Then at the tour’s first stop in Louisville on Tuesday, the on-site demand was such that Calipari stuck around another hour just to meet and greet all the faithful. To go by social media, or the radio airwaves, or your neighbor down the street, Calipari was lucky if he had a single friend left in the entire Commonwealth. You can be forgiven if you wondered what the turnout might be for this particular weeklong UK basketball out-and-about tour, one that is helping support continuing relief for those affected by the tornadoes in western Kentucky last year, but one that also came after that shockingly early March Madness exit, which followed the 9-16 COVID catastrophe the season before. “Our fans are engaged,” Calipari said afterward. I guess that’s why last Thursday at the Kroger at Marketplace Circle in Georgetown, the line to get Calipari’s autograph “only” stretched the entire length of the superstore and beyond.Īnd I guess that’s why Calipari “only” had to take the scheduled 90-minute session into another 45 minutes of OT to make sure every last signature request for every last poster, T-shirt, bourbon bottle, book, photo, banner - you name it - was accommodated. They’re ready to take up their pitchforks and start marching on the Joe Craft Center demanding the immediate removal of the Kentucky basketball coach. They’re furious over the embarrassing first-round NCAA Tournament loss to No. Oh man, the fans are down on John Calipari.

2015 2016 uk basketball roster