The Zeitgeist List · coaching

Joker Phillips

Followed Rich Brooks. Joker Phillips held Kentucky at National Program III for 3 seasons.

13–24
2010–2012 · 1 stint
Kentucky
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Career arc

His real stature score, season by season, across every program he’s coached — so a stretch that stays in one tier the whole way can still climb or sink on the line, not just flatten out. Node color marks the tier reached. Which program a stretch belongs to is carried by the shaded lane behind it.

Stature score reached, by season of his head-coaching careerKENTUCKYNational Programrespectable, streakyRegional Programthe building-block levelKentucky, 2010: 6-7, National Program III2010Kentucky, 2011: 5-7, National Program III2011Kentucky, 2012: 2-10, Regional Program I2012-4.9One point per coached season, in career order; dashed segments are program changes — spacing is not proportional to calendar time

Reached National Program in his 1st career season — faster than 41% of the 675 FBS coaches who have ever reached National Program (rank #1 of 675 by seasons-to-arrival).

Kentucky, 3 seasons
−4.9
National Program III → Regional Program I.

The big-game ledger

How he does in the games that matter most — rivalry record, performance broken out by real opponent tier, one-score games, and his toughest historical matchup.

2–3 against his rivals. Winless in 3 tries against Dan Mullen.

Rivalry record
2–3
40.0% · 2 rivals
One-score games
3–6
33.3% · margin ≤8
vs. Blue Blood or better
0–5
0.0%
Rivalry ledger
Louisville1–233%
Tennessee1–150%
The toughest matchup
vs. Dan Mullen0–3
3 meetings, 2010–2012
’10 L’11 L’12 L
0% win rate across a real, 3-meeting series — short of the bar this site uses before badging a series “Nemesis.” Shown here as the toughest matchup on record, not an algorithmic crown.
Performance by opponent class
Blue Blood
0–5 0.0%
Power Program
1–8 11.1%
National Program
3–6 33.3%
Regional Program
6–3 66.7%

Coaching career

2010–2012
Kentuckycaretaker
National Program III → National Program III
Joker Phillips held Kentucky at National Program III for 3 seasons.

9th-best Kentucky tenure of 16 by the numbers.

Followed Rich Brooks (2003–2009) · succeeded by Mark Stoops (2013–2025).

Where the roster comes from, by position
Grows Tight end from high school
100%
#164 of 188 stints
Grows Edge from high school
100%
#191 of 208 stints

7 NFL Draft picks: Corey Peters (2010), Trevard Lindley (2010), John Conner (2010), Randall Cobb (2011), Winston Guy (2012), Danny Trevathan (2012), Larry Warford (2013)

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