I need to hear a reporter ask Mark Pope one critical question and follow-up.

[ToniTonyToneDelkDelkDelk]

"Do you still think you are the right man for this head coaching job?"
"And what do you plan to change to succeed next year?"

The season is ending soon. I don't want MP to go into hiding for a few weeks and pop out with some bs to sell us. We need answers.

 

[I’m The Village Idiot]

Why? Y’all are angry regardless of the answers.

Fans: Arrrrgh he’s so stoic. Show some fire, dude!

Also fans: Arrrgh he looks unhinged. He’s drowning in the demands of this job.

At Kentucky you can’t win a press conference when you’re losing. Just answer very short and direct if you’re Pope and get the heck out of the press conference as quickly as possible.

 

[DraftCat]

Reporters like to keep their job... I hate to say it but you'll never get those questions in this era.

I use to say the same thing.. why does no one ask the hard questions. Well it's because the reporters want access to the coaches/players and yeah keep their job. Hard journalism is over for professionals it's more so for amateurs.

 

[Tri-Countycat]

I’d ask him why these stats exists. Against Power 5 teams.

-Kentucky has trailed by 10 or more in almost half (≈49%) of its games against power-conference teams during Pope’s tenure.

• Down 15+ points: 11 games
• Down 20+ points: 8 games
• Record in those games: 18–17 overall vs those teams.

 

[FatCatMan]

"Do you still think you are the right man for this head coaching job?"
"And what do you plan to change to succeed next year?"

The season is ending soon. I don't want MP to go into hiding for a few weeks and pop out with some bs to sell us. We need answers.

The UK media are nothing but yes-men now. Between them, the inept admin, neutered boosters and leagues of fans who will gladly eat whatever slop with the UK brand on it, no one is going to be held accountable.

 

[Anon1759768907]

I’d ask him why these stats exists. Against Power 5 teams.

-Kentucky has trailed by 10 or more in almost half (≈49%) of its games against power-conference teams during Pope’s tenure.

• Down 15+ points: 11 games
• Down 20+ points: 8 games
• Record in those games: 18–17 overall vs those teams.

ive seen enough extend him

 

[UKCowboys]

"Do you still think you are the right man for this head coaching job?"
"And what do you plan to change to succeed next year?"

The season is ending soon. I don't want MP to go into hiding for a few weeks and pop out with some bs to sell us. We need answers.

Man, I mean this in all seriousness...if some reporter asked me that, I would tell him to kiss my happy ***. Straight up

 

[ToniTonyToneDelkDelkDelk]

Why? Y’all are angry regardless of the answers.

Fans: Arrrrgh he’s so stoic. Show some fire, dude!

Also fans: Arrrgh he looks unhinged. He’s drowning in the demands of this job.

At Kentucky you can’t win a press conference when you’re losing. Just answer very short and direct if you’re Pope and get the heck out of the press conference as quickly as possible.

No we want self awareness and accountability. Stop gaslighting us about everything from roster construction to team performance.

 

[ToniTonyToneDelkDelkDelk]

Man, I mean this in all seriousness...if some reporter asked me that, I would tell him to kiss my happy ***. Straight up

And that in itself would be a revealing answer.

 

[UKCowboys]

And that in itself would be a revealing answer.

It would be the honest answer.
Imagine, you take a job at a company as sales manager for a large firm. This is how you feed your family your family. The first year, you lose a quarter of your sales team to promotion and have to sell the same quota without 3 of your top performers. You still finish between 13th and 16th in the country out of 361 sales managers. Your CEO thinks so much of the job you did, he extends the contract. Second year, you lose a quarter of your sales team once again but still have the same quota. You dont have the year you have wanted, but you are entering the final quarter as one of 64 SMs left with a shot at being the top Sales Team in the country...when entering the last quarter, someone who has never sold in his life, let alone been an SM at those levels, asks you those questions. KMA would be perfectly appropriate

 

[JHBr]

Pope knows what is expected in this job and the time frame to accomplish it. He hasn't been near quick enough for a lot of RR posters.

 

[theGspot_rivals175609]

Man, I mean this in all seriousness...if some reporter asked me that, I would tell him to kiss my happy ***. Straight up

That's because, like Pope, you're a loser who can't handle truth.

 

[theGspot_rivals175609]

It would be the honest answer.
Imagine, you take a job at a company as sales manager for a large firm. This is how you feed your family your family. The first year, you lose a quarter of your sales team to promotion and have to sell the same quota without 3 of your top performers. You still finish between 13th and 16th in the country out of 361 sales managers. Your CEO thinks so much of the job you did, he extends the contract. Second year, you lose a quarter of your sales team once again but still have the same quota. You dont have the year you have wanted, but you are entering the final quarter as one of 64 SMs left with a shot at being the top Sales Team in the country...when entering the last quarter, someone who has never sold in his life, let alone been an SM at those levels, asks you those questions. KMA would be perfectly appropriate

And you would need to answer them or your boss probably has good cause to fire you if you can't.

It's called accountability!

 

[theGspot_rivals175609]

Pope knows what is expected in this job and the time frame to accomplish it. He hasn't been near quick enough for a lot of RR posters.

Or quick enough compared to his peers. Several 2nd year and first year coaches around the country are currently playing or already played in their conference tournament finals.

 

[Johnnie Africa]

It would be the honest answer.
Imagine, you take a job at a company as sales manager for a large firm. This is how you feed your family your family. The first year, you lose a quarter of your sales team to promotion and have to sell the same quota without 3 of your top performers. You still finish between 13th and 16th in the country out of 361 sales managers. Your CEO thinks so much of the job you did, he extends the contract. Second year, you lose a quarter of your sales team once again but still have the same quota. You dont have the year you have wanted, but you are entering the final quarter as one of 64 SMs left with a shot at being the top Sales Team in the country...when entering the last quarter, someone who has never sold in his life, let alone been an SM at those levels, asks you those questions. KMA would be perfectly appropriate

What if you’re one of the top 10 highest paid sales managers and your sales region is historically the top sales region in the country with by far the biggest clients? And not only that, you had a chance to sign a couple of huge sales clients for next year but they rejected you for competing companies?

 

[UKWildcats1987]

And you would need to answer them or your boss probably has good cause to fire you if you can't.

It's called accountability!

And he left out about the part about 2 of those sales dorks (KK last year and JQ this year) thar could have returned to help the team and refused to do so. And sales manager Dope allowed the inmates to run the asylum.

 

[megablue]

Pope knows what is expected in this job and the time frame to accomplish it. He hasn't been near quick enough for a lot of RR posters.

If he and staff have a plan, is this it ??

 

[theKybluedude]

"Do you still think you are the right man for this head coaching job?"
"And what do you plan to change to succeed next year?"

The season is ending soon. I don't want MP to go into hiding for a few weeks and pop out with some bs to sell us. We need answers.

He’s got a call in radio show. You should step up and call in or text your question. Tom Leach doesn't censor honest questions. Step up.

 

[KentuckyWildcats74]

"Do you still think you are the right man for this head coaching job?"
"And what do you plan to change to succeed next year?"

The season is ending soon. I don't want MP to go into hiding for a few weeks and pop out with some bs to sell us. We need answers.

I don't think it will happen, but I wonder how deep of a run Pope would have to have this year to make people think wow ok maybe we should give him a 3rd year. Is it elite 8?, final 4? I was thinking about this yesterday.

 

[UKWildcats1987]

I don't think it will happen, but I wonder how deep of a run Pope would have to have this year to make people think wow ok maybe we should give him a 3rd year. Is it elite 8?, final 4? I was thinking about this yesterday.

He's getting it regardless but an elite 8 would show me something. Of course a final four would be outstanding. Those are actually worthy of an extension. A sweet 16? Not so much.

 

[KentuckyWildcats74]

I truly want the guy to succeed, but I realize this year has not lived up to expectations for sure. I honestly think last year to me though was not that bad considering he had no team and it was his first year assembling one.

 

[KentuckyWildcats74]

He's getting it regardless but an elite 8 would show me something. Of course a final four would be outstanding. Those are actually worthy of an extension. A sweet 16? Not so much.

Thats kind of how I feel, but I agree he is getting a third year no matter what. If they can get to a sweet 16 they have real shot at getting to an elite 8 since they will probably have to beat a 2 to get to the sweet 16.

 

[*Fox2Monk*]

Reporters like to keep their job... I hate to say it but you'll never get those questions in this era.

I use to say the same thing.. why does no one ask the hard questions. Well it's because the reporters want access to the coaches/players and yeah keep their job. Hard journalism is over for professionals it's more so for amateurs.

Which is why this country is turning into a joke. Corruption runs rampant because the corrupt own the media.

 

[*Fox2Monk*]

It would be the honest answer.
Imagine, you take a job at a company as sales manager for a large firm. This is how you feed your family your family. The first year, you lose a quarter of your sales team to promotion and have to sell the same quota without 3 of your top performers. You still finish between 13th and 16th in the country out of 361 sales managers. Your CEO thinks so much of the job you did, he extends the contract. Second year, you lose a quarter of your sales team once again but still have the same quota. You dont have the year you have wanted, but you are entering the final quarter as one of 64 SMs left with a shot at being the top Sales Team in the country...when entering the last quarter, someone who has never sold in his life, let alone been an SM at those levels, asks you those questions. KMA would be perfectly appropriate

Why do you keep recruiting a sales team that doesn’t fit together and keeps having health issues? What are you doing to try and fix that? Why can’t you pull in the top sales firm when historically we have done business with the top companies who are now going elsewhere?

 

[UKCowboys]

What if you’re one of the top 10 highest paid sales managers and your sales region is historically the top sales region in the country with by far the biggest clients? And not only that, you had a chance to sign a couple of huge sales clients for next year but they rejected you for competing companies?

Get real...use your own scenario...your boss gave you an extention for performance the previous year...you lost top personnel through no fault of your own and you are still in position for a strong finish...and then some dude, not your CEO, not your manager, Hell, not even one of your team, some nobody who wouldn't know your business from a hole in the wall, questions your performance and demands answers...Get lost loser works too.
I'm sure you guys aren't hypocritical. Im sure that on your own jobs, if you have a bad quarter or bad year, you go to your boss and say, "Hey, look, I know I have a family to support and this is my dream job in my desired field, and even though you have me an extension to my seven(we'll say six for most of the crowd here)figure job last year I just want to resign anyway because I feel like I am embarrassing your great brand, even though I went farther in my first year than my predecessor had in the last five years, despite having to rebuild my entire team of workers from scratch. I just cant sleep at night drawing checks when there are folks out there that I have never met that feel like I could be doing a better job, even though they have no expertise in my field whatsoever. So I will join the ranks of the unemployed to save their future embarrassment. My family will make it through"

I am SURE thats what brought would do. No doubt

 

[OliverSimmonsTwinBrother]

It will never happen because UKAD would yank those press passes so freaking fast but imagine the word salad we would get out of it.

 

[Eagles_Ball_69]

Man, I mean this in all seriousness...if some reporter asked me that, I would tell him to kiss my happy ***. Straight up

Part of me wishes he would answer it that way. But there’s just zero chance he would. He’d wax poetically and feed us some BS word salad for a couple minutes instead.

 

[FitchandMurray29]

Respectfully those are very easy questions to answer.

“yes…and then he says something he’s learned and appreciated being the coach at UK”

“We’re always evaluating our process and looking to improve. We’re making some changes currently as we prepare for what we understand is an important offseason. Then he makes a joke that doesn’t land about finally staying healthy”

Fans of all sports usually want reporters to ask more pointed “gotcha” questions. These coaches are professionals in answering questions by saying nothing.

 

[Johnnie Africa]

Get real...use your own scenario...your boss gave you an extention for performance the previous year...you lost top personnel through no fault of your own and you are still in position for a strong finish...and then some dude, not your CEO, not your manager, Hell, not even one of your team, some nobody who wouldn't know your business from a hole in the wall, questions your performance and demands answers...Get lost loser works too.
I'm sure you guys aren't hypocritical. Im sure that on your own jobs, if you have a bad quarter or bad year, you go to your boss and say, "Hey, look, I know I have a family to support and this is my dream job in my desired field, and even though you have me an extension to my seven(we'll say six for most of the crowd here)figure job last year I just want to resign anyway because I feel like I am embarrassing your great brand, even though I went farther in my first year than my predecessor had in the last five years, despite having to rebuild my entire team of workers from scratch. I just cant sleep at night drawing checks when there are folks out there that I have never met that feel like I could be doing a better job, even though they have no expertise in my field whatsoever. So I will join the ranks of the unemployed to save their future embarrassment. My family will make it through"

I am SURE thats what brought would do. No doubt

Hey man are you ok?

 

[FitchandMurray29]

I don't think it will happen, but I wonder how deep of a run Pope would have to have this year to make people think wow ok maybe we should give him a 3rd year. Is it elite 8?, final 4? I was thinking about this yesterday.

Just my opinion, I don’t think a couple games either way in the tournament should impact those decisions.

His deserving to be fired is much moreso on the GM part of his job than the coaching part. Him taking the biggest bankroll in the sport to only create a top 15ish team is my problem.

UK was preseason number 9. If you told those pollsters Lowe and Quaintance didn’t play, and Jasper wasn’t ready for college ball, where do you think we’d have been ranked? We’ll probably be team 27 or so in the seed list today. That’s about where we’d have been picked preseason if we didn’t have our PG, NBA prospect, etc.

The performance of the team imo lines up with what people would’ve expected if they knew this was the roster. The cake was baked with roster construction and injuries. The problem was the baking of the cake.

All of that to say if we go on some fraudulent run to the elite 8 people will be right back on board lol

 

[I’m The Village Idiot]

No we want self awareness and accountability. Stop gaslighting us about everything from roster construction to team performance.

If that is what you personally want, sure. But I’ve watched the fanbase complain about every possible thing the man has said and ask for something else. Then, when he does the thing y’all ask for, you still complain that he did the thing y’all ask for. Call it gaslighting or whatever you want, I call it honesty.

 

[JakeKx]

Reporters like to keep their job... I hate to say it but you'll never get those questions in this era.

I use to say the same thing.. why does no one ask the hard questions. Well it's because the reporters want access to the coaches/players and yeah keep their job. Hard journalism is over for professionals it's more so for amateurs.

And any self reporter who would ask those questions would never get credentialed to ask them. Sports media is the biggest joke.

 

[Crestcat]

If that is what you personally want, sure. But I’ve watched the fanbase complain about every possible thing the man has said and ask for something else. Then, when he does the thing y’all ask for, you still complain that he did the thing y’all ask for. Call it gaslighting or whatever you want, I call it honesty.

The UK fans could best be compared to a nymphomaniac, you can wear yourself out satisfying them...... but its only temporary.

 

[UKCowboys]

Hey man are you ok?

Man I am fine. I'm not the one "demanding" answers from someone who doesn't answer to me

 

[UKCowboys]

Part of me wishes he would answer it that way. But there’s just zero chance he would. He’d wax poetically and feed us some BS word salad for a couple minutes instead.

World we live in, gotta be politically correct. But other coaches arent like BBN. Other coaches know how competitive and hard a job winning a Championship in college is. A lot of candidates will go, why would I leave a gig where we are successful and I have job security (I know, more money, but they aren't working for free where they are), to go to a place where they ran off Call, and now are destroying a Coach who is one of their own, who has done a good job(I promise you, nost other coaches believe he has)? Why would I want that headache?

 

[CatBlueBlood]

"Do you still think you are the right man for this head coaching job?"
"And what do you plan to change to succeed next year?"

The season is ending soon. I don't want MP to go into hiding for a few weeks and pop out with some bs to sell us. We need answers.

It's a symbiotic relationship between the media and coaches. Reporters won't ask hard questions because they want to keep their access. The same thing is true of analysts because they want to stay on good terms with coaches. When a coach is struggling, it would be reasonable to ask, "Given the trials and tribulations of this season, what steps are you taking to improve your skills as a coach?" It's a fair question, but will never be asked.

 

[Crestcat]

World we live in, gotta be politically correct. But other coaches arent like BBN. Other coaches know how competitive and hard a job winning a Championship in college is. A lot of candidates will go, why would I leave a gig where we are successful and I have job security (I know, more money, but they aren't working for free where they are), to go to a place where they ran off Call, and now are destroying a Coach who is one of their own, who has done a good job(I promise you, nost other coaches believe he has)? Why would I want that headache?

See post #33 above

 

[mash_24]

Frankly I don’t need to hear anything from him. I want to see results this summer and next year. Or it’s time to move on.

 

[mhs1964]

If that is what you personally want, sure. But I’ve watched the fanbase complain about every possible thing the man has said and ask for something else. Then, when he does the thing y’all ask for, you still complain that he did the thing y’all ask for. Call it gaslighting or whatever you want, I call it honesty.

Totally agree. All coaches take the blame for failure even when you know it’s not always true. If a coach says I totally underestimated the talent or coachability of these players. Or these players were supposed to be the undercard, not the prime players implying they aren’t good enough , I would ask you what kind of effort would you see and how many would return. The “honesty” that people want is an affirmation of their opinion only.

 

[Legionofdoom96]

"Do you still think you are the right man for this head coaching job?"
"And what do you plan to change to succeed next year?"

The season is ending soon. I don't want MP to go into hiding for a few weeks and pop out with some bs to sell us. We need answers.

How do you think it's possible to have no recruits whatsoever for next season would be my question