Rich Brooks Stepping Down as Kentucky Head Coach

In a move that surprised virtually no one, Kentucky head coach Rich Brooks stepped down today.

A former National Coach of the Year at Oregon, Brooks took over the fledgling Kentucky program in 2003. After experiencing limited success under head coaches Hal Mumme and Guy Morris in the late 90s/early 00s, the Wildcats found themselves on probation in ’03.

A perennial SEC East doormat, Kentucky struggled in Brooks’ first three seasons on the job. However, the Wildcats seemingly turned things around beginning in 2006 with a trip to the Music City Bowl where it defeated Clemson.

It was the first of four straight bowl appearances for Kentucky—a previously unprecedented accomplishment for the Wildcats. The three straight bowl wins from ’06-’08 was also the first streak of its kind for Kentucky football.

Brooks had his best season at Kentucky in ’07 when the Wildcats shot up to a No. 8 AP ranking at one point and finished 8-5 with a Music City Bowl win over Florida State.

Kentucky’s biggest win under Brooks came that season when the Wildcats defeated then-No. 1 and eventual national champion LSU in what many believe was the SEC’s Game of the Year.

Kentucky fans, however, would have traded that one for a win over Tennessee during Brooks’ tenure.

The Wildcats came close to defeating the Vols a few times with Brooks on the sideline. The closest of that series came in the ’07 finale in Lexington when Kentucky stormed back to send the game into overtime.

Kentucky actually lined up for the game-winning field goal which ended up being blocked by defensive lineman, Dan Williams. Tennessee won in four overtimes, clinching the SEC East on Kentucky’s home field. It was the 23rd straight Tennessee victory over the Wildcats. The Vols also won in ’08 and ’09 to push the streak to 25 straight, the longest current streak over a team in FBS football.

The move is at least two seasons in the making as offensive coordinator Joker Phillips was tagged with the infamous head coach-in-waiting moniker before the ’08 season started.

No one can argue that the program Phillips is inheriting is in much better shape than the one Brooks took over seven years ago.