The sad thing is he paid a coach from BYU 4.5 million more per year than what BYU was paying him. He probably comes for anything 1.5 to 2.5 and Mitch thinks we need to pay him 5.5. Pope is the 12th highest paid coach in the Men's basketball and had nowhere near anything on his resume to even be offered the job. Mitch isn't very good with money and coaches..
Stop the anger toward pope
- Thread starter Goingfor9
- Start date
To hell with that. Resign and GTFO of town with his soft BS and word garble. He doesn’t deserve a damned thing at this point. Just leave.
$22 million is more than every WNBA TEAM PAYROLL.
If you can’t put a winning team on the floor for that $$$$ - then your the problem -.not BBN. I loved the POPE hire. But his player management is nonsense & in game decisions are so bad that he’d get fired at Lexington Catholic after 2 years.
Sorry but this ain’t T Ball & The Standards are HIGH because of the Legacy of the winningest Program in College Hoops.
If you can’t put a winning team on the floor for that $$$$ - then your the problem -.not BBN. I loved the POPE hire. But his player management is nonsense & in game decisions are so bad that he’d get fired at Lexington Catholic after 2 years.
Sorry but this ain’t T Ball & The Standards are HIGH because of the Legacy of the winningest Program in College Hoops.
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Pope was given 22 million (if that number is right...but it's probably pretty close) to build and manage a roster. Saying he should get zero blame is retarded lol.
Mitch obviously sucks too though. But no head coach should just get a pass like that.
Mitch obviously sucks too though. But no head coach should just get a pass like that.
So if UK offered you a contract like the one Pope signed you wouldn’t do it? He did nothing wrong by signing the contract — I’m sure he truly felt he knew the assignment. Many coaches aren’t cut out to be a Wildcat and there’s nothing wrong with that. In another thread, you were taking up for Gillispie — and I agreed with you —- he also did nothing wrong signing on to be coach here. We don’t have to be nasty to the coaches for accepting jobs. Mitch hired a former player who didn’t meet the requirements. Pope just wasn’t able to hack it. He’s a former player and captain on one of our most notable championship teams — we should be able to keep the love for him as a player while also acknowledging it’s time to move on —- his coaching stinks.
We haven't been this bad in a 2 year stretch in a CENTURY.
Damn right I'm mad at him.
I actually feel a little bad for Pope. He’s a great guy and cares about the university. He should’ve never been hired. My feelings about this are the same as they were when Pope was announced. UK basketball is dead. The only way to resuscitate it is to totally clean house and bring in people who understand the current landscape in 2026 and who is capable of hiring a top 5-10 coach.
How many good decisions has Barnhart made? (Not many: hired BCS, refused to fire Joker, over-focused and missed on Drew, panic hired Pope, didn’t consider anyone outside of Drew, the JMI deal.)
How many good decision were truly his decisions? (Not many: Cal’s hiring as everyone knows by now was done behind his back. He was never going to hire Cal personally.)
How many good decisions were ruined later by absolutely terrible ones? (Most of them: Cal’s lifetime contract, Stoop’s extension.)
How many good decision were truly his decisions? (Not many: Cal’s hiring as everyone knows by now was done behind his back. He was never going to hire Cal personally.)
How many good decisions were ruined later by absolutely terrible ones? (Most of them: Cal’s lifetime contract, Stoop’s extension.)
I’m not just irritated with Pope. Pope would have been an idiot not to accept a job to where no matter what, he’s going to get a ridiculous amount of money. I just don’t understand how Barnhart still has a job. It’s also a problem when the school’s president is a total nerd, who cares nothing about sports.
The school president cares only about $$$ and we all know why. But Barney deserves to be booed every time someone sees him.
My response was purely in response to yours. Sure, I’d have taken the job. I’m mad because of how bad he sucks at it and more mad at his response to how bad he sucks at it. He’s a grown assed man getting paid $6M to get his *** beat and then acts like a toddler/teenage girl/zen therapist. Screw him. You are right, his coaching stinks. But his own response to his coaching is worse.
F*ck that.
You can be mad at Pope and Mitch both. That’s the answer
They’re embarrassing the program.
You can be mad at Pope and Mitch both. That’s the answer
They’re embarrassing the program.
Oof, just wait and see how bad it will get if we lose to MSU this Saturday. I had to look it up to find that the last time we lost to them in the regular season was during the 2008-2009 season, ole Billy G days.
Where was this post when people were calling for Cal’s head? As frustrating as it was his last few years, it was never this bad.
Pope did not deserve this job. He is not capable of this job. He’s done nothing to warrant him even being considered.
It wouldn’t matter if he was an average coach (he isn’t) or not, because the man cannot recruit. Look at our commits for next year. It will be worse. I promise.
Pope did not deserve this job. He is not capable of this job. He’s done nothing to warrant him even being considered.
It wouldn’t matter if he was an average coach (he isn’t) or not, because the man cannot recruit. Look at our commits for next year. It will be worse. I promise.
Bring in Richie!!
He had the best interest of Kentuckians in mind……until he went to Eddieville for ripping them off
I’d give anything to feel the hope he has. I’d say just let him have it.You really think we’re turning it around?
In the 2023 season, we beat barely beat unranked Michigan and I was convinced we were going to go on a tear after that game. Fan optimism can allow us to find a path to believe in the most bleak of circumstances. It’s a good thing, not a bad thing…I like seeing some people post something of hope. I don’t believe it but it’s at least nice to be able to think about it.
I don't think Pope should resign...at all. The man has a family. MB hired him. If UK wants him gone, there are two words he should embrace...Buy Out. It will cost the University an arm and a leg, which he deserves and they should pay. Then fire Barney for the horrible hire
I don’t disagree. I don’t think he would or should (from his perspective.) As a fan, I selfishly want to speed run back to prominence. It isn’t lost on me that Pope isn’t doing anything wrong. He’s simply outmatched by the otherworldly demands of this job. Mitch hired him — and hiring a captain of our ‘96 championship team was either going to end in victory or vitriol.
Yeah man, fans saying he should just quit(not talking about you) are being hypocritical. So on each of our personal jobs, if we are having a bad month or quarter or even year, do we all walk in and say, well, I am not giving uall a return on all the money you gave me, I quit. And don't worry about back pay, we want yall to keep it for the new hire....BULLCRAP. This dude had a job at BYU, he was doing a good job, he came here with no roster and had not a great but damn sure a very good first season. He did a poor job putting together this roster and is paying for it. It doesn't mean he is a bad coach. He has a contract, MB gave him that contract, and it has a buy out clause. If anyone should be held responsible, its MB. Someone tell me that MB will be fired tomorrow, and I will jump on the fire Pope bandwagon. If MB doesn't go, the same fool that hired Pope will hire the next guy
I do deeply feel bad for the guy. You know part of him has to regret taking the job.
Bingo! Pope is a grown man and he deserves all the heat he receives for the product he is putting on the court. This crap is all his fault!!! Firing Mitch is another conversation. However, Mitch hired Pope and it was a terrible hire, but Mitch is not the one that spent 22 million on this roster. Mitch is not the one that puts these pathetic game plans together. Mitch is not the one that puts these lousy lineups on the floor. Mitch is not the that leeps telling the fans this team is going to make BBN proud. If you talk the talk, you better be able to walk the walk. I am not angry at him, but I am going to hold him responsible for the damage he is doing.
Didn't say that. What looks bad now will be much worse, if we continue on the current path and I see no reason to think otherwise.You really think we’re turning it around?
I still think something has gone horribly wrong outside of his control.
Popes not stupid.
Why would he call this team a Ferrari?
There are just parts of this puzzle that still aren’t fully adding up.
Popes not a world beater but damn I think a bunch of these guys just are crappy dudes too.
I mean BG has been an issue all year and posts his own damn highlights after a loss. What a douchey move.
I agree Pope is not Stupid.
I also do not think he is a High Level D1 basketball coach either.
To play devils advocate, if he knew he wasn’t qualified and loved the program that much, he should have deferred to someone capable of doing it as to not drag the program he loves down.
I disagree. He was confident in his ability to coach here. Can’t fault him for taking the job. And last season was alright.
Now this season is a different story. Now he really is starting to drag the program down. All his weaknesses are being exposed
