Comments from those checking in on last night’s liveblog after, in his halftime interview with ESPN’s Jeannine Edwards, Billy Gillispie showed that chivalry is dead:
- I have no words. We have Elmer Fudd for a basketball coach.
- Has this turned into a play school-type crush where the boy is mean and aloof to the girl because he really likes her?
- Wedding Bells are Ringing, BCG and Jeannie Edwards to marry!
- These half time interviews may be dumb and coach may have other things on his mind…BUT he is an ambassador for the university and the state and he should act the part in my opinion…
- Was that Billy G or Bobby Knight??
- BCG reminds me on Rainman during an interview
- honest to God, BCG is a jerk to Edwards. no excuse for being a jerk
- I didn’t hear your question…are you serious Billy?
- He comes off being very unintelligent in those interviews.
- that was hilarious!!!
At Ole Miss (I was there), he tried hard to avoid her before the interview started and I don’t blame him. We were not playing well.
My thought is that he is trying to cause her and others to want to interview the other coach.
Seriously, does he owe it to ESPN to give them comments about the game at halftime? I think it is a waste of time and I bet all coaches do.
Why do we always try to find something bad about the guy? We won the game and we talk about how Gillispie performed in his 20-second halftime interview. Who cares?
I think he has done a fine job (aside from about three 20-second incidents) of being an ambassador for the university. His job is to coach and win games not impress people with his fine speaking skills and halftime interviews.
He tried real hard to avoid her at Tennessee, as well. That one happened right in front of me.
This question was more dumb than the one at Ole Miss.
John, Have you found video of this one?
Come on, people, we all know the truth. Billy keeps telling her he can’t hear her so she will stand closer to him. Soon they’ll be making out on national television!
Acting like an idiot and the resulting publicity from it is NOT the way to get out of doing more interviews. A couple of his “Aw shucks” and Opie grins with a few cliches mixed in and ESPN would rather interview the mascot. Everytime he acts like a jerk, it just means they go right to him at halftime of the next game to see what he does next.
Personally, I find it funny but if he’s trying to avoid interviews then he’s doing a pretty poor job of it.
How exactly is it funny?
How is it funny?
I think it’s funny because you don’t often see things like that. Everyone knows coaches don’t want to do these interviews in the middle of a game, and, therefore, their responses are totally fake. At least he’s being real.
But seriously, John, you have to agree that the question about “the vision of Nick Calathes” was pretty stupid. Where is Erin Andrews when you need her?
Media people don’t tend to find it funny when their dopey questions don’t get answered, or even worse belittled. You may think her questions are valid, but you are operating under the assumption that her even being there is important. Many people think sideline reporting in and of itself is just obnoxious drivel, just like the coaches do. So it is funny when a coach gives them some grief, though you may not think so.
Media types like to think that THEY are the reason people tune in, and that all that high production and over-analysis and sideline reporting actually adds something to the sporting event. NO ONE CARES. We just want to watch the game.
That’s how it is funny. It doesn’t mean he’s not a jerk, but it doesn’t validate you guys thinking you are above being picked on some either.
Chris
I think it’s funny on 2 fronts:
1. It’s just hilarious how bad of a spontaneous interviewee Billy G. is. And he’s consistently bad at it. It makes me laugh. And I’m not mad about it. It’s just the reality of Billy. I do wish he had a nicer way of saying what he says.
2. The questions asked are usually not that great and too specific in the heat of the moment. So often the QUESTIONS make me laugh. I actually agree with him that it seemed “obvious she knew more about it.” Her question was prefaced by a statement of “here is what I know your game plan was” before she went to “how effective were you.” I was wondering how she knew his gameplan, and I believe Billy was too. She can avoid his uncouthness next time if she’s simply ask, “How do you feel about the way your team played during the first half?” Keep it simple, and let HIM tell you what his gameplan is.
Why do people keep saying that Ms. Edwards is asking dumb questions? They aren’t dumb questions. We lost at Ole Miss because they played lockdown defense on Jodie, and her question at halftime was how Gillispie planned on getting Meeks (our leading scorer) more involved offensively after scoring only 6 first-half points. How is that dumb? She was right on target, and we lost because Gillispie didn’t make any adjustments in regard to the question she asked.
Calathes had an outstanding first half against us last night, and her question was related to how we planned on limiting his court vision in the 2nd half. Again, completely related at the bare minimum, and even spot-on in my opinion.
The bottom line is Billy hates doing these interviews (which I don’t blame him for). His response is to act like a jerk (which I do blame him for). Twice now (@ UT & again last night) he let her ask her entire question without so much as making any indication in his body language that he couldn’t hear, only to reply, “I’m sorry, I didn’t hear your question.” BS. He heard the question. He’s just behaving like a small child forced to do something he doesn’t want to do.
It is part of his job at a big time college basketball program. It is not exactly what any coach wants to do at that moment, but it comes with the territory.
It makes Bruce Pearl’s halftime interview with Erin Andrews last year seem almost sensible.
Chris:
Believe me, I don’t operate on the assumption that a TV sideline reporter “has to be there” at halftime of a game to ask questions. Certainly no print reporter believes that. But that’s not the point. The reporter is there. That’s not going to change. ESPN and the other TV networks pay big bucks to telecast the games. The colleges, and coaches, readily accept that money. Happily, I might add. Therefore, the rules change.
I’m not even saying that Billy should give long, thoughtful answers to the questions. I am saying that he should at least be polite, and show some respect. Edwards is trying to do her job, just as Gillispie is trying to do his job.
All very fair points. And I certainly don’t disagree that he was a jerk. But a little media comeuppance once in a while certainly is entertaining.
I’ll say this, I work in an environment where a print journalist is covering sometimes, and if I was asked questions during a break in the action while I still had preparations to make, I wouldn’t like it either. Gillispie still has a job to do, even though the clock isn’t ticking. I’ve never thought stopping a coach on the way to the locker room when he has 20 minutes to make adjustments is a fair time to try to get interviews.
I agree with you there. The whole concept is questionable, at best. Rarely, if ever, is any worthwhile information gleaned, unless it’s an update on an injury, etc. And Jeannine would do better to edit the length of her questions.
Billy G not only represents the Ky Wildcats but the entire state of Ky. It seems every time he’s on national television he shows himself to be rude. Maybe he doesn’t care, but a lot of the Ky fans do not like how he represents the team or Ky. Mr. Barnhardt maybe should send Billy G to Miss Manners for some lessons before ESPN decides Ky isn’t worth showing on their network.
Please define “a lot of Ky fans”. One? One hundred? One million? I know some that think he is a jerk, some think he does a good job of representing the University, especially how he handled his donation to pediatric cancer patients, and some that don’t care about the half time interviews regardless of what happens as long as we win the game. Unless, of course, Bruce Pearl gets friskie with Erin Andrews again. Anecdotal statements add nothing to this discussion.
They hired Billy to coach the team, not do good interviews. I could care less how well he interviews as long as he can coach and recruit.
He’s a very emotional person and when his team isn’t playing well people should realize that it’s not a good time to stick a mic in his face and ask a moronic question. They WILL get called out on it.