Steve Spurrier states Mark Stoops has done 'not a great job, but a good job' at Kentucky

Mark Stoops is the winningest and one of the most successful coaches in the history of Kentucky Football. Still, with that being said, Steve Spurrier would still define his work as good rather than great.

Spurrier assessed Stoops within an article for the Louisville Courier Journal. Since he never has had the Wildcats in true contention, whether in the conference or nationally, he can’t describe it as great. Even so, in his opinion, some programs just need to be in the win column more than the loss one, which has been the case over the last decade or so at UK.

“I think he’s doing a good job — not a great job, but a good job. A ‘great job,’ you’re competing for divisions (titles), this, that, and the other,” Spurrier said. “But maybe Kentucky and South Carolina and those schools, if you can win more than you lose? That’s pretty good, pretty good.”

For reference, Spurrier is speaking from a place of having seen the change over time at Kentucky. He is 20-3 against them all-time while at Florida and South Carolina but 1-2 against Stoops.

Halfway through his dozenth season in Lexington, Stoops is 76-68 (.528). After three consecutive losing seasons to start, Kentucky has finished over .500 in every season of his since besides one to make it seven of the last eight as one of the best stretches ever for the program. 2024 could take away from that depending on how it finishes with the Wildcats at 3-3. Even so, they remain on the longest bowl streak in school history with eight straight appearances in the postseason.

However, Spurrier is fair in that it has never led to anything more than that for Stoops and Kentucky. Sure, UK has been ranked at some point in five of the last seven seasons. That includes three of those five that featured eventual ratings for the College Football Playoff. It just that those didn’t end with titles as they never won the SEC East or made the SEC Championship. Now, even with the expansion of the playoff that could eventually lead to a berth, competing for championships, whether in the conference or nationally, could be harder than ever for a program like the Wildcats’.

Considering all the other years of UK Football, Big Blue Nation will take what they’ve achieved under Stoops. With that, though, is an actuality in that, while certainly significant in their eyes, it was only so substantial in the bigger picture, which is the point by Spurrier.