Viral photo of coal miner and his son at UK scrimmage hits home for John Calipari

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The McGuires are like a lot of Kentuckians.

Michael, Mollie, and their two kids love the Cats. So naturally, when the Wildcats were coming to the family's hometown of Pikeville for the annual blue-white scrimmage, they had to go.

"It was heartwarming that they were willing to come to eastern Kentucky to help out and I knew that my husband and my son (Easton) were going to get to share that experience," Mollie McGuire said. "He was like, 'Are they going to be super tall?' And I was like, 'They are buddy, they're going to be super tall.'"

Michael McGuire works for Excel Mining. On the night of the game, he was running a bit late and had no option but to go straight there after work.

That led to a photo being captured and posted on social media of him sitting at the game still wearing his work clothes and coal on his face. It went viral, catching the attention of UK's head coach, John Calipari.

Calipari wasted no time tweeting "My family’s American dream started in a Clarksburg, WV coal mine, so this picture hits home."

My family’s American dream started in a Clarksburg, WV coal mine, so this picture hits home.

From what I’ve been told, after his shift, he raced to be with his son & watch our team. Don’t know who this is, but I have tickets for him & his family at Rupp to be treated as VIPs!! pic.twitter.com/a5BJXUnK2v
— John Calipari (@UKCoachCalipari) October 24, 2022

"I didn't really discover it until I got service today when I got out from work," Michael McGuire said. "My phone just went crazy."

"He wanted to be there so bad that he was willing to leave without showering, without changing, just get in his car and go because he got out of the mine late," Calipari said.

McGuires said Calipari promised a UK super fan's dream tickets to watch the Wildcats in Rupp Arena, new fan gear and even a dinner with the coach himself.

"I'm just so happy that, not only the Big Blue Nation came together to support you, but the appreciation for what my husband does," Mollie McGuire said. "It brought me to tears a couple of times today."

For Calipari, it's about more than basketball. It's the power of a relationship between a father and a son.

"I've done some things that have been fulfilling for my wife and I," he said. "But this, you'd have to say you're bringing light to a good man, (a) hard working Kentuckian, a coal miner, who does everything he can to make time for his family and his son and his daughter. Come on. That's what it ends up being. That's the story."

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