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Kentucky

Mark Pope introductory press conference sells out Rupp Arena

Grant Grubbs Profile Pictureby:Grant Grubbs•04/14/24•

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Kentucky head coach Mark Pope
© Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports

If there were any questions how Kentucky fans felt about the men’s basketball program’s decision to name Mark Pope its next head coach, there are none now. Pope’s introductory press conference at Rupp Arena on Sunday officially sold out. Rupp Arena boasts a massive 23,500-person capacity.

Additionally, there were reports some fans were unable to get a seat inside the building due to capacity being reached. Big Blue Nation made a holiday of the event, with fans traveling from around the nation to catch a glimpse of their next leader.

Pope is no stranger to Kentucky fans. After starting his playing career at Washington, he transferred to Kentucky and was a captain on Rick Pitino’s 1996 team that won the national championship.

After becoming a second-round pick in the NBA Draft and playing professionally for nine years, he turned to coaching as an assistant at Georgia in 2006. After a string of multiple other jobs, Pope landed the head coaching position at BYU.

BYU is coming off a 23-11 overall record this past season, including a 10-8 mark in its first Big 12 season. The Cougars amassed a 110-52 record since Pope took over the program in 2019. Now, Pope is prepared to find similar success at Kentucky.

Mitch Barnhart raves about Mark Pope

UK athletics director Mitch Barnhart is confident Mark Pope will make the Kentucky faithful proud.

“I don’t know that you can ever describe what it feels like to put the (captain’s) C on a shirt and captain a group of guys to a championship,” Barnhart told KSR’s Matt Jones on Friday morning. “We’re going to roll out at Rupp Arena and we’re going to have a spotlight on the banners that represent this place. There are very few people who can stand on a podium and say they were part of that and they captained the team, and now they’re ready to lead the ship.

“This is our time to not bicker. We’ve been bickering for a while about what we should do, not do — it’s time to say this is our guy. He’s one of ours. And it is time to roll in, get behind this guy. And let’s go win something together and make sure that we have a heartbeat of what’s on the front of that jersey, the right way.”