Yikes!

SRO Rupp arena for an introductory presser.
Didn't take long for them to buy all the way in.

Its probably going to be a relief that the credentials he has to prove are back to only being about the sport.

https://www.deseret.com/sports/2024/03/01/byu-basketball-mark-pope-quotes-faith/

Quote:

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. Mark Pope has been known for "keeping the faith," but over the past few days he's been sharing it nearly every chance he can.

Immediately after toppling No. 7 Kansas earlier this week arguably the best win of Pope's five-year BYU tenure the Cougars' head coach reflected on the principle of Sabbath day observance and how he views briefly resting from basketball preparation as a blessing.

" Sundays are pretty special for us," Pope told BYU radio broadcasters Greg Wrubell and Mark Durrant. "I'm believing more and more that our prep on Sunday is probably more important than our prep on Monday. It doesn't guarantee wins or losses, but I'm just a believer ... we're fortunate that we have these guidelines to follow."
. . .
Despite the differences in beliefs within the locker room, Pope feels that BYU's foundation of faith allows for Cougars of all spiritual backgrounds to be uplifted and strengthened throughout the grind of Big 12 competition.

"Clearly BYU is an institution that's all about faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and that permeates through everything we do," Pope told Wrubell during his weekly BYUtv appearance Thursday evening. "(Faith is) a place where we can all find peace, and our guys are finding some peace in our various faiths.
. . .
Pope said he has long viewed faith as a major aspect within athletics, with such an intersection creating "a beautiful thing" to observe as a coach.
. . .
Pope continued: "Certainly we're familiar with those concepts here, but on a larger scale, one of the beautiful things about BYU being in the Big 12 is that this university has a very clear mission. ... Athletics has a lot of purposes, one of them is to go win, and one is to give these young men an incredible opportunity to grow ...and certainly to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with the world."

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What is he holding in that pic of him getting off the bus? The natl champs trophy from when he was a player 30 years ago? That's almost as cringey as the uniform video

Tango.Mike said:

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What is he holding in that pic of him getting off the bus? The natl champs trophy from when he was a player 30 years ago? That's almost as cringey as the uniform video

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Yes, he was holding the 1996 National Title Trophy. He followed other members of the 1996 team off the bus holding their trophy. They are going to use the 1996 title magic to reclaim Kentucky basketball glory.

See, at this stage to excite the fanbase and help recruiting and so forth, it is very important to heavily emphasize that 1996 championship trophy to obfuscate the fact that they hired a guy who as a college coach has yet to actually win a single NCAA tournament game.

And he might do fine, even great, who knows. But that fanbase which is certainly amazing in size and passion, will start eating him alive - legacy 1996 champion player or not - if he doesn't at least make a Sweet Sixteen within the next 2 years.

This is just like them hiring BCG!!!

Pumpkinhead said:

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Tango.Mike said:

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What is he holding in that pic of him getting off the bus? The natl champs trophy from when he was a player 30 years ago? That's almost as cringey as the uniform video

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Yes, he was holding the 1996 National Title Trophy. He followed other members of the 1996 team off the bus holding their trophy. They are going to use the 1996 title magic to reclaim Kentucky basketball glory.

See, at this stage to excite the fanbase and help recruiting and so forth, it is very important to heavily emphasize that 1996 championship trophy to obfuscate the fact that they hired a guy who as a college coach has yet to actually win a single NCAA tournament game.

And he might do fine, even great, who knows. But that fanbase which is certainly amazing in size and passion, will start eating him alive - legacy 1996 champion player or not - if he doesn't at least make a Sweet Sixteen within the next 2 years.

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If they don't win the preseason NIT he might be fired by Xmas

greg.w.h said:

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This is just like them hiring BCG!!!

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BCG was a proven winner in March.

Vepp said:

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greg.w.h said:

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This is just like them hiring BCG!!!

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BCG was a proven winner in March.

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All 9 regulars on this board are eternally grateful for Gillispie resurrecting the A&M basketball program - and proving that someone could win here so other coaches could be recruited later - but "proven winner in March" is a little stretch. He's got exactly 3 tournament wins in his career