“Bring back John Calipari”, “Only solution is to fire Pope”: Kentucky fans turn their back on HC Mark Pope

The No. 8 Kentucky Wildcats eked out an 87-68 win over Western Kentucky on Tuesday night at Rupp Arena. Despite the lopsided score, criticisms around coach Mark Pope still circulated, as it's been said this wasn't a victory by UK's standards.

Playing Amari Williams for an extended period despite his inefficient play, the Hilltoppers keeping it close in the first half, and poor team morale and shooting percentages were just some of the points fans were raising on social media against Pope and Kentucky as a whole.

"Coaches and players both dont seem to want to be there tonight," one fan wrote.

"Yep. They seem to not be matching the other teams energy for the first time. Disappointing," another fan replied.

"Players need to do better but Pope needs to draw up some stuff for the offense. Why all of a sudden is nobody moving?" another fan speculated.

"Seems like nobody is interested in playing," another fan said as more users criticized the team's lackluster energy.

"Wait till they play a team with a pulse! We play School of the blind 8 times in November," one more fan said about Kentucky's effort.

"When a former coach schedules cup cake after cup cake and then you play a scrappy bunch things like this tend to happen," one fan shared.

With the outcries pouring in about the fans' frustrations toward the game, a number of them have called for the firing of coach Mark Pope.

"Fire Pope!" one fan exclaimed on X.

"Reading all these responses, it appears the only solution is to fire Pope," another reasoned.

One fan even called for the return of legendary coach John Calipari, who led Kentucky to a NCCA championship in 2012 and now oversees the Arkansas Razorbacks.

"I’ll say it. Bring back John Calipari," the fan posted.

Some, however, are calling out the Kentucky faithful for going against Pope so early on in his Wildcats tenure.

"Boy how opinions have quickly shifted," one fan responded.

One thing that can't be denied though is that No. 8 Kentucky still won against the Hilltoppers by a double-digit margin. It was an ugly game by the school's standards, as it missed seven straight shots at one point in the second half, and its unranked opponent got within six, 57-51, with 11 minutes remaining.

Next up for the Wildcats will be playing hosts to Georgia State on Friday on their home floor, Rupp Arena.

Mark Pope is still undefeated as Kentucky's coach

Even with all of the backlash he is facing, the Wildcats are still unbeaten this 2024-2025 season under the tutelage of first-year coach Mark Pope. On the year, UK is currently holding a 7-0 record for first place in the Southeastern division.

Some of the wins may not have been the prettiest and don't fit Kentucky's brand of basketball, but Pope is definitely still steering his squad in the right direction. He has big shoes to fill with the departure of John Calipari, and he'll have this season to prove his worth to the championship-aspiring Wildcats.