WATCH: Matt Jones talks Mark Stoops' buyout with On3's Andy and Ari

Kentucky Football is between a rock and a hard place right now due to Mark Stoops’ buyout. Should the school want to part ways with Stoops after this season, it would owe him $37 million within 60 days. That’s a lot of money, especially in the revenue-sharing era of college sports, where every cent matters; however, according to Matt Jones, Kentucky can come up with the $37 million if necessary.

“For the first time since these conversations have started taking place, I do believe that if Mitch Barnhart decides to make a change, the money will be there,” Matt said on Tuesday’s radio show. “I’ve always thought that would not be the case. I think money is a factor in what they do, for sure, but the idea, which is what I’ve had for a long time, that they just could not raise that money, I think they could if they felt like it was the way to go.”

As unrest builds and rumors swirl around the program during the bye week, Matt went on “Andy & Ari” with Andy Staples and Ari Wasserman to further explain his comments and the situation at hand.

“Let’s start with this: they don’t want to do it, and it will be a very, very, very difficult pill to swallow,” Matt said. “I think it’s very negative, but it’s hard to overreact to how toxic things are going to be if they keep losing this year.”

Kentucky is currently 2-3, with five SEC games (Texas, Tennessee, at Auburn, Florida, at Vanderbilt), a home game vs. Tennessee Tech, and the Governor’s Cup game at Louisville remaining. Finishing with a 3-9 record is very much on the table. If that happens, Matt said the administration may feel like it has no choice but to raise the money and pay the buyout.

“If they finish 3-9, I don’t think Kentucky can afford to bring him back because there will be no donations for NIL, there will be no season ticket renewals, or at least a huge downgrade on them. They just can’t do it.

“So, what I was told is, look, $37 million is awful. They don’t want to do it, and they would hope to find a way around it, but they are aware that even with all the costs, this is a tough year for Kentucky because they’re doing expansions, they’re thinking about an entertainment district, that there is an understanding that in a doomsday scenario, you might just have to do it.”

When asked, Matt said a 3-9 record is the doomsday scenario, with 4-8 close behind. He believes Stoops is probably safe if Kentucky finishes 6-6, but a 5-7 record makes things very tricky. Where could some of those wins come from? Despite all the gloom and doom surrounding the program, Matt said he expects Kentucky to win a game no one expects it to, as we’ve seen in the Stoops era before. The question is, can the Cats pull off two upsets?

We’ll see. Hit play below to hear the rest of Matt’s conversation with Andy & Ari, who got an education in our fearless leader’s phone habits while driving.

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