Mark Stoops encourages complaining fans to donate, help even playing field with Georgia

Ever since Kentucky lost to Georgia, Mark Stoops has been fired up. His team was undefeated heading into Sanford Stadium but by the time halftime came rolling around, the game was really over. Even with Missouri next on the schedule, Saturday has remained at the top of Stoops’ mind.

During his radio show on Monday, Stoops made a plea to the fans in the interest of Kentucky getting on a level playing field with Georgia. He believes the NIL support needs to be greater in order to match the program that has dominated the SEC East for a few years.

Stoops said Georgia has bought a few players on their roster but these days, it’s totally legal. Kentucky could be doing the same but needs help from some of the fans Stoops sees complaining in order to do so.

“Fans have that right (to complain),” Stoops said. “I give it to them. I just encourage them to donate more, because that’s what those dudes are doing. I can promise you Georgia, they bought some pretty good players. You’re allowed to these days. We could use some help.”

From a recruiting perspective, Georgia and Kentucky have not been close in recent years. Kirby Smart’s team has been in the top two of the SEC recruiting rankings in six out of the last seven cycles. In the same period, the Wildcats finished in the top half just once and barely. The 2022 class was ranked No. 7 among conference foes.

The same trend is playing out in front of us in the 2024 cycle too. Georgia is on its way to signing the No. 1 overall class in the country, currently having 20 blue-chip players committed. Kentucky is at No. 14 in the SEC where their blue chip ratio is 33%.

Catching up and getting on the same recruiting level as Georgia is nearly impossible — at least on a consistent basis. Only Alabama, Ohio State, and Clemson have been able to do it over the years. Stoops likely does not expect to get there either.

But he does think the talent gap can be closed. He just needs help through donations and is looking at the fans complaining specifically about the Georgia loss over the weekend. Nobody enjoys getting beat by a rival like that and there will be complaints.

Stoops is just asking for some Kentucky fans to put their money where their mouth is and help the program out.