Mark Stoops on officiating vs. Ole Miss: 'It's a personal problem for us'

Through one quarter against Ole Miss, Kentucky coach Mark Stoops clearly had problems with the officiating. He was vocal with his thoughts on the sidelines, and he said it was “personal” during an in-game interview.

ABC’s Molly McGrath asked Stoops about the officials ahead of the second quarter as Kentucky trailed 7-3. He didn’t get into specifics, opting to keep it between himself and the referees, but said there was a “personal problem.”

“It’s between us and them,” Stoops told McGrath on the broadcast Saturday. “It’s a personal problem for us.”

Through one quarter, Ole Miss had five penalties for 28 yards while Kentucky didn’t get flagged at all. But Stoops was especially vocal early in the first quarter when UK was called offsides – a penalty Ole Miss declined – when ABC analyst Greg McElroy thought the Rebels weren’t lined up properly on offense. He also had some words between quarters.

Kentucky’s defense faced a big test against Ole Miss’ high-powered offense. Through four games, the Rebels lead the nation with 670.8 yards per game. But the Wildcats held strong in the early going, keeping Ole Miss out of the end zone after that first drive.

Mark Stoops said the defensive front was the key for that. However, he added it will come down to finishing drives, which he wants to see improve as the game goes along.

“The defensive front is playing pretty good when we’re set, when we have some urgency,” Stoops said. “When we had some times to finish them, we have to do that. But they’ve been disruptive.”

Kentucky entered Saturday with some momentum after a bounce-back, 41-6 victory over Ohio last week. The Wildcats dominated on all sides of the ball in that game to shake off the 13-12 loss to Georgia at Kroger Field a week prior.

However, UK went into the game against Ole Miss without Maxwell Hairston. He had a pick-six last week, but will not play in Week 5 with a bye week looming.