Kentucky Wildcats Fire Head Coach Mark Stoops - What it Means for Kirby Smart

The Kentucky Wildcats have reportedly fired head coach Mark Stoops. Here is what it means for Georgia Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart.

The 2025 college football regular season has officially come to a close as a handful of teams begin their offseason in preparation for next year's season. While some teams remain extremely optimistic about their future, there are a handful of programs that are calling for a change.

The SEC is one of the best examples of this, as more than a quarter of the teams within the conference are set to experience some form of a coaching change. The hirings, firings, and reshuffling of coaches have created vast amounts of drama for the sport.

The latest program to join in on the coaching drama is the Kentucky Wildcats, who have reportedly moved on from head coach Mark Stoops after the team's embarrassing loss to the Louisville Cardinals in week 14.

Stoops was the head coach from 2013-2025 and helped the team achieve impressive heights during his tenure. However, he was relieved of his duties following back-to-back losing seasons in 2024 and 2025.

While the news of Stoops' termination has the opportunity to create even more ripples throughout the college football coaching world, it has already affected one head coach in particular. That is, Georgia Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart.

How Mark Stoops' Firing Affects Georgia HC Kirby Smart

Kentucky’s Mark Stoops comes out on to the field before the game against Louisville in the Governor’s Cup. November 29, 2025 | Scott Utterback/Courier Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

With Stoops gone, Smart is now the longest-active head coach in the SEC, making him the "elder statesman" of the SEC Conference. Smart took over as the Bulldogs' head coach during the 2016 season and faced Stoops' Wildcats in each of the meetings. The Dawgs emerged victorious in all 10 contests.

Another way the news affects Smart is that it increases the possibility that he and his program will be forced to deal with poaching this offseason. Members of Bulldogs staff are frequently mentioned for promotions and the head coaching vacancy in Lexington could create an opportunity for Georgia staffer to take the job.

Georgia has already avoided a handful of poachings, as Arkansas, Florida, Auburn, Ole Miss, and LSU have all seemingly found their next head coaches. That said, there is still plenty of time this offseason for staff members to seek other opportunities.

While the Kentucky head coaching vacancy certainly has an opportunity to affect Georgia's staff, no official reports have been made regarding interviews for the position.