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Anonymous coach says Mark Stoops will retire at Kentucky sooner than some think

How much longer will Mark Stoops be at Kentucky? According to some coaches, not much longer.

By Alec Lasley

Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Stoops waves to the UK fans as special assistant Eddie Gran throws down Ls after the Wildcats beat Louisville 38-31 Saturday. Nov. 24, 2023
Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Stoops waves to the UK fans as special assistant Eddie Gran throws down Ls after the Wildcats beat Louisville 38-31 Saturday. Nov. 24, 2023 / Matt Stone/The Courier Journal / USA
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Mark Stoops has built Kentucky football into what it is today. Entering his 12th season this year, Stoops is looking to take the Wildcats to an eighth-straight bowl game -- something that was never thought to be realistic in Lexington.

With a 73-65 overall record over his tenure at Kentucky, Stoops is already the longest-tenured coach in program history. His consistentcy and elevation of the program is evident and that has led him into being one of the better coaches in the conference and country.

The Wildcats had just seven bowl appearances in the 19 seasons prior to Stoops taking over the program. What has he done in the 11 years in Lexington? Taken the Wildcats to seven straight bowl games. He won four straight from 2018-2021.

Kentucky is coming off of a 7-6 record in 2023, however, and a loss in the Gator Bowl -- its second straight loss in a bowl game. 

With the College Football Playoff expanding and new teams being added to the SEC, the landscape of the conference, as well as college football as a whole, is changing.

So, what does the future of Stoops look like? Well, one anonymous coach says Mark Stoops will retire at Kentucky sooner than some think.

“After the Texas A&M flirtation with [Mark] Stoops, a lot of us think he’s probably going to end up retiring from Kentucky in a few years," an anonymous coach told Athlon Sports. "He’ll leave the game at a smart age, the way his brother [Bob] did."

Retire? Stoops is turning 57 next month and hasn't been a head coach anywhere other than in Lexington. So, to think he's going to retire 'in a few years' is quite the statement.

Stoops signed a contract extension in 2022 that will keep him in Lexington through the 2030 season, so could that potentially be the end of the Stoops era at Kentucky? Time will tell.

Like the anonymous coach said, his brother retired and shook up the college football world after two straight 11-win seasons -- leaving the sport when nobody thought he would. Could Mark follow those footsteps?

For now, at least, Stoops is looking to bounce back from back-to-back bowl losses.

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