Prepare for Mark Stoops to make a surprise splash at offensive coordinator

Mark Stoops is learning how to be a magician this offseason. At least one person close to the Kentucky football coaching search believes Stoops will make some magic when he hires the Wildcats’ next offensive coordinator.

As we approach the end of Kentucky’s coaching search, one source tells Kentucky Sports Radio’s Matt Jones that Stoops is changing directions. The next offensive offensive coordinator is likely a candidate that has not yet been named. “Mark Stoops is about to pull a rabbit out of a hat,” the source told Jones.

One of the first names that surfaced in the search was New York Jets quarterbacks coach Rob Calabrese, a Kyle Shanahan disciple recommended by Liam Coen. Thursday night we learned Dowell Loggains, a long-time NFL offensive coordinator that currently works for Arkansas, is also a candidate for the open position. Justin Rowland previously reported that Bengals wide receivers coach Troy Walters is a name to watch.

If it’s not one of those three, who could this mysterious rabbit be?

Well, former Florida head coach Dan Mullen is a fun potential option. However, we did mention his name right from the jump, creating quite a bit of division among fans, so that is probably not the case. Joe Brady might want to return to college after a couple seasons in Carolina. Sean Payton needs something to do during his retirement. He and Bill Parcells could look for a new horse farm together. All joking aside, LA Chargers wide receiver coach Chris Beatty is a name Adam Luckett discovered that would make a lot of sense. He previously coached with Scott Woodward at Pitt. The two could reunite in Lexington and share the coordinator duties, but is that a big enough surprise?

It appears that we are all in the dark as we near the end of the offensive coordinator search. At this point, your guess is as good as mine. So, who do YOU think will be the rabbit pulled out of Mark Stoops’ hat?