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Kentucky President: We Knew About Calipari and We Support Him

The University of Kentucky has not had a good couple of days this week. It started off with the weekend disclosure that one of the stars of the football team had been suspended for his senior season for failing a drug test, due to performance enhancing drug he used from an over the counter supplement he was taking while rehabbing from an injury.

The last couple of days is when things really got interesting. First, it was announced that former and fired basketball coach Billy Gillispie filed suit against the university in federal court in Dallas for $6 million due him as a result of his firing. Yesterday, the university fired back, suing Gillispie in Kentucky state court, alleging that, properly, it can only be sued in Franklin County, Kentucky circuit court and is not subject to suit in Texas, particularly over a contract made in and performed in Kentucky. If this case ever goes to trial, it could get real interesting, given all the various rumors about Billy Clyde's lifestyle while he was in the Bluegrass.

His replacement was not to be denied the headlines yesterday either. It looks like Coach Cal is going to go two for two in Final Fours, becoming the first coach in NCAA history to have Final Four appearances vacated for two different schools. UK officials are saying that Calipari was forthcoming about the investigation, that he is not currently named by the NCAA as being investigated and that UK stands by Cal and supports him. If that's true, Kentucky is a bigger whore than I thought, and that is really saying something, since the boys in blue rival Jerry Tarkanian for the NCAA detention list. This scenario smells a whole lot like the Indiana - Kelvin Sampson saga only with far more serious violations and a university whose basketball program has far less integrity.

The question still remains for AD Mitch Barnhart: What changed in the two years between the hiring of Gillispie and his firing that made you go after Calipari, when he was untouchable before Gillispie because of his reputation? An appearance in the national title game suddenly wiped out all the questions about his reputation, the way he runs a program and the way he recruits? Do you now have any regrets?

Here's a report from Jeff Goodman, a senior basketball writer from Foxsports.com

Full post as published by Sports Biz on May 29, 2009 (boomark / email).