After the Week 1 warm-up against the ECU Pirates, the Alabama Crimson Tide will face its first true test of the season on Saturday afternoon. Alabama will travel to Lexington to take on a rebuilt Kentucky Wildcats team under the direction of new head coach Will Stein.

Beyond the factors of having a new quarterback making his first road start in the SEC, Alabama is preparing to play without arguably its best offensive lineman, Michael Carroll. That potentially changes the dynamics of the run game, and could mean Alabama is more reliant on players like Ryan-Coleman Williams at WR or Keelon Russell to make plays with his legs. Either way, here are our final score predictions for the game from me, and 5 others from our CFB staff.

Alabama 33, Kentucky 20

Not that he wasn’t in his debut, but I expect to see an efficient Keelon Russell against the Wildcats. OC Ryan Grubb is going to aim to get the ball out quickly and keep Russell comfortable in his first road start. I think we see a lot of manufactured touches for Ryan Coleman-Williams early, serving as mental confidence for him, and easy completions and yards after the catch for Russell.

I will also be intrigued to see Alabama’s defense against Will Stein and Kenny Minchey. The battle between Wommack and Stein as opposing play-callers will be interesting, but I don’t think Kentucky has the horses on the perimeter to threaten Alabama’s secondary. I’ll take the Crimson Tide comfortably.

Alabama 45, Kentucky 20

“I think Will Stein is going to do a good job as the head coach of Kentucky long-term. What I don’t think is that the Wildcats are ready to compete at a high level yet. Kenny Minchey looked good against Youngstown State, but will he be good enough to beat the Crimson Tide? Not the version that we saw against East Carolina.”

“After a couple years of subpar quarterback play, the Crimson Tide have a live one in Keelon Russell. He showcased everything you could want at the position, from mobility to arm talent. Pair that with an opportunistic defense and a running game that looks mostly improved, and it’s a recipe for an Alabama blowout.” – Tyler Forness, A to Z Sports Florida Gators

Alabama 34, Kentucky 27

“I’m taking Alabama to beat Kentucky 34-27 in what I expect to be a much closer game than the Crimson Tide’s 48-10 season-opening win over East Carolina. Kentucky looked impressive in its opener, rolling to a 45-13 victory over Youngstown State, and the Wildcats will have the advantage of playing at home in Lexington.”

“Still, Alabama has too much firepower for me to pick against them. Keelon Russell looked poised in his first start, throwing for 256 yards without an interception while also making plays with his legs. I expect Kentucky quarterback Kenny Minchey to keep the Wildcats competitive, but Alabama’s defense makes enough plays late and Russell delivers a couple of big drives to secure the win.” – Ryan Roberts, A to Z Sports Notre Dame

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Alabama 20, Kentucky 13

“This is an interesting matchup between two relatively new-look programs. The Crimson Tide had an impressive start with new starting QB Keelon Russell under center (256 passing yards, 86 rushing yards) in a 48-10 win over East Carolina, while Kentucky ushered in the Will Stein era in strong fashion over Youngstown State 45-13.”

“Notre Dame transfer Kenny Minchey had a strong first start with 301 passing yards and four touchdowns for the Wildcats. Alabama comes into Lexington as a 10-point favorite, and despite the relative successes of their new quarterbacks, both teams are going to struggle more to move the ball on Saturday afternoon. The Crimson Tide break through in the fourth quarter, as Russell engineers a key scoring drive late with his legs, and Alabama escapes with a hard-fought road win.” Craig Smith, A to Z Sports Miami Hurricanes

Alabama 31, Kentucky 20

“Keelon Russell looked solid in his debut as a dual-threat quarterback and a Week 2 game against Kentucky on the road will be a good measuring stick to this point. Kentucky themselves are feeling good about the QB position with Kenny Minchey, who was outstanding in his debut against Youngstown State with four touchdowns. If the Notre Dame transfer can step up and play at a high level against Alabama, this is going to be a game in the fourth quarter. Overall, I see the road team pulling away late, and Bama finds some success on the ground to finish it out.” – Brandon Little, A to Z Sports Ohio State

Alabama 27, Kentucky 17

“The Alabama Crimson Tide started their game against Eastern Carolina a tad slowly. It took a minute to find its groove. Once they did, it looked very good, like a well-oiled machine. This is a game where Alabama will see their first real look at good competition this year. It’s going to show us a bit more of who this team is. Now, with that being said, Alabama will still win this game, pretty handily. They will dominate the line of scrimmage. They will have the better quarterback. They will have the better defense. But we have seen crazier things happen.” – Justin Churchill, A to Z Sports Oklahoma Sooners