Mark Stoops’ status at Kentucky focus of ‘conversations’ by school officials, per report
By Sydney Hunte
Published:
Mark Stoops vowed that he wouldn’t walk away from Kentucky after 13 seasons, even as the Wildcats wrapped up a second straight losing season after a 41-0 loss at Louisville.
While that may be true, Kentucky administration could be discussing a change. According to Kentucky Sports Radio’s Matt Jones, “conversations are happening now to decide one way or another” whether or not to retain Stoops for the 2026 season.
The assumption was that Mitch Barnhart had decided to run it back with Stoops in 2026 coming off three straight wins over Auburn, Florida and Tennessee Tech. Then the wheels fell off in the final two weeks of the season, losing to Vanderbilt and Louisville by a combined total of 86-17, putting UK administration in scramble mode to reevaluate the future of the program.
Mark Stoops‘ overall record in Lexington is 72-80. Officially, it’s 62-80, as 10 wins in the 2021 season were vacated as the program was found to have fielded ineligible players.
The Wildcats have achieved the 10-win plateau just twice: in 2018 and 2021, just the third and fourth times Kentucky football has reached double-digit wins. Other than that, it’s either been just above or just below the .500 mark.
With a heavy loss to Louisville behind them, questions seem to be intensifying about whether or not the Wildcats program needs a new voice on the sideline after nearly a decade and a half.
Sydney is an Atlanta-based journalist who has covered everything from SEC and ACC football to MLS, the U.S. men's national soccer team and professional tennis. His work has appeared on such platforms as SB Nation, Cox Media Group and FanSided.
