In the days that have followed the controversy surrounding the Divine Providence documentary, Jeff Goodman has publicly stayed silent on the matter.
That changed on Tuesday night, as the college basketball insider posted a social media video addressing the legal threats he sent to the anonymous creator of the YouTube video which focused on Ed Cooley’s departure from Providence to Georgetown.
While Goodman admitted that the direct messages were a “bad look,” he said that he stands by the criticism of the documentary. Furthermore, he accused the creator of the video, who goes by the social media handle @BlueDemonDegen, of misleading those who participated in the documentary.
“The DMs are a bad look and I own it. I was upset because of how this whole thing went down,” Goodman said. “I was defending someone who was caught up in that and I felt like he didn’t deserve it. I always back my guys, without apology. But I know I could certainly be better in how I choose to do that.
“I just felt like this anonymous individual who created this documentary didn’t go about it the right way, which upset me and others. He misled those he interviewed by naming his company ‘Big East Films,’ implying credibility and an affiliation with the league. The film then went on to highlight baseless rumors while hiding behind the anonymity of a nameless Twitter profile. Yeah, it bothered me. There was no accountability. But I reacted in the moment and I should have handled it better.”
Just wanted to address yesterday’s situation. pic.twitter.com/Oy0FDGTmrI
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) January 31, 2024
While it’s unclear who Goodman was defending, it’s worth noting that his Field of 68 colleague, John Fanta, was interviewed for the film. As for the baseless rumors, the documentary includes an interview with a diehard Providence fan who accuses Cooley participating in extra marital affairs during his time as the Friars’ head coach.
Without knowing more about about the process in which the documentary was put together, it’s impossible to know whether or not the participants were truly misled. Goodman’s point about the name ‘Big East Films’ giving the project credibility is valid, but it’s also a leap to say that it was an intentional ploy to mislead participants without any additional evidence.
As for the allegations against Cooley, while the creator of the film is anonymous, the fan who actually made comments isn’t. Cooley certainly has a right to take issue with both the creator of the film and the fan who made the comments. But that’s his battle to fight, not Goodman’s.
Ultimately, if Goodman is under the impression that somebody close to him was misled, then it’s understandable he would be upset, although — as he acknowledges — he should have handled the situation more maturely. Instead, by sending BlueDemonDegen thinly veiled threats such as “How do you look in orange?” and “In the offseason, when I have time, I will track down who you are,” he only further inflamed the situation, which resulted in Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy promoting the film (while also mocking Goodman).
Earlier on Tuesday, YouTube pulled the original Divine Providence video due to copyright issues, although it still exists on other platforms. With the video expected to be the first in a series of 11 documentaries about each Big East men’s basketball program, it will be interesting to see how the project moves forward following the unexpected attention its debut received.
