LEXINGTON — Those with any link to the Kentucky basketball program, be it a former player, coach or fan, recognized Sunday as a seminal moment: Mark Pope was officially introduced as the Wildcats‘ new coach, becoming the first former player to ascend to the role since Joe B. Hall succeeded the legendary Adolph Rupp in 1972.

Those emotions hit even harder with Jeff Sheppard.

One of Pope’s closest friends, Sheppard roomed with the new coach during their time as UK teammates in the 90s.

“When you watch a friend be given an opportunity like this, it’s touching,” Sheppard told The Courier Journal shortly after the ceremony Sunday evening at Rupp Arena. “It touches your heart. It moves you to see his family so committed and so proud of him.

“It’s a powerful moment as a teammate and as a friend.”

He was far from the only former Wildcat in attendance Sunday; numerous former players stepped off the bus that drove into the arena to an ear-shattering ovation to kick off the ceremony.

The Courier Journal caught up with Sheppard and three other former players — Derek Anderson, Rex Chapman and Richie Farmer — for their thoughts on Pope’s hire and what it means for the program’s future.

The following is a roundup of their quotes, edited for length and clarity.

Derek Anderson

On why he believes new Kentucky coach Mark Pope will be successful …

“Because he understands the assignment. That’s it. He understands: just win. If he has to make adjustments and say, ‘OK, I don’t have enough talent. I need more talent.’ (Or), ‘If I have to change up something, I’m going to change up. I’m not looking for just one situation.’ We’ve never worried about anything else except for today. It’s a precious, present moment and he knows that. Like we talked on the bus coming here, he’s like, ‘Guys, anything you can do to help me, make sure you let me know.’ That means he wants to grow. He’s not trying to be like, ‘I’m set.’ He wants to be better and that’s what you do to be a champion. You have to want to be better first. Mark understands that.

“I’m happy for him. I think he’s gonna do really well because he cares. Not about just little things here and there. He cares about the whole (program). So I think he’ll win because of that.”

Rex Chapman

On Mark Pope’s hire …

“It’s just perfect. I don’t know that we could have made a better hire, I really don’t. I know maybe some other guys were offered. I (joked with) Mark on the bus, I said, ‘Imagine what (UConn coach) Dan Hurley would have done in here.’ But no, he’s the perfect guy. He’s just the perfect guy to lead this program. He doesn’t drink. He doesn’t cuss. He’s grounded in his faith. He’s can handle a room. He’s a Rhodes Scholar, come on. It’s great.”

On how much the Kentucky basketball program needed a day like Sunday …

“It’s just different. Cal (former Kentucky coach John Calipari) did so much great stuff for this program, and nationally, we were always right at the front. But you have to remember, we also were with Tubby (Smith) and we also were with Rick (Pitino) and we also were with Eddie (Sutton) and Joe B. (Hall) and Adolph (Rupp). This program, like Mark said, it’s just different. You have to know that going in.

“We’ve had a couple of coaches come in here that have struggled because they didn’t really get the magnitude of this job. All the guys that have done a great job here understood the assignment and I don’t think we have anybody better that understands that assignment better than Mark.”

On how former UK players like himself can help the program going forward …

“(Pope) spoke of his group text with the ’96 guys. Those guys know what’s going on. They know what they’re watching and they will be in Mark’s ear about whatever they’re doing — good and bad. When Mark said he’s ‘got a little PTSD’ from Rick (Pitino), several of the guys tapped Richie (Farmer) on the shoulder and said, ‘You doing OK, Richie?’ Because he’s got PTSD. Look, it’s hard. It was hard playing for Rick. It’ll be hard playing for Mark, too. But it’ll be worth it, because they’re gonna win. And winning is what you’re here for.”

On what it means to have a former UK player and alum leading the program …

“I just think it’s different. I don’t know that it’s better or worse. It’s just different. … People remember Mark. I mean, it’s been 30 years, but those those teams in the 90s — my team, our teams, put this place on probation. It was at the (bottom). We damn near got the death penalty.

“And those teams Mark was a part of, they galvanized and righted the ship for what we have today. I think most of the people that were in here today know that.”

Richie Farmer

On why he believes new Kentucky coach Mark Pope will be successful …

“Well, I know where he came from. I know the coach that he played for. He talked about coach Pitino and what he meant. That was the same guy that I played for. And I know they’re gonna be a tough-nosed team, I know they’re gonna work hard every day and I know they’re gonna play defense. They’re gonna play hard and be tough. And his teams like to shoot a lot of 3-pointers. He talked about, ‘We don’t like to finish second in anything here at Kentucky.’ So I think they play a fun style. They score a lot of points. And he’s a very intelligent coach and a very intelligent person. He’ll surround himself with great coaches and people that are going to move us in the right direction. And that’s why I think he’ll be successful.”

On how much the Kentucky basketball program needed a day like Sunday …

“Oh, I think it was super huge for the program. With Cal, we wish him the best. But I think things had gotten a little stale. And there (were) a lot of people that just checked out. And I think the fan base was kind of — we were fractured. There (were) some people that wanted this and some people that wanted that. And I think what Mark Pope does is he brings everybody together. He’s that unifying force that can bring us all back together as the Big Blue Nation as one and that we can all move forward together.”

On what it means to have a former player and UK alum leading the program …

“I think any time that you play here and you get to experience what he did — winning the (national) championship and being part of a great team and seeing what the Big Blue Nation is like — he understands it as well as anybody: what this fan base is like and what it means here at Kentucky and what basketball means. So I think it means a great deal to have somebody that understands that.”

On his excitement when he learned Mark Pope would be Kentucky’s new coach …

“When I first heard it, I was kind of like everybody else. I was like, ‘Do what?’ Because I hadn’t even really heard his name. I hadn’t really thought about it that much. And then as I started to digest it and think about it, it just started to make a lot more sense. About 12 hours later I said, ‘You know what? That makes a lot of sense.’ I went from, ‘What?’ to now, ‘I’m all in. All of my chips are in.’ I think he’s gonna do great.”

Jeff Sheppard

On new Kentucky coach Mark Pope’s personality …

“What you see is what you get with Mark. Mark uses words like ‘Hard work, 24/7. Gratitude. Humility.’ All of those things, they’re not just words in Mark’s vocabulary. It’s how he lives his life. So he has the ability to then take that message and translate it over to coaches, to fans, to family, to former players, to his current players. That’s going to be special to watch.

“There are going to be a lot of words spoken between now and the first game — and that’s great. It’s what makes Kentucky basketball so fun. We love to talk about it and everything. But Mark knows — as he said so (well) in the beginning, he ‘understands the assignment.’ He has work to do. He knows he has work to do. But it’s what he lives for. He lives for hard work. He enjoys it.”

On whether he ever foresaw Mark Pope going into coaching …

“You give us too much credit as players. We’re not thinking about anything when we’re players and we’re college students — and neither did you. You can’t ask me, ‘What did I think when I was a college student?’ What did you think when you were a college student that you were gonna be doing at 50? Nobody operates that way. But, when you look back on it now and you put the pieces together, you say, ‘Well, this is how Mark worked. This is how Mark treated us as teammates. This is how he treated fans when he was a player. This is how he responded to (then Kentucky) coach (Rick Pitino) when he was yelled at.’ This is how he did all of these aspects. You’re like, ‘That adds up. That adds up. That adds up. That adds up.’ Now it makes sense.

“Now he’s a leader in a different role. He’s always been a leader. And he always leads by example. He’s always been wonderful being able to communicate, connect, draw people in with phenomenal passion, with phenomenal personal work. What I love about Mark is, he gets in the trenches with you. As soon as I was pulling in, I was hearing reports he was out with the fans. And I was like, ‘Yeah, that’s Mark. That’s exactly who he is.’ If it wouldn’t have caused a mob scene, he would have (run) up into the stands. And so Mark Pope is just being Mark Pope. I’m excited to be linked, arm in arm with him, to figure out this next part of the journey.”

Reach Kentucky men’s basketball and football reporter Ryan Black at rblack@gannett.com and follow him on X at @RyanABlack.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Kentucky basketball coach Mark Pope has support of former UK players