Citrus Bowl against Iowa conjures unique emotions for Kentucky, Mark Stoops

Mark Stoops isn’t sure how emotional the Wildcats’ matchup with Iowa in the Citrus Bowl will be.

Stoops’ father, Ron, was buried with the jersey that Mark wore while playing for the Iowa Hawkeyes. He and two of his brothers, Bob and Mike, played at and got their coaching careers kick-started with the Hawkeyes. Mark recalls playing in high school football games on Friday nights and then driving 10 hours overnight from Struthers, Ohio, to Iowa City, Iowa, to watch his brothers play.

“It’s hard to put into words what the Iowa program has meant to us,” Kentucky’s head coach said during a Sunday news conference.

The program that helped groom Stoops and two of his brothers into Power Five football coaches now stands between UK and its fourth season with 10 or more wins in school history. Kentucky won its final three games to finish 9-3 in the regular season and the No. 22 spot in the final College Football Playoff rankings. Iowa, the Big Ten championship runner-up, was 15th in those same rankings.

Kentucky made its Citrus Bowl debut just three seasons ago after finishing 9-3 in the 2018 season. The Wildcats toppled Penn State, 27-24, in that edition of the game. That win has since seemed to resonate with recruits, and another victory in front of a national television audience — the game will be broadcast by ABC — could yield similar value for a team trying to climb the ranks in the Southeastern Conference.

What might resonate more, though, is Stoops’ recent commitment to the school; he last week agreed to a contract extension through the, at least, the 2027 season, following a few weeks of speculation that saw his named linked to several prominent openings across the country.

“What does the University of Kentucky mean to me? It means everything to me,” Stoops said. “ ... It’s been a really good marriage between the University of Kentucky and myself. There’s ups and there’s downs, but it’s always that way.”

Contract details aren’t yet available, but reports surfaced prior to the announcement of Stoops’ extension that he was hoping UK would make progress on the development of a new indoor training facility and expand the salary pool for his assistant coaches.

“We’re working through it,” Stoops said of those items. “I’ve had a great relationship with Dr. (Eli) Capilouto and (Athletic Director) Mitch (Barnhart). I have a lot of trust in those guys and we talked about it prior to the agreement. I’m sure we’ll continue to work our way through it. It’s not like it’s just a simple answer on some things.”

Player perspectives

Two of the players who’ve contributed the most to UK’s recent ascension — offensive lineman Luke Fortner and linebacker DeAndre Square — had contrasting experiences the last time Kentucky went to Orlando. Fortner, then playing guard but now the Cats’ starting center, was sidelined due to an injury suffered during practice in the week before the game. Square made his first career start against Penn State and has since started in 34 of UK’s last 35 games.

He’d played a lot prior to this season, but Square took on a greater leadership role coming into the 2021 campaign. He’s among several seniors who could return for an additional year of eligibility under the NCAA’s COVID-19 waiver but has not yet decided what he’ll do.

“I’m glad that we get a chance to get back down into Orlando to play a bowl game,” said Square, a Detroit native. “It was fun being down there my freshman year, so to do it again my senior year, to come full circle? I think it’ll be pretty fun.”

Fortner described this opportunity as a “do-over” for him. The 6-foot-7 lineman could describe the entire 2021 season that way; he might have gotten selected late in the 2021 NFL Draft but, by demonstrating his effectiveness in a completely different role this year, his chances of making an NFL roster in 2022 improved drastically.

On a personal level, Fortner and UK’s other linemen will have an opportunity to showcase their talents in the same game as that of Iowa, consistently one of the nation’s best units and which boasts Tyler Linderbaum, the Big Ten Offensive Lineman of the Year. UK’s offensive line recently was named as a semifinalist for the Joe Moore Award, a distinction it earned for the fourth time in the last six years.

“I’ve watched their offensve line quite a bit,” Fortner said of Iowa. “They play hard, they’re a hard-nosed unit. ... I definitely think there’s gonna be some pride going into it. Their defense is doing really well and defending against the run this year, and they haven’t given up many points in each of their games. It’s definitely going to be a pride thing.”

Notes

▪ Stoops joked during his availability that he would break out film from his playing days at Iowa to lighten the mood during some of UK’s practices leading up to the Citrus Bowl.

“I was not very impressive as a player, that’s for sure,” Stoops said. “I loved my time there, did the best I could, and I’m not going to make any excuses, but back then when you tore up a knee, it was a little different than it is right now.”

Stoops earned a starting job his junior year. His father died during the same week he suffered that knee injury.

“I got back from my father’s funeral on Wednesday and I blew out my knee against Michigan on Saturday,” Stoops said.

▪ Square mentioned that Jon Sumrall, who was named the head coach at Troy University on Thursday night, will coach in the Citrus Bowl. Sumrall has been UK’s inside linebackers coach since 2019 and this season was also its co-defensive coordinator.

Citrus Bowl

No. 22 Kentucky vs. No. 15 Iowa

When: Jan. 1, 1 p.m.

Where: Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Fla.

TV: ABC-36

Records: Kentucky 9-3, Iowa 10-3

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