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Certain schools have a clear advantage in the NIL game, one that college football seemed to insinuate this week.
Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops was pretty blunt after his Wildcats were rocked by No. 1 Georgia over the weekend, saying Georgia's pockets have helped them in recruiting.
In his weekly radio show on Monday, Stoops was talking with an upset fan while discussing their 51-13 loss to the Bulldogs when Stoops seemed to take a shot at the Georgia program – and his own fan base.
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Head coach Mark Stoops of the Kentucky Wildcats looks on during the second half against the Missouri Tigers at Faurot Field/Memorial Stadium on November 5, 2022, in Columbia, Missouri. (Jay Biggerstaff/Getty Images)
"I just encourage them (the fans) to donate more because that’s what those dudes are doing. I can promise you, Georgia, they bought some pretty good players. You’re allowed to these days," Stoops said.
"We could use some help," he continued. "That’s what they look like, you know what I mean, when you have 85 of them. I encourage anybody that’s disgruntled to pony up some more."
Some Kentucky fans didn't take kindly to the comments, but Stoops, who said his comments were "taken completely out of context," reminded his supporters that he is thankful for any donation the university gets, whether they donate "one cent, one dollar or a lot of money."
At the end of the day, he says he had good intentions for his program with regard to the comments.
Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops looks on in the first half against South Carolina, September 25, 2021, at Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia, South Carolina. (AP Photo/Hakim Wright Sr.)
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"Really, just simply trying to rally people and in a way to move the needle," he said. "Listen, I didn’t ask for this. [Georgia head coach) Kirby [Smart] didn’t ask for this. It’s the way of the world. And you want to move the needle, that’s one way to do it."
Smart was made aware of the comments, but he said they were "much to do about nothing" and understood Stoops' point of view.
"I think Mark is trying to garner interest for money from his fan base for his collective, and we're all trying to do the same in terms of trying to get money for the collective," Smart said. "Mark and I talked about NIL pregame, and we talked about it in our meeting. I'm not biting on that."
University of Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops is shown during the game against the University of Georgia at Sanford Stadium on October 7, 2023, in Athens, Georgia. (Perry McIntyre/ISI Photos/Getty Images)
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The defending back-to-back national champions improved to 6-0 with the win while Kentucky suffered its first loss of the year after winning five straight to start the season.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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