Kentucky needs to find a way to honor John Schlarman by naming something at Kroger Field in his honor

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John Schlarman (Kentucky Athletics Photo)

After a recent story I did on how much Kentucky associate head coach Vince Marrow missed John Schlarman and how the former UK offensive line coach would always be a part of UK football, I got an interesting comment on the story from reader Susan Brock.

What she shared made me start thinking about a potential change at Kroger Field.

“GOD’s very special gift to the UK football program, everyone who knew him and those of us who admired him from afar,” Brock said about Schlarman. “An incredible human being who was loved by so many.

“C.M. Newton’s name MUST be replaced with John Scharlman Field and now!”

Newton is the former UK athletics director who officially had the playing field at Commonwealth Stadium named in his honor by UK officials in 2000. As part of the renaming of the stadium to Kroger Field in 2017, the field itself was renamed “C. M. Newton Grounds” to keep Newton’s name in place.

Newton was a basketball icon as a former player, coach, and contributor to the NCAA Rules Committee and USA Basketball. As athletic director, he brought Rick Pitino to Kentucky. He also hired Bernadette Mattox, the university’s first African-American women’s basketball coach, in 1995 and two years later he hired Tubby Smith, UK’s first black men’s head basketball coach.

He did hire Hal Mumme as football coach but Newton was much more of a basketball guy than football or other sports. Just look at the way UK’s overall athletics program has escalated under Mitch Barnhart.

Don’t get me wrong. I liked Newton and he did a lot for college athletics, especially basketball. But when it comes to having a special place at the football stadium, that should be Schlarman’s legacy.

Schlarman played football at UK. He coached football at UK. He literally gave his life for UK football and was on the field just two weeks prior to passing from a two-year battle with cancer.

Schlarman is UK football. No one can dispute that.

Not saying Newton’s name cannot stay there, but UK needs to find a way to honor Schlarman.

7 Responses

    1. What wonderful ideas! We all miss John and would like to honor him in an appropriate manner. A blue wall might somehow include the names and/or images of the linemen who played for him.

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