Miami Hurricanes Jim Larranaga addresses Charles Barkley claim in hilarious exchange

NBA analyst and basketball Hall of Famer Charles Barkley is a part of the crew covering the NCAA men’s basketball tournament for TBS and CBS. And on Saturday, during the halftime of the matchup between Houston and Villanova, Bakely and the crew interviewed Miami Hurricanes head coach Jim Larranaga; which led to this hilarious quote by the Miami headman.

Right as the interview kicked off, the two addressed Barley and his quote of going shirtless if Auburn beat Miami in their second-round matchup. As history would have it, the Tigers lost that game to the Hurricanes 79-61. Fast forward to Saturday when the Hurricanes head coach opened the interview with this response to Barley and his shirtless celebration that never happened.

“Hey Charles you and Kenny, Greg, and Clark there; first of all, I’m old enough to have seen you play a lot during your heyday you and Kenny and Clark and I loved it. And now I love even more listening to you guys’ banter with each other because you’re hysterically funny, and it would have been hysterically funny to see you take your shirt off on national television. It might have been rated X,” said Larranaga.

Barkley is an alum of Auburn University. And although he would have loved to see his Tigers take down the Hurricanes, it was Larranaga and Miami who got the last laugh this year. Maybe next year the Tigers will go further in the NCAA tournament and Barkley will have his shirtless celebration then.

Jim Larranaga’s halftime interview cut short

After being brought onto the CBS broadcast during halftime of the Elite Eight matchup between Houston and Villanova, Larranaga got into multiple conversation topics with the crew. After saying his team defeated Auburn to prevent Charles Barkley from taking off his shirt on television, Barkley joked with the Hurricanes’ coach that he still was hoping he would take his shirt off after all.

Larranaga was then asked how he balanced the team’s morale and enthusiasm for the NCAA Tournament while keeping focused on the goal at hand. Larranaga mentioned his friend, sports psychologist Bob Rotella, and how he helps him be a better coach and motivator for his players. As he brought up Barkley’s golfing, he started to explain who Rotella is before abruptly being cut off by Gumbel in the following exchange.

“Chuck, you’re a golfer,” said Larranaga. “Have you ever heard of Bob Rotella?”

“Oh he’s one of the greatest psychologists ever, yes he is,” said Barkley.

“Coach, thank you so much for joining us,” interrupted Gumbel after Barkley’s answer, continuing to say goodbye as Larranaga tried to speak more. “We appreciate you being with us. Second half is coming up, we can continue to talk after this. Good luck to you, maybe we’ll see you in New Orleans.”

Larranaga’s appearances on various interviews since the Hurricanes’ shocking win over Auburn have all been a great insight into his humor, and his CBS interview on Saturday was no exception. Despite the awkward finish, Larranaga continues to enjoy his current success as Miami is set to play in the Elite Eight for the first time in school history.