Kentucky football coach Mark Stoops addressed the recent probation and vacated 2021 wins for the first time following a team scrimmage on August 10, 2024. The Wildcats are set to open their season against Southern Miss on August 31 at Kroger Field. Due to NCAA sanctions, the 2022 Citrus Bowl trophy, representing a win over Iowa, has been removed from Kentucky football’s practice facility. This is a consequence of the two-year probation imposed on the program last week.
Stoops expressed disappointment over the situation, acknowledging the hard work that went into achieving those victories. The probation stems from violations where at least 11 players were paid for work hours they did not actually complete in patient transport jobs at the university hospital between the spring of 2021 and March 2022. While the program avoided a postseason ban or scholarship reductions, it agreed to vacate all 10 wins from the 2021 season, including the Citrus Bowl, due to the participation of ineligible players. Despite no evidence showing that Stoops or other coaches were aware of the violations, the vacated wins now reduce Stoops’ coaching record from 73-65 to 63-65.
Stoops highlighted the significant changes in college athletics over the past few years, particularly with the introduction of rules allowing players to profit from their name, image, and likeness (NIL). He pointed out the irony of vacating wins due to financial violations in a landscape that now permits athletes to receive large sums of money through NIL collectives.
Under the terms of the probation, Kentucky must remove references to the vacated victories from public displays and publications, and adjust individual records for the ineligible players accordingly. The 2021 season marked just the second 10-win season for Kentucky since 1977, both under Stoops’ leadership. While Stoops was advised not to comment on the penalties, he emphasized the efforts made by the program to ensure compliance and the challenges posed by the evolving landscape of college sports.
