Mark Pope is a man of the people. We know this. He’s stuck around for hours following games at Rupp Arena, signing every autograph and taking every picture until every member of Big Blue Nation left satisfied.

While still building UK basketball's 2025 recruiting class, Mark Pope and his staff have kept tabs on 2026. These 10 players have offers from Kentucky

Initially, many Kentucky fans weren’t sold on Pope, whose BYU team made an early exit from the NCAA Tournament last March. He didn’t have the sexy resume, wasn’t drenched in

Kentucky's Mark Pope started his coaching career at Rupp Arena with 11 straight wins. How does that start compare to other first-year UK coaches?

Unlike Lamont Butler, Andrew Carr was unable to take the floor against the Commodores on Saturday afternoon. A back injury prevented the fifth year senior from practicing for multiple weeks, and on Saturday, Pope made the decision to keep him out for the game.

Five things you need to know from No. 12 Kentucky’s gut-check 78-73 win at No. 8 Tennessee in SEC men’s basketball: 1. Mark Pope, slayer of rivals. There is a school of thought that one of a college head coach’s primary jobs is beating the teams his/her fan base dislike the most.

Mark Pope and the No. 12 Kentucky Wildcats have been dealt another blow ahead of their game against No. 8 Tennessee tonight, with Lamont Butler ruled out due to a shoulder injury.

How should ex-Kentucky basketball coach John Calipari be honored Saturday in his return to Rupp Arena? Vote before our poll closes Friday at noon.

Brown: Kentucky basketball's Lamont Butler embodies toughness Mark Pope wants to play with But ... The other 10: Louisville, Alabama, Arkansas, BYU, Duke, Georgetown, Kansas State, Notre Dame ...

Checking in from Cal to Welch Mark Pope won his first 11 home games ... a group that includes Kentucky. The other 10: Louisville, Alabama, Arkansas, BYU, Duke, Georgetown, Kansas State, Notre ...

Pope took over after John Calipari left for Arkansas in a stunning turn of events. However, Pope wasted no time winning over the fanbase, especially since he is a former Kencutky basketball player. Moreover, moves such as this one only helped Pope's case more, and fans were excited to see the fan interaction with the Wildcats coach.

For Kentucky, the game before The Game was a tough one on paper — a Tuesday night road contest against Rick Barnes' Tennessee Vols, who were ranked No. 1 in the country just a few weeks ago and listed as 10.