Mr Pope, congratulations and welcome back. As president of BBN I can assure you that you have our full support. You are the light after several years of darkness!
I took my little boy to a camp with Justin Edwards yesterday, Justin told us that Coach Pope wanted to talk to him today. Small chance he might be able to convince some Of them to stick around.
People comparing Pope to other coaches not in Utah are naive. BYU has more of a challenge getting higher quality players than Ivy League schools. The pool of people who want to go there is very constrained due to the rules in place. BYU you need to be smart and essentially a monk.
Recruiting at BYU is the equivalence of recruiting at Vanderbilt. Vanderbilt academically and BYU religiously. Imagine Vanderbilt joining the SEC for the first year and finishing 5th with 3 star and unranked talent
Pope and Jeff Sheppard are real good friends and if we could have Reed and Travis Perry as our guards would be so cool!!!! 2 Kentucky boys w Coach Pope
Im apprehensive...but I do love Kentucky, and I do love Mark Pope. I watched the 96 championship game the night Oakland beat us. I will say this...I think we possibly have one of the smartest, brightest, most energetic young minds in college basketball with a laser focus. What have recent trends in college basketball shown us about coaching? The brightest, the smartest, and the energetic young coaches are arriving, and they are dominating. BBN HAS GOT TO BE PATIENT though, and im not sure they can do that
Mark is gonna crush it. Can you imagine being the BYU coach? With a very limited pool of candidates for players? Far less resources than what you would have at UK? Imagine those constraints. And then imagine a guy who still won two out of three games... And beat Kansas and Baylor. When you really stop and think about it, it's very impressive. Take the same excellent coach, and back him up with full support of UK? I think my cats just got the BEST COACH in the world.
I think they’re a couple of types of UK fans…ones that are championship or bust…and realistic ones that want to be relevant, expect Sweet Sixteen/Elite 8 every year 9 out of 10 years (understand that upsets happen occasionally)…give us 2-4 final 4’s every 10 year and give us a roster where we’re emotionally invested in the kids returning.
I think year one could be iffy due to timing of the hire. We won't be able to hit the portal and recruit like normal. I feel like UK could be the destination school for soph transfers who don't like their school like the many Cal players that transferred out after one year if they didn't go pro. Pope adjust his offense to fit his team. Cal never did that. It was just very basic O. It's why we were so easy to guard at times if we weren't hitting. And with Pope being nuts... I attended UK during his time as a player. He would show up at the Dining area in flip flops and sweat pants while other players were decked out and looking cool. Pope just didn't GAF about trying to be cool.
Two questions: can he recruit and will he be able to raise large amounts of NIL? It appears the NIL question has been partially answered for this year but how about the future?
why would ky want drew..he's a washed up coach with one title who was never better than cal..pope brings some fresh air to a program that has become stale over the last 5 years..ever since cal hit the bricks, we talked about 3 coaches on my podcast..Holloway from Seton Hall, Pitino from New Mexico and Pope..I never enertained the thought of Drew, Hurley, Pearl, Donovan, etc..those were all terrible choices outside of Hurley, but hiring him was NEVER going to happen, so I'm glad Pope is here and Go Big Blue
Pitino from New Mexico is not a great coach i live in mountain west territory he’s the classic underachiever in the tournament plus look at his Minnesota years
Mark Pope is an awesome guy, which is what makes this a difficult conversation to have. The trouble with the hire is not that Mark Pope is inherently wrong for the position, it is that he does not have a resume (yet) that makes sense for this type of job. However, the deal is done, so there is no sense now in being a cry ass about it. Rather, I will support Pope and the team as hard as I ever have. I hope he wins big and believe that there is a decent chance that he will do just that. However, there is no getting around the fact that this was a leap of faith by Mitch Barnhart.
😂😂😂I get it......leap of faith......from BYU.....to Kentucky......lol.....too funny! We(UK) have never won a championship without a great kid from the state. In state kids will have a chance now. If Mark had this last year's players, Shepherd would have started. Just saying 👍
They would have still loss last year and you wouldnt have got as many 5 star in the first round and kentucky fans must have short memory you run Coach Cal out of UK for loosing in first round show me on Mark pope resume where he has had success in March Madness because last time I checked he got bounced in the 1st round this year as well and has never made a final four or won a championship as a head coach make it make sense
@@alancain7462 The fact is that high-school basketball in Kentucky doesn't provide the best competition. Just look at the way Indiana completely dominates them in the annual All-Star games.
While that is true. UK has never won a championship WITHOUT a great KY kid on roster. On average Kentucky (high school)doesn't have that many upper level kids. Still, when we get a good one, let's use him. That's all I'm saying.
@@nigeladams9609 Come on man, lighten up, look for the good things. Time to move on. Cal is gone, embrace the new. I think it might just surprise you. With scheme Pope runs and 1 year with Cal's last team. We would not have lost to Oakland. We would have had better defense. I'm just saying. BYU was ahead of Kentucky in Kenpom rankings. BYU had better adjusted metrics team than Cal did. Stats don't lie my friend.
The huge difference, Calipari felt he had to deal with crazy fans. Pope is one of the crazy fans. I noted how Pope treated the press and questions from the press. A whole different and more positive experience. Calipari has disdain for the press and made it obvious.
There are programs that are so big that it makes it actually hard to win. I think of the NY Yankees where they have the most money, typically the best players, but because of the overhead, they can't seem to just win. UK is a big program with a huge fanbase, but that creates a lot of pressure on a coach and players. It's kind of similar to Michigan Football in the last 20 years. Some times you have too many cooks in the kitchen and the coach has no breathing room. Maybe why it's easier to win at UCONN than UK.
I was disappointed at first on Pope hiring… then he ripped off that shirt and tie and that made me all in on him I believe in Mark. I like his O hope he plays the press D for sure the young kids can handle that
I agree with one of the commenters here, Drew imo would be a terrible choice, and the championship he won was in the bubble, not a typical ncaa tournament, but he would have been a bad fit.
I think with UKs resources Coach Pope will be able to bring in great recruits. This year might be iffy because of timing, but if we (BBN) are patient and supportive, I foresee some fun, winning times ahead! GO BIG BLUE!
Lots of wishful thinking from BBN. Pope has to show a big turnaround by year two and a final four trip by year three or the fan base will want another coach.
Not a hit against Mark Pope , I hope he does well but this was a settle. Mitch Barnhart is gonna lose his job is if this goes bad and should. For all the top picks to shut this basketball coaching dream job down right off the bat screams volumes. For the all time winning basket program in history to settle for someone whos never won anything , and get paid 5.5 million per yr screams desperation. Barnhart should be fired !!!! Congrats to Mark Pope though, this is not his fault .
You would crawl on your knees through broken glass and raw sewage to sign an NBA contract. It is ignorant to expect these kids to turn down millions to please you.
@@benhoskins4719 The people with brains are! You really think a 19-year-old kid should turn down the chance to have financial comfort for life just to please fans he doesn't even know?
Stop using UConn as measuring stick they got fuckin lottery picks on there teams last year and this year multiple and other guys that’s goin to the league they ain’t jus got anybody out there
@@bjr0467 Karaban is a borderline NBA player. Their 3rd leading scorer, Spencer, won’t sniff the NBA. You need NBA talent but a core of one & done lottery picks won’t get it done
Saying Kentucky have been relevant in the tournament is crazy!! They haven’t been good but a lot of people had Kentucky winning this year and in 21-22. Jeff shut up all you need to do is find out what’s going in with programs your opinion is just useless and usually never right
Tubby was an excellent X and O coach. UK was nearly guaranteed to score when he drew up a play during a timeout. Tubby's problem was that he has almost no ego at all, and he didn't want to deal with the gigantic egos of top recruits.
Let’s go coach pope someone who loves Kentucky with a passion
Facts!!!! GoBigBlue!!!! #BBN
Pope will be the man !
Mr Pope, congratulations and welcome back. As president of BBN I can assure you that you have our full support. You are the light after several years of darkness!
I took my little boy to a camp with Justin Edwards yesterday, Justin told us that Coach Pope wanted to talk to him today. Small chance he might be able to convince some
Of them to stick around.
People comparing Pope to other coaches not in Utah are naive. BYU has more of a challenge getting higher quality players than Ivy League schools. The pool of people who want to go there is very constrained due to the rules in place. BYU you need to be smart and essentially a monk.
Recruiting at BYU is the equivalence of recruiting at Vanderbilt. Vanderbilt academically and BYU religiously.
Imagine Vanderbilt joining the SEC for the first year and finishing 5th with 3 star and unranked talent
Pope was the captain of the Untouchables, probably the best team ever to play college basketball. This is very, very cool.
And that means absolutely nothing in regards to being a successful college coach in 2024
Pope and Jeff Sheppard are real good friends and if we could have Reed and Travis Perry as our guards would be so cool!!!! 2 Kentucky boys w Coach Pope
That would be awesome!
Reed gone he a lock as a lottery pick and yall can keep travis perry watch liam mcneely a better shooter and better player overall go to Arkansas
@@nigeladams9609 you sure? I bet Reed comes back
@@majorcajun5524 im sure just because his dad is close doesnt mean anything
@@nigeladams9609 why hasn’t he already declared?
Im apprehensive...but I do love Kentucky, and I do love Mark Pope. I watched the 96 championship game the night Oakland beat us. I will say this...I think we possibly have one of the smartest, brightest, most energetic young minds in college basketball with a laser focus. What have recent trends in college basketball shown us about coaching? The brightest, the smartest, and the energetic young coaches are arriving, and they are dominating. BBN HAS GOT TO BE PATIENT though, and im not sure they can do that
Mark is gonna crush it. Can you imagine being the BYU coach? With a very limited pool of candidates for players? Far less resources than what you would have at UK?
Imagine those constraints. And then imagine a guy who still won two out of three games... And beat Kansas and Baylor.
When you really stop and think about it, it's very impressive. Take the same excellent coach, and back him up with full support of UK?
I think my cats just got the BEST COACH in the world.
Pope is gonna do great ! Just give him time to recruit and build his legacy.
I'm excited and I will give him time.
I think they’re a couple of types of UK fans…ones that are championship or bust…and realistic ones that want to be relevant, expect Sweet Sixteen/Elite 8 every year 9 out of 10 years (understand that upsets happen occasionally)…give us 2-4 final 4’s every 10 year and give us a roster where we’re emotionally invested in the kids returning.
Pope the Hope, will WIN @ UK..Go Big Blue..👍😎
Go BBN. Welcome home Coach Mark Pope.
great comments on this guys.. you guys hit it dead on.
You are talking about actually building a team. What a concept!
I think year one could be iffy due to timing of the hire. We won't be able to hit the portal and recruit like normal. I feel like UK could be the destination school for soph transfers who don't like their school like the many Cal players that transferred out after one year if they didn't go pro. Pope adjust his offense to fit his team. Cal never did that. It was just very basic O. It's why we were so easy to guard at times if we weren't hitting.
And with Pope being nuts... I attended UK during his time as a player. He would show up at the Dining area in flip flops and sweat pants while other players were decked out and looking cool. Pope just didn't GAF about trying to be cool.
Jeff is the king of schmoozing haha
Two questions: can he recruit and will he be able to raise large amounts of NIL?
It appears the NIL question has been partially answered for this year but how about the future?
why would ky want drew..he's a washed up coach with one title who was never better than cal..pope brings some fresh air to a program that has become stale over the last 5 years..ever since cal hit the bricks, we talked about 3 coaches on my podcast..Holloway from Seton Hall, Pitino from New Mexico and Pope..I never enertained the thought of Drew, Hurley, Pearl, Donovan, etc..those were all terrible choices outside of Hurley, but hiring him was NEVER going to happen, so I'm glad Pope is here and Go Big Blue
Pitino from New Mexico is not a great coach i live in mountain west territory he’s the classic underachiever in the tournament plus look at his Minnesota years
Yeah , I didn't want Drew , he's been at Baylor , what 23 years ? Pope is our guy ! He loves UK and is all in on winning .
Mark Pope is an awesome guy, which is what makes this a difficult conversation to have. The trouble with the hire is not that Mark Pope is inherently wrong for the position, it is that he does not have a resume (yet) that makes sense for this type of job. However, the deal is done, so there is no sense now in being a cry ass about it. Rather, I will support Pope and the team as hard as I ever have. I hope he wins big and believe that there is a decent chance that he will do just that. However, there is no getting around the fact that this was a leap of faith by Mitch Barnhart.
😂😂😂I get it......leap of faith......from BYU.....to Kentucky......lol.....too funny!
We(UK) have never won a championship without a great kid from the state. In state kids will have a chance now. If Mark had this last year's players, Shepherd would have started. Just saying 👍
They would have still loss last year and you wouldnt have got as many 5 star in the first round and kentucky fans must have short memory you run Coach Cal out of UK for loosing in first round show me on Mark pope resume where he has had success in March Madness because last time I checked he got bounced in the 1st round this year as well and has never made a final four or won a championship as a head coach make it make sense
@@alancain7462 The fact is that high-school basketball in Kentucky doesn't provide the best competition. Just look at the way Indiana completely dominates them in the annual All-Star games.
While that is true. UK has never won a championship WITHOUT a great KY kid on roster. On average Kentucky (high school)doesn't have that many upper level kids. Still, when we get a good one, let's use him. That's all I'm saying.
@@nigeladams9609 Come on man, lighten up, look for the good things. Time to move on. Cal is gone, embrace the new. I think it might just surprise you. With scheme Pope runs and 1 year with Cal's last team. We would not have lost to Oakland. We would have had better defense. I'm just saying. BYU was ahead of Kentucky in Kenpom rankings. BYU had better adjusted metrics team than Cal did. Stats don't lie my friend.
Just donated to code blue and my family did too. Havent cared in 10 years. Not now
The huge difference, Calipari felt he had to deal with crazy fans. Pope is one of the crazy fans. I noted how Pope treated the press and questions from the press. A whole different and more positive experience. Calipari has disdain for the press and made it obvious.
There are programs that are so big that it makes it actually hard to win. I think of the NY Yankees where they have the most money, typically the best players, but because of the overhead, they can't seem to just win.
UK is a big program with a huge fanbase, but that creates a lot of pressure on a coach and players. It's kind of similar to Michigan Football in the last 20 years. Some times you have too many cooks in the kitchen and the coach has no breathing room. Maybe why it's easier to win at UCONN than UK.
I was disappointed at first on Pope hiring… then he ripped off that shirt and tie and that made me all in on him I believe in Mark. I like his O hope he plays the press D for sure the young kids can handle that
I agree with one of the commenters here, Drew imo would be a terrible choice, and the championship he won was in the bubble, not a typical ncaa tournament, but he would have been a bad fit.
Loved mark as a player just not sure about the recruiting that part does worry me
He will hire top assistants to help
I think with UKs resources Coach Pope will be able to bring in great recruits. This year might be iffy because of timing, but if we (BBN) are patient and supportive, I foresee some fun, winning times ahead! GO BIG BLUE!
Saving private pope!
If u ain’t got NBA players on your team u ain’t winning period bottom line so if he ain’t recruiting then he better be developing them
Yes and no. You need at least a few NBA player but not a starting 5 full of NBA players.
Lots of wishful thinking from BBN. Pope has to show a big turnaround by year two and a final four trip by year three or the fan base will want another coach.
You're asking for an awful lot from any coach to get a final four in 3 years.
Let's gooo pope
A coach would have to be just flat out not able to coach to not be successful at uk #BIGBLUENATION
Im mad...i want to be great...not good
Purdue thought Kentucky was coming for their sorry coach
Yeah man mark pope is way better. He’s the 5th best in the big 12 and hasn’t won 1 tournament game ! Yayyyy 🥱
Not a hit against Mark Pope , I hope he does well but this was a settle. Mitch Barnhart is gonna lose his job is if this goes bad and should. For all the top picks to shut this basketball coaching dream job down right off the bat screams volumes. For the all time winning basket program in history to settle for someone whos never won anything , and get paid 5.5 million per yr screams desperation. Barnhart should be fired !!!! Congrats to Mark Pope though, this is not his fault .
Cope with Pope LOL 😆🤣👍
Kentucky is gonna have some struggles FOR SURE!
These guys are part of the problem in Lexington.... "Reeds gotta go pro"...Cal has yall brain washed. Fuck. The. NBA. 😅
You would crawl on your knees through broken glass and raw sewage to sign an NBA contract. It is ignorant to expect these kids to turn down millions to please you.
@@wildmouse5888 No, I wouldn't. Not everybody in this world is just like you.
@@benhoskins4719 The people with brains are! You really think a 19-year-old kid should turn down the chance to have financial comfort for life just to please fans he doesn't even know?
Kentucky and their fans will regret this hire.....players play for the coach, not the school.....you are going to find that out the hard way
Players play for the NIL and you're going to find that out the hard way. Game's passed you by.
Stop using UConn as measuring stick they got fuckin lottery picks on there teams last year and this year multiple and other guys that’s goin to the league they ain’t jus got anybody out there
They’re not exactly loaded with NBA talent.
@@xandercrews4729 Hawkins lotter clingan lottery Jackson’s nba last year Tristen, castle and Karaban is a NBA player
@@bjr0467 Karaban is a borderline NBA player. Their 3rd leading scorer, Spencer, won’t sniff the NBA. You need NBA talent but a core of one & done lottery picks won’t get it done
Insane amounts of cope.
Saying Kentucky have been relevant in the tournament is crazy!! They haven’t been good but a lot of people had Kentucky winning this year and in 21-22. Jeff shut up all you need to do is find out what’s going in with programs your opinion is just useless and usually never right
Mitch Barnhars doesn't know how to pick a coach he sould have wait for awhile what is the rush he picked Tubby and he was not a good coaclh
Saying Tubby wasn’t a good coach shows your ignorance
@@joer1678 no you are ass
Tubby was hired before Mitch
Wethington hired tubby
He picked sorry ass Billy G tho
Tubby was an excellent X and O coach. UK was nearly guaranteed to score when he drew up a play during a timeout. Tubby's problem was that he has almost no ego at all, and he didn't want to deal with the gigantic egos of top recruits.
Lol