Remember when Mark Stoops asked fans to “pony up” and Big Blue Nation melted down? The way the news cycle has burned and turned this offseason, that feels like a lifetime ago. Nope, it was actually only nine months ago. 



Two days after the Wildcats got shellacked by Georgia, tempers flared on Stoops’ call-in show. One caller took Stoops to task and the Kentucky head coach lost his patience. 



“The other side of that is, if you want to do that, complain, deny or make excuses. And we’re not going to do that, it is what it is. Fans have that right, I give it to them,” <a href="https://www.on3.com/teams/kentucky-wildcats/news/mark-stoops-encourages-fans-to-pony-up-on-nil-contributions-following-georgia-blowout/">Stoops said</a>. “I just encourage them to donate more, because that’s what those dudes are doing. I can promise you Georgia, they bought some pretty good players. You’re allowed to these days.



“We could use some help. That’s what they look like, when you have 85 of them. I encourage anybody who is disgruntled to pony up some more.”



Kentucky football fans did not take kindly to that kind of retort. Anytime something went wrong for the rest of the season, fans went back to the “pony up” comment. Even though that rhetoric has died down among his critics, one thing remains the same: the Kentucky football program needs more money in its NIL coffers.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-mark-stoops-asks-for-fundraising-help">Mark Stoops Asks for Fundraising Help </h2>



His 12th appearance at SEC Media Days looked much different than his first. Oklahoma and Texas are now among the 16 teams in the SEC vying for one of 12 spots in the CFB Playoff. There wasn’t a transfer portal when Mark Stoops started coaching. Players couldn’t earn money from their Name, Image, and Likeness. 



History tells us Kentucky is not ready to thrive in this new era of SEC football. Mark Stoops is embracing that challenge headfirst. 



“You either exist, you either exit, or you explore new ways to be innovative and make the best of it. I want to live in that world of exploring the best way,” <a href="https://youtu.be/KwpE5Unrtv0?si=McLd8svOypx1hsK3">Stoops shared with members of the local media</a>. 



“How do we make that next jump? Is there some frustration in there sometimes with all that? Is there some more work and a new meaning to the job, fundraiser? It’s new, it’s challenging, but it’s also exciting. How can we explore this avenue to help us make that jump and compete and be relevant? I work for our players. I raise money for our players. That’s just a new part of it.”



Stoops has plenty of things he must address with his program’s performance on the field. He’s comfortable operating in that role. There’s a new role that’s even more challenging, fundraising. He’s not just looking for funds to build new facilities, he’s forced to find innovative ways to compensate his players and it’s become the most challenging part of his job. 



“We have no choice. You want to compete in this league, you got to do it, and that’s part of what we have to do. Once again, you could exist, you could just hang around, you could leave, or you can continue to invest more and it’s super important,” said Stoops. 



“You know, the SEC says it just means more, right? Well, we need to continue to pour into it and I continue to ask for help. If there’s one thing that’s weighing me down, it’s raising money. That’s a lot of work, but it’s a lot of pressure. These guys deserve it. I have to find a way to be creative and continue to work at it to raise funds. I need some help. We need some help in that area desperately.“



This plea sounds much better than “pony up.” For Kentucky to keep up with the Joneses, they’ll need more NIL collective contributions — <a href="https://kentucky15.com/">The 15 Club</a>, <a href="https://clubbluenil.com/">Club Blue</a> — and that is just the beginning. 



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