Some more high praise for Coach Pope.
The Kentucky Wildcats raced past the Kentucky Wesleyan Panthers on Wednesday night, picking up their first unofficial win of the 2024-25 season.
Drew Cooper, the KWC head coach, shared some high praise for this UK squad in his postgame press conference, but it might be his comments about Mark Pope that stole the show.
When talking about Coach Pope, Cooper pointed to the UK head coach’s humility and attitude towards welcoming his KWC program to the big stage.
“I’m talking as a guy that’s been in Division II and Division III my whole life,” said Cooper. “I’ve had very few encounters with coaches at this level, at the high major levels that are as humble as Mark Pope.”
He continued:
“I ran into him in South Carolina. I had never met him before and introduced myself to him. And the way he made me feel…that doesn’t happen every time you go up to coaches that, quite frankly, make as much money as he does. So I will never forget that.”
Ever since his arrival in Lexington, Coach Pope has been striving to reconnect this fanbase with the program. Not only has he crushed that job, but the BBN now gets to join alongside the positivity and humility he shows on the court and in his media availability. It just makes it cool to see it translate to his personal interactions as well.
All I can say is it seems this program is in great hands.