Kentucky football kicked off the Will Stein era with a 45-13 win over Youngstown State. The Cats looked good in blue uniforms, but Kroger Field certainly didn't sound good.
All offseason, the University has talked about the improvements made to Kroger Field. They hired a new game day host, Ohavia Phillips-Reed, who was awesome, but only if you could hear her. New field-level speakers were supposed to boost the sound and increase the experience.
In short, it did not. Fans were not feeling it at all. The speakers that were added didn't really add much sound, and it definitely didn't carry any noise to the away teams side of the field. As usual, BBN wasn't quiet about speaking on things that irritate them:
"New" sound system was a downgrade at Kroger field.
— JCarpenter (@JCarpenter_0) September 5, 2026
I was there, and I have to tell you JCarpenter isn't wrong. If you were anywhere near midway up on the visiting sideline, you had no idea what was playing. You just heard roars from speakers that sounded like they were blown a long time ago. Think back to a time when you rode in a friend's car, and they had turned their music up too loud, and now it's all just roars. BBN expects, and honestly, deserves a better home game atmosphere.
This was the quick off to a new era. Will Stein brought in a new wave of optimism after a few years of stagnation under Mark Stoops. Kentucky finished 4-8 and then 5-7 in the last two years of the Stoops era. And the Cats landed probably one of the best offensive coordinators in the country. This should have been a party.
Kroger Field needs to feel like a party
Let's be honest, part of going to games is the atmosphere. You look around college football, and you see all the tailgates and music traditions like Dixieland Delight down at Alabama. Or, as bad as I hate hearing Sandstorm, you can't deny how it ties right into South Carolina's gameday experience. You hear those songs, and you tie them to the school.
Fans belt out lyrics and just have fun for a few minutes. Kentucky football needs to have that, and the University felt woefully short in Week 1 according to the people who paid to show up.
SO very disappointed, west end zone of Kroger Field has no sound waited months with excitement for @CoachWillStein @UKFootball and our new entrance we have no clue what was said or what music was played nor can you hear any thing except the announcer@KSRTHESHOW @KySportsRadio
— Susan Copass-Cheng (@MACOPASS) September 5, 2026
The speaker system at Kroger Field is questionable !!!
— Steve Smith (@Reevie4) September 5, 2026
It wasn't going to be perfect; it costs a lot of money to totally redo a sound system. Pro Acoustics estimates it could cost well over 100k to totally upgrade a big football facility like Kroger Field. Kentucky definitely didn't do that, but they did put in new speakers. And if anything, it was actually worse today.
Over time that impacts ticket sales.
Fans can get a great view of a football game at home, in air conditioning in the comfort of their own homes, without having to fight crowds or sit next to strangers. You have to give them a reason to show up. Especially on days like Saturday, when the heat index reached triple digits, or when losses pile up.
Instead fans just left disappointed in the atmosphere again. We will see if they can do any better before Alabama comes to town next weekend.
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