Kentucky kicked off the Will Stein era with a bang, defeating Youngstown State 45-13. It was the most points scored by a head coach in their Kentucky debut. Guys like Kenny Minchey, Willie Rodriguez, Kenny Darby, CJ Baxter and Jason Patterson played key roles in making it happen. But the offensive line was the reason it was possible.

Over the past few years, Kentucky’s offensive line has not lived up to the standard it set when it became The Big Blue Wall. Now, entering the Stein era, there are a lot of new faces on the line, but they’re all coming in with some valuable experience, one of which, Coleton Price, is seen as the best at his position in the SEC. The offensive line received plenty of hype within the conference entering the season and they put it on display Saturday. TE Willie Rodriguez shared some very high praise for the unit.

“Definitely the best I’ve been around,” Rodriguez said of Kentucky’s offensive line. “Playing next to those tackles is just ridiculous. You know they’re gonna get the job done. They’re really good communicators and really smart guys. Just being around a really smart O-line is just great.”

Having a great offensive line really allows a guy like Kenny Minchey to have time to throw his receivers the ball. That’s exactly what happened on Saturday. Minchey threw for 301 yards and added four touchdowns. Rodriguez even benefited a lot too, as he led the team with four receptions and added 48 yards and a touchdown. Minchey was really able to connect with a bunch of receivers and the offensive line’s blocking really helped him be able to do that.

If the offensive line can continue to be the high-level unit many are expecting them to be, Kentucky has a real shot of putting up numbers in the SEC this season and competing with some of the best. 

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