Offseason work came quick for Stoops

Dec. 5—Just because the regular season is over doesn’t mean the work is finished for Kentucky’s football coaches.

In fact, it might even be the busiest time of the year for Wildcats head coach Mark Stoops & Co.

Stoops was briefly in Lexington Monday to present a check for $1.1 million from the Coaches for the Kids Foundation to the University of Kentucky Children’s Hospital and meet with the media. Not long after, he was back on the recruiting trail.

Even when Stoops learned that his team had earned an invitation to the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl on Sunday, he was busy eating dinner with a recruit.

“This part of it, yeah, it’s pretty much 24/7,” he said. “It does kill me once in a while, when guys I’ve known for 10 years and good friends of mine that are in town and I love them, they are dear friends — ‘Hey, coach, you want to go do this?’ Like, don’t you understand? I’m busy 24/7 right now.

“Everybody thinks it stops right after the season; probably the busiest time of the season is between now and Dec. 20 when we get a little break before Christmas. Between now and Dec. 20, it’s 24/7.”

There’s definitely a lot to juggle.

From recently staving off hiring attempts by Texas A&M and earning a season-saving win over Louisville in the Governor’s Cup, to handling a litany of roster changes like outgoing transfers, meeting with current players and keeping an eye on possible NCAA portal pick-ups — all while preparing to face Clemson in the Gator Bowl on Dec. 29 — and it’s no wonder Stoops doesn’t have a lot of free time on his hands.

Add in the fact that, by all accounts, UK’s regular season was a letdown, with the Wildcats finishing 7-5 overall and 3-5 in SEC play after plenty of preseason hype. Though the victory over then-No. 9 Louisville certainly provided a morale boost, the campaign as a whole left Kentucky coaches,…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/offseason-came-quick-stoops-101700425.html

Author : Messenger-Inquirer, Owensboro, Ky.

Publish date : 2023-12-05 10:17:00

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