Thank god our athletic director...

[bigblueinsanity]

You know what you’re getting with Bruce. Good regular season and not much in the tournament. He’s had the rosters and resources to compete at the highest level. Pope has not.

Without a home run hire, there’s not a better hire than Mark Pope.

Better roster? Jabari was the only player he ever had as good as most players cal had. He accomplished a lot with very bare talent.

Not a home run hires but would've won for 5 years. That would given pope more time to prove out. Much better to let someone else take the risk.

 

[yoshukai]

No but that’s a pretty big “situation”

I could sue just about anybody for just about anything. Doesn’t mean I’d win or that what I was claiming was true. Time will tell . I’ve learned to wait until the whole story comes out . Remember Dukes Laccross ? team ? I’m certainly not going to jump all in on either side of an issue until I hear the whole story from both sides .

 

[ThrowBackCat9]

Better roster? Jabari was the only player he ever had as good as most players cal had. He accomplished a lot with very bare talent.

Not a home run hires but would've won for 5 years. That would given pope more time to prove out. Much better to let someone else take the risk.

Some times I would probably agree with you but I think Pope is ready right now. You or I either one could be completely right, only time will tell.

 

[preacherfan]

I was anti-Pope last week. He has mostly won me over. He absolutely killed the press conference and the focus of UK first is absolutely refreshing and needed. I am sure he is a great dude who clearly loves UK.

However, I am still VERY cautiously optimistic this is going to work. I will withhold judgement until I see his staff and the roster but I think we should probably get some assistants and players before we celebrate this hire as a success.

Let's be honest. The only way this hire could be what this board wants would be: Kentucky kid, won 2 national titles, firm stoic personality with lots of emotion, great with X's and O's with a feel for the game, focuses on offense and defense, hated by everyone and loved by all, 40 years of coaching experience and 40 years old, spends 90% of time recruiting, 90% watching film, 90% coaching, 80% meeting and greeting fans and boosters. plays fast paste but only plays the best 5 on the team until 1 of them collapses on the court. And only recruits Kentucky kids who stay for 4 years and put up NBA worthy statistics.

Okay, maybe I exaggerated a bit.

 

[permdaddy]

 

[bigblueinsanity]

Some times I would probably agree with you but I think Pope is ready right now. You or I either one could be completely right, only time will tell.

He might be but we traded a known for an unknown. Then massively overpaid to boot. Cherry on top is another lopsided buyout.

 

[ThrowBackCat9]

He might be but we traded a known for an unknown. Then massively overpaid to boot. Cherry on top is another lopsided buyout.

Pearl isn’t a known, he’s 65 with 1 final four. Plus, what makes you think he would take the job?

Just a one line quote from him that indicates anything close to coming here will suffice.

 

[kydmb99]

View embedded media

Find you someone who loves you like Mitch Barnhart loves dumb contracts

 

[bigblueinsanity]

Pearl isn’t a known, he’s 65 with 1 final four. Plus, what makes you think he would take the job?

Just a one line quote from him that indicates anything close to coming here will suffice.

If you can't agree pearl would win here, there is no objective conversation.

 

[gharding07]

I’m cautiously optimistic about the Pope era but his hire was a HUGE gamble when a week could have probably landed Billy Donovan. If Pope flops, Mitch is going to look like a blooming idiot.

Spoiler: Spoiler alert…

He is.

That's what my biggest beef is with Mitch. You HAVE to wait see what a two time national champion says after his season. Mark Pope was going to be available all spring, he wasn't going anywhere else. Still baffles me. Can't wait until he's gone.

 

[RogerIndy]

If you can't agree pearl would win here, there is no objective conversation.

We don't want a coach that used to coach at Tennessee, not to mention one that got fired from there because of NCAA violations! That orange doesn't wash off!

 

[Blue Bigfoot]

Mitch pulled off a masterpiece of fan manipulation. People wanted his head Thursday night. He had them in tears yesterday afternoon. When you can get into peoples emotions it’s a powerful thing.

Not one sociopath would disagree.

 

[Blueaz]

I personally think Mitch is an excellent AD. If you believe differently, I’d like to know the reasons outside of the lifetime contract, that was given before the decline of Cal.

yes... you must answer to this guy.


Dude, it has been hashed out a million times on this board

 

[Wildcat-in-STL]

Rebuilding the whole roster … even in the portal era is to the point we need to give him a year. The only thing we should judge is how he recruits for the 2nd year and if he makes good adjustments or if he pulls a cal and makes really bad decisions or indecisions

 

[bigblueinsanity]

I'm sure Arkansas will have the same struggles getting z admitted to school right? Oh you mean their ad will actually make something happen? Weird

We don't want a coach that used to coach at Tennessee, not to mention one that got fired from there because of NCAA violations! That orange doesn't wash off!

Everyone coached or played somewhere. Some of these posts can't be real

 

[kyboy1998]

We don't want a coach that used to coach at Tennessee, not to mention one that got fired from there because of NCAA violations! That orange doesn't wash off!

As you watch a former Louisville coaches well wishes on repeat.

 

[Elliott Tim]

Had the balls to make the right hire, rather than the safe hire, knowing the criticism he would take. He knew Pope was exactly what we needed in this point in time. I said this in another post, but if we can be successful, winning with Pope as our coach will be far more fun than any other coach. This is already so much fun! GBB!!!

**Addition**
Just want to elaborate I'm not saying this hire is guaranteed to be successful. I'm saying it's exactly what we needed in this particular moment, a 180 degree culture change and it was immediate. There's definitely risk in this hire, and the true success of it will ultimately depend on wins and losses, but there was risk in every hire we could have made.

Let the rebuilding of the Roman empire begin.

 

[RogerIndy]

As you watch a former Louisville coaches well wishes on repeat.

That wasn't lost on me, but he did us a big favor by trashing Louisville's program. I doubt if many UL fans have fond memories of him now.

 

[ThrowBackCat9]

If you can't agree pearl would win here, there is no objective conversation.

Where has he ever won consistently, that would be up to UK’s standards??? I’ll wait on that answer…..

 

[JC CATS]

I was anti-Pope last week. He has mostly won me over. He absolutely killed the press conference and the focus of UK first is absolutely refreshing and needed. I am sure he is a great dude who clearly loves UK.

However, I am still VERY cautiously optimistic this is going to work. I will withhold judgement until I see his staff and the roster but I think we should probably get some assistants and players before we celebrate this hire as a success.

He doesn't have a magic wand. He is day to day worker. Sorry, I couldn't resist

 

[JC CATS]

No other UK AD has overseen a competitive football program. Mitch has literally built it from shambles to consistently bowl competitive and beating Florida.

Basketball program is fine. A little misstep with BCG that was quickly fixed, and we went on a hell of a run. Things got a bit stale with Cal, and MB gave him the Tubby.

"oh he left..."

No...coaches don't leave UK basketball for Minnesota or Arkansas. Especially coaches with retirements worth more than most active duty coaches.

MB getting Cal to walk away from that contract may be one of the greatest manuevers ever pulled. I'm not sure what was said or done behind close doors, but Mitch pulled a Godfather/Jedi...waved his hand, whispered something, and Cal is running out the door to Fayettville Arkansas like he relocating in the witness protection program.

Mitch also turned the AD profitable and self-sustaining. Absolutely a huge thing.

I know most think the non-rev sports don't matter, but they're all pieces to a whole, and they do matter. Baseball has had some good runs, and currently top 10. Softball program is always up there and the coach is one of the best. Track/Field has done what it's done and produced global stars/olympians. I think Volleyball is the only SEC team to hang a banner.

That's simple. He told him he couldn't hire Brad on his staff

 

[RogerIndy]

If you can't agree pearl would win here, there is no objective conversation.

Barnhart wouldn't hire a coach who was fired for NCAA violations, and I agree with that. He was out of coaching for 3 years because of a show cause! I don't want a guy like that anywhere near out program.

 

[bigblueinsanity]

Barnhart wouldn't hire a coach who was fired for NCAA violations, and I agree with that. He was out of coaching for 3 years because of a show cause! I don't want a guy like that anywhere near out program.

That's at least a reasonable argument vs "he hasn't won anywhere".

I agree with the concern but I think when you look at it, it wouldn't be a violation today. Not that it makes it right but that's still true. My biggest concern with Pearl was the fact you know his son's are taking some spots.

 

[RogerIndy]

That's at least a reasonable argument vs "he hasn't won anywhere".

I agree with the concern but I think when you look at it, it wouldn't be a violation today. Not that it makes it right but that's still true. My biggest concern with Pearl was the fact you know his son's are taking some spots.

Just because the rules have changed doesn't mean that he wasn't guilty of breaking the rules back then. If you get convicted of a crime and later whatever you did is decriminalized, doesn't mean you get a pardon for your actions.

 

[bigblueinsanity]

Just because the rules have changed doesn't mean that he wasn't guilty of breaking the rules back then. If you get convicted of a crime and later whatever you did is decriminalized, doesn't mean you get a pardon for your actions.

Pearl was as bad as Cal the last 5 years has been to 1 final Four in like 30 years, is a dirtbag, and is currently on probation and has 2 less scholarships as a sanction.

Funny How a losing season and 2 NCAA Tournament wins for Pearl is acceptable.

Imo but hiring cal means we can't claim to be so highbrow. At the time, cal had allllllllll kinds of baggage.

 

[RogerIndy]

Imo but hiring cal means we can't claim to be so highbrow. At the time, cal had allllllllll kinds of baggage.

Cal NEVER got a show cause. The NCAA found that Calipari was not responsible nor aware of what happened with Camby and at Memphis, he Rose had someone take the SAT for him without Calipari's knowledge. In both cases, the NCAA found that he was clean. But if you are a Kentucky fan, you should already know this. Just because he is gone, I am not going to start calling him a cheater. There are a lot of criticisms you can make about him, but he ran a clean program at Kentucky and the NCAA never found that he cheated elsewhere.