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There was no way Mark Stoops could have liked the biting criticism of the Kentucky football team that SEC Network analyst/talk show host. Finebaum basically said the UK football season was over after an 0-2 start with losses to Auburn and Mississippi. He even encouraged UK fans to start thinking about basketball and not this Saturday night’s football game with Mississippi State.
Earlier this week Kentucky recruiting coordinator Vince Marrow posted on Twitter about shutting up critics again. Stoops was a little more understanding about what Finebaum said and tactful in his remarks Thursday in his last media opportunity before UK tries to win its first game Saturday night.
“It’s our fault for giving Paul the opportunity to talk about that. That’s his job, isn’t it? To say whatever the heck he wants, so that’s up to him. I can’t control that,” Stoops laughed and said.
Stoops is right. Kentucky has no one to blame for Finebaum’s biting criticism but itself for making way too many costly mistakes the first two games.
“All I need to do is continue to control what we can control, go win a football game, go on a good run, do the best we can,” Stoops said.
Good plan, right?
However, Stoops wasn’t finished. He got in a not so subtle jab at Finebaum.
“Just like years past, we string some wins together and start doing some good things, I’m sure my phone will be ringing and asking me to be back on the show. That doesn’t surprise me. It is what it is,” Stoops said.
“When you’re down, people are going to try to kick you. When you’re winning they’re going to ask you to be on your show.”
At this point, I think hoping for a phone call from Finebaum would be a great thing because that would mean UK’s season somehow got back on track after a disastrous 0-2 start.
