AP Photo/Ed Reinke
Big Blue Links for Saturday starts with Herald-Leader coverage of Friday’s events:
- Jerry Tipton and Ryan Alessi report on the firing of Billy Gillispie.
- My column saying that this was the right move at the right time.
- Mark Story’s column on how Mitch Barnhart’s task at hand.
- Chip Cosby writes on the national reaction.
- Mike Fields reports that recruits will wait-and-see.
- Jennifer Smith and Jerry Tipton write that players just want some rest.
- Jim Warren gets the UK fan reaction to the Gillispie ouster.
- Ryan Alessi and Valarie Honeycutt Spears report that UK intends to settle for less than the $6 million buyout.
- Alessi and Tipton report that Mike Pratt will be part of search team.
- Gillispie timeline.
- Press conference video.
- Billy Gillispie in pictures.
Elsewhere:
- Jodie Meeks tells Metz Camfield of the Kentucky Kernel he thinks firing “was a good decision.”
- Andrea Cohen of the Oklahoman reports that UK has not asked for permission to speak with Travis Ford.
- Bill Haisten of the Tulsa World writes on Ford rumors with Kentucky.
- Brandon Chatmon of the Oklahoman quotes Daniel Orton’s father as saying they have not decided yet about coming to Kentucky.
- Larry Vaught of the Danville Advocate-Messenger writes that it was demeanor that got Gillispie in the end.
- Vaught talks to Orestes Meeks, who doesn’t seem a Gillispie fan.
- Kevin Brockway of the Gainesville Sun reports that Billy Donovan says he’s not interested in UK job.
- Rick Bozich of the Courier-Journal writes that this is Barnhart’s pivotal decision.
- Eric Crawford of the C-J writes that it was all about the wins, or lack of wins.
- Brett Dawson of the C-J writes that dismissal has to do with conflict over roles, public.
- Jody Demling of C-J writes that recruits may re-think Cats.
- Michael Grant of the C-J reports that many fans were prepared for Billy G. dismissal.
- Joe Biddle of the Tennessean writes that next coach should realize UK is more than a job.
- CBS Sportsline’s Gregg Doyel writes that Gillispie just didn’t get it.
- Fox Sports’ Jeff Goodman on the Gillispie firing.
- Mike DeCourcy of Sporting News writes that with Donovan out, pressure on UK administration.
- Tom Leach writes that fortune favors the bold in the UK search.
- Kernel columnist Kenny Colston writes that new coach will now know what not to do.
- Blair Kerkhoff of the Kansas City Star writes that Billy G. firing could make an impact on Big 12.
- Sports Illustrated’s Seth Davis says Gillispie was just a bad fit.
- Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning-News says Gillispie took a bad left turn.
- The Kernel’s Bobby Reagan guages reaction to Gillispie firing.
- Maysville Ledger Independent gets area reaction to the UK news.
- Darrell Bird of the Cats Pause on the coaching search. (subscription)
- Chris Fisher of Kentucky Ink writes that Friday is a day that will live in infamy.
- A Sea of Blue writes on the Gillispie demise.
- Straitpinkie on Barnhart and Todd’s comments.
- UK Wildcat Country wants to know who gave the push that led to the fall.
- Gentry Estes of the Mobile Press-Register writes that ex-Wildcat Allen Edwards could follow Anthony Grant to Alabama.
- Mark Blaudschun of the Boston Globe writes Gillispie firing will have a domino effect.
- Roger Gowens of the Bleacher Report speculates on whether Ford and Gillispie might change jobs.
Billy G looked like a man who honestly wanted out of here and a man with the weight of the world off his shoulders
But come on……there he went turning on that “aw shucks” I am just here to work Billy, the same Billy that snookered Mitch, Lee, and the rest of BBN last time
You let Mr Sarcastic Billy out a few too many times when the heat got turned up….Edwards, Leach, etc, etc, etc, etc…..
Aint gone work this time my friend….you can hide “Mr Sarcastic” Billy at UTEP, A&M but not at UK. Now that it is all out there good luck finding a top drawer gig!!!
I think you really did miss Mr Wildcat and the Bear and sounds like you are ready to fight it out on the contract thing….but as you said you are ready to roll………..well roll on out of here because it is UK’s time to roll baby!!!!!!!!!!!
John,
I agree that he didn’t seem like a great fit, but I still feel that all of this problem is on Mitch Barnhart.
If he had done his homework, then he would have known about these issues. YouTube is pretty easy to use, you know.
I also wonder if extra stipulations which had not been previously discussed were in the full blown contract. That would also be on Mitch, IMO.
I also think Mitch got what he wanted, and then he didn’t want that.
I really think that Mitch could have “shielded” BCG so he could get all the recruting/coaching in order. I think you have to realize that I roster stunk and we had all the injuries last year. Then, we added some OK guys, but lost even more valuable guys in Crawford and Bradley. Our roster was back in order (well, maybe I should change that to was). Even if Meeks did leave.
I realize that BCG maybe has a Jekyll/Hyde personality, but you know what, if your administration was keeping you from doing your job, and then all the pressure boils over because you aren’t winning the way you’d like, then is it really the coach’s fault?
I don’t know if the recruiting stipulations are true, but it DEFINITELY sounds like something that could be true. If you could have gotten a scorer rather than Galloway but the administration blocked it, how much better could we have been? We’ll never know. But, I think anybody would agree that the pressure would have been a lot cooler and player, coaches, media, and administration would have been a lot better.
As “shakespear said,”…first we fire the lawyers” “or the coach and AD” as the case may be.
Now, what disaster will follow as we let Barnhart do his thing?
I appreciate Billy showing some class on his way out but also remember the context of his press conference.
He’s about to begin a potentially nasty settlement with UK for a lot of money, his reputation nationally is at stake and it’s also possible that if some of the rumored allegations are true (i.e. trying to dismiss Meeks, a possible physical confrontation with him, trying to kick Miller, with a concussion, off the team bus in Tampa etc)would he really want to say something with that hanging over his head by the school?
It was time for a change, a change needed to be made.
I wish coach well and just hope that Barnhart doesn’t screw up this hire like he did the last one….it would be small consolation to have the program damaged beyond repair yet him out of a job.
Mark Liptak
I mean just look at these two nimrods. What confidence could you have in such faces?
I mean nimrod in the biblical sense of course.
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