Two Kentucky coaches recognized as elite young minds working for Will Stein's new era

Will Stein is already pushing the envelope for Kentucky football as a 36-year old, first-time head coach. Mark Stoops was 58 when he was dismissed from Kroger Field last December. That gap is chasmic already, but Stein has two even younger minds that were just nationally recognized by 247Sports for their achievements in Lexington.

The "30Under30" list groups the top young coaches in college football into one list to keep an eye on in the years to come. As far as our own blue and white coaches go, both Cutter Leftwich (27) on the offensive line and James Gibson (29) with stars/nickels were honored.

247's Chris Hummer noted that "t the sport continues to trend younger and younger — there are nearly 100 on-field FBS coaches under the age of 30 this season." It's truly become a young man's game to some extent, and that coinciding with the NIL era is no coincidence.

Younger coaches are thriving in the NIL era of college sports

There are still older, household names calling the shots as head coaches across the country. That's almost a traditional thing, and is unlikely to change anytime soon. Just look at Bill Belichick in North Carolina, who will lead the way this season at 74 years old.

As the gigs get more complicated, however, it's about staffing guys who are caught up with the times. Stein's success on the recruiting trail is a direct result of his willingness to get his hands dirty as updated rulings seem to fly in on the NIL front every week.

Kentucky hiring J Batt to replace Mitch Barnhart as athletic director is another signal of these changing times. As far as Leftwich and Gibson go, both came on board with Stein as a result of his effort to modernize Kentucky's football program.

Cutter Leftwich and James Gibson are modernizing Kentucky football

Leftwich might as well have come to Lexington on the same plane as Stein, finishing up his duties as an assistant offensive line coach and run game coordinator before making the move. Gibson, on the other hand, followed defensive coordinator Jay Bateman from Texas A&M.

Kentucky is far from the only school making a push for younger coaches; one look at that list proves that this is a sport-wide trend that has long been in the making. But it's also a trend that the Wildcats weren't taking full advantage of prior to Stein's hiring.

It's wild what one great hire can do for a football program. With fast-risers like Stein, Leftwich, and Gibson leading the way, we could finally be at the beginning of a full-on renaissance at Kroger Field.

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