Tag: mark stoops

Former Texas A&M QB Zach Calzada is headed back to SEC for the 2025 season

The Kentucky Wildcats have landed a commitment from former Texas A&M and Incarnate Word QB Zach Calzada

Texas A&M won’t face Kentucky during the 2025 college football season. Still, a familiar face is headed back to the SEC as quarterback Zach Calzada will transfer to Lexington and compete for the starting QB job with the Wildcats and veteran head coach Mark Stoops.

Calzada’s journey is truly documentary-worthy. The former Texas A&M quarterback has just completed his best collegiate season after two full years at Incarnate Word, where he threw for 3,744 yards, achieved 35 touchdowns, and recorded only nine interceptions this season.

Calzada’s 2021 season with the Aggies was cemented in history after leading Texas A&M to one of the program’s most significant wins over No. 1 ranked Alabama after a 3-2 start to the year. Calzada’s impressive play in the pocket showed his potential as a Power 5 starter.

While his future with the Aggies could have been extended if it wasn’t for Texas A&M’s loaded 2022 quarterback room, Calzada briefly transferred to Auburn before injuries and poor play led him to fix his issues with Incarnate Word.

At 6-4 and 200-plus pounds, Calzada’s arm talent is undeniable and will more than likely lead to earning the starting quarterback job for a Kentucky team in desperate need of a reliable option under center.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Cameron on X: @CameronOhnysty.

Kentucky ends the 2024 season with a whimper versus Louisville

Kentucky falls to Louisville in a blowout loss to end the 2024 season.

The 2024 Kentucky football season was one that won’t be forgotten, but for all the wrong reasons. Once promising after a win over Ole Miss, the wheels came off, and they finished with a disappointing 4 – 8 record after falling to the Louisville Cardinals in the final game 41 -14.

Anything can, and often does, happen in rivalry games. Kentucky had won five in a row for the Governor’s Cup, and was hoping to end the season on a positive note.

Related: Kentucky lands a top 500 receiver for 2025

The Wildcats offense was anemic once again, a theme this season. They managed 300 yards of total offense, but turned the ball over five times. On defense, they were once again unable to slow down the run. Louisville had two running backs go for more than 100 yards. Each had two touchdowns.

This offseason will be an important one for Kentucky’s football program. Fans have begun to call for Mark Stoops’ job after their worst finish since 2013. If he returns, he will need to find a way to improve the run defense and the offensive line play.

This final game was, like the season, a disappointment. It showed every flaw that the Wildcats had shown all season, and unfortunately, there were just too many to overcome.

Mark Stoops recaps Kentucky’s performance at Tennessee

Kentucky football head coach Mark Stoops recaps the Wildcats’ performance at Tennessee.

Mark Stoops is in his 12th season as Kentucky’s football head coach. Stoops and the Wildcats suffered their sixth loss of the season on Saturday at Tennessee.

The Vols scored 21 second-half points to defeat Kentucky, 28-18, at Neyland Stadium.

Stoops recapped the SEC contest in Week 10.

“It’s not the outcome that we were looking for at all,” Stoops said. “I really do appreciate the toughness that our team displayed just in preparation throughout this week and coming in here and really playing, really tough, and playing winning football in a lot of ways, in certain areas, that obviously we didn’t.

“Credit to them (Tennessee), that’s a very good team and we knew coming in here, in a tough environment, was going to be very challenging, but our team was up for it. I think we finished the game down 10 starters and it’s no excuse, it’s just a fact. I really do appreciate the effort of some of our other guys just stepping up, battling and giving us an opportunity in the fourth quarter to take the lead and it didn’t happen. So, again, not the outcome we’re looking for, but proud of the effort.”

READ: 2024 SEC football power rankings after Week 10

Saul Young/USA TODAY Network

Kentucky football tops the week nine Misery Index from USA TODAY Sports

Kentucky football comes in at number one in the USA TODAY Sports Misery Index.

After three straight losses, Kentucky football is at a point they haven’t been in quite some time. They’re all but eliminated from bowl contention, and fans have mostly decided the season is over.

It has been a frustrating year, and one that has fans feeling some anger over the direction of the program. Many are ready to move on from Mark Stoops as head coach.

These are the reasons that USA TODAY Sports analyst Dan Wolken has Kentucky football atop the misery index rankings this week.

Related: Who is at fault for Kentucky’s offensive failings

Wolken correctly points out that Stoops is one of the ten highest paid coaches in college football, and fans expect more after all this time. Wolken says:

He makes $9 million a year and is among the 10 highest-paid coaches in the country, largely because he’s turned down multiple opportunities to leave. You’d probably stay too for that kind of contract, the theory being that life will be good if you win seven or eight games. Unlike most fan bases in the SEC, Kentucky fans are never going to expect a national championship in football.

It’s an interesting situation with Kentucky football. Few people believe a national championship is on the horizon, but sometimes a staleness sets in, especially when the standards set aren’t being met.

Wolken add:

Stoops can be forgiven for a bad season, which this clearly has become. But after a dozen years, it’s easy to lose a fan base’s enthusiasm for struggling to make minor bowl games and losses to South Carolina, Vanderbilt and a bad Auburn team.

Kentucky will try to close the season strong, and maybe Stoops can win some of the fanbase back. Right now, however, Wildcats fans are certainly pretty miserable.

How much would it cost to move on from coach Mark Stoops

Kentucky football coach Mark Stoops is on the hot seat, but how much would a buyout cost?

Just a few short weeks ago, Kentucky football upset Ole Miss, who were ranked in the top five, and coach Mark Stoops was the toast of Lexington. Since then, things have gone downhill, and many fans are wondering if a new coach is needed.

Recently, USA Today sports released their annual Coaches Compensation Report, detailing the salaries of the head coaches of college football. Stoops comes in as the ninth highest paid coach of 2024 at just over $9 million.

Related: Best photos from Kentucky’s loss to Florida

So, how much would it cost to buyout the remainder of Stoops’ contract?

If Kentucky wanted to move on, it would cost them $44,437,500. That’s a steep sum to cough up just a couple of years after signing him to an extension.

The Stoops era of Kentucky football has been one of the most successful runs in school history. However, expectations are higher now as well. With the team at 3 – 4, and a very difficult schedule the rest of the way, it looks like a bowl game might not happen.

If they finish under .500, and miss a bowl game, the segment of the fanbase looking to move on will grow louder. Then the school will have to decide if they want to spend $44 million to go in a new direction.

Where does Mark Stoops rank among highest paid college football coaches?

Kentucky football coach Mark Stoops makes over $9 million in 2024. Where does that rank among college football coaches?

USA Today Sports has released it’s annual Coaches Compensation Report, and contains the salaries, bonuses, and buyouts and where they rank among their peers for the 2024 college football season. So where does Kentucky football coach Mark Stoops rank?

Stoops will make a total of $9,013,600 for this season, including a $9 million base salary plus bonuses. That makes him the ninth highest paid coach this season in the country. It’s the fifth highest in the SEC.

Related: Staff predictions for Kentucky vs Florida

Georgia Bulldogs coach Kirby Smart leads the way at over $13 million, Steve Sarkisian of the Texas Longhorns is second in the SEC and third overall at over $10 million, and Kalen DeBoer of the Alabama Crimson Tide is at $10 million, putting him 3rd in the SEC and seventh overall.

There’s little doubt that the Stoops era at Kentucky has been one of the more successful in school history. They have been to eight straight bowl games, and have managed to be relevant in a tough SEC. He earned an extension in 2022, and is now paid as a top ten head coach.

New bowl game projection sees Kentucky football facing storied program

The Kentucky Wildcats have never faced this team on the football field.

Back-to-back wins by the Kentucky Wildcats, including Week 5’s thrilling 20-17 road win at the previously fifth-ranked Ole Miss Rebels on Sept. 28 have improved bowl game hopes for Mark Stoops’ team.

Not including the 12-team College Football Playoff, there are 35 bowl games scheduled for FBS teams this year. Which one is Kentucky currently in line for?

In his updated weekly bowl projections, CBS Sports analyst Jerry Palm forecasts Kentucky to spend bowl season not too far from Lexington. Palm sees the Wildcats squaring off against the Nebraska Cornhuskers in this year’s Music City Bowl, Dec. 30 in Nashville.

The matchup, if it comes to fruition, would be a first in Kentucky football history. The Wildcats and Huskers have never met on the gridiron.

RELATED: Where Kentucky ranks after Week 6 in the SEC power rankings

In other bowl projections following Week 6, USA TODAY Sports’ Erick Smith sees Kentucky spending bowl season in Tennessee, as well — although a few miles to the west in Memphis.

Smith sees the Wildcats playing in the Liberty Bowl on Dec. 27 against Mike Gundy and the Oklahoma State Cowboys.

Kentucky will look to improve its bowl stock this Saturday when the Wildcats welcome the Vanderbilt Commodores to Kroger Field. Kickoff is set for 7:45 p.m. ET. The game can be seen on SEC Network.

Contact/follow us @UKWildcatsWire on X, and like our page on Facebook for ongoing coverage of Kentucky Wildcats news and notes, plus opinions.

Where do Kentucky Wildcats land in latest USA TODAY Sports bowl projections?

Here’s what USA TODAY Sports experts think of Kentucky’s bowl aspirations following their 20-17 upset win at Ole Miss.

Things look a lot brighter for Kentucky football after the past two weeks.

After posting a 41-6 victory over the Ohio Bobcats in their Week 4 nonconference matchup, the Wildcats scored the biggest upset of a top-ranked team this year in their first road test of the season. Mark Stoops’ team took down then-No. 5 Ole Miss last Saturday at Vaught Hemingway Stadium in a stunning 20-17 victory.

It was Kentucky’s first win against a top 10 team on the road since 1977 when they defeated Joe Paterno and the Penn State Nittany Lions, 24-20, at Beaver Stadium in Happy Valley. It was also their first win in Oxford since 1978.

RELATED: Mark Stoops named Bear Bryant Coach of the Week after Ole Miss win

At 3-2 entering their bye week, Kentucky’s hopes of extending their streak of eight consecutive bowl games are also looking a little brighter. Earlier this week, USA TODAY Sports released its latest bowl projections entering Week 6.

Analyst Erick Smith sees Kentucky playing in the Liberty Bowl in Memphis against the Oklahoma State Cowboys on Dec. 27.

It’s a bowl game that the Wildcats have played in just once. That was back in January 2009 when Rich Brooks’ team defeated East Carolina, 25-19. The win capped a 7-6 season, one of four straight winning seasons for Brooks as head coach from 2006-2009.

As for Kentucky and Oklahoma State, the two programs have never met on the gridiron. Meetings between Kentucky and a Big 12 program are rare. The last time the Wildcats met a team from the Big 12 was all the way back in 1983 — when it still the Big Eight Conference. In a battle of ‘Cats, Kentucky defeated the Kansas State Wildcats, 31-12, at Commonwealth Stadium.

Kentucky has a bye this week before facing the Vanderbilt Commodores on Oct. 12 at Kroger Field. Kentucky-Vandy was announced earlier this week as a 7:45 p.m. ET kickoff. The game will be televised on SEC Network.

Contact/follow us @UKWildcatsWire on X and on Facebook for ongoing coverage of Kentucky Wildcats news and notes, plus opinions.

Mark Stoops was named Bear Bryant Coach of the Week after Ole Miss win

After beating Ole Miss, Kentucky football coach Mark Stoops was named Bear Bryant Fan Favorite Coach of the Week.

After a couple of weeks of struggling, the Kentucky Wildcats football team rebounded and got back on track with wins over Ohio, and then a huge upset win over Ole Miss. It was the latter victory that earned coach Mark Stoops a coaching honor.

Stoops was named as the Bear Bryant Fan Favorite Coach of the Week after the Wildcats beat Ole Miss 20 – 17 on Saturday. It was the Cats’ biggest upset win on the road since 1977.

Related: Winners and losers from Kentucky’s win over Ole Miss

Stoops had a very specific blueprint necessary to beat Ole Miss. They had to slow down their high powered offense by controlling the ball, and limiting explosive plays. Even short-handed on defense, they executed the plan, and wound up holding their offense to far below their averages.

It was a brilliant gameplan, and the execution was on point. Stoops deserves a lot of credit for the win, and it may erase some of the negativity around him recently. Congrats to Coach Stoops on the honor.

Best photos of Kentucky football’s stunning upset win over Ole Miss

We take a look at some of the best photos from the Wildcats’ 20-17 upset win over the Ole Miss Rebels on Saturday.

The Kentucky Wildcats pulled off the biggest upset of the 2024 college football season on Saturday when they took down the Ole Miss Rebels, 20-17, at Vaught Hemingway Stadium in Oxford.

The biggest win of the Mark Stoops era came two weeks after arguably the most agonizing loss against another top 5 opponent — the No. 1-ranked Georgia Bulldogs.

In that game, Stoops made the widely panned decision to punt the ball back to Georgia with only three minutes left on the clock. The Bulldogs ultimately prevailed, 13-12.

But Stoops was anything but conservative with his team trailing late in the game against Ole Miss, ranked No. 5 in the US LBM Coaches Poll entering the day. Facing a 4th and 7 from Kentucky’s own 20-yard line with just under four minutes to play and the Wildcats trailing 17-13, Stoops rolled the dice in a big way.

It worked to perfection when quarterback Brock Vandagriff found Barion Brown for a 63-yard catch and run to the Ole Miss 17-yard line. Two plays later, Josh Kattus recovered a Gavin Wimsatt fumble in the end-zone for a Kentucky touchdown and a 20-17 lead.

RELATED: The top 100 players in Kentucky football history: 60-41

Ole Miss kicker Caden Davis shanked a potential game-tying field goal wide left as time expired to preserve the win for Kentucky, its first in Oxford since 1978. It was also the Wildcats’ first win over a top 10 team on the road since taking down then-No. 4 Penn State at Beaver Stadium in 1977.

Kentucky has a bye next Saturday before returning to SEC play on Oct. 12 against the Vanderbilt Commodores in Lexington.

Here are some of the best photos from Kentucky’s upset win over Ole Miss.