Rece Davis predicts Kentucky is on upset alert vs. Toledo

The 2025 Kentucky Football season is likely one of the most important in the career of head coach Mark Stoops, who is heading into his 12th season at the helm in Lexington. The SEC’s longest-tenured coach is coming off a disappointing 4-8 campaign and fan support has been wavering, unsure about the future of the Youngstown native.

After a tumultuous offseason in which the program brought in a plethora of new players while losing some of the program’s prior cornerstones in wide receivers Dane Key and Barion Brown, Kentucky‘s uber-important 2025 campaign opens on Aug. 30 against Toledo. The Rockets are fresh off an 8-5 season with a 6OT win over Pittsburgh in the 2024 GameAbove Sports Bowl.

Toledo actually received 13 votes in the preseason AP Poll, more than Auburn, Florida State, Duke, Iowa and Colorado. The Rockets open the season ranked No. 36 in the poll, just behind UNLV and ahead of Auburn. A win over Kentucky could propel Jason Candle‘s team to the cusp of the Top 25 just one week into the season.

To finish reading for free, visit On3