Kentucky is pursuing a member of the 1996 National Championship team to be the Wildcat's next head coach

Kentucky is after a former player to be the next head coach.

Mar 20, 2024; Omaha, NE, USA; Brigham Young Cougars head coach Mark Pope talks with the media / Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports

After Dan Hurley and Scott Drew both turned down Kentucky, Mitch Barnhart is still looking for someone to be the next head basketball coach for the Wildcats.

A name that has now popped up is current BYU head coach and former Wildcat player Mark Pope. He was a member of Kentucky's 1996 National Championship team under head coach Rick Pitino. He was teammates with Reed Sheppard's dad, Jeff, on this team.

Since his playing days are over, Pope has gotten into coaching and is currently the head basketball coach of BYU.

The Cougars finished the season with a 22-9 record, which secured Pope's team a six-seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Pope and the Cougars opened the NCAA Tournament with a loss to the #11 seed Duquesne 71-67 sending them home early just like the Wildcats.

We really hadn't heard Pope's name associated with this job until news broke from Jon Rothstein that he is a candidate for the job.

Big Blue Nation did not respond well to these reports as they don't feel Pope, who hasn't been a head coach very long, is ready to take on a job like Kentucky.

With Drew, Hurley, and Nate Oats out of the race, the names we thought we would hear were Billy Donovan and Bruce Pearl, yet we are hearing Pope has a shot at the job.

Pope very well could be a successful coach at his alma mater, where he won a National Championship, but if it doesn't go well, Barnhart will take a lot of the blame.