Could Mark Stoops be next Kentucky Football coach?

While everybody is constantly refreshing every Kentucky news site for new information about the Kentucky Wildcats search for a new football coach, there is some information out there that you might have missed.

USA Today’s Jason Jordan has learned that one of the nation’s top recruits, Julius Randle, will be sidelined with a fractured right foot for the next three months. Jordan reports that Randle will be back in time for the postseason all-star games.
Sep 17, 2011; Tallahassee, FL, USA; Florida State Seminoles defensive coordinator Mark Stoops (left) talks with his brother, Oklahoma Sooners head coach Bob Stoops (right), prior to the game. The Sooners beat the Seminoles 23-13. Image Credit: Phil Sears-US PRESSWIRE
Back to the football search, I would be satisfied by Florida State defensive coordinator Mark Stoops or San Jose State head coach Mike MacIntyre as the next head coach of the Kentucky Wildcats.

At this time, we don’t know for sure as to just who the next coach will be but the should an announcement come, the best bet is that it would not be on Thursday or Friday due to the number of Kentucky beat writers that will be traveling to and from South Bend, Indiana, for the basketball game against Notre Dame.

At his weekly press conference today, Florida State Seminoles coach Jimbo Fisher denied the reports that Stoops had interviewed for the Kentucky opening. Of course, they are busy gearing up for the ACC championship game this weekend.

That said, this afternoon, Pancho Thomas, a freshman linebacker from Tallahassee, Florida, tweeted one word that set off a Twitter firestorm.

There were reports this morning that Butch Jones to Kentucky was a done deal but based on what has been reported today by various media, it’s probably a good bet to put that story to rest. Tony Basilio of ESPN1180 in Knoxville reported that Jones is not interested in the Tennessee job and added that it’s a good possibility that Cincinnati moves to the ACC as well.
Oct 29, 2011; Ruston, LA, USA; San Jose State Spartans head coach Mike MacIntyre against the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs at Joe Aillet Stadium. Image Credit: Spruce Derden-US PRESSWIRE
In three seasons, MacIntyre turned around a San Jose State program that was sitting in the dumpster to a 25th in the BCS rankings. Prior to this, he was the defensive coordinator at Duke, where the defense did a heck of a job under his coaching.

"For the first time in 15 seasons, the Blue Devils held three consecutive ACC opponents (Maryland, Virginia & North Carolina) to fewer than 20 points. In 2008, the Blue Devil defense allowed 23.4 points per game — the program’s lowest total in 20 seasons — and held three opponents to less than 10 points for the first time since 1976."

After the 2009 season, MacIntyre was hired by San Jose State. The rest is history.

Moreover, in addition to discipline and conditioning, Coach MacIntyre has 4 building blocks for success according to the 2012 Spartans media guide: Foundation, Family, Future, and Football. This would play well at Kentucky, in my opinion.

The current defensive coordinator, Kent Baer, previously held the same title with Stanford and Notre Dame. I’d be interested in seeing if he comes to Kentucky with MacIntyre…should the SJS coach get hired by Kentucky, of course.