College football is buzzing about after Kentucky’s 6-1 start. In just his first season as a head coach, Stein has the Cats bowl-eligible, tied for first in the SEC, and in the conversation for the College Football Playoff. The midseason accolades for Stein and the Cats are rolling in, starting with Chris Low, On3’s senior national college football reporter.
Low named Stein his Midseason Coach of the Year today. As he writes, Stein’s energy is contagious — and translating to wins in the toughest league in college football. For that, Stein gets the nod over UCLA’s Bob Chesney, Utah‘s Morgan Scalley, and BYU‘s Kalani Sitake.
“Stein coaches the way you played on Saturday afternoons in the backyard when the neighborhood kids gathered to play a pickup football game. He’s going for it on every play, especially two-point conversions, and breathes energy and passion into everybody around him. The Wildcats are 6-1 and 4-1 in the SEC, tied atop the league standings with Georgia. Stein, 37, has looked anything like a first-year head coach, and this Kentucky team has looked anything like the one that went 5-7 a year ago. The Wildcats already have three SEC road wins and three wins against nationally ranked teams.”…