Stoops’s right-hand man left for rival Louisville earlier this offseason.
When Mark Stoops took the podium at SEC Media Days in Atlanta, the conversation immediately went to his thoughts on Vince Marrow departing Kentucky for the in-state rival Louisville Cardinals.
“I think anybody that’s making a decision to leave the program, I don’t think there’s any, like, perfect way to do that, you know,” Stoops stated. “So I don’t hold any animosity towards that at all, or towards Vince. I greatly appreciate our friendship and what he’s done to help us build this program for 12 years. And, you know, he was instrumental in a lot of ways.
“But with that, I say the same thing about myself, about everybody in our program. It’s about the program. It’s about so many individuals and so many people that I think that’s what the focus is on.
“And this program and these student athletes and everybody, we’re resilient, you know, you’ve just got to pick up and move on quickly. So I greatly appreciate him. I still think the world of him, but we moved on quickly.”
It was definitely a hard pill to swallow for the Wildcats football program, but a recent strong run on the recruiting trail has breathed some faith back into the fan base. That run is highlighted by quarterback Matt Ponatoski (Cincinnati, Archbishop Moeller) committing to the Wildcats for their 2026 class.
Players Josh Kattus, Jordan Lovett, and Alex Afari issued classy responses to questions about Marrow Thursday in Atlanta, expressing that they wish Marrow the best at Louisville. But a common message from the three players is that there will be some extra emphasis on the matchup between the Wildcats and Cardinals on November 29th.
“Especially Louisville, it was crazy.”
Jordan Lovett, Alex Afari Jr. and Mark Stoops showed appreciation on Thursday for what former associate head coach Vince Marrow helped build at Kentucky. pic.twitter.com/xpnhKYu8Bk
— BBN Tonight (@BBNTonight) July 17, 2025
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