Will Stein is really going to do everything he can to win football games at the University of Kentucky.
If you want to understand exactly how the first-year head coach plans to close the gap on the elite programs in the conference, you just have to look at his approach to spring practice. Not only is he out there coaching in the middle of the drills, he is aggressively hunting for every possible competitive advantage. That includes bringing cutting-edge technology directly onto the practice field, on top of helmets, to be exact.
To evaluate the most important position on the roster, Stein is literally strapping DJI cameras to the helmets of his quarterbacks to see the game exactly how they see it.
Strapping cameras to the quarterbacks
Now, if you are like me, you probably didn't know what a DJI camera was. So I did the work for you. It is essentially a camera that stabilizes even under action shots, where movement can be tricky for other cameras.
For Stein, adopting this new technology is not just about having a flashy prop to show off to high school recruits on a campus visit. It is about finding a legitimate, game-changing edge.
The cameras provide both a high-definition visual feed and crisp audio, so you hear and see everything. Is a player talking, are they doing the proper checks, and so on. This serves as a daily microphone, allowing the staff to evaluate exactly what the player is processing before the snap.
"We're trying to find every winning edge we can," Stein explained. "I don't want to waste any money. Like if we are buying something, we're going to use it."
Just like other areas of practice where there are no wasted movements, Stein is hyperfocused on making everything count.
So, what has Stein learned about his QB's so far?
Stein said he is throwing a ton of information at his quarterbacks to see who can actually pick it up.
Right now, Kenny Minchey is drawing massive praise from the head coach. Stein described him as extremely poised, smart, and accurate with a great deep ball. He said when he watches the footage back, it is like Minchey has been running this offense for years.
That's what you want to hear.
Behind him, the battle for QB2 is just as interesting. JacQai Long is showing impressive flashes and can clearly throw the football, but he is still young and learning how to process defensive reads. Meanwhile, Brennan Ward has a big live arm, but Stein stressed that he needs to learn how to make routine plays look routine. That is something a lot of big arm QB's struggle with, finding that feathery touch to float it in on the short ones.
All that data comes to a head next weekend when they strap it up for a scrimmage.
Stripping it down for the Saturday scrimmage
While Stein is using high-tech gear to push the offense into highly stressful situations during the week, he wants the scrimmage to just be about playing football.
He explicitly told his coordinators that he wants to simplify the play calls. He wants to abandon the exotic pass rush packages and the tricky offensive concepts. He is hoping that this will force the roster to simply line up and play fundamental football. Can you block? Can you tackle? Can you catch the ball down the field?
If you build on the rock, you will won't worry when the rain comes.