What They’re Saying: Embarrassing Florida Loss Edition

Here’s a current status update for 2016 Kentucky Football season:

And Coach Mark Stoops’ seat isn’t any cooler. After a 45-7 loss in Gainesville where Kentucky’s offense produced just 149 total yards, the team is officially in panic mode for what is to come. I feel bad poking fun at our current situation as Kentucky Football fans, but what can you do but laugh at this point?

Here’s a look at what they were saying after the second nightmare loss of the season:

It will be far from a sellout when Kentucky takes on New Mexico State this Saturday at Commonwealth Stadium. Are you a stadium “half empty” or “half full” kind of person? Either way, I don’t think the UK Athletic Department will be thrilled with the numbers.

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. I think it’s safe to say that the Big Blue Nation is going a little insane after the way this season has started.

After the game mercifully ended, CBS Sports studio analyst Brian Jones called UK, "Kentucky's largest junior college" in what he referred to as "pitiful, pitiful football."

USA Today’s Dan Wolken did his weekly ranking of which fanbase is suffering the most right now, which included UK narrowly missing out on the top spot.

2. Kentucky: The situation in Lexington is starting to quickly look untenable. Kentucky’s 45-7 loss at Florida was the kind of effort reminiscent of a team at the end of a bad season that has packed it in on a coaching staff, not a group fighting to redeem itself after an embarrassing Week 1 loss to Southern Miss. There was nothing positive about Kentucky’s trip to Gainesville — nothing — and there are no easy answers for Mark Stoops from here.

As a result of the contract extension Kentucky gave him in 2014, Stoops is owed $12 million if he’s fired after this year. Even for an SEC program, that’s a massive chunk of change. Keeping him around, on the other hand, will only inflame a fan base that has increasingly given up hope that he’s the guy to turn things around.

Stoops has done nothing on the field to merit any job security or belief from Kentucky fans, but the best answer for now may be to grin and bear it.

John Clay wonders if UK isn’t trying to do too much, which is causing them to struggle doing anything right.

Gran raised that possibility after the game. In his first year running the UK attack, Gran said one of the things he will look at this week is whether he is giving his guys too much to do? Can they handle it? Does the personnel fit what he’s trying to do?

Gran said he had a similar slow start when he was the first-year offensive coordinator at Cincinnati. Halfway through that year, Gran got it turned around and over the past two years, the Bearcats were one of the most productive offenses in the country.

You have to wonder about overload on the defensive side. After several blown coverages in the loss to Southern Miss, similar miscues happened Saturday against Florida. The Gators hit a 78-yard TD when it caught UK in single coverage. A couple of other times, Florida receivers were wide open against what appeared to be missed assignments in the UK secondary.

Kentucky Sports Radio's Matt Jones is calling on Stoops and UK AD Mitch Barnhart to put up or shut up:

UK Football fans have hit a level of frustration that may be the highest I have ever seen. After decades of supporting the team at levels far above any natural reward, Kentucky fans have collectively just about had it and the miserable experience Saturday caused many to reach their wits end. After years of rationalizing every explanation in the book as to why Kentucky football is not successful, a stark realization is upon us. The time for excuses is over as Mark Stoops and Mitch Barnhart now must either produce or face the consequences.

I’m not sure what’s uglier: This box score from midway through the fourth quarter of Saturday’s loss, or the buyout amount for Stoops.

Kyle Tucker asks if Kentucky is really in a better spot right now than it was three years ago when Stoops was named head coach.

It must now be asked: For all the 4-star recruits and top-30 recruiting classes under Stoops – unprecedented on-paper success for Kentucky – where are the Wildcats demonstrably better on the field?

Joker Phillips’ worst loss to Florida was by the same margin, 38-0, during the 2012 season that got him fired.

After collapsing against a Conference USA team – while being lit up by the offensive coordinator Stoops fired last year – and embarrassing themselves in Gainesville, what kind of crowd will the Wildcats come home to next Saturday against New Mexico State? And how low must the attendance go before athletic director Mitch Barnhart starts weighing the cost of keeping Stoops?

Dating to last season, when a 4-1 start dissolved into disaster, Kentucky has lost eight of its last nine games. The Wildcats are now 12-26 under Stoops, just 4-21 in SEC games. Phillips had the same number of conference wins in three seasons before he was fired.

Hey, maybe John Calipari can help Stoops on the recruiting front?

Did we mention this was on network television for all of the country to see?

A little back and forth from two former Kentucky Basketball greats. But what this illustrates is how much we, as a fan base, care and want this football program to succeed. I don’t wish any ill will on any of these coaches and I think some fans get a little carried away in their negative comments. But I don’t blame fans for being upset. Honestly, what are we supposed to do at this point? It is very, very difficult to see this season turning around for Kentucky.

But, hey, basketball starts in four weeks!