University of Kentucky Coach Mark Stoops is one of 18 semifinalists for the annual George Munger Collegiate Coach of the Year Award, announced Wednesday by Mark Dianno, President of the Maxwell Football Club.
Stoops has led Kentucky to an 8-3 record this season and the team’s first national rankings (currently No. 17 Associated Press, No. 18 Coaches, No. 15 College Football Playoff) since the 2007 season. It is UK’s best 11-game record in 34 years, since the 1984 team went 8-3 in the regular season. If the Wildcats can win the regular-season finale on Saturday, UK would have its best regular-season mark in 41 years, since the 1977 team went 10-1.
Kentucky went 5-3 in the Southeastern Conference, the team’s first winning league record since 1977. UK tied for second in the SEC Eastern Division, matching Stoops’ 2016 team as the highest Wildcat finish since the league split into divisions in 1992.
UK was the Reveal Suits National Team of the Week, as selected by the Football Writers Association of America, following the 27-16 win at then-No. 25 Florida that ended the 31-game losing streak vs. the Gators. Additional highlights have included a win over No. 14 Mississippi State, a fifth straight win over South Carolina and fourth consecutive victories over Vanderbilt and Missouri. Non-conference play has been highlighted by a victory over Middle Tennessee, which leads the Conference USA East Division.
All semifinalists are listed in alphabetical order with the coach’s school designated.
2018 George Munger Collegiate Coach of the Year Semi-Finalists
| Dino | Babers | Syracuse University |
| Bill | Clark | University of Alabama Birmingham |
| Butch | Davis | Florida International University |
| Luke | Fickell | University of Cincinnati |
| Jim | Harbaugh | University of Michigan |
| Josh | Heupel | University of Central Florida |
| Brian | Kelly | University of Notre Dame |
| Mike | Leach | Washington State University |
| Lance | Leipold | University of Buffalo |
| Jeff | Monken | United States Military Academy |
| Ed | Orgeron | Louisiana State University |
| Lincoln | Riley | University of Oklahoma |
| Nick | Saban | University of Alabama |
| Kirby | Smart | University of Georgia |
| Mark | Stoops | University of Kentucky |
| Dabo | Swinney | Clemson University |
| Matt | Wells | Utah State University |
| Kyle | Whittingham | University of Utah |
Semifinalist voting for the Maxwell Football Club Collegiate Coach of the Year award will begin on Monday Nov. 26th and close on Monday, Dec. 10th. The finalist round will include the top three coaches as selected in the semifinalist round. Finalist voting will open Dec. 11th and run until Dec. 27th. The winner will be announced Dec. 28th.
The formal presentation of the George Munger Collegiate Coach of the Year Award will take place at the Maxwell Football Club’s National Awards Gala on Friday, March 8, 2019 at the Tropicana Resort in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
Eligible voters include Maxwell Football Club members, NCAA Head Football Coaches, Sports Information Directors and selected national media. Kirby Smart of the University of Georgia was the 2017 winner of the award.
For more information on the Kentucky football team, follow @UKFootball on Twitter and Instagram, or like Kentucky Football on Facebook.
‑ GO CATS –
For more information contact:
Susan Lax