Kentucky coach Mark Stoops likes celebrating bowl wins. (UK Athletics Photo)
No matter who is or is not playing for Kentucky against Iowa in the Music City Bowl Saturday in Nashville, UK coach Mark Stoops wants to win and expects to win.
During his weekly radio show Monday night, Stoops admitted the game does give him a look at the future of UK football with new players getting a chance to show what they can do.
“I want our players to have a more serious approach than a spring game. This is going to go down as a victory or a loss. Any time you do that you better take it as serious as you can,” Stoops said.
“These players, they’ve pushed through a lot. I say it throughout the year, I’m not sure everybody truly understands the magnitude of what I’m talking about. Our players are big, strong young men. They don’t need a pat on the back, but they do from me and from our coaching staff sometimes because they do work exceptionally hard and they’ve pushed through a lot of tough adversity.”
Stoops said players get “beat up” not only in games but in daily practices. That’s why he wants his players to enjoy their time in Nashville this week, especially players who are at their first bowl game.
“You can’t take it for granted,” Stoops said.
However, Stoops wants to end another season with a win, not a bowl loss.
“You want people to understand the importance of it, to go out there and compete, but there’s a big difference, whether it’s the Louisville game or a bowl game,” Stoops said.
“These are the only two times in the year that at the end of that game you’re accepting a trophy or walking off that field. There’s nothing like it. You want to experience being presented with that trophy and competing to win.”
