After 13 seasons, you might expect a head coach’s message to evolve. But for Kentucky’s Mark Stoops, the post-game press conference following a disappointing loss has become a predictable routine. The names of the opponents change, but the excuses remain the same.
Let’s look at the pattern of déjà vu that has defined a decade of Kentucky football.
The excuse generator through the years
- 2018, after a 24-7 blowout loss to an unranked Tennessee: “We didn’t play good enough, didn’t have them prepared well enough and we need to do a better job."
- 2022, after a 24-14 home loss to a struggling South Carolina: "And that’s, obviously, the job of a head coach, to get the team prepared and to put them in position to be successful. And, you know, that wasn’t done. I got to do a better job.."
- 2023, after an embarrassing 38-21 home loss to Missouri: "And, you know, either way I will hold my head up high, try to coach the team, work my butt off to get them right.
- 2024, after a 20-13 home loss to Vanderbilt: “I’m very disappointed in myself and our (coaching) staff for not getting this team ready.”
- 2025, after the loss to Ole Miss where the team looked disorganized: "You know, we got to be better. We've just got to function better."
The pattern is undeniable. Whether it's 2018 or 2025, the explanation is always a variation of the same theme: a failure in preparation for which the coach takes vague responsibility, promises to "do a better job," and then repeats the cycle after the next bad loss. So, no real improvement at all.
Last season, Stoops claimed his team had to play nea perfect football to win. This year, it seems they are headed for another 4-8 finish. Fans are no longer interested in hearing that the team needs to be coached better; they are demanding that it actually happens.
Drew Holbrook is an avid Kentucky fan who has been covering the Cats for over 10 years. In his free time, he spends time with his family, and watching Premier League soccer. Micah 7:7. #UpTheAlbion