Were we surprised when Rich Brooks said in the post-game press conference that he had told his team he was 80 percent sure he would not return as Kentucky’s head coach for the 2010 season?
Yes, and no.
Yes, because we didn’t think that the announcement would come after the game. Although, a few of us in the press box wondered aloud that if Brooks was going to tell his team, when would it be? The team returns home after the game, and won’t be back on campus, in full, until classes start in two weeks.
No, because the feeling (at least by me) had been growing that this is where we were headed. I still think that in his heart, Rich would like to continue coaching. But I think his head tells him it’s time to step aside for a variety of reasons. He has a successor in place in Joker Phillips. He has the program on solid footing. This is a much, much better football program than the one he inherited seven years ago. There is continuity now, and a sense of purpose and direction.
But I also think he has grown a bit frustrated that the team did not take a longer step foward this season, and frustrated with some of the inner battles that go on inside an athletics department — battles over improvements, funding, facilities, upgrades, etc.
C.M. Newton told me that he knew it was time to get out of coaching when the little things started bothering you so much they became big things. And I wonder if that isn’t the case with Rich. He was obviously disappointed with the loss to Clemson tonight, and described the season as having “a lot of disappointment,” as well.
Is there a chance he could change his mind? Possibly. But I doubt it. Brooks said he had thought a lot about it over the past week, but I think he’s thought about it a lot longer than that. He sort of hinted around before the season started, when he let it know that he didn’t think he would follow through on his goal to be Kentucky’s longest tenured coach. I think had Kentucky beaten Tennessee, he would be firm in his decision to walk away. I still think there’s a bit of a hangover from that defeat, some regret that he couldn’t break that streak — after he has so broken so many others here.
I know, at least a faction of the fan base is down on Brooks, and Phillips, for the offensive performance, especially with the play-calling, etc. That’s the way of the world these days. Blame the coordinator. Blame the play-calling. To me, that problem has had to do more with a starting over on the offensive side after the losses of Andre Woodson, Keenan Burton, Jacob Tamme, Rafael Little, etc., rather than a seamless transition. The great programs re-loaded. The good one re-build.
Kentucky is now a good program, and you couldn’t say that when Brooks arrived. I was critical of the hire, mainly because of the continuing lack of cohesion that came in letting Guy Morriss walk after a 7-5 season, but also because I wondered if Brooks could connect with college players after such a long absence from the college game. I was wrong. He could connect. And he gave this program a much, much-needed shot of consistency and continuity. He wasn’t a quick fix for the short-term, he was a methodical fix for the long-term. That’s a much better fix.
Why would he tell us, in response to a question, that he is “80 percent” sure?
Because that was an honest answer. That’s how he feels. And Rich Brooks is an honest guy. It sums him up.
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