Mark Pope wore No. 44 at Newport High School in Bellevue. As the Pac-10 Freshman of the Year and a two-year standout at Washington, he wore No. 32. His move to Lexington as a Wildcat started his days wearing No. 41 — along with two future NBA stops in Milwaukee and Denver. He’s sported four other […]
Mark Pope wore No. 44 at Newport High School in Bellevue. As the Pac-10 Freshman of the Year and a two-year standout at Washington, he wore No. 32. His move to Lexington as a Wildcat started his days wearing No. 41 — along with two future NBA stops in Milwaukee and Denver.
He’s sported four other numbers in high school, college or the pros, but there is only one he’s known for. And that’s exactly the way he wants it.
Why? What led him to choose No. 41 at Kentucky, the number he wanted associated with him as the captain of the 1996 national championship team?
“Do we have 27 seconds for me to preach?” he told Matt Norlander of CBS Sports.
For starters, it’s a number that is synonymous with optimism and joy. Those are traits he’d like to embody every morning he gets out of bed.
“Okay, so Pete Carroll — my good friend, Darrell Bevell, he was the offensive coordinator for Pete Carroll for a long time. He talked about Pete Carroll just having this attitude that there was always something great just around the corner, just keep going, right?” Pope said. “I’m really — I’m a super faithful person, so I believe that there’s joy in the morning. I just believe that’s the gospel.”
The number is biblical, an overwhelming overlap in some of the greatest stories of resilience. The most hopeless or desperate 40s have become the most fulfilling 41s, as Pope explains it. It’s about patience and seeing things through with positivity always finding a way to shine.
“I’m telling you, what’s cool about 41 is that when Noah was stuck in the flood, it rained for 40 days. On the 41st day, the rain stopped. When the children of Israel were lost and abandoned and wandering in the wilderness, they wandered for 40 years. On the 41st year, they entered the promised land. When Jesus fasted, He fasted for 40 days. On the 41st day, He began his ministry. Then when He came back after his resurrection, He was on the earth for 40 days. And then on the 41st day, He got to go back to his Father.”
Interestingly enough, the Wildcats defeated Wright State 103-62 in Pope’s first game as the head coach at Kentucky — 41 points. The first NBA Draft selection of his career? Koby Brea, picked No. 41 overall by the Phoenix Suns in 2025.
Everywhere you look, “41 pops up over and over,” he explained.
That’s not a coincidence.
“41, to me, is like a deep, deep, meaningful number,” Pope said. “It’s joy in the morning, and we just have to hang in there. When you get to 40, don’t quit, man. Get to 41. I love the number, it means a lot to me.”
Category: General Sports
