Phillips to succeed Brooks at Kentucky
editor1 |Jan 19,2008
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LEXINGTON, Kentucky (Ticker) -- Joker Phillips ultimately will
replace Rich Brooks at Kentucky.
The Wildcats' current offensive coordinator, Phillips was named
as the eventual successor to Brooks, who received a contract
extension as Kentucky's head coach Friday.
Phillips has spent the last three years at Kentucky and served
as the architect of a Wildcats offense which scored a
school-record 475 points in 13 games this past season.
A Kentucky graduate, Phillips also has served as an assistant at
South Carolina, Cincinnati, Notre Dame and Minnesota.
"With the landscape of college football changing from
year-to-year, the decision to name Joker Phillips the next head
coach at the University of Kentucky provides continuity and
consistency for current and future players," athletic director
Mitch Barnhart said. "Continuity and consistency will be a
competitive advantage for UK going forward, an advantage our
program has not enjoyed very often during its history."
Brooks, 66, has not set a timetable for his retirement and is
under contract through the 2011 season courtesy of his new
extension, which will pay him $1.6 million annually.
Kentucky went 8-5 this past season under Brooks, who guided the
Wildcats to a 3-5 mark in Southeastern Conference play and
coached them to a 35-28 victory over Florida State in the Music
City Bowl.
"The University of Kentucky is very appreciative of the
steadfast effort and plan that Rich has put into place to allow
us to have back-to-back bowl victories for the first time in
more than half a century," Barnhart said. "He is providing this
program with the continuity and consistency that has enabled us
to compete in the most difficult football league in America."
Brooks owns a 25-35 record in five seasons at Kentucky and is
116-144-4 overall in 23 seasons of college coaching.
The Wildcats were wildly successful this past season thanks to
the leadership of quarterback Andre' Woodson, who orchestrated a
Kentucky offense which averaged 443.4 yards of total offense.
Kentucky has gone 8-5 each of the last two seasons under Brooks,
marking the first time the school has posted back-to-back
winning records since 1951-1952.
"The success that we have enjoyed over the last two seasons and
his leadership of the young men in the program make him very
deserving of this new agreement," Barnhart said. "He has
restored integrity and stability to a program that was facing
monumental challenges when he arrived."
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