Kentucky guard Collin Chandler sounds off on his belief in Coach Mark Pope

Collin Chandler believes in Mark Pope and has for a long time.

Nov 9, 2024; Lexington, Kentucky, USA; Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Pope fives guard Collin Chandler (5) after the game against the Bucknell Bison at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-Imagn Images | Jordan Prather-Imagn Images

There was a lot of hype surrounding the 2025-26 Kentucky basketball team, and if we are being honest, this team didn’t live up to that hype. The Wildcats made the NCAA Tournament as a seven-seed and lost in the Round of 32 to the Iowa State Cyclones on Sunday to end the season.

The Wildcats also played on Wednesday in the SEC Tournament for the first time in program history, which frustrated fans, but the Wildcats did make a run to win two games in Nashville. There was all of the preseason talk about how much the roster cost and how good the Wildcats were, but Pope's team fell flat.

Injuries played a role in the struggles for the Wildcats this season, but Coach Pope also made some decisions that fans didn’t agree with. A chunk of the fan base has lost faith in Coach Pope, whether that is fair or not.

Mar 22, 2026; St. Louis, MO, USA; Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Pope speaks during the postgame press conference after the game against the Iowa State Cyclones during a second round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Enterprise Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Le-Imagn Images | Jeff Le-Imagn Images

After the loss to Iowa State, the media asked Collin Chandler about his thoughts on Coach Pope, and fans will love to hear what the sophomore guard had to say. Here is what Chandler had to say about Coach Pope after the Wildcats lost to Iowa State: “I’ve believed in Coach Pope since I was 15 years old. I know what he can do, what he can be. The type of person he is. A type of person like that finds success. I’m riding with Coach Pope.”

Coach Pope recruited Chandler to BYU before he took the Kentucky job, so as the sharpshooter said, he and Pope have had a relationship for a very long time. It is awesome to hear how much Chandler believes in Coach Pope and how close these two seem to be.

Mar 20, 2026; St. Louis, MO, USA; Kentucky Wildcats guard Collin Chandler (5) shoots a three point shot against the Santa Clara Broncos during the second half of a first round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Enterprise Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

This season is going to be very important for Coach Pope as he will need to put up a ton of wins and go on a deep run in March. If he doesn’t do these two things, the part of the fan base that wants Pope out will get even louder.

Chandler is going to be a very important part of next year's team, as the hope is that he will make a jump from year two to year three and become a 15 points per game scorer. These remarks from Chandler make it feel pretty safe that he will be back in Lexington for the 2026-27 season. Chandler is going to be a special player next year for Pope and the Wildcats.