With all the upheaval caused by the FAA ground stop on Friday evening, it’s easy to forget there were plenty of intriguing sporting events taking place to provide an appetizer to a weekend of great football.
For example, college basketball is now in full swing and one game between a perennial power and a winless mid-major gave everyone a surprisingly drama-filled ending.
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The Kentucky Wildcats are one of the bluest bloods in the sport, but their season was already off to a shaky start coming into Friday’s matchup with the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks.
Big Blue Nation has already had to endure a scare against James Madison and a 20-point beatdown at the hands of the Kansas Jayhawks, but nothing could have prepared these Wildcat fans for what was to come in Rupp Arena against an 0-3 NAU squad.
A Kentucky Wildcats fan celebrates during the second half against the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center in Lexington, Ky., on Nov. 13, 2026. (IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect)
My buddy Dan Zaksheske wrote an entire piece about the game itself, so check that out if you’re interested, but suffice to say, Kentucky needed a near-miracle to escape against the visiting Lumberjacks.
What’s worse, the Wildcats were 30-point favorites against Northern Arizona; this was supposed to be a “get right” game.
Instead, Kentucky needed a couple of front-end misses from a pair of one-and-one opportunities at the free throw line from its opponent and some Rupp magic to squeak out a 78-77 “victory.”
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It hardly felt like a win to all the fans in attendance, and just as the loyal folks of Big Blue Nation were trying to make sense of what just happened, the most tone-deaf man in America was giving a postgame news conference.
“I hope everyone in Rupp had fun.”
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Are you insane?
For context, that man is Mark Pope, head basketball coach for the University of Kentucky.
If you thought maybe that was the Northern Arizona coach, you would be forgiven, because in no world should a coach at a royally blue-blooded program like Kentucky ever say something like that after his $20 million roster just got worked by a mid-major.
He’s lucky they didn’t fire him right after the presser was over.
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Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Pope speaks during an NCAA Tournament First Round Practice press conference on March 20, 2025 at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee. (Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images)
“It’s really entertaining,” he said, without a hint of irony. “I think this will be a fun team to follow.”
Yeah, for Tennessee, Florida, Arkansas, and Louisville fans, maybe.
But do you really think Wildcat supporters sat in the stands in Lexington last night and thought, “Man, I’m having a great time watching my eight-time national championship-winning program need a miracle to avoid what might be the worst loss in school history?”
Naturally, Pope got cooked over an open flame for this answer by both Kentucky fans and rivals alike.
I know I’ve been tough on Pope before, but stuff like this makes him hard to defend.
Kentucky fans were ready to get rid of John Calipari every season he failed to make the Sweet 16 towards the end there. I imagine those days feel halcyon by comparison.
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After Pope’s eventful spring, in which he lost out on top recruit Tyran Stokes and had a disastrous Q&A on social media, I suggested he lie low for a bit and do some soul-searching while the fanbase cooled down.
Not only did he not do that, he just turned the temperature up even higher on his already flaming-hot seat.
Kentucky’s head coach Mark Pope address the crowd before the NCAA Tournament Selection Show inside Rupp Arena Sunday night on March 16, 2025. (Scott Utterback/Courier Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)
I don’t envy anyone who decides to be the head coach at Kentucky. That place is a pressure cooker and a thankless job at that.
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But Pope is doing himself no favors by being this tone-deaf.
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Either hire a PR team or start winning some tournament games, Mark, because this isn’t going to get any better as it stands right now.