Mark Stoops is 'grateful' for Kentucky job but recognizes that the basketball program must stay elite

How Kentucky splits the revenue-share amount between the two big programs on campus became a huge discussion topic within the Big Blue Nation this week. A report by CBS Sports’ Matt Norlander that the basketball program would receive 45 percent of UK’s $20.5 million was quickly squashed as not true by sources but we still are not sure how much each program will get.

The fact of the matter is that both programs will have to eat first when it comes time for the university to financially support each. This will be a difficult tightrope for the university and the athletic department to walk. Luckily, pay-for-play through collectives likely isn’t going away anytime soon.

Kentucky football head coach Mark Stoops addressed the biggest issue in this fan base in a non-direct way on “Unsportsmanlike with Evan, Canty and Michelle” on ESPN Radio. In an interview on Wednesday morning, Stoops was asked by host Evan Cohen if he believed this theory: football or basketball programs opposite of a blue blood program are the best jobs in college athletics. Stoops started his answer by saying how important the Kentucky basketball program is to everyone else.

“Well, I’m not going to agree with you. That’s your theory and you can certainly say that. I can’t say that,” the dean of SEC head football coaches said. “Listen, the basketball, the history of this place is remarkable. Traditionally, heck, we’re top-one, two, you know, basketball tradition forever. We need to stay there. Everybody knows that. Everybody roots for that.”

That seems highly notable when you consider what is going on in Big Blue land. Football is going to need investment to have any chance to succeed, but so is the basketball program to reach its sky-high expectations and long-established program standard. After the basketball vs. football war broke out three years ago, there seems to be no interest in starting that again even though it could be very easy in this current climate where every program is competing for rev-share dollars.

Mark Stoops is staying focused on his job. For the second time in less than a week, Kentucky’s head coach is emphasizing a key word: grateful.

“For myself, there’s good and bad with every job,” Stoops explained. “To the start of your point, when you said the best job you have, to me I look at it is the best job is the one I have, and I mean that. I love my job.”

“I said this in Atlanta at the SEC Media Days, the word that to me that comes to mind, and I truly mean this, is grateful. You go through ups and downs. This has been a challenge for everybody the last two or three years. Last three years in particular. It’s been a real challenge for head coaches at every school. We all have our obstacles, and we all have our good. I think it’s up to us to embrace that.”

Mark Stoops has taken this mindset all offseason. The head coach has made a commitment to putting his head down, getting to work, and not worrying about what is going on outside the football facility. There has been a direct focus on not making any headlines. Stoops has shared his appreciation for the continuity, patience, and support that the University of Kentucky has provided.

“I love the resources that I have here. The support that I’ve had here. The fan base that I’ve had here. I think that makes it a lot of fun. You feel a great obligation to deliver for the people that have been so good to you. That’s kind of what I’m focused on,” said Stoops. “I didn’t like the year we had a year ago. I have a lot of work to do, but let’s embrace that challenge. Let’s go to work every day and let’s put a great product on the field that people in Kentucky are proud of.”

Kentucky has tried to flip its roster and bounce-back after a brutal campaign at the exact same time when player compensation is changing in a drastic way. The university has to make some complicated decisions both in the present and in the future. For now, Mark Stoops and his football program are expressing thankfulness to all parties and looking to prove detractors wrong and make supporters proud in 2025. There is faith that the administration will continue to provide the support this program needs to compete with its peers in the SEC.

“It’s up to me to embrace the good. I think there’s good and bad everywhere,” Stoops said. “You just gotta make the most of your situation, and put a great product on the field.”