Mark Stoops shares message to fans losing hope: 'We're working extremely hard to get out of it.'

What do you even say about the current state of Kentucky football, coming off a blowout loss at South Carolina to move to 1-11 in its last 12 games against power conference competition? The Wildcats have lost eight such games in a row, six of which by double-digits. Against teams with a pulse, Mark Stoops‘ program has simply not been competitive.

Oh, and UK will be taking on No. 12 Georgia next, then No. 9 Texas, then No. 15 Tennessee — all teams with College Football Playoff hopes. Depending on where things go from there, we could very easily be looking down the barrel of a winless SEC finish for the blue and white.

Stoops was asked to share a message with Big Blue Nation during his call-in radio show on Monday, something to help a hurt fanbase think better days are ahead under his leadership. His answer? He feels your pain and doesn’t have any excuses for the results.

“Well, I mean, I completely understand that. I don’t think there’s anything I could say to make them feel better,” the longest-tenured coach in the SEC said. “I know the people throughout Kentucky; nobody wants excuses, and we’re not here to give them any. I just say that I really like this team and I know they care and they work hard.

“We got put in a spot where we’re not as good as we’ve been, but we’re working extremely hard to get out of it. I definitely know we’re better, even though it doesn’t always feel that way.”

It’s especially hard when a few balls bounce the wrong way and lead to embarrassing results like the performance we saw in Columbia. Those go the other direction and maybe we’re talking about a different finish?

Unfortunately, this team isn’t good enough yet to earn that benefit of the doubt — and they may never be.

“Not making excuses, but it’s just facts. In a game like that, we have opportunities,” he continued. “Ball flopping around, we don’t get it. We had a tipped pass on their first offensive possession, it was tipped off one receiver. Instead of going to us for a score, it went to them for a first down. We have a pass that runs a slant that’s maybe a half-yard a little high, maybe a little hot, gets tipped, and unfortunately, it gets tipped to one of them, gets run in for a touchdown, you know?”

It’s on them to earn that benefit of the doubt. Until then, it is what it is and the Wildcats, for lack of a better phrase, have to get back to work.

“Those are things that are very real that happened and we’re not good enough to overcome them right now,” Stoops said. “And we got to do better to work hard, to have the breaks fall our way.”

We’ll see what happens in Athens this weekend as three-touchdown underdogs.