Stoops won't attend Governor's Cup Luncheon

LEXINGTON, Ky. — In a surprising break from tradition, University of Kentucky football coach Mark Stoops will not attend the Governor's Cup Luncheon on Wednesday in Louisville. The annual event, which promotes the Kentucky-Louisville rivalry, is typically attended by both the Wildcats' and Cardinals' head coach.

But the rivalry game has also been either the first or third game of the season in recent years and is now moving to the end of the season. This year's Kentucky-Louisville game won't be played until Nov. 29 at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium.

UK spokesman Tony Neely said Stoops "didn't see the wisdom" in taking almost an entire day out of a busy preseason schedule "to talk about a game that is now the last game of the season, almost four months away." With so much to do to prepare for fall camp, which opens in barely two weeks, "that was the thought process."

U of L spokesman Rocco Gasparro said Cards coach Bobby Petrino will attend but the traditional press conference featuring both coaches after lunch has been cancelled. Petrino will instead meet with local media in a small gathering.

"I don't know what the future of that thing holds, just because of the game being the last game of the year," Gasparro said, "but it's always an important event because of our relationship with Kroger."

The grocery chain is a primary sponsor of the event and makes a donation toward scholarships to both Kentucky and Louisville each year.

A second UK spokesman, Evan Crane, added that the Cats' coach not coming "should be nothing new to the organizers of the event; we told them months ago Stoops was not planning to attend." U of L officials were aware last week that Stoops wasn't going.

The website for the Dare to Care Food Bank — a charity that benefits from the various Governor's Cup fundraisers — still notes that "the head coaches" will be at Hurstbourne Country Club on Wednesday for a golf scramble, lunch and press conference. Special $8,500 sponsorships for the event remain on sale and include golf "paired with a head coach, athletic director or special celebrity." Kentucky athletic director Mitch Barnhart is on vacation this week and also will not attend, a spokesman said.

A phone call to the contact listed was not immediately returned.

Neely said Stoops will still be speaking at the Rotary Club in Lexington on Thursday and the Greater Louisville UK Alumni Club kickoff luncheon on Friday.

Kyle Tucker can be reached at (502) 582-4361. Follow him on Twitter @KyleTucker_CJ.