What is the best head coaching job in all of college football? Is it a blue-blood program like Alabama or Ohio State, with its immense resources and championship expectations? Or is it something else entirely? You be judge after reading the numbers below.
According to national college football analyst Josh Pate, the answer is a no-brainer, and it resides in Lexington, Kentucky.
SEC pay without SEC pressure
Speaking on "The Colin Cowherd Podcast," Pate made the stunning declaration that Kentucky is the best job in the country, and his logic is hard to argue with.
“You’ll think I’m joking with you, but Kentucky football would be the job I’d want to take,” Pate told Cowherd. “Mark Stoops makes close to $10 million per year, and the goal there is to win seven games. It’s in rural Kentucky, you can be there forever... you can blend SEC pay scale without the SEC pressure."
Pate’s core argument is that Stoops enjoys the financial benefits of coaching in the nation's premier conference without facing the relentless, championship-or-bust pressure found at other SEC programs. And not only no championship expectations, but just some pressure to make a bowl game. The numbers seem to back up this assertion in a shocking way.
The staggering cost of a big win
Since taking over in 2013, Mark Stoops has earned approximately $58 million from the University of Kentucky. During that same period (not counting bowl games), his record against teams that finished the season with a winning record is a mere 20-53.
When you do the math, the result is astonishing. The University of Kentucky has paid Mark Stoops approximately $2.9 million per victory against a team with a winning record in his career with the Cats.
That figure is a testament to the incredible job security and financial stability Stoops has built. Pate concluded, “I can’t believe people don’t look at Mark Stoops and say, ‘That guy figured it out.’” When you look at the numbers, it’s clear that from a career and financial standpoint, he absolutely has. Mark Stoops has it made at least for a couple more seasons according to Mitch Barnhart.
Drew Holbrook is an avid Kentucky fan who has been covering the Cats for over 10 years. In his free time he enjoyes downtime with his family and Premier League soccer.You can find him on X here.Micah 7:7. #UptheAlbion