New athletic director J Batt is stoking the flames of a national title for Kentucky Football

Will Stein has said time and time again that he fully intends to turn Kentucky Football into a true national competitor. The program hasn't come all that close to those heights in the modern era; even Mark Stoops' best teams fizzled out when it mattered most. But Stein is pushing the envelope in a whole new way, and he's not alone.

Kentucky's new athletic director, J Batt, believes that the blue and white football program can climb all the way to the top - to the championship level. Per Jack Pilgrim, Batt wasn't at all shy about stoking that fire for the Big Blue Nation.

"... Yes! Frankly, I wouldn't be here, and neither would Will Stein, if that wasn't the answer." Whether or not the staff believes Kentucky Football can compete at the top is no longer the question at hand; now, all that's left to ask is how far they'll actually end up going, when it's all said and done.

This season specifically, I believe, is about building a solid base. Secure your foundation and let Stein's gradual successes speak for themselves from there.

Will Stein Has to Build a Solid Base in Year One

I don't know what the rest of Kentucky fans are expecting out of the football team this fall, but as for me, simply staying in the race will do. I don't anticipate wins over Alabama, Texas A&M, and LSU, but competing in all three - and maybe stealing one - will tell me all I need to know about a Stein-led squad.

Batt's attitude is brilliant, of course; I much prefer the voices in leadership swinging for the fences rather than suggesting that fans pay up if they want a better product. I won't point ponies... or rather fingers. I won't point fingers.

Anywho, these lofty ambitions almost certainly won't be realized for at least a few years. The key with both Stein and Batt, above all else, will be a perfectly balanced patience on the part of the BBN. That can be hard, I know, but it's far easier to trust this staff than the last one.

Playing the Waiting Game (For a Little While)

Now, if we get to Stein's fourth year and Kentucky is struggling to break seven/eight wins, you can start complaining. Hefty, championship-level comments assign that expectation to the program. It's a non-negotiable to see improvement like never before under Coach Stein.

But for having not coached a game at Kroger Field yet, he's done a knockout job on the recruiting trail and has kept his public mindset in-tact all throughout. Batt adding to his push for national relevancy is, for now, a good look.

If and when Kentucky Football wins a national chip, Stein may very well be gifted a key to the city. This sentiment is that big of a deal for Cats fans that have waited far too long for it to even be in the conversation.

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