adjust and if you can get somebody like that you do it if he's allowed to play you do it how does that work if he comes here and he looks good but the Knicks still own him can he can he just leave college and the Knicks sign him we've never seen anything like that before because they own his rights yeah i don't know i actually don't know like october them calling and be like well it's a fun month i'm heading to i i'm just wondering that i don't know i honestly don't know the answer to that question i i we've never seen anything we've never seen it i i don't know if they'll still own his rights next year i'm not sure to be honest go ahead mike hi guys i uh i hate that i'm where i'm at right now but But, you know, I've kind of got a take on the basketball, and I was going to try to convince you guys to come on with me here. But I really feel like, and I hate to say it, because I was hoping it would work out that we need to make a switch. And I know everybody says they won't do it. But we need to make a switch after this year because I feel like we're too far behind. And he looks desperate. I don't think he can – he doesn't look confident like he's going to fix it. And even if he does get a GM, who's coming in here with a sitting-duck coach? Tayshaun Prince ain't leaving to come here to get fired in one year? I think they can get a good GM. I do. I think, and I think you can even go further, and I appreciate the call. A GM could get hired and could keep the job even if the coach changed one day. Could. You know, in general, in other sports, a GM is hired by, like, the president of the team, and the coach reports to the GM. Now this is going to be kind of weird because you're going to actually have that structure flipped. The GM works for the coach, which is not how it is in professional teams. So I think that's an interesting odd dichotomy that I'm not exactly sure how that's going to work out. We've talked about it. Will Stein brought his GM. He was here before Will even got here. But those GMs, if Will Stein wants to replace him, he can. whereas like in the NBA the GM is the one who hires the coach. I'm a big Titans guy. We've had GM coach drama the last few years just rotating through all of them. It is a weird dynamic. It is different though. The GM is under the coach here which is different. Peggy, go ahead Peggy. Good morning guys. Good morning. First of all, they should have never let Dave Baker go. But my thought for replacing him and I'm sure we'll never get him is Tom Hart, and they still need to get rid of Cameron. And I never, ever want Dickie V to call a Kentucky-Florida game because all he did was talk about Florida. Well, they were beating us. They were beating us pretty bad. Yeah, they were. But all he did was talk about Florida. He never mentioned Kentucky. and all he talked about was Florida and his foundation. His foundation is a great foundation, but you don't hog up the whole time talking about Florida. I understand, Peggy. I appreciate the call. What did you think about Dickie V with a strong comment about our roster saying if they're going to spend $22 million, they should have better players than this? you hear our fan base say it even we may say it on this show but to hear dick my town doesn't say things like that very often yeah but when him when he says something like that on a national broadcast it kind of resonates a little harder i think he's not usually very critical it's usually oh mark pope will turn this you know he's putting belief even if he doesn't truly believe it just because he's not really that critical of people on broadcast so that that was another layer of just throwing your hands up in the air with this team and how this season's gone i said hi to him right before the game. I reached over, I took a picture, and he goes, are they going to win? And I said, I don't know. And he goes, no one knows. Which I thought was like, well... That's true. That is kind of true. Donnie, go ahead, Donnie. Yes, my thoughts are for every postseason game, we should start Mo Diabonte and set Yelovich and come out physical and punch him in the mouth for every postseason game for the rest of the season and i still haven't given up on the cats appreciate the call do you agree with that oh yeah appreciate the call do you agree with that there at the end yeah yeah about not giving up on the cats or starting diabate yo i'm a big yellow bitch guy and i think he has so much more but he just can't get in the groove when he plays the first half then it just goes to diabate so i'd rather if diabate is going to play like he has lately uh i think yeah go ahead and let him start and get the most minutes it ends up being him most the game anyway i agree i kind of think now diabate is more of a starter yep i do bring yellow bitch off the bench potentially to hit threes etc and add a spark i wish yellow bitch had more opportunities in november to get a little more comfortable i think his ceiling's a lot higher than what we're ever going to get near here yeah i thought it was warranted i thought you have it needed to start now i think it's flipped i do think diabate probably needs to start now let's talk about that. Yelovich made comments after the game where he said, we just got some guys that get away from the team basketball and if they haven't gotten the ball in two or three minutes, they just shoot. Who's he talking about? Well, if we're going on the game, O.A. did it. Aberdeen did it. Diabate did it. Jasper. I mean, when Jasper comes in, there is a sense with all four of those guys that they will take... I actually don't think Aberdeen does it as much. He usually does it after he hits a shot. When he hits one shot, he's got a hit check. It's hard for me to get upset at it because he's our best player. Yeah. But he's right. That does happen. He was talking about guys that go wild without the ball, though. I mean, O.A. and Aberdeen, they have a lot. It was guys that go two or three minutes without it and then think it's their turn. Yeah, there is a little bit sometimes you can feel it of, okay, now me, there is a little bit of that. It was also great to hear someone. I wish Chandler would do it sometimes. I can't really say. He's got to get the ball in his hands, man. He only shot, what, five times? They've shot him down two straight games. He's got to find a way to get open and get a shot. It was also great to hear Yellovich or someone, it was him, say fatigue is not a problem. It was Yellovich. He did say that. Fatigue is not a problem. That's not an excuse for what he said. Spring has sprung, and that means you might be getting outside more. Whether it's doing yard work or staying active by biking or running, court physical therapy can help you with aches, pains, and injuries. Court Physical Therapy can help keep you from getting back to being hurt and go back to the things you enjoy while preventing injuries. It's Court Physical Therapy, 70 locations statewide. There's a center near you. Go to court.com. It's K-O-R-T.com. We'll take a break. Be right back. It's KSR. Next Monday, our 2026 iHeart Podcast Awards are happening live at South by Southwest. This is the biggest night in podcasting. We'll honor the very best in podcasting from the past year and celebrate the most innovative, talented creators in the industry. And the winner is... Creativity, knowledge, and passion will all be on full display. Thank you so much, iHeartRadio. Thank you to all the other nominees. You guys are awesome. Watch live next Monday at 8 p.m. Eastern, 5 p.m. Pacific, free at veeps.com or the veeps app. Hey I Jay Shetty host of the On Purpose podcast My latest episode is with Hilary Duff singer actress and multi artist hillary opens up about complicated family dynamics motherhood and releasing her first record in over 10 years we talk about what it's taken to grow up in the entertainment industry and stay grounded through every chapter it's a raw and honest conversation about identity evolution and building a life that truly matters. You desire in family like this picture and that's not reality a lot of the time it's for people. My sister and I don't speak. It's definitely a very painful part of my life and I hope it's not forever but it's for right now. Listen to On Purpose with Jay Shetty on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. In 2023, a story gripped the UK, evoking horror and disbelief. The nurse who should have been in charge of caring for tiny babies is now the most prolific child killer in modern British history. Everyone thought they knew how it ended. A verdict, a villain, a nurse named Lucy Letby. Lucy Letby has been found guilty. But what if we didn't get the whole story? The moment you look at the whole picture, the case collapses. I'm Amanda Knox and in the new podcast Doubt the case of Lucy Letby we follow the evidence and hear from the people that lived it to ask what really happened when the world decided who Lucy Letby was no voicing of any skepticism or doubt it'll cause so much harm at every single level of the British establishment of this is wrong listen to Doubt the case of Lucy Letby on the iHeartRadio app Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts I'm Clayton Eckerd, and in 2022, I was the lead of ABC's The Bachelor. Unfortunately, it didn't go according to plan. He became the first Bachelor to ever have his final rose rejected. The internet turned on him. If I could press a button and rewind it all, I would. But what happened to Clayton after the show made even bigger headlines. It began as a one-night stand and ended in a courtroom, with Clayton at the center of a very strange paternity scandal. The media is here. This case has gone viral. The dating contract. Agree to date me, but I'm also suing you. Please search for it. This is unlike anything I've ever seen before. I'm Stephanie Young. This is Love Trapped. This season, an epic battle of he said, she said, and the search for accountability in a sea of lies. I have done nothing except get pregnant by the bachelor. Listen to Love Trapped on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome back to E-Sports Radio. Cornbread Hemp will be one of our sponsors on the road. Go to cornbreadhemp.com. Promo code KSR. Full spectrum flower only hemp CBDs and the seltzers. And they're all there for you. They help me rest. I hope they will do the same for you. Try Cornbread Hemp. Cornbreadhemp.com. Promo code KSR. Our longest, along with TJ Smith, our longest sponsor. Yeah, for a long time it was Boone's Butcher Shop. You say that. They haven't been on this radio show in a decade. When we first started, though, they stayed with you all the way for like 10 years it seemed like. Yeah, it was not. I love Boone's Butcher Shop, but we should really support the ones that are doing it now. Absolutely. and not always Shannon bringing up Boone's Butcher Shop even though I like Boone's Butcher Shop but you keep bringing that up and it has been a decade since Boone's Butcher Shop TJ's been with us for a long time TJ's been with us for a long time right here in Louisville at the studio we're going to have lunch later on so schedule Wednesday we play at 1 o'clock we play at 12.30 in Nashville we're going to talk a lot more about this tomorrow but what we think the crowd will be like, we're actually not going to be there yet. We're going to be on the way. So here we would like to come watch the game. So we're going to do the show, leave here at like 11, get in the car, and then we're going to drive to Bowling Green and watch the game there and do this post-game show there. so if there's somebody in bowling green would like to uh have us watch i guess it'll be more like the second half of the game and do the post game show they're not in front of a crowd just host us if you have like a sports bar or something like that yeah let us know because we're going to get there stop and watch the game i have a feeling this early start a lot of fans that have plans might not make it for the even with only ten dollar tickets i mean i don't know a lot of people going but the few I've reached out to are like, we're going to get there Wednesday at like 5 and just hope we're still in it. I hope it's still a good turnout, but playing before noon local time I think is going to have a big impact. It will because so many people have got their hotel reservations that don't even start until Wednesday night. And I looked up what it was to add Tuesday night. My goodness. Tuesday night isn't on discount. But we will do... Now, we are going to do our Tin Roof Show Thursday either way. Now, if we win, it'll be a lot of fun shit yeah it'll be good if we lose that will be interesting group therapy yeah morning beers hangover party yeah morning beers with drew right several if they win on becoming a pregame show for the next game too right yes that's the ideal situation that's the ideal situation well we got we don't we're not gonna lose are we we should win don't talk it into existence one thing i hate and i i don't even want to say this out loud but if you lose you could be leaving nashville as arkansas tennessee and florida are coming in well i mean you could pass them on your way out before they even get to pass your fans coming to the time i mean our fans will be on the way to nashville potentially as we're going home most of the my friends you know i i've done this trip for 20 plus years most of my friends are arriving after this game. I am arriving after this game. And I'm going no matter what, but we're going to win. Shano, go ahead, Shano. Good morning, guys. Good morning. And I just, hey, I got a couple things to say about football. And first off, thank you, thank you, thank you for having Coach Will on. Man, I had multiple chill bumpies, as Ryan would say, moments during that interview. I also got so excited, man, my mouth started watering and pacing back and forth here at the house. I mean, I'm so excited about that guy. And the fact that they're on the hunt, just, I mean, and the T-shirts that are going to be made, call Rick at the Kentucky shop right now and get him on it. Because, man, sign me up. And I want to do a little PR, man, because we've been without PR for football far too long. and the spring game, April 18th, BBN, show up, morning beers, afternoon beers. Let's celebrate. Let's make our spring game a celebration for what it should be. And then my last thing, this week I live in Louisville, and I'm a former player, and I've already gone by and got me some sissy cakes, but I'm going by to give Miss Debbie a hug and Aunt Blakey another hug for raising a young man with the caliber and the insight and the passion that we really needed for this program. And that's all I need to say, guys. Appreciate it. That's good stuff. Thank you, Shane. Appreciate it. I agree with everything he said there. We'll get plenty of hype for the spring game as we get closer. Warren, go ahead, Warren. Hey, guys. Good morning. Love the show. Thank you. with Coach Don. My cousin and I have season tickets, and we're so fired up. Wanted to – been one to call for a long time, and congratulate Drew on expecting the little girl. I'm actually holding my newborn right now. So congrats to Drew. You guys – I've been the listener for so long. You guys feel like family. So I wanted to tell you, Matt, that I'm excited that you're – dad had a good report last week. Just like you, I grew up becoming a UK fan because of my grandfather and my grandmother and watching games with him growing up. And I actually got to watch the Florida game with my grandmother, who turned 101 yesterday. Well, that's awesome. Well, Warren, that is very cool. I'm sorry. I'm going to have to go to break here in a second. That's okay. Real quick. That's okay. But thank you very much for all of those kind comments. Thank you. We appreciate it. 101. 101. That's a lot of years. JC, I got like 30 seconds. Go. Oh, just real quick. Chandler getting off threes, he needs to be able to burn that pressure off. He's not going to get open looks. The book's out on him. He can't get all the way to the rock. He's got to get to the lane. and hit the little 10-footer. I agree. That's about all I've got in 30 seconds. He's got to. You're exactly right. That's a good way to put it. The book is out on him, and he's got to find a way to get open because that's crucial for us. Let's go to DraftKings promo code KSR. Bet five. You can win up to $200 from DraftKings. It's your place for March Madness this year. Tennessee had won. We would have won our parlay. That's what I get for believing in Tennessee. The tonight Sunbelt Championship, Georgia Southern, has a chance to do something no team's ever done. Six games in six days to win a conference tournament. Six games in six days? Six games in six days for the Sunbelt Final. They play Troy tonight to win it all. Do you think they can do six games in six days? No. We saw Troy last year. We wrote 100 stories on the meeting at Waffle House. Waffle House will carry them to the tournament again. i want the team to win in six games in six days i'm gonna pull for georgia state we're georgia southern georgia um and uh shannon i'm taking georgia southern as well six games in six days our team is tired after we play two games in a week this team's gonna play six games in six days georgia southern with the championship tonight let's go we don't like the saturday tuesday turnaround and georgia southern is on their sixth game you got the wednesday to Monday. Saturday to Tuesday, too much, too much fatigue, but six games in a row, Georgia Southern. That's tonight. Uh, the Sunbelt, we will see you all tomorrow. Thanks to Will side for coming on. It's KSR next Monday. Our 2026 I heart podcast awards are happening live at South by Southwest. The biggest night in podcasting will honor the very best in podcasting from the past year and Celebrate the most innovative, talented, and creators in the industry. And the winner is... Creativity, knowledge, and passion will all be on full display. Thank you so much, iHeartRadio. Thank you to all the other nominees. You guys are awesome. Watch live next Monday at 8 p.m. Eastern, 5 p.m. Pacific, free at veeps.com or the veeps app. Ego Woda is your host for the 2026 iHeart Podcast Awards, live at South by Southwest. Hello, is anybody there? Raised by a single mom, Ego may have a few father-related issues. Are we supposed to talk about your dad? Her podcast, Thanks Dad, is full of funny, heartfelt conversations with actors, including fellow SNL alums, comedians, musicians, and more, about life and their wonderfully complicated relationships with their fathers. I think and hope that's a good thing. Get to know Ego. Follow Thanks Dad with Ego Wodum and start listening on the free iHeartRadio app today. Hey, I'm Jay Shetty, host of the On Purpose podcast. my latest episode is with Hilary Duff, singer, actress, and multi-platinum artist. You desire in family like this picture and that's not reality. My sister and I don't speak. It's definitely a very painful part of my life and I hope it's not forever, but it's for right now. Listen to On Purpose with Jay Shetty on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Amanda Knox and in the new podcast Doubt, The Case of Lucy Letby, we unpack the story of an unimaginable tragedy that gripped the UK in 2023. But what if we didn't get the whole story? I've just been made to fit. The moment you look at the whole picture, the case collapsed. What if the truth was disguised by a story we chose to believe? Oh my God, I think she might be innocent. Listen to Doubt, The Case of Lucy Letby on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.