Mark Pope wants to expand the college basketball season. Kentucky’s head coach has expressed the need for more games on the schedule, and the topic came up again in his one-on-one conversation with KSR’s Matt Jones. Next week, Pope plans to take the mission to the SEC’s spring meetings in Florida.
“We’ve got to expand this over 31 games,” Pope stressed to KSR. “We have got to expand the season, guys… especially with the revenue share now. Like, the revenue share should change everything in terms of our opportunity to actually go share revenue, right?”
With the immediate need for more athletics revenue, Pope suggests a 40-game college basketball schedule, adding nine more games to the regular season. He would settle for a 35-game slate to meet the many naysayers in the middle.
“Imagine if we have four extra games that we can put on our schedule, where we go play a big-time neutral game, and set up a home-and-home, and do an in-state game that people here really care about, and just give us a little more flexibility in this deal.”
Not one to shy away from competition, Pope wants more opportunities for Kentucky to play the best of the best opponents. He already booked Purdue and Georgetown for preseason exhibitions this upcoming season, leading up to November and December games against Louisville, Michigan State, Gonzaga, Indiana, St. John’s, and an ACC opponent to be named later. Still, he wants even more marquee games on UK’s schedule, including a return to the Maui Invitational.
“Come on, man, let us do a home-and-home with Kansas. Let’s go. Why am I not going to Storrs to play a game? We need some more flexibility. And also, let us get to Maui.”
Pope believes Kentucky should have a loaded basketball schedule every year, telling KSR, “You guys will hear me say this until as long as I get to be here: If you’re coming to Kentucky, don’t come here and hide. It doesn’t make sense to come here and hide.“
Add Christmas games and summer practice hours
Pope’s scheduling dreams also include holiday games, which were traditionally off-limits so student-athletes could leave campus to go home to their families. But the athletes are paid like professionals in the new age of college athletics, so they should have professional schedules, like playing on Christmas.
“Those are the greatest games,” Pope said. “Listen, every kid is aspiring to go play in the league. One year from now, they’re going to be playing a Christmas Day game, and their whole family is going to come. With NIL now, you can fly your family in for the Christmas Day game. You want to be a pro? Let’s be a pro, right?!”
While he’s at it, Pope wants to expand the summer practice schedule. Currently, the NCAA limits coaching to four hours a week for eight weeks in the summer. Pope wants more.
“Extend that a little, just to double down on this whole insanity. We’ll get our guys in the summer, and our guys–every college basketball player is making more, probably, than their parents right now–and the incredible thing is that during the summer, these guys are getting paid a significant amount of money, and they’re only allowed to work four hours a week.
“The guys are dying. They’re like, can we please get together and get some work done? The whole thing is turned upside down.”
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