• Kentucky basketball coach Mark Pope is comfortable with the high-pressure nature of his job.
• After a period of uncertainty, Pope has gained recruiting momentum from signing Milan Momcilovic and landing Ryan Hampton in the Class of 2027.

ROCK HILL, S.C. — Kentucky basketball coach Mark Pope sat with legs crossed in the foldout chairs overlooking two basketball courts at the NBPA Top 100 basketball camp last week.

His posture and newly grown beard gave off a relaxed and confident vibe that suggested he was in full summer mode, a look that belied all of the chaos that seemed to engulf his position not too long ago.

Pope has grown comfortable with it all. The highs from winning big games. The crushing feeling from failing to meet UK’s standard. The criticisms. The pats on the back.

However Pope’s tenure as Kentucky’s coach plays out, he’s not trying to satisfy popular opinion of how people think he should be operating. 

Pope’s going to do things at his pace. He has no time to be scared of being on the hot seat because, the way he sees it, his job performance has been dissected since he took the job in 2024.    

“It’s probably hard to understand from the outside, but, Kentucky is the hot seat,” Pope said.

If it’s not the most-dissected, most-watched, most-critiqued position in college basketball, it would have to be tied for first, because it certainly isn’t No. 2. 

When the contact period began at midnight on June 15, Erick Dampier Jr. wasn’t sure who was going to call. Kentucky had been at plenty of his games throughout the spring, and his father had his own battles on the court with Mark Pope back in the day.

“I was really excited. I didn’t really know what to expect,” Dampier told KSR on Monday. “At first, I thought I wasn’t going to get anything. Throughout the whole night, I didn’t get anything, but then I’ve been getting offers today.”

One of those offers was from Kentucky. It was head coach Mark Pope who made the call.

“When I found out it was Kentucky, I was like, yeah,” Dampier said. “I was excited.”

A History With Bigs

In Mark Pope’s two years at Kentucky so far, he’s shown that he can develop bigs. That’s been his pitch to Erick Dampier Jr. since the recruitment started.

“In the last three years, they’ve had three bigs to come out and go to the NBA before me,” Dampier said. “It’s Jayden Quaintance, Malachi Moreno, and Amari Williams. He said they were all passing bigs, and that I could be the next big here.”

During the Nike EYBL live period session in Memphis in May, Pope was at most of Dampier’s games. He got a good sense of who he is as a player.

“[Pope] said he liked my style of basketball, and he said I play relentlessly,” Dampier said. “He likes how I can pass the ball, play in transition, and dribble. That’s a really big thing for me. He says that could separate me and help me in the long run.”

A Busy Monday

Erick Dampier’s Monday got very busy with college coaches calling. He’s heard from the likes of USC, Florida State, and Louisville, among others.

“It’s exciting that all the work I’ve put in shows and is starting to pay off,” Dampier said. “It makes you feel good about yourself, and it makes you want to be better and work harder. It gives me motivation.”

Dampier said he’s looking for a program that wins. That’s his main focus.

“The main thing is a national championship. Everyone knows that. Everyone wants a national championship, but not everybody gets one,” Dampier said. “I want the best chance to get one. Every college has a good coach, so that’s irrelevant, but that too. Good chemistry. When I get there, I want it to be smooth. I don’t want to make a major change. I want it to feel like home.”

His dad has also provided advice throughout the process. Erick Dampier Sr. played at Mississippi State from 1993-96 before an NBA career spanning from 1996-2012.

“He’s told me just to be patient because this is the start of it,” Dampier said. “Basically, just keep going, be yourself, fight through adversity, and do the simple things. The simple things are what take you a long way.”

Erick Dampier Jr.’s Game

Madison-Ridgeland (Mississippi) Academy five-star center Erick Dampier Jr. is the nation’s No. 4 overall prospect according to the Rivals Industry Ranking, an equally weighted average that utilizes all three major recruiting services. Rivals ranks Dampier as the No. 2 center and the No. 4 overall player in the 2028 class.

“My greatest strengths are being able to play on both sides of the ball, offense and defense, being able to pass the ball, being a big defensive threat, and just being a threat on the court,” Dampier said.

Dampier doesn’t turn 17-years-old until October. He said he “probably won’t” reclass into 2027.

“A lot of people don’t know that I’m actually young for my class,” Dampier said. “A lot of people assume that if you’re good, you’re older because that’s what it usually is. I’m actually the right age. It’s probably that or the work I put in. I work a lot.”

LEXINGTON, KY.—The Railbird music festival returned to The Infield at Red Mile June 6 and 7, bringing more than 30 artists to the racetrack with headlining performances from Tyler Childers and The Lumineers, plus Zach Top, Ella Langley, Caamp, Mt. Joy, Sam Barber, Muscadine Bloodline, Stephen Wilson Jr., The Wallflowers, Margo Price, and more.

Named after the horse-racing enthusiasts who are known to hang on the rail that lines the track, this year’s edition of the music festival—the fourth at Lexington’s Red Mile Gaming and Racing—was its biggest yet, selling out Sunday with over 45,000 in attendance. The festival is produced by C3 Presents, a concert promotion and festival production subsidiary of Live Nation Entertainment.

On the final night of the festival, Kentucky native Childers was named the inaugural inductee to the new Railbird Festival Hall of Fame at Red Mile. Kentucky’s Governor, Andy Beshear, introduced the new honor via a pre-recorded message, while his senior advisor, Rocky Adkins, was on hand to present the acclamation to the Grammy Award-winning artist, ahead of his headlining performance.

^{Tyler Childers headlined day two of the festival. Photo: Andrew Sturgill/BizBash}

Established in partnership with Beshear and Red Mile, the acclamation will honor Kentucky-born artists who perform at the festival and have made lasting contributions to the Commonwealth’s musical legacy. An inductee will be named each year at the festival.

In another nod to the state’s culture, the festival’s unique two-day “Superfecta” ticket package—which was named after a horse-racing wager where you must correctly select the first, second, third, and fourth place finishers in the exact order—was designed for two attendees and featured exclusive on-stage viewing, front-of-stage viewing at all three stages, an invitation to a pre-show reception with a tour of the festival grounds, light bites and drinks, and access to all platinum, VIP, and GA+ amenities.

While the Kentucky event doesn’t boast as many brand activations as some other well-known music fests, the grounds hosted a handful of big names including Mountain Dew (which originally comes from neighboring state Tennessee) and White Claw.

Keep scrolling to see more from this year’s Railbird music festival…

^{This year’s edition of the music festival was its biggest yet, selling out Sunday with over 45,000 in attendance. Photo: Andrea Escobar Garcia, Railbird Festival}

^{Festivalgoers packed Red Mile to see Childers perform. Photo: Andrew Sturgill/BizBash}

^{There were nods to Kentucky culture, including bourbon barrels as tables, throughout the grounds. Photo: Andrew Sturgill/BizBash}

^{The Lumineers headlined night one of the festival. Photo: Andrew Sturgill/BizBash}

^{Stephen Wilson Jr. performed during the first day. Photo: Andrew Sturgill/BizBash}

The Bourbon Hideout Powered by VisitLEX

^{The Bourbon Hideout was a tucked-away, all-access space where attendees could sip on rare, new, and vintage pours from Justin’s House of Bourbon, score giveaways from the Lexington Sporting Club (the pro soccer club based in Lexington), shop local apparel from Kentucky for Kentucky, and snack on Mingua Brothers Jerky from Bluegrass Holler Provisions. Photo: Andrew Sturgill/BizBash}

Mountain Dew’s American Dew Outpost

^{At the Mountain Dew activation, attendees could sample the newly launched Dirty Mountain Dew and participate in a line-dancing challenge to win a Mountain Dew-branded Stetson. Photo: Andrew Sturgill/BizBash}

^{Fans could also customize merch or get their hats hot iron branded. Photo: Andrew Sturgill/BizBash}

^{Metal branding stamps in the shape of various icons were on display. Photo: Andrew Sturgill/BizBash}

White Claw Shore Club

^{White Claw brought its festival-friendly Shore Club activation to Railbird, where attendees could grab samples of the brand’s seltzers. Photo: Andrew Sturgill/BizBash}

^{There was also a customization station where fans could apply face gems. Photo: Andrew Sturgill/BizBash}

Montucky Cold Snacks’ Yeehaw Inn

^{At Montucky Cold Snacks’ activation, attendees were able to play “Drinko” to win exclusive merch. Photo: Andrew Sturgill/BizBash}

^{The colorful exterior of the lager brand’s space was designed to look like an inn, with a horse statue covered in faux greenery. Photo: Andrew Sturgill/BizBash}

^{Inside, the activation resembled a motel lobby with a check-in desk and wood paneling. Photo: Andrew Sturgill/BizBash}

Josh Cellars

^{Attendees were able to discover Josh Cellars’ lineup of crafted wines, including Seaswept and the new Seaswept Sparkling. Photo: Andrew Sturgill/BizBash}

^{Festivalgoers could pose inside a coastal-inspired photo booth with branded props. Photo: Andrew Sturgill/BizBash}

^{The reflective, bright red exterior of the activation created an eye-catching moment. Photo: Andrew Sturgill/BizBash}

BeatBox Honky Tonk

^{Festivalgoers could try out BeatBox’s new Coconut Breeze flavor and grab exclusive custom merch, including limited-edition bandanas, at the ready-to-drink brand’s activation. Photo: Andrew Sturgill/BizBash}

Yerba Madre

^{The ready‑to‑drink yerba mate brand was on site handing out product samples and swag. Photo: Andrew Sturgill/BizBash}

ZYN

^{Attendees lined up to get ZYN nicotine pouches at the brand’s activation. Photo: Andrew Sturgill/BizBash}