Zach Yenser is inheriting talent, culture with Kentucky's Big Blue Wall

Thanks to the surprise departure of Eric Wolford, Kentucky will be on their third offensive line coach in three years. Mark Stoops and offensive coordinator Liam Coen worked quickly to find the next man.

After being reported as a potential target on Thursday, things moved fast as the Wildcats have zeroed in on Zach Yenser to be the next offensive line coach at Kentucky. The assistant offensive line coach for the San Francisco 49ers is set to return to college football after a quick three-year stint in the NFC West with a pair of trips to the NFC Championship Game.

The 38-year-old Troy alum has a nice blend of college experience working mostly with Air Raid offensive coordinators combined with three years at the highest level working with a wide zone scheme in the NFL.

There are some similarities that Kentucky likely found very attractive due to Yenser’s work experience under guys with direct ties to Mark Stoops and experience in the NFL in an offense that comes from the same tree as Liam Coen. Before taking over for the Rams, Sean McVay worked under Kyle Shanahan before becoming an offensive coordinator.

The new coach will be bringing some legit coaching chops to the Kentucky program. Yenser is a man that is qualified to coach offensive line in the SEC. However, this hire is not so much about coaching and more about fit.

Yenser will be walking into a football program that has an established offensive line brand. The Big Blue Wall is a unit that is consistently among the best in college football. The NFL assistant is inheriting a lot in his move to the SEC, but there are areas of improvement needed.

Kentucky attracts and produces talent

Kentucky’s Big Blue Wall really started to emerge when Drake Jackson took over at center during the middle of the 2017 season. Putting the redshirt freshman into the lineup allowed the Wildcats to get the rushing game rolling and opened the door for Benny Snell Jr. to set the program rushing record and accumulate a rushing touchdowns record that will likely never be touched.

Since then, Kentucky has consistently fielded at least a top-20 offensive line. The Wildcats were good enough upfront for a full-time wildcat formation offense to work in 2019. In 2020, the offensive line was able to open up running lanes despite having a woeful passing game.

But it all started in 2017. From that point forward, Kentucky started to build momentum in the trenches and that has resulted in direct success in the draft and on the recruiting trail.

For three consecutive years, Kentucky has had at least one player off the offensive line selected in the NFL Draft. In April, Luke Fortner, Darian Kinnard, and Dare Rosenthal could the give the program three offensive line picks in the same draft for the first time in modern draft history.

On the recruiting trail, Kentucky has signed eight blue-chip recruits in the last three recruiting classes. Each player will be on the roster for fall camp.

Zach Yenser is inheriting a talented room with a proven history and a bright future. Pressure will be on for this group to produce immediately.

Kentucky has holes at offensive tackle

Darian Kinnard was a first-team All-American in 2021. Landon Young was a first-team All-SEC selection in 2020. Drake Jackson and Logan Stenberg were first-team All-SEC selections in 2019. Dare Rosenthal was an LSU transfer that gave Kentucky a true left tackle.

Over the past two seasons, the Wildcats have had a great situation at offensive tackle. That is no longer the case in 2021.

Over the last two years, Kentucky has not done a great job of developing the position and that has put the program in a tough spot heading into 2022. Yes, top-50 recruit Kiyaunta Goodwin appears to be the long-term answer at left tackle, but the in-state recruit might not be able to play right away. That puts the Wildcats in a bind.

Beginning in spring practice, Kentucky must find two new starting tackles for 2022. Starting left guard Kenneth Horsey is a candidate to move outside. Former blue-chipper Jeremy Flax played sparingly last season. We have yet to see four-star Deondre Buford get much time.

A transfer portal visit feels imminent at this spot. Zach Yenser must come in and immediately figure out some answers for the Wildcats on the edges.

Big Blue Wall sets the tone at Kentucky

Since 2016, Kentucky is 47-29 with a pair of top-20 finishes, four bowl wins, and five All-American selections. The Wildcats are quietly becoming one of the most consistent programs in the SEC.

Under Mark Stoops, the program has been built from the inside out. Kentucky was able to find strong offensive line play and that helped speed up the turnaround in Lexington. The big guys on the line are the secret sauce to the winning formula at UK.

“One thing about the offensive line is that they kind of set the tone for your team,” Stoops told reporters at the Citrus Bowl. “First of all, there’s a large group of them — 15, 16, 17, 18 large men walking around all the time. With their attitude, their persona, the way they carry themselves — the attitude, the toughness they carry themselves kind of sets the tone for your team.”

That has certainly been the case at Kentucky where John Schlarman built one of the best offensive line situations in college football. There is a strong football culture in Lexington and that was established by creating a big, physical, nasty offensive line that sets the tone daily within the football facility.

Schlarman was the key cog to all of that, and he is still missed dearly at Kentucky. After one season, Eric Wolford has moved on, and now the Wildcats must nail this next hire. Next to a strength and conditioning staff, finding an offensive line coach can be the most important hire a college football program makes.

In the trenches, there is a large number of scholarship players and on every down five of those players must work together in unison. Discipline, togetherness, toughness, and selflessness are all required to succeed. These players won’t get much praise, and they’ll never be the stars of the football team.

It is essential that these men believe in the person that is leading their room. That was 100 percent unquestionably true during the Schlarman era. Now that group has had the rug ripped out from under them. Zach Yenser is being called on to fill that hole.

Kentucky is hopeful that Yenser’s NFL scheme background combined with experience working under Schlarman will give the Big Blue Wall what is needed to take the next step in their development. The Wildcats are looking to continue the excellent line play that has been established as the standard.