Time to say it

[Cawood86]

I'm not confident in Coach. Not confident at all. 3 losses in a row. I'm not willing to go thru more years like this. The five years before he came were like this.

Way too many good coaches out there to keep going down this road.

[blueheretic]

How dare you expect to actually have an elite program.

Pope beat Duke last year. He has beat two Hall of Fame coaches. He beat two teams that were in the Final Four last year.

How dare anyone expect more.



I don't think he's going to work out.

Didn't really think it was a great hire in the first place.

But...it's going to have to play itself out. I think he'll get, at least, one more year. Maybe even two because it's Pope and no one is going to want to pull that trigger.

Many fans aren't really fans of the program so much as fans of the cult of personality surrounding certain coaches and players. Therefore, they won't actually be on board with firing a coach until he's been fired.

Cal was defended after he had a 9 and 15 season and losses to St. Peters and Oakland.

You're not going to be able to convince these people to go against a Head Coach. After he is terminated, they'll move on to the next cult.

[WeWant9]

He’s not cut out for this job. I’d rather cut bait, but he’ll be back next year..hopefully Barnhart will not.

[Phil_the_Music]

He may not be the one for this job but we were blatantly cheated out of this game and this in no way shape or form should be the straw on the camels back in your decision.

[Matt Dillon]

He may not be the one for this job but we were blatantly cheated out of this game and this in no way shape or form should be the straw on the camels back in your decision.

Well said.

[CATHYnKY]

He may not be the one for this job but we were blatantly cheated out of this game and this in no way shape or form should be the straw on the camels back in your decision.

It would have been nice for it to not have come down to the last 2 plays. Problem solved!

[Pete Hogwallop]

He's getting next year (unless he quits). Hopefully it's a vast improvement. There's no need to keep calling for him to be fired less than 2 seasons in. It's almost like some people enjoy saying others should be fired.

[***St.Patterson-54***]

Fair or not, he has not improved this team. Quite the opposite in fact.

[Cawood86]

He may not be the one for this job but we were blatantly cheated out of this game and this in no way shape or form should be the straw on the camels back in your decision.

You're right. I'm just tired of UK not being the UK I grew up with. The UK that rarely had more than 4-6 losses a year. That was THE program.

Now, we are mediocre. We are back in the pack. I really like Pope. I really want him to be the one to bring the school back to where it was before.

The Loss to Georgia and Missouri at home we're deflating. No future recruits signed. I'm not seeing a good road ahead right now.

[TrueblueCATfan]

I love Mark Pope but he is on over his head

He wasn't a good hire for Kentucky Basketball

[Spica Orbit]

What exactly do you expect next year? There are really bad vibes around the program, zero quality high school recruits incoming & likely mass defections of the current players. Hell, I'd be surprised if any current players return, which might actually be the only plus I see in the situation. In any event, UK will be forced to take nothing but leftovers from the portal. Why in the world anybody would want to suffer through an even worse year under a guy that will be fired after next season anyway, is just beyond me. I'm completely checked out of UK basketball until an adult shows up & makes changes.

[Pete Hogwallop]

You're right. I'm just tired of UK not being the UK I grew up with. The UK that rarely had more than 4-6 losses a year. That was THE program.

Now, we are mediocre. We are back in the pack. I really like Pope. I really want him to be the one to bring the school back to where it was before.

The Loss to Georgia and Missouri at home we're deflating. No future recruits signed. I'm not seeing a good road ahead right now.

This reply is not to defend Pope, but the nature of college basketball has changed so dramatically from even 10 years ago that I am fairly certain there will never be a dominant team for any length of time. UK or otherwise. That doesn't excuse our mediocrity, but I fear the good ole days are disappearing in the rear view mirror.

[Jaxcat]

I'm torn about Pope. This team seems to be underachieving on a nightly basis and plays dumb in critical moments - that's coaching, imo. However, this roster without Q and Lowe would have NEVER been viewed as a contender preseason. No way, no how. Throw in other injuries - some that have healed, some not - and this roster is just plain not that good. We have one very good player who sometimes doesn't show up or makes critical mistakes in crunch time and a slew of role players who are hit-and-miss most games. Our inside 'presence' is zero - more times than not, Garrison/Moreno give us very little and almost no rim protection outside the occasional blocked shot. Shooting is a team-wide problem.

Fault Pope for roster building and failure in critical moments in these close games. He didn't cause the numerous injuries that have hamstringed this team from the outset.

[Pete Hogwallop]

Solid post.

[JFCats22]

Pope is now 25-21 against P5 competition.

That’s horrendous. He has to go and go now