Mark Stoops Coaching History & Bio

Mark Stoops Teams Coached	Years Coached	Mark Stoops Coaching Record
Kentucky	2013-Present	77-73 (36-62 SEC)

• 1990-91: Iowa — Graduate assistant
• 1992-95: Nordonia HS — Defensive backs coach
• 1996: South Florida — Defensive backs coach
• 1997-99: Wyoming — Defensive backs coach
• 2000: Houston — Co-defensive coordinator/safeties coach
• 2001-03: Miami (FL) — Defensive backs coach
• 2004-09: Arizona — Defensive coordinator/defensive backs coach
• 2010-12: Florida State — Defensive coordinator/defensive backs coach
• 2013-present: Kentucky — Head coach

Mark Stoops Coaching History

Mark Stoops, a member of one of the top football families in America, has built Kentucky into a program that has seen the Wildcats enjoy success not seen in decades, if ever.

A native of a blue-collar community in Youngstown, Ohio, Stoops has methodically built UK into a perennial dark-horse contender in the SEC East thanks to a steady work ethic and strong recruiting, particularly with relationships in Ohio.

Stoops is often cited as one of the best program builders in college football.

He inherited a program that was 2-10 the year before, and 2 games into the 2016 season, his overall record was 12-26. But the program took off from there and the coach has engineered a 61-38 mark since.

Stoops coached UK to several historic accomplishments. That includes 4-straight bowl wins – the Citrus Bowl on Jan. 1, 2022, the 2020 Gator Bowl, the 2019 Belk Bowl and the Citrus Bowl on Jan. 1, 2019. It was first time in school history that UK won 4-straight bowl games.

The Wildcats also put together a school-record 20-game win streak against non-conference competition, which was the longest streak at the time (2018-23).

With Stoops at the helm, the Big Blue Nation has reason to feel the program is in capable hands, and the foundation is secure as he has enjoyed the most sustained run of success in school history.

Other accomplishments include:

• First win at Tennessee since 1984 (2019)
• First New Year’s Day Bowl win since 1951 (2018 season)
• First 10-win season since 1977 (2018)
• First SEC Coach of the Year since 1983 (2018)
• First final poll ranking since 1984 (2018)
• First bowl win since 2008 (2018)
• First win vs. Florida since 1986 (2018)

Along with brothers Bob and Mike, Stoops played in the secondary at Iowa for Hall of Fame coach Hayden Fry, while the eldest Stoops brother, Ron Jr., is retired after he coached at Youngstown State.

Stoops has recruited and developed numerous notable defensive backs, including Mike Edwards, Brandin Echols, Lonnie Johnson Jr., Kelvin Joseph and Chris Westry at Kentucky, Antoine Cason and Michael Johnson at Arizona, Miami’s Philip Buchanon, Kelly Jennings, Brandon Meriweather, Ed Reed, Antrel Rolle, Mike Rumph and Sean Taylor and Wyoming’s Brian Lee.

Stoops was already Kentucky’s longest-tenured coach, but in September 2022 surpassed Paul “Bear” Bryant as its career wins leader with his 61st in a victory over Florida.

Stoops was Florida State’s defensive coordinator from 2010-12 before he landed the Kentucky job. Stoops inherited a defense ranked 108th in the nation in total defense and by the 2012 season, the Seminoles were second in the nation in total defense, allowing 254.1 yards per game, and sixth nationally in scoring defense at 14.7 points per game. FSU led the ACC in 7 defensive categories.

Stoops was defensive coordinator and DBs coach at Arizona from 2004-09, where he worked with his brother, Mike, who was head coach of the Wildcats. Similar to FSU, Stoops inherited an Arizona unit that was 109th in the nation in total defense and 107th in scoring defense in 2003 — the year before he arrived. By the end of his tenure at Arizona, the Wildcats had a top-25 defense his final two seasons and ranked as high as 33rd in scoring defense.

Stoops was also the defensive backs coach at Miami for 3 years, including the 2001 national championship season when the Hurricanes led the nation in pass efficiency defense, scoring defense and turnover margin.

FAQs About Mark Stoops

What is Mark Stoops' Salary?

Stoops earns $400,000 in base salary and $8.6 million in supplemental income, bringing his total compensation package to $9 million annually. He also has a number of performance incentives, including a $150,000 bonus for winning 8 games in a season and another $100,000 for reaching bowl eligibility.

What is the Length of Mark Stoops' Contract?

Stoops signed a 3-year extension in November 2022 that keeps him under contract with Kentucky through 2031. While the extension included a raise in pay, it eliminated the clause that provided for an automatic 1-year extension if the Wildcats win at least 7 games and by 2 years for a 10-win season.

What is Mark Stoops' Buyout?

Stoops’ buyout is $4.5 million if he’s let got in 2025. That number decreases by $500,000 for every year he remains as Kentucky’s coach.

Is Mark Stoops the Winningest Coach in Kentucky History?

Stoops earned his 61st win with the Wildcats by beating Florida 26-16 on Sept. 11, 2022, surpassing the legendary Paul “Bear” Bryant as the winningest coach in school history. Stoops has since won 10 more games, to improve his victory total to 77.

Is Mark Stoops the Longest-Tenured Coach in the SEC?

When Nick Saban retired from Alabama following the 2023 season, Stoops became the longest-tenured coach in the SEC. His first season at Kentucky was 2013, 3 years before the next-longest tenured coach, Kirby Smart, arrived at Georgia.

Does Mark Stoops Come From a Family of Coaches?

Stoops is the younger brother of former Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops and former Arizona coach and Mike Stoops, who is currently a member of the staff at Kentucky. The oldest brother, Ron Stoops Jr., was a long-time high school coach in Ohio who spent time as an assistant coach at Youngstown State.