Will Stein is a certified quarterback whisperer.
He took over the offense at Oregon and immediately elevated Bo Nix to a Heisman finalist. Nix threw for 4,508 yards and 45 touchdowns, almost 1,000 more yards and 16 more touchdowns than the year prior. He followed that up by turning Dillon Gabriel into a Heisman finalist, too.
In his last year with Oregon, it was Dante Moore's turn. The young signal-caller threw for 3,565 yards and 30 touchdowns. No, he wasn't a Heisman finalist, but his immense improvement under Stein was obvious to anyone who saw him at UCLA.
But it is not just Will Stein doing the heavy lifting for the Cats. Joe Sloan was the quarterback coach for Jayden Daniels when he won the Heisman at LSU. Pretty elite company for a single staff.
That kind of coaching pedigree is exactly what you need to reel in elite quarterback prospects, and it is exactly why Kentucky is suddenly plotting to steal Alabama's quarterback of the future: Elijah Haven.
2027 No. 1 QB Elijah Haven trending with Kentucky
Elijah Haven is the number one QB prospect in the 2027 class. He is not just the top QB. 247sports has him as the 2nd best player in the country.
Every sign was pointing to the Crimson Tide, right up until On3's Steve Wiltfong recently reported that Kentucky is making a massive move. Haven is from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and Joe Sloan is incredibly familiar with the young signal-caller from his time coaching down there.
"Five-star quarterback Elijah Haven visits Alabama... and is trending towards the Crimson Tide,” Wiltfong wrote. “Because of the relationship with Sloan, the thought around the Wildcats program is that they’re quickly becoming a dark-horse for the Baton Rouge Dunham School product.”
Kentucky already locked up Kenny Minchey out of the transfer portal for this year, signed four-star Matt Ponatoski for the future, and is now actively recruiting the absolute best of the best in 2027.
That signals serious intent. And because Kentucky is actually gaining traction with a five-star kid from deep inside SEC territory, it shows that the intent is leading to real results. The next step, of course, is getting Haven on campus in Lexington.
But all signs point to Will Stein making that happen in no time. And if he can snag Haven away from Alabama, that timeline may jump ahead a couple of years.