Kalen DeBoer’s Alabama team trails Kentucky 13-17 at halftime of Saturday’s SEC opener at Kroger Field. The Tide also arrived without 24 players from its larger roster group, which is why this road trip already looks more complicated than the ranking difference between the two teams suggested.

That absence list comes from reporter Mike Rodak, who noted more than 20 Alabama players from the 74-player SEC travel roster were not in uniform against Kentucky. Quarterback Tayden-Evan Kaawa is one of the names who did not dress. 

The reason the list looks so long is the conference rule. Alabama is the visiting team, and SEC road clubs can dress only 74 players. Rodak’s report therefore mixes two groups. Some players are injured and declared out. Others simply did not make the travel roster. 

The confirmed outs include offensive lineman Michael Carroll, running back AK Dear, inside linebacker Cayden Jones, cornerbacks Jorden Edmonds, Zyan Gibson and Nick Sherman, defensive lineman Jeremiah Beaman and wide receiver Noah Rogers. 

Beaman is done for the season after a torn ACL. Edmonds and Sherman had been dealing with lower-body injuries and were seen on crutches. Rogers was in uniform but still declared out, which shows how injury reports and the travel cap can overlap.

Carroll is the starting right guard and Alabama’s only returning offensive-line starter. Rogers was projected as a starting receiver and is still working back from a spring knee injury. Twenty-four players not in uniform sounds huge. However, Carroll and Rogers are the absences that matter most on Saturday. 

Will Sanders and Mal Waldrep are the guards filling in, with Ethan Fields another option. The reshuffling still matters because this is the first SEC game and the first road start for quarterback Keelon Russell. DeBoer had already talked about the recovery timeline earlier in the week.

“I think your guys that are the closest are Jireh and AK, and then Noah just down the road here, just a little bit,” Kalen DeBoer said this Monday, September 7, while discussing Jireh Edwards, AK Dear, and Noah Rogers. 

“But wanted to get them out there, just keep the progression part of their transitions back. But I think Jireh and AK you can see here very soon, and all three, just their process of recovery has gone very smooth, probably quicker than you’d expect, but we also got to be careful,” he noted. 

DeBoer said Carroll should be back next week against Florida State, and Rogers remains on his own recovery clock. 

Those missing pieces sit against a Kentucky team that entered 1-0 after beating Youngstown State 45-13. They are still rebuilding under first-year head coach Will Stein after back-to-back losing seasons. Alabama came in ranked No. 12, and Kentucky was unranked. The opener is still happening on the road with several lineup changes.

Alabama leads the all-time series 39-2-1. Kentucky’s last win was in 1997, a 40-34 overtime result in Lexington. Alabama has won the last eight meetings, including a 49-21 win in Lexington in 2023. Kentucky went 5-7 and 2-6 in the SEC in 2025, 4-8 and 1-7 in 2024, then 7-6 in both 2023 and 2022. The series favors Alabama. 

However, the Week 2 game didn’t start well for Kalen DeBoer’s team. Alabama turned the ball over on its first two possessions, the first time that had happened since 2009. Kentucky’s Mi’Quise Humphrey-Grace scored first on a short pick-six after batting a Russell pass. 

Luke Metz answered with a 34-yard interception return to tie it at 7-7. Minchey then hit Henry Boyer for a 20-yard touchdown at 14:56 of the second quarter to make it 14-7. 

Russell led the Tide to two good drives in the second quarter. However, both didn’t turn into touchdowns. On the plus side, Conor Talty converted two field goals. But the quarter ended on the same note for the QB as the game started. He threw an interception, which the Wildcats turned into a field goal to end the first half on 17-13.