Kentucky has one of the best football, basketball coaching tandems in college sports

“We’re an everything school.” That’s what UK rivals said during the middle of the high-profile, public dispute between John Calipari and Mark Stoops. That petty grievance has been set aside, but maybe there was some validity to the argument between the Kentucky coaches.

Ahead of the NCAA Tournament, CBS Sports college football writer Shehan Jeyarajah has too caught a case of the March Madness. Instead of creating a hypothetical playoff, he’s ranking the best coaching 1-2 punches in college athletics.

Kentucky has a legitimate claim for the top spot. Mark Stoops has more wins than any other Kentucky football coach and a seven-year streak of postseason appearances. On the hardwood, there aren’t many active college basketball coaches with a more impressive resume than John Calipari. There’s only one problem.

The seed of discontent among the BBN is performance-based. The top two programs on campus are currently in a mid-off, doing just enough to get your hopes up, without big-time payouts. That is why Jeyarajah ranked Kentucky second behind Bill Self and Lance Leipold at Kansas.

The Wildcats have a serious claim to the No. 1 spot, but recent results knock them down slightly. Stoops has losing records in each of the past two SEC campaigns, while Calipari has not reached the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament since 2019. Still, the overall résumés of these two coaches are stellar. Calipari has a national championship and six Final Fours under his belt. Stoops has led Kentucky to the greatest period of sustained success since the program was led by the legendary Paul “Bear” Bryant. His two 10-win seasons match the same amount as every other coach in UK history combined. 

CBS Sports

Where Kentucky Ranks Among Top 10 Coaching Tandems

10. Miami: Mario Cristobal, Jim Larranaga
9. Iowa State: Matt Campbell, T.J. Otzelberger
8. Houston: Willie Fritz, Kelvin Sampson
7. Tennessee: Josh Heupel, Rick Barnes
6. Oregon: Dan Lanning, Dana Altman
5. Michigan State: Jonathan Smith, Tom Izzo
4. North Carolina: Mack Brown, Hubert Davis
3. Alabama: Kalen DeBoer, Nate Oats
2. Kentucky: Mark Stoops, John Calipari
1. Kansas: Lance Leipold, Bill Self

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