Mark Pope's program-first messaging put on full display at Big Blue Madness

Anyone else feel like they woke up this morning after the wildest fever dream of all time? Sitting in a pool of sweat, just dazed and confused wondering what in the world you just experienced? It certainly wasn’t our reality. It was impossible, a sequence of events fit for another Marvel multiverse spin-off with 14 million scenarios and just one leading to total harmony in Mark Pope‘s push to make this Kentucky’s Team.

Not his team. Not their team. Our team.

That’s been the messaging since Pope’s sold-out introductory press conference, making an oath from day one to never make anything about him. He wanted to return the program to the hands of the most passionate fanbase in all of sports, prioritizing wins and banners at this level, making sure folks spending their hard-earned cash and vacation days to follow the team wherever they went were rewarded for their unwavering support and loyalty.

Thing is, Big Blue Madness wasn’t a fever dream, nor should mind-blowing impossibilities be deemed as such moving forward. Rick Pitino’s return to Lexington and the ovation he received inside Rupp Arena is the perfect example of that — and proof of Pope’s program-first messaging.

There was a narrative going into the weekend Pitino wouldn’t show his face at Madness so as not to show up Pope on his big day, opting for a Kroger Field appearance instead — he is a Kentucky football booster, after all. But isn’t that thought process the exact opposite of what Pope is looking for in this new era of UK basketball?

Again, this is the same man he said “changed my DNA as a human being,” someone who “changed how I walk into a room” and “changed how I think about the world.”

“I love him,” Pope told KSR. “You’re blessed in life to be able to be around people every once in a while, sometimes once in your lifetime, sometimes sadly never that can redefine who you are. Certainly Coach P had a part in doing that for me.”

If that guy wants to “go back to Camelot for one more time,” as Pitino made clear last night, isn’t it the most Mark Pope thing imaginable to push the attention away from himself and toward his former coach? And it’s not just any former coach, it’s a Hall of Famer whose name hangs in the rafters after building one of the most dominant runs in history coming off this program’s version of rock bottom. You can’t tell the story of Kentucky basketball without Rick Pitino. That’s just a fact.

Pitino gripped and grinned with former players in the bowels of Rupp Arena before being introduced alongside dozens of championship-winning Wildcats across all eight titles to close out the event. The ASB GlassFloor transitioned to show the hardwood and midcourt logo of each generation as the trophies were brought out one by one, the historic 1996 team finally having its head coach there to celebrate after being limited to players at Pope’s introductory fanbase. It was a celebration of the program’s entire history, our program’s entire history.

And it wasn’t limited to Pitino’s polarizing return. The event opened with an all-time BBM moment featuring Kenny Brooks walking out for his own introduction, a slow burn with a massive payoff giving the new women’s basketball head coach the hype he deserves for being a shot in the arm to a program in desperate of one. It wasn’t about rushing through the appetizer to get to the main dish, but rather a proper welcome to kickstart that era of Kentucky basketball, as well.

The same can be said about Mark Stoops’ first-ever Madness, relaying the same message Pope hoped to push from day one: “We are all in this together.” Big Blue Nation gave him a proper ovation, as well, with the floor transitioning from hardwood to gridiron and the football coach taking the mic at midfield, thanking the fanbase for their continued support.

“So this is Madness? I’ve been missing this for 12 years,” Stoops told the crowd. “I just wanted to come and welcome Coach Kenny Brooks and his team, and Coach Mark Pope and his team, his coaching staff.”

A shot at Coach Cal? Definitely, but Pope wasn’t there babysitting anyone obsessing over the optics or his image. He wasn’t worried about the spotlight being taken away from him or the men’s basketball program in that moment, just as he wasn’t when Brooks got his shine and Pitino got his roar alongside generations of champions. How about the cheerleading and dance teams? Soak it all up, there’s room for everyone.

Pope’s own personal introduction was telling, decked out in a white UK pullover with the Mamba logo — the late Kobe Bryant’s apparel brand with Nike. He previously talked about Kobe in a sit-down with KSR, a legend he played against in the pros after joining the league together in the same ’96 draft class.

“He was an incredibly special player. Everybody talks about the Mamba mentality in terms of how tough he was, just how he had this nature of being a guy who was never going to let you breathe, it was always going to be hard-driving,” Pope said. “For me, the most magical part of this all-inclusive Mamba mentality was I think he was one of the most curious players that’s ever played the game. He just wanted to figure it out. He was in a relentless pursuit to get better and figure out and kind of cover every single base. And the bases they had covered, it was, ‘Let me rethink them and see if I could do it a little bit better.’ To do that, you have to be super humble.”

Sounds like his mindset as a coach, right? Kentucky is conveniently a Mamba Program, one of six schools hand-selected by Vanessa Bryant last year, but it goes beyond the gear for Pope, clearly. He embodies that humble curiosity with relentless pursuit to cover every single base, because that’s what it takes to be great. That’s why he started from the very top row of Rupp Arena when his name was called, joined by the diehards grateful to simply be in the building to meet their beloved Wildcats from afar. Then he made his way down to the bottom of the second level and revealed his old No. 41 uniform before trekking down two more flights of steps to the floor through the sea of blue — among the fans, not above the fans.

When he grabbed the mic, the first words out of his mouth were, “There is no place like Kentucky, baby. There is no fanbase like the great BBN. Nothing like it in the world. You guys are amazing.”

Ladies and gentlemen, Head Coach Mark Pope. pic.twitter.com/T4yGS26m2B

— Kentucky Men’s Basketball (@KentuckyMBB) October 12, 2024

He talked about his excitement for celebrating this moment together inside Rupp Arena, introducing a new team that will “fight every single day and every single night for every single one of you.” He brought up their desire to dive for loose balls and how they’re all “Kentucky strong” — even those not from the area. Then he singled out every single staff member, which he called “the best staff in college basketball, which is appropriate at the University of Kentucky.” He started up top with the assistants and worked his way down to the support staff, graduate assistants, strength and conditioning coaches and video guys — everyone involved in the day-to-day.

Rick Pitino stole the headlines, but the night wasn’t about him — no matter how much bitter Louisville fans tell you otherwise. It wasn’t about Kenny Brooks, either, nor was it about Mark Stoops. And above all else, it wasn’t about Mark Pope.

Instead, it was about Kentucky and why this place is different from anywhere else in the country. It was about being in unison, everyone on the same page and team in Lexington.

The legendary Oscar Combs said it best after the dust settled on the evening: “Back in the hills, you’d call this a 1950s ole time tent revival. Repent, rebirth and glory to all.”

We all got to witness an all-time Big Blue Madness together, just as Pope intended.