'That's not gonna happen,' Mark Stoops confident Kentucky will bounce back

Before the 2023 Kentucky football season kicked off, amateur and professional prognosticators predicted the Wildcats would lose on the road to the two-time defending National Champs. Once Georgia shellacked the Cats by hanging a 50 Burger on Kentucky at Sanford Stadium, many across the Big Blue Nation feared that one loss may turn into two. Do not count Mark Stoops among them.

“That’s not gonna happen.”

Those three words do not properly convey the authoritative tone Stoops used to convey his message. The Kentucky head coach refuses to let his team sulk following the beatdown between the hedges.

“We’re not going to tolerate being mopey, you know, being down. We’re going to address it, we’re going to own it, we’re gonna look at our mistakes, we’re all going to take our part and then we’ll move on,” Stoops said Monday.

That’s not to say that Stoops is guaranteeing a win against Missouri. A person in his position can’t predict wins or losses. He is clearly drawing a line in the sand after watching his team crumble amid adversity in recent seasons.

In 2021 the Wildcats fell in Athens and it served as the start of a three-game losing streak. Last fall they took a similar loss to Tennessee, bounced back to beat Mizzou by the narrowest of margins, then fell at home to Vandy and Georgia.

In his first team meeting prior to the start of the season, Mark Stoops emphasized the importance of responding to adversity. He did not believe his team showed enough resolve last season when things did not go their way. Once the final horn sounded on Saturday, he echoed that sentiment in a conversation with Tom Leach.

“I told them that I have to take this one,” said the Kentucky head coach. “We are going to handle adversity better than we did a year ago. Period. I will not tolerate any dissension or anything. Put it on me. I can handle it.”

Things got sideways in a hurry on the road at Georgia. Kentucky gets a chance to bounce back in front of a sold out crowd against a one-loss SEC East team. Similar to the first quote I shared, I cannot convey with words the excitement in Stoops’ voice when he said the following:

“I’m excited about Monday, to be honest with you. I feel good about getting to work here this week.”

It might be a rough week for the Wildcats. Georgia players said after the win that the game was won on Tuesday and Wednesday. Mark Stoops is going to put his players through the wringer to get the Wildcats ready to get off the ma vs. Mizzou.

“You’re gonna face adversity in this league,” said Stoops, “the teams we play, you’re gonna hit some tough patches. It’s how you respond and how you react to it and how you move forward.”

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