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A nerve-wracking OT win isn't buying Mark Pope much time with Big Blue Nation

Mark Pope should be thanking his lucky stars that Otega Oweh hit that wild 3-pointer at the buzzer.
John Buhler
John Buhler

Wildcat Blue Nation

Mark Pope, Kentucky Wildcats / Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

Survive and advance. It is that simple, but is it really? When it comes to Mark Pope leading the Kentucky Wildcats, it has never been that simple... In year two in charge of his alma mater, Pope is somehow one win away from taking UK to back-to-back Sweet 16s. Iowa State likely looms large in the Round of 32, but the Wildcats miraculously prevailed over the Santa Clara Broncos in overtime.

If not for this buzzer-beater from Otega Oweh at the end of regulation, Pope would be out of a job...

Oweh may have "major onions", but Big Blue Nation cannot stand this foul stench coming from Pope.

Big Blue Nation still wants to move on from Mark Pope after Kentucky win

Big Blue Nation did not beat around the bush when it came to Oweh saving Pope's job with that shot.

If not for Oweh's bucket and great play in overtime, Pope would have been roasted alive by the media.

What this win likely means is Pope will be back in Lexington for at least one more season, we think...

After the 89-84 win over Santa Clara, Kentucky awaits the winner of Iowa State vs. Tennessee State.

Mark Pope lives to fight another day after being bailed out by his players

Pope may be one of their own, but that does not matter to Big Blue Nation. To them, they view him as a bit of a stop-gap coach between two legends. How North Carolina feels about Bill Guthridge and Matt Doherty in between Dean Smith and Roy Williams is how Kentucky fans may feel about John Calipari's successor. It is a tough spot to be in for Pope, but he tries his best to lead his alma mater.

With a potentially brutal Round of 32 matchup on the horizon with No. 2 Iowa State, this does not mean Pope is out of the woods just yet... If he coaches like he did for much of this game vs. Santa Clara, Kentucky could be looking for a new head coach anyway. Keep in mind that his boss in long-time athletic director Mitch Barnhart is retiring at the end of the year. Pope was hired by him in 2024.

In the end, most college basketball coaches worth their weight in salt would do unspeakable things to have a blue-blood post like the one Pope has at his alma mater of Kentucky. The fact he played here and led UK to its third tournament win over the last two years makes his tough decision so incredibly complicated. Even if Iowa State wipes the floor with Kentucky, Pope is almost certainly coming back.

For now, let's try to celebrate this crazy win because that is what March Madness is really all about!

John Buhler

John Buhler

John Buhler is a FanSided NCAA staff writer. He specializes in covering college football and the NFL on a national level, as well as his hometown Atlanta Braves. Nearly a decade into his writing career at FanSided, he has also written about MLB, NBA, golf, tennis and the Olympics. Buhler is a University of Georgia graduate (2012), but he spent most of his time in Athens enjoying the finer things in life than studying business management. He co-hosts the national college football podcast False Start with his FanSided colleague Cody Williams, and hosts The Blogging Dirty Podcast to hype up his beloved hometown Atlanta Falcons. In his spare time, Buhler loves singing karaoke and dominating in bar trivia.