If Mitch Barnhart wants a blueprint for how not to handle the next week, he should look directly at Fayetteville, Arkansas. They just had a masterclass on how to not hire a new football coach.
The Razorbacks fired Sam Pittman, let Bobby Petrino coach out a 2-10 season, and then proceeded to set their program on fire during the search, at least according to their fan base.
The state of Arkansas football thanks to @HunterYurachek and the Board of Trustees pic.twitter.com/Y88WBSPKap
— Dylan Frost (@HeavyD501) November 30, 2025
First, they almost hired USF's Alex Golesh, but the deal collapsed because Golesh reportedly didn't like the news leaking early. "Distractions take away from the main focus," Golesh said about the news coming out before USF's season finale. He was not happy. After the game though he took the Auburn job instead. Fans got even more mad.
That left Arkansas scrambling to hire Ryan Silverfield, who went 8-4 at Memphis, a record that had Memphis fans happy to see him go. The result? Arkansas fans literally showed up at the stadium to publicly demonstrate against AD Hunter Yurachek.
A small group of Arkansas fans has gathered outside the Jerry and Gene Jones Family Student-Athlete Success Center to protest the hiring of Ryan Silverfield as the Razorbacks' new football coach.
— WholeHogSports.com (@wholehogsports) November 30, 2025
📸 🎥 Hank Layton/WholeHogSports pic.twitter.com/7qxQ0JRLAb
Our own Ryan Guthrie details what Ryan Silverfield brings to the position, if you'd like to take a look you can click here. But fans are not having it, at least not right now.
The lesson for Mitch Barnhart after firing Mark Stoops
Kentucky cannot afford that kind of reaction. Mark Stoops had really become such a toxic negative name in the Bluegrass, that fans need some good news, or they may revolt like Arkansas fans are currently doing.
BBN needs this hire to be a universal hit. The fans need to be on board. The donors need to be on board. And most importantly, the coach needs to be innovative and ready to lead a charge into a changing SEC landscape.
NIL can flip a roster in an instant, but only if the person in charge inspires confidence. If Kentucky fumbles this search like Arkansas did, Kroger Field may still be empty in 2026. Micah 7:7.