With Mark Pope leading the way, Richie Farmer believes Kentucky has 'Final Four potential' in 2025-26

Clay County’s finest knows a thing or two about good basketball, and Richie Farmer believes Kentucky has it under Mark Pope — even if it took him a minute to get there with the 1996 national champion, like many of us. The Unforgettable heard all of the chatter about Scott Drew, Dan Hurley, Nate Oats and Billy Donovan and assumed John Calipari‘s replacement would be one of the big-name home runs that had been floated out there.

When Pope’s name popped up as the likely hire, Farmer was left scratching his head.

“I was kind of like a lot of other people because there were tons of names being tossed around,” he said in an appearance on KSR on Tuesday. “I had heard his name, but it was way, way, way down the list. During that time, it was a shock that they had picked him. At first I thought, what? Mark Pope?”

Once the dust settled, he saw Mitch Barnhart’s vision with the hire. Then it became even clearer when the season tipped off and the idea of Pope’s entertaining offense — potentially bigger and better than what we saw at BYU with a blue blood brand and spotlight — became a reality.

“The more I thought about it, the more it started to make sense. All of us that got a chance to watch him coach this past year saw that he’s one of the great young coaches out there,” Farmer said. “I mean, he’s young in his career, but the way he analyzes games and the way he takes bits and pieces of what he’s learned from different people that he’s played with and played for throughout the years, I think he does an outstanding job.

“And his offense is something that, these young kids, they want to play for him. They want to be a part of it. That’s a big part of what’s happening now. You’ve got to have something that appeals to these young guys.”

Maybe the most important part for Farmer when it comes to Pope’s recipe for success, why this is all working? His connection with Big Blue Nation and making sure every player that wears the uniform shares a similar connection, an understanding of their role in history at the winningest tradition in college basketball.

“He seems to be able to do that and get them motivated and get them to understand what it means to play at Kentucky,” he continued. “I think that had been kind of lost over the course of several years, playing for that name on the front of the jersey. These fans are the greatest in the world, the greatest fans of any sport in the world. When you play here, it’s magical and it means something. It means something to these people.

“I think he’s been able to kind of make the people that weren’t like me, that didn’t grow up here, make them understand that and make them buy into that. I just really like the culture and I like what he’s doing. I love Mark Pope.”

Year one was a massive success, but what is in store for year two under Pope? Farmer has heard very, very good things about this next Kentucky team and its potential.

Is a return to Indianapolis for the Final Four on the table? From one Wildcat legend to another, he wouldn’t rule it out for the ’96 captain.

“With this team that he’s got this year … everything that I’ve been hearing, we’ve got a lot of potential and a lot to look forward to this year. I’m really excited. … I’m really excited about this team,” Farmer told KSR. “I’m always hesitant about saying, ‘We’re going 40-0! We’re going to win the national championship!’

“But with this team, I really do think that they have Final Four potential.”