Mitch Barnhart thankful Mark Stoops/Texas A&M saga ‘worked out the way it did’
Kentucky athletics director Mitch Barnhart’s December could have played out much differently had football coach Mark Stoops left for Texas A&M as he was reported to be on the verge of doing Thanksgiving weekend.
Instead, Stoops remained at UK — whether by his own choice or by Texas A&M’s — and Barnhart was not forced into a coaching search while also serving on the College Football Playoff selection committee.
“I’m thankful that it worked out the way it did, and we’re good,” Barnhart said Wednesday of Stoops’ return while speaking to reporters after the dedication ceremony for the new Jim Green Track and Field Center. “We just keep going on. We try to achieve some things we want to achieve. It’s going to get harder next year with the conference expanding and all that. We understand all that, but right now the focus is on getting to Jacksonville and trying to find a win in the bowl game.”
Stoops was first publicly connected to the Texas A&M opening in the hours leading up to UK’s regular season finale against Louisville. After the Wildcats’ upset of the then top-10-ranked Cardinals to retain possession of the Governor’s Cup, Stoops sidestepped a question about his interest in the Texas A&M job.
Later that night multiple reports from College Station named Stoops as the likely hire, leading to a vocal portion of the Texas A&M fan base to voice its displeasure on social media. Amid that uproar, Stoops tweeted shortly after 1 a.m. that he was remaining in Lexington. Texas A&M eventually hired Duke coach Mike Elko, a former Texas A&M defensive coordinator as its new coach.
Stoops has since disputed the reports that he was on the verge of leaving UK, but the public back-and-forth raised questions about whether Stoops has hit a ceiling at Kentucky, especially in the context of the SEC expanding and ditching its two-division format. Those doubts were amplified by Stoops making headlines during the season when he pushed back at a critical call on his weekly radio show after a blowout loss to Georgia by saying fans who wanted to compete with Georgia and Alabama needed to “pony up” with more name, image and likeness donations. Texas A&M is perceived as having one of the best NIL setups in the country.
Unlike previous instances where Stoops elected to remain at Kentucky amid interest from other programs, UK did not reward that decision with a contract extension and raise this time. Stoops was already the seventh-highest paid coach in college football this season, according to a USA Today database. UK is 8-7 since Stoops was awarded his last contract extension in 2022.
Regardless of whether Stoops actually turned down a contract offer from Texas A&M or decided to stay before any offer was made, his return has added to the positive momentum building in the program since the Louisville win. That victory helped flip the narrative about a season that had previously been viewed as a disappointment due to the failure to beat a team that finished the regular season with a winning record before the Governor’s Cup rivalry game.
Stoops’ return was followed by a surprise invitation to the Gator Bowl to face Clemson that resulted from the cascade effect of Florida State being left out of the playoff. Since the bowl announcement, Kentucky has found success in the transfer portal with high-profile commitments from former five-star Georgia quarterback Brock Vandagriff, former four-star Ohio State running back Chip Trayanum and 1,000-yard North Texas receiver Ja’Mori Maclin among others.
“I think Mark and I have had a long relationship,” Barnhart said. “I’m thankful that he’s a Kentucky Wildcat. I enjoy working with him tremendously. I’ve got a great set of coaches here at the University of Kentucky. We’ve got a great place, we’ve got good people. I’d be a little shocked if people didn’t come after our coaches from time to time. We’ve got good ones. That’s what this is about. You bring good people to your program. They’re going to have opportunities to probably look other places. I think at the end of the day, I think it’s the relationships that keep people in places.”
Next game
Kentucky vs. No. 22 Clemson
What: TaxSlayer Gator Bowl
When: Dec. 29 at noon
Where: EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida
TV: ESPN
Radio: WLAP-AM 630, WBUL-FM 98.1
Series: Kentucky leads 8-5
Last meeting: Clemson won 21-13 on Dec. 27, 2009, in the Music City Bowl at Nashville, Tennessee