Joker Phillips has a 1% of being retained and could Phillip Fulmer or Sonny Dykes be real candidates?
Oct 13, 2012; Fayetteville, AR, USA; Kentucky Wildcats head coach Joker Phillips during the second quarter of the game against the Arkansas Razorbacks at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-US PRESSWIRE
I hate to be a Debbie Downer, but this is a conversation that we need to be having.
The website “Mr.SEC.com” compiled a list of coaches in the SEC on the hotseat, the percentage that they will be retained, who fans want as a replacement, and who are the realistic candidates for the job.
So, what does Mr. SEC have to say about Joker Phillips? Well, it isn’t good:
"KentuckyCurrent Coach: Joker PhillipsChance of Survival: 1%Wildcat Fans Want: Jon Gruden, Chris Peterson, or another big nameUK’s Real Top Choice: Phillip Fulmer, David Cutcliffe or Sonny Dykes.Our Take: Phillips pried open his tomb with a good showing against Georgia a week ago… only to have the crypt slam back shut on him Saturday at Missouri. A return by freshman quarterback Patrick Towles was expected to provide a bit more hope for the future, but Towles and UK looked very poor in Saturday’s 33-10 rout in Columbia. We initially thought Fulmer would ixnay the idea of heading to Lexington and taking on a rebuilding project, but a source close to the coach recently gave us a “not so fast” on that one. It’s believed Fulmer — whose buyout money from Tennessee ends this year — wants desperately to end his career with more victories than former UT legend Robert Neyland. We still find it hard to believe the 62-year-old Fulmer would take the job, but Rich Brooks made it work at UK in his 60s. Ron Zook’s name was even thrown out to us as a possible D-coordinator and star recruiter for Fulmer’s hypothetical staff. Sorry, still not buying. Have to see it to believe it. Same with Cutcliffe. He’s already a hero at one basketball school. Unless he feels he’s got something to prove in the SEC, why make a lateral move? Dykes, on the other hand, is a former UK assistant and he’s taken many of Derek Dooley’s old players at Louisiana Tech and turned them into a BCS-ranked team. Young coach, exciting offense, ranked team. But would he jump at a Kentucky offer or wait for a better/easier job elsewhere? UK’s all over the board with potential hires, but we feel safe in saying Phillips is done."
Not the most encouraging of words. The only thing that seems to be certain is that Joker isn’t coming back. As far as the coach that will replace him, nobody, maybe not even Mitch Barnhart, has any realistic idea of who it’s going to be. I’m not going to lie, reading the names Phillip Fulmer and David Cutcliffe didn’t really make me too happy, but Sonny Dykes is an interesting name.
Dykes would be a great hire and would fit the mold of what Kentucky fans are hoping for: a young, successful coach that runs an exciting style of football that has a presence of authority. But Dykes is a hot name right now, and would the Kentucky job lure him away from Louisiana Tech?
The bottom line, Kentucky is going to have to spend some money and make some promises that they are willing to keep. If that doesn’t happen, then you might as well just promote Randy Sanders or Rick Minter when Joker gets the boot.
Also, Jon Gruden and Chris Peterson will never come to kentucky. Ever.