Vicky Graff Photo
In today’s college football free agency market, you never know when a player may leave a program or join a program. It’s the same with coaches.
That’s why it should not be a shock that Kentucky’s offensive coordinator is reportedly involved in the search for a new offensive coordinator with the Chicago Bears of the NFL and Ohio State.
Coen came to UK from the Los Angeles Rams in 2021, recruited Will Levis, and helped UK win 10 games. He went back to the Rams in 2022 before returning to UK last year where he recruited Devin Leary but this time UK went 7-6.
The question here seems to be whether Coen has as much control of the offense as he expected and I would be willing to guess no because UK head coach Mark Stoops is a defensive guy who has trouble letting an offense play with total freedom.
However, if Coen does leave, he will probably regret some of the things he said when he came back to UK in January.
Coen admitted going from LA to Kentucky to LA in a three-year period put a strain on his wife, Ashley, and young son, Jackson.
“I probably wouldn’t be in the position I am now in life if it was not for my wife. She never was in the football space. She was extremely successful in what she was doing in life. She was making more money than I was in life when we met,” Coen told me in January.
“I really learned from her. I learned how to be a man from my wife. It was hard. Her whole life was in California. Her friends, she was there for 12 years. Her mom is in Vegas. It was hard as a family to make that decision but she felt the same thing that I felt that this felt more like home. The people in Kentucky are just different.”
Coen signed a three-year contract worth $5.4 million and said he planned to stay around.
“I just want to go somewhere, make a real impact, and plant some roots for a little bit. Be somewhere for a few years — at least — that you feel really good about,” he said in January. “I’m excited about being back in Lexington. There’s a lot about the SEC and college football that I missed, and I’m not in a rush to go anywhere. I want to try to make an impact and be around somewhere for a little while.”
17 Responses
Just go..don’t come back.
Wish the best for Liam – but having a hard time with what he said about putting down roots for a while.
Coaches have a right to change their minds the same as everyone else, but I don’t care what he does. Coach Pitino burned me out on the I’m not leaving, bye I’m gone business.
He has the right to do whatever he wants. He is getting a reputation of a traveler. It will catch up to him one day. Time to look for a replacement now and show him the door even if he does not get either job.
I can understand wanting to step up, but when you give your word, if it doesn’t mean anything to you, then don’t expect others to keep their word that was given to you!!
I also wonder how much of this is because of Stoops meddling and limiting what Coen wants to do? If that is the case, then it’s on Stoops.
Remember how Stoops complained because Dawson wanted to play fast and score fast? That tore Stoops up!
Stoops was also pretty close to leaving himself. Does that make Coen feel that he doesn’t have security at UK with Stoops???
Not knowing the inside scoop makes it impossible to know who is to blame, but one thing is certain. If Stoops doesn’t get things corrected with himself and his coaches, he is likely to destroy most everything he has built at UK!
Truth!
I don’t feel Coen has earned control of the O the way he’s handled himself. As some of you has mentioned, I’m not sure what happened with Coach Stoops-A&M, maybe Coen felt that void his putting down some roots, staying in 1 place comment.
Either way, it seems though he’s not here for long, and I hate it. I sincerely hope something positive can be done with NIL, Portal. As is, College Football is a mess.
I have been a consistent defender of Coach Stoops, but this situation is not acceptable.
If Coen wants to go, then he should go, and not let the door hit him on his way out. The same is true of Stoops now.
If Stoops wants to be UK’s head football coach, he must take a long, private self-examination on at least two fronts:
1) His responsibility for internal problems within the program that have interfered with continued progress over the last 2 seasons, and
2) Whether he even needs an offensive coordinator if he will not allow an offensive coordinator to have not just responsibility for the offensive performance but the authority to run the offense as the coordinator wants. Without authority, there can be no real accountability.
He must have had a change of heart since January if he is truly interested in other jobs! It would mean a lot to big blue nation and Stoops if he would just say “not interested”! BUT_ _ _ personally I hope he stays with offense personnel that’s on board, otherwise there is another portal window after spring practice 🤔
Sounds like Coen is not who he has described himself to be. Or maybe there is some health
There are many opinions about the relationship between Mark and Liam. The facts are Devin Leary is a fine QB, but not a SEC QB. The offensive line is a work in progress. The defense had holes and inexperience. The plug and play players need more than one year to
learn and experience their new team. Bottom line: Free agency and NIL create many issues.
There is indeed a lot we do not know John
Stoops is way out of line here he created this mess when he was trying to flirt with Texas A&M and kept everyone in the dark so Coen and Stoops should sit down and have a pow wow and let the offensive coordinator run the offense besides I thought Stoops back ground was the defense. I personally hope he stays at U. K. and every one just carry on !!!
IF Stoops is interfering with Coen’s offensive schemes and he wants to run the offense, then don’t even hire an OC. I really like Coen and hope he stays; and if he does, Stoops needs to have an understanding that COEN is the OC, not him. This was a very very disappointing season for UK. And to me, this NIL is/was a horrible decision. It is way out of control and some restrictions need to be added. I don’t have the answer. It all comes down to money. "Amateur" athletics is a joke. GO CATS!
God points UKKathy
Send him PACKING!
Get the kid from Alabama.
31 years old and would love to show what he can do!
Why don’t we all just take a deep breath and wait to see what he does. It has not been confirmed anywhere that I have read or heard that Coen is in fact leaving UK for the NFL, just a lot of talk. Now Cleveland is in the mix I hear. I will say this, there is no loyalty anymore in this big time college football world today. If he leaves, they will just go pay someone else a big time salary and move on. The problem with that is so will a boatload of UK stars who wanted to play for this man, including some talented skill players.