"I love every game every day": Mark Pope backs bold move to stage early-season Kentucky vs. Louisville rivalry clash 

Mark Pope will be coaching his second season with the Kentucky Wildcats and is making quite a big splash after planning a marquee matchup versus in-state rivals Louisville Cardinals. Both teams are set to play on Nov. 11 at KFC Yum Center, marking the earliest encounter in the rivalry’s history.

Usually, they meet in December, often around Christmas, but this year's fixture diverges from this tradition. Pope and Louisville coach Pat Kelsey both have different perspectives on the schedule altercation.

On Thursday, Pope joined Matt Norlander on CBS Sports' "Eye on College Basketball" podcast to discuss his team, how he built the nonconference schedule and other facets of the game.

Norlander said he liked the change of pace for the Kentucky-Louisville game to be played in early November, and then asked Pope if he would be open to having the game played in February in the future.

"Well, I love what Pat's doing at Louisville," Pope said (Timestamp- 49:38 onwards). "I don’t have a huge opinion on when, I just love playing the games. I love first week/second week great games, so I love that with whoever it is. The one complication in playing in the regular season is one, there were seven, eight, nine or 10 teams in the SEC ranked inside the top-25 last year.

"The league is so brutal that when you get that one bye-week, just helping you survive through the NCAA Tournament. ... So, my lean would probably be like at that point, you’re starting to think postseason, and so maybe save that bye-week to try and get a little healthier. But you know me, I love every game every day. Let’s go."

Kelsey, on the other hand, was not fond of the early scheduling and cleared his stance during his appearance on "Inside College Basketball Now" last week.

"Well, first of all, it’s just kind of the way it worked out," Kelsey said via On3.com. "I think, if everybody had their druthers, it wouldn’t be that early in the season, but scheduling is difficult."

Mark Pope won his first rivalry game against Louisville last season

When Kentucky played Louisville last season, it was Mark Pope's first time coaching in the historic rivalry game. The same was true for Pat Kelsey, who was also in his inaugural season at the helm for the Cardinals.

The Wildcats won 93-85 at Rupp Arena, securing Pope's first victory in this rivalry. Louisville has only won one of the last seven matchups against Kentucky, so the upcoming contest carries significant implications for both programs.

How do you think Mark Pope's Kentucky Wildcats will fare next season? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.