WATCH: Mark Stoops' Post-Louisville Press Conference

Mark Stoops was a happy man following Kentucky’s 38-31 upset of No. 9 Louisville, the Wildcats’ fifth straight Governor’s Cup victory. After a long week of rumors that culminated with reports that Stoops is a frontrunner for the Texas A&M job, Kentucky took care of business, not committing a single penalty despite several chippy moments with the Cards.

In his postgame press conference, Stoops praised his team for regrouping after the loss to South Carolina; gave special kudos to JJ Weaver, Ray Davis, and Barion Brown for game-changing plays; and responded to reports he is a frontrunner for the Texas A&M job.

“Like any team, we’re going to go through some ups and some downs,” Stoops said of his team. “I’m just really proud of this team for the finish.”

“They found a way to pick themselves up and to finish strong in a game that’s important. It’s important for us to elevate where we want to go in a bowl, it’s important for us to finish, it’s important to us and our fans to bring that Governor’s Cup home for the fifth straight year against a very good team that I have a lot of respect for.”

We’ll have more from the press conferences soon — including JJ Weaver’s heroic performance — but until then, hit play and enjoy the entire press conference below.

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Mark Stoops Partial Transcript

(Opening Statement)

“Many of you have been covering us for many years so you know, like any team, we’re going to go through some ups and downs. I’m really proud of how this team finished the season. I think we’re the only team in the country that has played four straight teams ranked in the top 10. That’s a tough schedule. This team found a way to pick themselves back up after last week and finish strong in a game that’s important for us. Important in terms of where we want to go for a bowl game. It’s important for our fans that we bring the Governors Cup home for the fifth straight season against a great Louisville team that I have a lot of respect for. I have tremendous respect for Jeff (Brohm) and what he’s managed to do in his first season. I’m proud of the resilience this team showed and the willingness to pick themselves back up. We’ve played a grueling schedule. We found a way to win in a game that started slow.  We played together as a team. Just really proud of this team.” 

(On J.J. (Weaver) playing in his hometown and the emotions that came with it)

“Couldn’t be more proud of J.J. (Weaver). He and I had a good talk earlier in the week and I told him to walk around with his head high. He was feeling the pressure of not producing and was worried about the numbers. He’s done a lot and we’re proud of him regardless of what happens on the field. He’s a great person, player, and ambassador for this football team. I told him to hold his head high and finish strong and he did. I’m so proud of him.”

(On the increased efficiency of the offense coming out of halftime)

“I did not like the way we started. We had issues with the protection that we had to clean up. We’re tired of beating ourselves. We talked about it at half and made the corrections. Louisville is aggressive with its blitzes so give them credit. We knew they were going to bring some pressure but some of the mistakes were just solely on us. We can’t do that against a top-ten team. Once we straightened things out, we found a balance with our running backs making some physical runs. Ray (Davis) had a critical run to convert a fourth down as he was able to get one-on-one against a good defender and make a play. I wanted to put the game on our offensive line and just run straight downhill like we used to.”

(On committing zero penalties)

 “They’re still growing and listening; I told them how emotional this game was going to be and ultimately it comes down to execution. Just execute, emotions will be there, but in the end, everyone wants to win. We knew we were going to have to play a good game to finish and win. Some crazy things happened during that game, but I am just proud of the execution. Obviously, the turnover late and them (Louisville) converting the fourth down, but finally we resolved a comeback.”

(On what does the win against a #10 team do for the team)

 “It means a lot for many different reasons, we have expectations that we understand, and no one cares about the schedule you play. I was just happy for our team to finish like they did, they deserve it and have been grinding all year. We have had some ups and downs and have been far from perfect, but to finish off the regular season against our rivals, a top-ten team is important. I take no gratification in knocking them down but I just wanted to win this game because it is important to our fans and important to our team.”

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