A little later than normal, but the long wait is over as the 2026 Southeastern Conference media days are set to kick off on Monday, showcasing the unofficial start of the 2026 season. The SEC will get things underway on Monday with three returning coaches in Brent Venables from Oklahoma, Eliah Drinkwitz from Missouri, and Josh Heupel from Tennessee, who will make their annual state of the program speeches, while for the first time in over 13 years, Kentucky will have a new coach on the podium on Monday as Will Stein makes his first ever apperence at SEC Media Day’s as Head Coach of the Kentucky Wildcats. 

In years past, it would be Coach Mark Stoops getting in front of the media and presenting a state-of-the-program speech that usually included a discussion of how tough and physical his team would be this fall, and with the unmatched success Kentucky saw under Coach Stoops, he would be right. However, everything has an expiration date, and Kentucky heads to Tampa with a new head coach and a new roster, as well as Coach Stein navigates the talking season by presenting his message to the Big Blue Nation. 

Heading into his SEC Media Day debut, there’s a lot of excitement surrounding Kentucky Football for this era, led by a Lexington native who came home to the Bluegrass to lead his childhood team back to relevance. To this point in his tenure, Coach Stein has recruited well, has said all the right things, and now is embracing the excitement from the Kentucky faithful, as the Wildcats might be unknown to some, but have some guys on the roster who come to Lexington as guys who can shape a program for years to come. Starting on the offensive side of the ball with Kenny Minchey at quarterback via the portal from Notre Dame, CJ Baxter at running back, Nic Anderson at wide receiver, then you have guys like Willie Rodriguez at tight end, Lance Heard at offensive tackle, and Coleton Price at center. When he was hired, Coach Stein talked at length about being high-octane on offense, doing so by “feeding the studs,” as he calls it. 

On the defensive side of the ball, Kentucky has plenty of excitement as the front seven is back to looking like an SEC-caliber front seven, led by Mi’Quise Humphrey-Grace at defensive line, then you have the Purdue transfer in Jamarrion Harkless, who goes by “ Big Chop,” on the defensive line as well. Elsewhere around the defense, familiar names like Terhyon Nichols and Ty Bryant are holding things down in the secondary. Another name to keep an eye out for this season for the Kentucky defense is linebacker Grant Godfrey, who started in the final three games for Kentucky. 

As far as the message from Coach Stein on Monday? Expect him to come out excited to be the Head Coach at Kentucky, expect him to showcase his guys, then also send a resounding message that this Kentucky team isn’t afraid of the fight from anyone or any place. Coach Stein has a lot to be optimistic about during his first year as Head Coach at Kentucky, and he’s already won over the fan base and the local media in Lexington. In his press availabilities, including his opening press conference, the coach’s talk was minimal, as he’s a former player who grew up loving the Kentucky Wildcats and now has his dream job. If he’s successful and gets Kentucky back to a level where postseason football is the standard, then he’s the type of guy who could earn a statue outside of Kroger Field when it’s all said and done. As far as the national media goes, as we’ve seen with him so far, he doesn’t shy away from the difficult questions or the challenge at hand; he embraces being the Head Coach at Kentucky and all the adversity that comes with the program. 

Coach Will Stein will take the podium sometime on Monday in Tampa. 

Kentucky opens the season at home on September 5th against Youngstown State. 

Photo Credits- Kentucky Football on X