If the fan base rips Barnhart... you also have to..

[runningbears]

Give him credit.

I thought Pope was a desperate hire and he was just settling.

I was 100% wrong. POPE encompasses everything I want in a coach. Embracing the past, Embracing the fan base, excellent communicator, HUMBLE leadership, and an analytical look at how basketball is being played in today's game.

I think Barnhart got very lucky that Cal decided to walk and didn't get stuck with the crazy contract he delved out, BUT it appears he hit a Home Run with Pope.

Props to Barnhart. (Now please copy and paste for Football )

Dr RB

 

[Ron Mehico]

He wanted Scott Drew and Hurley (awful fit here) and he also gave stoops an insane extension after hiring BCG and Joker. It’s my understanding he was against Cal. So I don’t know where that puts him but I’m happy we have pope.

 

[Aike]

Give Barnhart about as much credit for hiring Pope as I give Lamont Butler for making an open layup.

Fairly successful Power 5 coach, UK pedigree, hungry and begging for the job, willing to work for barely half of what we paid the last guy.

Didn’t exactly take a rocket scientist to make that hire after whiffing on his first couple choices.

It was a very good hire, but Barnhart didn’t do anything special. Anyone could have made that hire.

 

[megablue]

"It was a very good hire, but Barnhart didn’t do anything special. Anyone could have made that hire."

No statement is as clear, concise and true as this one.

 

[Cats192]

Give Barnhart about as much credit for hiring Pope as I give Lamont Butler for making an open layup.

Fairly successful Power 5 coach, UK pedigree, hungry and begging for the job, willing to work for barely half of what we paid the last guy.

Didn’t exactly take a rocket scientist to make that hire after whiffing on his first couple choices.

It was a very good hire, but Barnhart didn’t do anything special. Anyone could have made that hire.

This.

Mitch was backed into a corner after the 1st two misses. He had to have a yes. He knew the former UK captain and champion would leave BYU for UK.

He did what he had to. It worked out better than even he expected.

 

[sambowieshin]

Thankfully his first two choices flopped. Hurley would have probably had a terrible relationship with the fanbase given his personality.... And Drew is the coaching equivalent of Applebee's.
Ok, but kinda boring and nothing to ever really get excited about.
Barney won by failing.

 

[JumperJack]

Mitch has had more wild misses as successes. Two atrocious hires and two crippling extensions. And yet Pope seems to be the best hire he’s made. Time will tell.

 

[B.B.H.]

Give Barnhart about as much credit for hiring Pope as I give Lamont Butler for making an open layup.

Fairly successful Power 5 coach, UK pedigree, hungry and begging for the job, willing to work for barely half of what we paid the last guy.

Didn’t exactly take a rocket scientist to make that hire after whiffing on his first couple choices.

It was a very good hire, but Barnhart didn’t do anything special. Anyone could have made that hire.

Rare Aike post that I disagree with. This reeks of bias and emotionalism and I am honestly surprised at this take. Saying anything positive about Mitch seems to be a real sore concept as there is a ridiculous amount of confirmation bias (and groupthink) to wrestle with anytime something suboptimal happens, considering there are years of anti-Mitch stances that have waxed cold and in stone.

 

[B.B.H.]

Give him credit.

I thought Pope was a desperate hire and he was just settling.

I was 100% wrong. POPE encompasses everything I want in a coach. Embracing the past, Embracing the fan base, excellent communicator, HUMBLE leadership, and an analytical look at how basketball is being played in today's game.

I think Barnhart got very lucky that Cal decided to walk and didn't get stuck with the crazy contract he delved out, BUT it appears he hit a Home Run with Pope.

Props to Barnhart. (Now please copy and paste for Football )

Dr RB

Don’t copy and paste that in football, my friend. I’ll save you some time. This website HATES Mitch, especially over there. If you bring facts, they will selectively reply with hand-selected talking points and have you frustrated quickly. Trust me on that one from experience

 

[UKWildcats1987]

Thankfully his first two choices flopped. Hurley would have probably had a terrible relationship with the fanbase given his personality.... And Drew is the coaching equivalent of Applebee's.
Ok, but kinda boring and nothing to ever really get excited about.
Barney won by failing.

Hurley would have won 3 titles here for sure. I couldn't care less how he talks to the fanbase if he did that.

Luckily for barney Pope has worked out well.

 

[Aike]

Thankfully his first two choices flopped. Hurley would have probably had a terrible relationship with the fanbase given his personality.... And Drew is the coaching equivalent of Applebee's.
Ok, but kinda boring and nothing to ever really get excited about.
Barney won by failing.

I think this is right. Hurley is a great coach, and also a bit unhinged. I have no doubt he would have won here and won big, but I’m not sure how long it could have lasted.

I think Drew would have been ok. Probably would have made at least one deep run toward a championship. He’s been there before, and he would have gotten that energy boost that helps almost every coach coming in new at UK.

I suspect it would have gotten stale pretty quickly though. And he would’ve just hung around forever. Winning 23 games and losing in the second round.

No guarantees with Pope. No guarantees with anyone, for that matter. But I like the trajectory we are on. Feels like our team again, and I don’t think we could have dreamt up a better steward for our program.

 

[Aike]

Rare Aike post that I disagree with. This reeks of bias and emotionalism and I am honestly surprised at this take. Saying anything positive about Mitch seems to be a real sore concept as there is a ridiculous amount of confirmation bias (and groupthink) to wrestle with anytime something suboptimal happens, considering there are years of anti-Mitch stances that have waxed cold and in stone.

Haha, ok. It’s emotional to recognize that it required no skill to hire the coach who would have crawled over broken glass to take the job?

I was one of the few people calling for a Pope interview prior to the hire. Maybe I should be AD? Mitch tried to hire Scott Drew, which would have been fairly lackluster, imo.

Mitch deserves credit for some of his decisions through the years, and blame for others. Not really interested in getting into an overall Mitch Barnhart debate. But on the Pope hire, he just kind of did the obvious when backed into a corner.

 

[runningbears]

I somewhat disagree. He could have waited on Donovan or gone with another more experienced coach (ie Miller / Shaka / or a number of other coaches that would have probably said yes).

All I am saying is that half the fan base or MORE thought this was NOT a great hire. I am included in that %.... I know there are pages to be written, but I can admit I was wrong.

It was a good hire whether you want to admit or not. There were other options out there.

Just my opinion. I thought it was a mediocre hire at best... I was wrong.

 

[CUJO_1970]

Barnhart was ready to ride with Cal this season and was more than willing to gaslight the fan base in order to do so. Pope fell in his lap.

He’s now wrecked our football program with this heinous contract with an awful coach in Mark Stoops - a guy with a 13-ppg offense that doesn’t even want to be here for any other reason than to collect his huge undeserved paycheck.

What was your point again?

 

[B.B.H.]

Haha, ok. It’s emotional to recognize that it required no skill to hire the coach who would have crawled over broken glass to take the job?

I was one of the few people calling for a Pope interview prior to the hire. Maybe I should be AD? Mitch tried to hire Scott Drew, which would have been fairly lackluster, imo.

Mitch deserves credit for some of his decisions through the years, and blame for others. Not really interested in getting into an overall Mitch Barnhart debate. But on the Pope hire, he just kind of did the obvious when backed into a corner.

I agree with you in terms on not wanting to debate it. I will say the reaction to Pope immediately being considered for the hire will make it VERY clear it wasn’t an OBVIOUS hire. Go watch the KSR rapid reaction to Pope in talks to become coach if you need to be reminded of what it was like at that time. As with most things, we apply revisionist history. Regardless, I still enjoy your posts and will just agree to disagree with you here. Hope someday you examine this take in the light though.

 

[Aike]

I agree with you in terms on not wanting to debate it. I will say the reaction to Pope immediately being considered for the hire will make it VERY clear it wasn’t an OBVIOUS hire. Go watch the KSR rapid reaction to Pope in talks to become coach if you need to be reminded of what it was like at that time. As with most things, we apply revisionist history. Regardless, I still enjoy your posts and will just agree to disagree with you here. Hope someday you examine this take in the light though.

It was obvious to me. I know what it was like at the time - I was one of the few arguing in Pope’s favor.

Fans lose their minds sometimes, and the media eats that up. That was the “emotionalism” you’re talking about. The Pope hire was logical.

 

[B.B.H.]

It was obvious to me. I know what it was like at the time - I was one of the few arguing in Pope’s favor.

Fans lose their minds sometimes, and the media eats that up. That was the “emotionalism” you’re talking about. The Pope hire was logical.

Two phrases I’ll point back to you:

“one of the few”

“Pope hire was logical”

Nothing else needs to be said to make my point. I’ll leave it here for today. Will look forward to more analytical posts in the future, sir.

 

[Aike]

Two phrases I’ll point back to you:

“one of the few”

“Pope hire was logical”

Nothing else needs to be said to make my point. I’ll leave it here for today. Will look forward to more analytical posts in the future, sir.

If you’re pointing out that sometimes only a few people are being logical on a given topic, I agree.

If you’re implying that something is illogical because it goes against the herd, I would have to disagree.

The visceral negative reaction to the Pope hire across the fanbase was anything but logical. Within a couple of days people had calmed down enough to get it. That was long before a single ball had been bounced by a Pope led Kentucky team.

As for Barnhart, one would hope that someone being paid a million dollars a year to run a college athletics program would make logical hiring decisions, regardless of whatever emotional overreaction might be in the air. It’s a fairly low bar.

 

[B.B.H.]

If you’re pointing out that sometimes only a few people are being logical on a given topic, I agree.

If you’re implying that something is illogical because it goes against the herd, I would have to disagree.

The visceral negative reaction to the Pope hire across the fanbase was anything but logical. Within a couple of days people had calmed down enough to get it. That was long before a single ball had been bounced by a Pope led Kentucky team.

As for Barnhart, one would hope that someone being paid a million dollars a year to run a college athletics program would make logical hiring decisions, regardless of whatever emotional overreaction might be in the air. It’s a fairly low bar.

Many points I disagree with here but reasonable minds can differ. God bless

 

[Short-Dawg-69]

He wanted Scott Drew and Hurley (awful fit here) and he also gave stoops an insane extension after hiring BCG and Joker. It’s my understanding he was against Cal. So I don’t know where that puts him but I’m happy we have pope.

I think he wanted Drew.
He new fans and Boosters wanted to at least take a swing for Hurley.

 

[TheDude73]

I have a hard time giving him "credit" as if he was able to foresee Pope's instant success. What I give him credit for is gambling and getting very lucky that Pope has proven himself so quickly.

 

[Cats192]

Some of you guys are way too obsessed with whether or not internet posters give Mitch credit.

 

[Aike]

Many points I disagree with here but reasonable minds can differ. God bless

I know you said you’re autistic. I’m not trying to be difficult. I have trouble seeing much for any reasonable disagreement here.

Last thing I’ll say to try to clarify - the reactionary fanbase was against the Pope hire for a couple of days…until they were for it.

The initial reaction was emotional. Logic came into play when people dug a bit deeper.

Right or wrong, some of us got there a little faster. Barnhart - given that this is his high paying job rather than a hobby - we would expect to be logical in his assessment from the jump.

To be totally fair, the truth is that none of us really know if this was a great hire yet. We could all be wrong. It looks really good 14 games in, and most of us are happy. Ask me again in 10 years.

 

[Cats192]

I think he wanted Drew.
He new fans and Boosters wanted to at least take a swing for Hurley.

By multiple accounts, he leaked for years that Scott Drew was the next HC at Kentucky.

Matt Jones and Kyle Tucker spoke about it with certainty. Aaron Torres gave Mitch crap for missing on Drew after telling anyone who would listen Drew was the next HC at UK.

 

[Oldbluefart]

We all can argue the hiring process, who was contact4d first, who the boosters wanted, who this, who that, but one thing is certain, UK is in a much better place today than everyone expected.
We have a coach who understands all aspects of being a UK coach. This is a modern day Joe B. Hall we have in Mark Pope.
It is time to look forward; the future looks much brighter today than it has in a long time.

 

[Blueaz]

Give him credit.

I thought Pope was a desperate hire and he was just settling.

I was 100% wrong. POPE encompasses everything I want in a coach. Embracing the past, Embracing the fan base, excellent communicator, HUMBLE leadership, and an analytical look at how basketball is being played in today's game.

I think Barnhart got very lucky that Cal decided to walk and didn't get stuck with the crazy contract he delved out, BUT it appears he hit a Home Run with Pope.

Props to Barnhart. (Now please copy and paste for Football )

Dr RB

it was.... similar to RP... it didn't make CM great and this doesn't make MB any better.
Occasional blind luck is not a quality we need in leadership

 

[Cats192]

We all can argue the hiring process, who was contact4d first, who the boosters wanted, who this, who that, but one thing is certain, UK is in a much better place today than everyone expected.
We have a coach who understands all aspects of being a UK coach. This is a modern day Joe B. Hall we have in Mark Pope.
It is time to look forward; the future looks much brighter today than it has in a long time.

Sure.

It's America and this is a message board. So you guys are free to write about and discuss whatever you like. \

We had a huge win against #6 Florida. We had huge defensive lapses. We forget to rebound for big stretches.

We also look like the best defense in America for stretches. When the offense is on, we're unstoppable. The ceiling is the roof.

And with so many actual basketball related thing to discuss--it's so odd that people want this huge discussion about "We should give the AD more props."

I don't know Mitch personally. I don't have any kind of Mitch agenda. I just don't really care about giving him props or not. You guys enjoy the rest of this discussion.

 

[B.B.H.]

I know you said you’re autistic. I’m not trying to be difficult. I have trouble seeing much for any reasonable disagreement here.

Last thing I’ll say to try to clarify - the reactionary fanbase was against the Pope hire for a couple of days…until they were for it.

The initial reaction was emotional. Logic came into play when people dug a bit deeper.

Right or wrong, some of us got there a little faster. Barnhart - given that this is his high paying job rather than a hobby - we would expect to be logical in his assessment from the jump.

To be totally fair, the truth is that none of us really know if this was a great hire yet. We could all be wrong. It looks really good 14 games in, and most of us are happy. Ask me again in 10 years.

As much as I’d love to dig into this one further, I’ll admit this was actually a topic that got me severely hated on the football thread, and due to my autism, I do have a little difficulty separating personal from intellectual. That’s why I’ve chosen to not fight quite the way I would have in the past. I have a lot of difficulty expressing myself without coming across as condescending on this topic. Since I respect your posts so much, I chose to point out carefully that I do disagree and asked that you reconsider potential confirmation bias, but didnt delve further for now. I will be honest and say that I am not 100% pro-Mitch. Frankly, I hate the equal weighting of the sports —- I think it quite destructive for the long term success of the programs that matter most which is football and men’s basketball (in my opinion) but I do find Mitch to be a topic that elicits strong reactions and you can quickly get piled on quickly for it. I will close by saying that I do love your posts and I don’t want to upset people like you or Answer because we don’t have enough analytical folks around here as it is. Maybe another day will come where I will be ready to engage the topic further.

 

[billoliver40]

Give Barnhart about as much credit for hiring Pope as I give Lamont Butler for making an open layup.

Fairly successful Power 5 coach, UK pedigree, hungry and begging for the job, willing to work for barely half of what we paid the last guy.

Didn’t exactly take a rocket scientist to make that hire after whiffing on his first couple choices.

It was a very good hire, but Barnhart didn’t do anything special. Anyone could have made that hire.

Yeah...I remember exactly how excited folks were when Pope was announced. Seems I recall a group chat urging boycott.
Right now it's a better hire than any us could have dreamed.

By the way....Rick Pitino was a wtf hire back in the day. Not saying Pope will reach that level of success...just saying with a new coach and system you never ever know.

 

[jedwar]

I’ll give MB credit for taking the out he was absolutely gifted when Cal breached his contract. He jumped on it mere hours after he and Cal gave that awkward interview together. MB 100% was going to proceed with Cal till Cal gave him the golden parachute.

Also will give credit for getting a guy after at least two turned us down. Otherwise I can’t get past the crazy contracts and lack of being I front of the NIL stuff when others did.

 

[Aike]

As much as I’d love to dig into this one further, I’ll admit this was actually a topic that got me severely hated on the football thread, and due to my autism, I do have a little difficulty separating personal from intellectual. That’s why I’ve chosen to not fight quite the way I would have in the past. I have a lot of difficulty expressing myself without coming across as condescending on this topic. Since I respect your posts so much, I chose to point out carefully that I do disagree and asked that you reconsider potential confirmation bias, but didnt delve further for now. I will be honest and say that I am not 100% pro-Mitch. Frankly, I hate the equal weighting of the sports —- I think it quite destructive for the long term success of the programs that matter most which is football and men’s basketball (in my opinion) but I do find Mitch to be a topic that elicits strong reactions and you can quickly get piled on quickly for it. I will close by saying that I do love your posts and I don’t want to upset people like you or Answer because we don’t have enough analytical folks around here as it is. Maybe another day will come where I will be ready to engage the topic further.

You haven’t upset me in the least! Enjoy your day.

 

[jeffky]

Barnhart legacy lies with that disastrous football program of ours . STOOPS does not want to be here and mitch has fixed it to where stoops want leave until we buy him out . THANKS MITCH

 

[jedwar]

Yeah...I remember exactly how excited folks were when Pope was announced. Seems I recall a group chat urging boycott.
Right now it's a better hire than any us could have dreamed.

By the way....Rick Pitino was a wtf hire back in the day. Not saying Pope will reach that level of success...just saying with a new coach and system you never ever know.

I am so glad it wasn’t Carlisemo. RP was like what choice after Olsen, PJC? Maybe 3rd or 4th?

 

[Aike]

Yeah...I remember exactly how excited folks were when Pope was announced. Seems I recall a group chat urging boycott.
Right now it's a better hire than any us could have dreamed.

By the way....Rick Pitino was a wtf hire back in the day. Not saying Pope will reach that level of success...just saying with a new coach and system you never ever know.

I was thrilled when we hired Pitino. Very exciting time to be a fan.

 

[jeffky]

I was thrilled when we hired Pitino. Very exciting time to be a fan.

Man what pope has done so far here should be documented in Ripleys believe it or not . Assemble a entire roster in 60 days and be 12 and two ,with three huge quality top 10 wins . LONG LIVE THE POPE oh yeah THANKS MITCH

 

[Phil_The_Music]

I tend to think that Mitch does pretty good with his hiring choices. It's how he manages them once he gets them here where he is awful. He's terrible with contracts and keeping coaches motivated to perform.

P.S. I know Joker and BCG were bad hires but I'd imagine most ADs over a period as long as his have had a couple of failures as well.

 

[sosoblue]

Overall Mitch has done well at his job. Yes, he had a couple of head scratching hires but for the most part has moved the athletics department in a positive direction. Track, Volleyball, Rifle, Basketball, Football, Baseball and so forth... All of these programs have experience some sort of historic moments during his tenure of AD. He has done the job well with class and professionalism.

 

[Whoppercat]

Give him credit.

I thought Pope was a desperate hire and he was just settling.

Dr RB

To be honest, he was settling. But it’s sure worked out

 

[B.B.H.]

To be honest, he was settling. But it’s sure worked out

There’s good reason to believe Mitch didn’t believe he was settling.

 

[TOMCATS1990]

Even a Blind Squirrel finds a nut, Barney got lucky with CAL, probably not going to be with Stoops both contracts are pathetic