A Rousing Welcome: Mark Pope Energizes Kentucky Fans in Unforgettable Rupp Arena Introduction
KY — LEXINGTON Around 8:30 a.m., the first indication that Sunday afternoon at Rupp Arena would be an unanticipated, record-breaking electric day in that venue appeared. The previous evening, Kevin Wynn, his spouse, and their three kids made the trip from Tennessee to the Wal-Mart parking lot, where they slept out in their van to ensure they would be first in line for the start of Kentucky basketball coach Mark Pope’s inaugural press conference. It originally seems like a significant risk to have such an event in a 20,000-seat arena, given the initial response from the public to the hire, which ranged from lukewarm to completely disappointed. What if no one arrived? That caused at least some internal concern, since the UK only intended to open seven
“When I heard they were doing this,” Pope’s former teammate Jeff Sheppard said, “I was like, I wonder how they’re going to position Rupp Arena to make it look full.”
But after Wynn and his family, the line behind them expanded swiftly, encircling the building, and it continued to grow until the introduction at 4:30 p.m., which had to be postponed for several minutes because fans were still pouring into Rupp. The arena was full by the time a tour bus carrying Pope and loaded with former Kentucky players pulled onto the floor. Seeking a peek of the new coach, a capacity crowd—which on Sunday was closer to 16,000 with some of the lower end-zone bleachers lowered to make place for the ceremonial stuff—came to watch. Pope was the last to get off the bus with the group of former players, raising the
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In order to make sure his family could see it, Wynn waited outside the arena for seven hours. “And it was well worth it,” he added. This is really important to me. With my dad, I watched Mark Pope grow up, and now I get to see him as our coach while spending time with my own children. It is very incredible. Simply put, it seems like the connection has returned. The fan base began to drift apart around the conclusion of the Calipari era, and you have to give him all the credit for the work he put in the first few years. However, I think this will unite the fan base once more.
By the time John Calipari’s 15-year tenure came to an end, especially the latter four seasons during which he only managed one NCAA Tournament victory, the coach and the fan base appeared to be irritated with one another. Everyone was prepared to move on, and last week Calipari unexpectedly left for Arkansas. The chaotic scenario that took place inside Rupp Arena on Sunday felt, in many ways, like a critique of everything that went wrong during Calipari’s last years. And a reversion to pre-Calipari conditions. Mitch Barnhart, the athletic director, said he and his family attempted to estimate the size of the crowd on Sunday but were unable to come close. “It surpassed every figure,” he declared.
“Mark brought the family together in a moment we probably needed to have that feeling again,” Barnhart continued. “We have to find our way back to that heartbeat, and I think he did that.”
Whatever doubts Kentucky basketball fans may have had about hiring Pope—who has not won an NCAA Tournament in his nine years as head coach—they soon put those doubts aside and made the decision to fully commit to this Back to the Future strategy. They were pumping nostalgia through the air vents at Rupp on Sunday. Nostalgia is a potent drug.
Pope addressed every single spot that the faithful had been aching for over the past few years. He first posed with a more recent replica Kentucky jersey with his name, then requested a second chance at the picture with Barnhart on stage. He said that the college jersey he was wearing in the 1990s was not only a prop and that “it is the jersey that has blood, sweat, tears, and love in it.” He frequently stopped to let the thunderous roars to subside, which occasionally took several seconds.
“Nobody in the world has ever seen anything like this,” Pope said. “There is nowhere like the University of Kentucky. You guys are living proof of that. We had a little call to arms and you cannot fit all of the Kentucky faithful into the building this evening, right? There is nowhere like this, guys. And listen, don’t think you are not making a difference, because this video is going out to every recruit in America.”
There are 68 times in the official transcript of his speech that say “cheers” or “applause.” There were thunderous applause and cheers.
“Every coach in America stands up at the press conference and they try to moderate expectations,” Pope said. “We don’t do that here at Kentucky. I understand the assignment. We are here to win banners.”
(Cheers)
Following four Final Four appearances in his first six seasons, Calipari did not return to the Final Four until 2015. Even worse, he quit winning the SEC tournament as well, and he did not hesitate to publicly admit that it did not even truly concern him.
“We’re here to win banners in Nashville,” at the SEC tournament, Pope said Sunday, “because you guys turn out in Nashville like nobody else, and that matters.”
(Applause)
What about his approach to scheduling? To begin with, perhaps they would like to see his former coach, Rick Pitino, come home for a game against St. John’s. And then there is this other event that, in spite of the cries of several fans, Calipari has declined to participate in since 2010.
Pope continued, “Since we have a tiny group assembled here, let us say sometime in the future we can find our way into this Maui (Invitational) competition,” leaning in as if he were sharing a secret with the assembly. Would anyone be able to attend?
(Cheers)
What is his opinion on athletes who are more concerned with the name on the back of the jersey than the front?
“Entitlement leads to sorrow and depression. And gratitude leads to joy,” Pope said. “And I will tell you this: What all of the future players will learn really quick is that they are not doing those jerseys a favor by letting the jerseys clothe them. Our guys will know quickly that it will be one of the great honors of their life to put that jersey on.”
(Applause)
The program had evolved under Calipari into an NBA finishing school, serving as a stopover for five-star prospects en route to the professional ranks. And Calipari could not help but gloat about how many NBA All-Stars he coached, even as supporters started to complain that they were sick of hearing about it because all that skill had only resulted in one national championship. Pope shared a sharply humorous story on Sunday about his NBA career.
“You know what we did in the locker room?” Pope said. “We didn’t talk about the NBA teams we played for. We sat in the locker room and talked about our college basketball teams. Nobody is going home to their NBA team; they are coming home to here.”
(Cheers)
How will Pope assemble his team? Even in the most traditional age of contemporary college basketball, Calipari expressed doubts about his ability to overcome his addiction to stockpiling blue-chip freshmen following his most recent upset loss in the first round.
“We’re talking to all the guys on the current team, all those recruited and every player in the portal right now,” Pope said. “We are going to find the guys that fit here, the way we play, and the guys that will come here and understand what a gift it is to play here. Those guys that fit here sometimes will be one-and-done burger boys for sure, and sometimes they will be guys that come here and play four years and grow in your hearts and minds and become Kentucky legends, and everything in between. That is what Kentucky deserves.”
(Applause)
Pope answered a question on how important in-state recruiting is to him, saying that it is very essential, and the crowd went wild.
“From Richie Farmer … to Reed (Sheppard) last year … to Travis Perry next year,” Pope said, locating Perry in the crowd and imploring him to stand up. The place erupted. “There’s a good chance he will not jump into the portal, guys,” Pope joked.
(Cheers)
During one of his coaching sessions, Pope stated, “We get to be shepherds.” A sneaky smile formed across his face as he said it, and the crowd knew exactly what he was doing. His roommate from college, Jeff Sheppard, was right off stage. The national freshman of the year, Reed Sheppard, is still debating whether to play for his dad’s lifelong buddy again or pursue a professional career.. The crowd started chanting, “Reed! Reed! Reed!” until it morphed into, “One more year! One more year!”
“I owe him one,” Jeff said afterward, shaking his head. He added that Reed is still working through that decision. But Pope? “He’s going to connect with the state. He did today. He understands the heartbeat.”
Pope also knows how to assemble a staff in this dynamic world of collegiate hoops, where players still receive an extra year of eligibility, the transfer portal, and brand recognition and likeness have changed every aspect of team administration. His team will consist of more than just skill developers, X-and-O men, and recruiters.
“You’re considering GM positions that navigate a roster,” he said. “You’re considering NIL positions. I am not smart enough to figure it all out, so we will get help in here to do it.”
(Applause)
Rex Chapman, a former standout player for Kentucky, was one of the numerous alumni from various eras that boarded the tour bus with Pope on Sunday. When asked about people who were critical of the hiring and swiftly changed their minds after learning a little bit more about the Cats’ new coach, he smiled. Laughing, he thought of how Pope had enchanted everyone in the building for his formal introduction.
“You can see why he does so well when he sits down with young men in their living room, with their parents,” Chapman said.
When all the cheers and applause were finished Sunday, as Pope posed for pictures with a fan wearing a full Catholic pope costume, as people in “We’ve got hope with Pope” and “Pope is dope”Barnhart stood nearby and grinned as t-shirts shuffled out with confused and joyful grins on their faces.
“Everybody wants to go in the Wayback Machine. This gives you a little bit of a taste of what it felt like in those days everybody is talking about,” Barnhart said. “I thought he knocked it out of the park. He was great. He’s exactly who I thought he’d be, and he did exactly what I thought he would do. He was in love with them before he walked in the room, and I think they’re now in love with him.”
All he needs to do now is win, and win quickly.
“Because that’s what Kentucky deserves,” Pope told the crowd. “If we don’t do it, we don’t belong here. That is the job. That is the assignment.”
(Cheers)
(Top photo: James Crisp / AP)