Jay Jacobs, master of the diplomatic response

It seems to me that if I were a guy that was the slightest bit concerned that Charles Barkley was essentially accusing me of hanging a robe and a hood in my closet, I could come up with… oh, say, several thousand answers better than the one Jay Jacobs actually gave to this loaded question:

What’s your reaction to those who say your decision was made based on race?
“Well, my reaction is, I was picking the best fit for Auburn.”

Yecchh, what a dumb response.  All he left out was the punchline:  “… and at Auburn, black head coaches don’t fit in.”

Jay, here’s a suggestion for you.  If there’s a next time, try “that’s bullshit”.  Or “you’ve got to be kidding.”  Or “I may be a consummate idiot, but I’m not a racist.”  Even a simple “no way” would suffice.  See how easy that is?

If you need training in how to do it, here you go:

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UPDATE: Tony Barnhart weighs in.

… But you can’t ignore the fact that to others the word “fit” has an entirely different meaning. It is code for doing the thing that is comfortable instead of doing the thing that is right.

Barnhart is famously non-confrontational, so when there’s nothing in his post today defending Jacobs’ and Gogue’s actions and comments about the hire, that’s not good for Auburn.  Neither is Barnhart’s point about recruiting.