will stein
Will Stein reported a clean bill of health ahead of the Wildcats' SEC opener, yet there was one big omission from the Kentucky defense.
Kentucky starting cornerback Terhyon Nichols did not appear on last week's SEC Availability Report. He was dressed on the sideline, but never entered the Alabama game.
"He was available all week. He practiced all week, and then, really late in the process - Friday night, Saturday morning - he was a little bit, 'He can go, BUT .' We felt like it was best to not put him out there in those situations," Stein said on Tuesday .
"He went every single rep today. I know that. I watched it with my own eyes. He was running around fast, had a hop in his step. My expectation with that is he's going to play this Saturday."
A missed opportunity on third down cost Kentucky on another third down. CJ Baxter was the relief valve and had an open look to move the sticks, but the pass was off target, clipping Baxter's finger. He injured his digit on the play, forcing him to miss a few snaps throughout the Alabama game.
"It popped out on him like three times. A critical third-and-one; he wasn't in there because of that, so that was unfortunate for us," said the Kentucky head coach.
Stein shared that Baxter taped up his finger and participated in every rep during Tuesday morning's practice.
Running back Jovantae Barnes did not see much action at all during the preseason as he dealt with a lingering injury from spring practice. He only played a handful of snaps against Alabama, carrying the ball three times for -2 yards and catching one pass for four yards.
"It was obviously big for him. He hasn't been out there much, got cleared to play last week. It felt like he was capable to go out there and give us some added depth to that room," said Stein. "It was not a knock on Jovantae, based on his statistics. He played hard and had a really good day of practice today. I think just getting back in the flow and having a full week of practice and prep is going to help him moving forward."
Barnes is not the only one knocking off the rust. Malachi Wood made his debut at right tackle after missing week one. Those first reps against a live rush from Alabama's talented edge players looked like first reps.
"That's a different speed when you're out there in a real game," said Stein. "Different than our look squad. Different than certain people. They have some elite edge rushers, and so we've got to be able to get the ball out quicker."
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