Pope confessions: "It's impossible to love Trent Noah more than I do right now."

With Eastern Kentucky in his blood and the work ethic that came with it, Trent Noah is easily a fan favorite on Kentucky‘s basketball roster. Kentuckians adore the sophomore from Harlan, Kentucky, known as the Mountain Mamba throughout Big Blue Nation.

Mark Pope? He loves Noah even more.

Pope was discussing his wish for Noah to add 18 pounds this offseason, when Pope confessed that he can’t love Noah any more than he does after coaching him for one season.

“It’s gonna be impossible for me to love Trent Noah any more than I do right now, even if he gains the 18 pounds,” Pope admitted. “He’s got a chance, guys.”

“You know, doing it here is different than doing it anywhere else, and being a Kentucky legend is different than being anything anywhere else. Trent Noah is made different, man. He just is made different.”

Having played at Kentucky himself, and now seeing Noah’s work ethic behind the season, Pope already knows the short-term and long-term future for Noah as a Kentucky Wildcat, and he can’t wait to watch it.

“I just know how this is going to turn out,” Pope said. “I know how it’s going to turn out in the next couple of years, I know how it’s going to turn out 30 years from now, and I’m happy for him. I’m so happy for him because there’s some part of him that can see it and feel it and taste it and care about it, and it’s going to be really special. I love that kid so much.”

You can’t buy the Kentucky experience

More than a fan favorite from nearby, Noah stands to make the sophomore leap that Pope expects of his other second-year players at Kentucky. As a freshman, Noah faced the common rookie challenges in college basketball. In Pope’s words: “Everybody is older than you, and everybody knows more than you, and you can get tricked into thinking that that’s your college experience, because it’s the only one you have.

“The magical thing about year two is you’re like, wow, everything is different, like, I’m the guy who knows what film session is like, I’m the guy who knows what practice is like, I’m the guy who knows what an individual workout is like, I’m the guy who knows what running through the SEC is like, I’m the one who knows what BBN is like, and, and it’s a beautiful thing, man, getting to year two, and especially doing it in our system.”

Pope added that you can’t buy what it means to come to the University of Kentucky and reach your full potential in the Kentucky jersey, which he expects for the Mountain Mamba in the years to come.

“You can’t buy it actually during the process, you can’t replicate it anywhere else, and then for the next 30 and 40 and 50 years of your life, there’s just nothing they can compare to it.”