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After leading Kentucky football to the first ten-win season since 1977, coach Mark Stoops continues to be recognized for his leadership. He was named SEC Coach of the Year, and he was in the running for AP National Coach of the Year.
College Football News recently ranked the football coaches from 1 to 130 based on their team’s success in 2018. Just has he did ten times this season, Stoops came out on top of this list.
Pete Fiutak of College Football News had this to say of Stoops and the Wildcats’ season:
Kentucky might have gone bowling last year, but absolutely no one outside of the biggest blue die-hards could’ve seen what was coming.
No, it wasn’t an SEC Championship season, but with a limited offense, killer defense, and a gameplan with no margin for error, Stoops put together a masterpiece.
Ten wins, a victory over Florida for the first time since 1986, a 46-point blowout over Louisville, and a Citrus Bowl win over Penn State – it was a special coaching job.
Stoops is joined by fellow SEC coaches Dan Mullen (6) and Ed Orgeron (7) in the top ten, and Derek Mason (16), Nick Saban (21), and Jimbo Fisher (25) made the cut for the top 25. That’s nearly half of the SEC’s football coaches ranked in the top 25 coaches in the country.
Stoops was paid handsomely for his efforts in 2018 through bonuses, and his winning momentum has carried over into recruiting. The future is bright for Kentucky football.
While ten wins may not be the target for many UK fans in 2019, 2018 showed us all that Mark Stoops deserves the trust Big Blue Nation. And he certainly deserves this honor.