Anyone who has attended Villanova for more than a while is probably aware of the school’s foremost source of Instagram updates on anything from sports to special events. @BarstoolNova, an affiliate of the wider Barstool Sports franchise, posts on Instagram several times weekly, its content ranging from quick, pseudo-professional reports on scores to memes mocking our opponents-or sometimes even our own team. Such was the case on Friday, Nov. 8, in anticipation of a men’s basketball game against NJIT at the Finneran Pavilion.
The Instagram post at the center of the controversy was shared around 3 p.m. on the afternoon of the game, just hours before the Wildcats would go up against the Highlanders after beating Lafayette, 75-63, on Monday and losing to Columbia, 90-80, on Wednesday.
Splashed across the account’s classic teal background, a message implored Villanova fans in the student section to chant “Fire Neptune” for the first three minutes of the game, in an effort to call attention to widespread disappointment with the team’s recent performance under men’s basketball coach Kyle Neptune. The comment section quickly flooded with mixed responses. Some students, alumni and parents seemed to get behind this form of “protest,” tagging friends or leaving messages of agreement, while others took a different approach, criticizing the suggestion as juvenile and inappropriate.
Most notably, though, was the fact that the post was quickly deleted. After around an hour, it was no longer visible on the BarstoolNova account, scrubbing the profile of any evidence that this plan was encouraged. Whether the account holder was contacted by Villanova officials, pressured by dissenters in their comments or direct messages or simply planning to do so all along is still unclear and likely will remain that way.
However, one thing is very clear: Villanova fans are tired of the current status quo, and some are willing to go to extreme measures to try and cause some form of change. Despite the NCAA championship in 1985, and the more recent wins in 2016 and 2018 under Jay Wright, Villanova’s men’s basketball team hasn’t even been selected for March Madness the past two years. Villanova’s current standing for men’s basketball is the lowest out of the Big East Conference, which includes 11 schools.
Naturally, anyone who was hoping for more exciting victories and winning team spirit might be disappointed.
“Before my freshman year, I knew Villanova as a powerhouse basketball school,” junior Marie Loroz said. “I expected a winning record, March Madness runs and exciting game days. The reality of the program has fallen far short of those expectations.”
Although this sense of frustration may be the consensus, it didn’t necessarily translate into the protest that Nova Barstool was hoping for that Friday. Nobody chanted “Fire Neptune” more than once or twice, let alone after the first three minutes on the clock. Most people stayed completely silent and opted to not chant at all. Aside from the usual heckling of the opposing team and a few of the usual boos for Neptune when he stepped onto the courts, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. However, the fact that taunting our team’s coach has become the new normal may be a cause for concern. Especially considering the lack of impact it has had on the team’s operations, leadership, and plans, it could be worth reconsidering this approach, as hard as it may seem.
“I think that booing or chanting has no actual outcome. It’s just an outlet for people’s anger and frustration,” freshman Jackson Landers said.
Although the disappointment with the men’s team’s recent performance is widespread, so is the idea that some basic level of decorum at games should be respected. After all, a few people in the student section probably won’t change the way our team runs, but it may end up distracting our players and lowering overall morale. So it remains up to us: to boo or not to boo?
