Mark Pope reveals how much paying for fans' Rupp Arena ice cream cost him

Mark Pope eats ice cream outside the Joe Craft Center — UK Athletics

Remember when Mark Pope bought a round of the world-famous Taylor Belle’s Ice Cream for the Rupp Arena crowd on Black Friday, his gift to those sticking around for his postgame radio show since he didn’t have time for autographs? It happened to be the biggest turnout of the year — and maybe in a decade, unfortunately for the Popes. He said his wife Lee Anne left her credit card at the ice cream stand and Big Blue Nation was welcome to run up the charges on their way out.

“The word on the street is, here in Rupp Arena, we have the best ice cream in the world,” Pope said. “So, Mrs. Lee Anne dropped her credit card off at the ice cream stand right up here, so it’s on me tonight. Go help yourselves. Get some ice cream on the way out. Enjoy it, and thank you guys for coming here.”

As you can imagine, fans stormed up the steps to get in line, which unsurprisingly wrapped around the building following Kentucky’s win over Georgia State.

Shoutout @CoachMarkPope for the free 🍦 pic.twitter.com/WVgVIoxs19
— Kentucky Men’s Basketball (@KentuckyMBB) November 30, 2024

What’s the aftermath of that decision to trust the most passionate fanbase in college basketball with your credit card, especially with Rupp Arena ice cream on the table? Pope said it wasn’t pretty.

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During his call-in radio show Monday evening, Tom Leach set the over/under at $2,000 for Pope’s bill this past weekend from the fine folks at Taylor Belle’s Ice Cream. The Kentucky head coach said the fans hit that number and then some — no thanks to the retail cost.

“Yeah, we’ll go with the over on that one,” Pope joked. “Guys, I thought Rupp was going to give me a little discount on the ice cream. They did not! But it was worth it. It was worth it [laughs].”

If each cone goes for a smooth $7 and there are hundreds of fans in the stands — maybe even a thousand-plus — you can do the math on that. It adds up quickly!