Memphis changes mind about John Calipari tribute
It took the University of Memphis all of 24 hours to realize how its basketball fans feel about John Calipari.
On Wednesday, Memphis president David Rudd announced that the Tigers have planned a ceremony to honor Calipari in December. Fans on Twitter immediately went ballistic, flooding Rudd with complaints about the Derrick Rose academic scandal and how Calipari left the school after a Final Four appearance was vacated.
Rudd assured Memphis fans he was listening to their concerns, and he issued a statement on Thursday apologizing for the lousy idea and canceling Calipari’s scheduled appearance.
Here is my response to our University and Community. pic.twitter.com/A8yx1ZlVDd
— Dr. M. David Rudd (@UofMemphisPres) September 10, 2015
You can read some of the tweets that angry Memphis fans sent here.
Calipari is credited with putting Memphis basketball on the map, but the reaction probably would not have been as negative if he had won a championship or two. Instead, he got the Tigers close and then skipped town when the future looked grim.
