HOOVER, Ala. - When Oklahoma Coach Bob Stoops took a shot at the SEC’s overall strength in football, he also was targeting Kentucky, where his younger brother, Mark, is the new coach.
SEC teams have won seven consecutive national championships, but Bob Stoops pointed out during a Sooner Caravan stop in Tulsa earlier this summer that the gap between other conferences - notably the Big 12 where Oklahoma resides - isn’t as wide as might be perceived.
“Well, it depends on what gap you’re talking about,” Stoops told the Tulsa World, noting “the propaganda” about the SEC. “What are the bottom six doing?
Wildcats At a Glance
LAST SEASON 2-10, 0-8 (7th) in SEC East
COACH Mark Stoops (first season)
RETURNING STARTERS 6 offense, 6 defense
KEY PLAYERS LB Avery Williamson, DT Donte Rumph, RB Raymond Sanders, QB Maxwell Smith
SEC TITLE SCENARIO The Wildcats need to win an SEC game before they can think about winning the conference. They should be improved if Smith - likely to regain the starting quarterback job in fall camp - can stay healthy. He was off to a strong start last season before missing the final eight games because of an ankle injury.
“So they’ve had the best team in college football. They haven’t had the whole conference. Because, again, half of ’em haven’t done much at all.”
Kentucky was at the bottom of the SEC’s lower half last season, going 0-8 in conference games along with Auburn, and finishing 2-10 overall.
Joker Phillips, who played at Kentucky, was fired as coach after three seasons with a 13-24 record and replaced by Mark Stoops, Florida State’s defensive coordinator the previous three seasons.
So what does Mark Stoops think about his big brother using teams like Kentucky to make a point about the SEC being overrated?
“That’s got to be my first question?” Mark Stoops said with a smile when he spoke at SEC Media Days. “I definitely understand Bob defending his conference. I just left the ACC.
“I think everybody’s going to defend what they’re doing in their conference. With that being said, I don’t think anyof us need to defend what’s going on here in the SEC. The success we’ve had in the SEC speaks for itself.”
Marks Stoops said he hasn’t spoken to his brother about his SEC comments.
“It didn’t surprise me,” Mark Stoops said. “We talk a lot, but I wasn’t at Kentucky last year, so it didn’t offend me that bad.”
Stoops’ first game as a head coach will be against Western Kentucky - and new Hilltoppers Coach Bobby Petrino - on Aug. 31 in Nashville at LP Field, home of the NFL’s Tennessee Titans.
Western Kentucky beat Kentucky 32-31 in overtime at Commonwealth Stadium last season, setting off a wild celebration by the Hilltoppers.
“Those guys were pretty disrespectful on our field - and disrespectful with some tweets and Facebook and some stuff - jumping and stomping on the field,” Kentucky senior running back Raymond Sanders said. “It’s our field. You can’t be disrespectful of that.
“We’re just waiting until Aug. 31 and we’re going to let that talk.”
Avenging the Western Kentucky loss has been a motivating factor in the Wildcats’ off-season workouts.
“We owe them a little something for last year,” Kentucky senior defensive tackle Donte Rumph said. “That’s our focus right now.”
Petrino is back in coaching after sitting out last season as result of his firing at Arkansas for off-the-field issues. He has a 75-26 record in eight seasons at Louisville and Arkansas.
Mark Stoops said he doesn’t know Petrino well, except when it comes to his football reputation.
“I expect a very good team, a very good offensive mind,” Stoops said. “He’s had some great success.
“I’m sure they’re going to be very excited to play us, but we’re excited as well. That’s the first game in this new era of our program.
“We have an awful lot on the line. We can’t take anything for granted at Kentucky right now. We can’t just show up and beat anybody. We have to play to the best or our abilities.”
Stoops’ hiring has excited the fan base. Kentucky’s spring game drew an announced crowd of 50,831, which was larger than some home crowds last season.
“I didn’t know what to expect for the spring game,” Rumph said. “Seeing everybody come out was amazing.
“I remember being on the sidelines looking up in the stands, and the wave lasted 15 minutes. I was like, ‘Oh man, I can’t believe this.’ I was just loving it.”
Stoops said he is trying to balance getting fans and recruits excited about Kentucky football, but not creating unrealistically high expectations.
“I think the educated fan knows where we’re at as a program, knows we have a lot of work to do,” Stoops said.
“But the flip side of that is I want the excitement. I want them to be there at all our home games.”
Stoops said it was obvious during spring practice the Wildcats have a lot of improvement to make in all areas.
“With that being said, it’s our job to develop the players that we have, to put them in a position to be successful and go out there and compete each and every week,” Stoops said. “That’s what we plan to do.”
Sports, Pages 13 on 07/22/2013