It’s a big week in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, where few things matter more than college basketball. John Calipari will return to Rupp Arena on Saturday for his first visit since he left the University of Kentucky to take over Arkansas. There figures to be plenty of emotion because Calipari coached the Wildcats for 15 seasons and won the 2012 NCAA championship.
Last week, Kentucky Sports Radio host Matt Jones spoke about Calipari while also taking issue with some of Seth Greenberg’s comments on ESPN about Wildcats fans. We recently caught up with Jones to understand more about fandom and why he was so upset.
Note: This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.
Awful Announcing: What kind of reception will Calipari get on Saturday?
Matt Jones: “In a large crowd, boos tend to be louder than cheers so you might hear some boos. I think Cal has supporters as well, but I think there will be a negative contingent that you’ll hear. I think it’ll probably be decidedly mixed. Fans are conflicted, honestly, about it.”
How did it all go wrong for Calipari?
“It’s a lot of things. One was they didn’t win as much. Since COVID, he won one SEC tournament game and one NCAA tournament game, and that’s it. That’s a lot of years to not be in contention. That was frustrating to people. I think people felt the teams were much more talented than their final result. And then, he became different in his later years. Things that a lot of fans found charming early on started to wear on them a little bit. I think he grew distant from the fan base. He became a lot more separated from them, maybe a little condescending to them. When you combine that with losing, that can make people think it’s time to move on.”
What does the media get wrong about Kentucky fans?
“I get frustrated with how the media covers Kentucky fans. They act like being passionate and sort of crazy is somehow a negative thing. Obviously, there are people who cross over and say things they shouldn’t. I think that’s true in every fan base. I think the online Kentucky basketball fan base is louder than every other basketball fan base so it makes it stick out. But my argument is always that if the media wants to have a job and wants people to care, well, nobody cares like Kentucky fans. Ask any college basketball writer: What story do they write that will get the most clicks? It’s anything about Kentucky. Kentucky and Duke in some ways drive the sport, even if they’re not good.
“So I don’t understand the criticism from media about Kentucky fans when honestly, Kentucky fans are a big part of the consumers of what they do. It’s a little hypocritical to go, ‘Oh, these crazy Kentucky fans. Now, let me write an article that gets them all to click on it, because they’re the articles that most people will read.'”
What does the media get right about Kentucky fans?
“Most of the media will acknowledge they’re the most passionate fan base in the sport. Some people in the media recognize what a cultural role (college) basketball has in Kentucky. It is the main sport in the state. Outside of Kansas, I’m not sure there’s another state (where) that’s true. A lot of people recognize it’s just a bigger deal here than it is anywhere else. It drives not only economics. It drives a lot of the confidence level of the state in some ways. Kentucky basketball keeps people in the state happy and together.”
What’s your relationship with Seth Greenberg now?
“We’ve always been friendly until recently. He gets very mad. Cal’s his friend. He doesn’t like criticism of Cal, and he takes up for him, which I understand. What I said on that show was correct. He gets frustrated and sends me text messages that are not always the nicest. I think that happens with other people, too. Seth’s a passionate guy. I don’t dislike Seth. Like a lot of people who were former coaches, former coaches will not criticize other coaches. They just won’t. There’s like a brotherhood.”
Can you elaborate more on your criticism of Greenberg?
“The last thing any Kentucky fan needs is someone who is not a Kentucky fan telling us what a real fan will do. There are fans who are pro-Calipari. There are fans who are anti-Calipari. There are fans who are somewhere in the middle. I think people will listen to anyone who is a Kentucky fan. But Seth or anyone that’s not a member of the fan base saying: ‘You’re a real Kentucky fan if you do this and you’re not if you do this.’ Where do you get off, man? You’re not one of us. You don’t get to say that. I don’t say ‘What makes you a real Celtics fan?’ I’m not a Celtics fan. So I think it’s ridiculous when announcers say that.”
Have you heard from Greenberg since?
“He was frustrated by those comments I said. I don’t want to get into specifics, but he was not pleased. Look, my job, so I do two things, right? I do KSR and then I do ESPN radio. When I’m on KSR, my job is to stand up and be a voice for Kentucky sports and fans. That’s what I do. As I said to Seth, ‘If you think I’m being like this, how do you think other people are? Because at least I know you, Seth.’ These other people get even more frustrated. He doesn’t like it. That’s OK.”
College Gameday is going to North Carolina vs. Duke instead of Arkansas vs. Kentucky. Do you see a conspiracy there?
“There are people who think that, but they’re wrong. When it comes to the whole conspiracy theory that ESPN doesn’t like Kentucky, that’s crazy. ESPN likes Duke and Kentucky because Duke and Kentucky drive the sport. And when North Carolina is a little better, they’re in there, too. And then Kansas. Those are the four. If Arkansas had been good, then maybe they would have come but Arkansas is 1-6 in the conference. Kentucky is good, but not excellent. They’re going to go to Carolina-Duke. I’m not surprised.”
How do Kentucky fans feel about Mark Pope?
“They love him. It helps a lot that he’s one of the Kentucky fan base. He’s done pretty much everything right off the court you could do. He’s kind of been all the things that I think Cal was lacking at the end. Cal was telling Kentucky fans basically, ‘Hey, don’t care as much as you do. Don’t get as into it. Pope is saying, ‘Get more into it.’ He is very good with the media. Towards the end, Cal wasn’t very good with the media.”
What do you hope Calipari says on Saturday in the postgame press conference?
“I suspect Cal will take the high road while he’s here. I will give him credit. I haven’t seen him say anything negative about Kentucky since he left, and he could have. I liked Cal for most of his time here and I think Cal is a good person. I would suspect it’s going to hurt him, the reaction he’s going to get. But I also think he did it to himself. Here’s what I also believe: in 10 years, he’ll walk in Rupp again, probably retired, and he’ll get the applause Rick Pitino did last year. It’s just going to take some time.”