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AMERICAN SNAPSHOT: Coal miner gets VIP UK tickets after rushing straight from work to watch game with son

Michael McGuire, 29, stood out among the sea of blue and white fans in a gray work jersey with orange and silver caution stripes and a face filled with coal dust at the game

PIKEVILLE, KENTUCKY: A coal miner, who went viral after he rushed straight from work covered in dirt to take his son to his first basketball game, was praised by the legendary University of Kentucky Men's Basketball Coach John Calipari. At a game over the weekend, Michael McGuire, 29, of Pikeville, Kentucky, stood out among the sea of blue and white fans in a gray work jersey with orange and silver caution stripes and a face filled with coal dust. 

Due to a lack of time, the miner skipped going home to get changed and instead went directly to the straight game to meet his wife Molly, 27, and son Easton. The longtime University of Kentucky fan and coal worker told WKYT, "It was either go straight there or miss half the game. I’m just really excited to make all these memories with my kids and my wife." Calipari, the head coach, who comes from a coal mining family, was moved by the touching incident. He took to Twitter and offered VIP tickets for the dedicated father and his family.

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Easton, miner's adorable son was spotted "dancing" and having a "blast" during the game while the little family sat nearly courtside. Easton was sporting a black shirt with the word "cats" emblazoned in Kentucky blue.

Calipari shared the heart-touching photo of the father enjoying the game with his son on Twitter and wrote," 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!!"

Calipari went out to find the family and offered them VIP tickets to a home game at Rupp Arena this season.

The miner was surprised to learn that the photo Calipari had posted had become viral. McGuire told WKYT, "When I got out and got [cell phone] service on my way home, it went crazy. I couldn’t believe that it was real."

On Monday night, McGuire even had a phone conversation with Coach Cal, who he described as being "very down to earth." Easton has been "jumping up and down" ever since hearing the news and is "very excited" to receive a VIP experience, according to his mother. 

The family is eager to make yet another cherished memory as this will be Easton's first game at Rupp Arena and McGuire's second. "It’s mind-blowing that everybody came together like that," said the father.

As soon as the photo went viral, it attracted mixed reactions, with many praising the father and the legendary coach and some slamming them by calling it a setup. One user tweeted, "Big respect for that dad. We can argue the merits of our sports teams all day long but I’ve got a huge amount of respect for a dad being there for his son. Nice gesture and sentiment by Coach Cal as well."

A user on Twitter wrote, "He apparently never showers. This is a setup!!" Another said, "Right, my hubby has the rush from work many times. He washes up atleast his face & hands! Not that hard to do." "Does this guy just not wash?" penned another user.

Many users responded to the hate tweets. One user tweeted, "No leaving early in the energy sector and I bet he worked a long and grueling shift and didn’t have time to get out of his FRs so he could make his boy’s dream come true. He’s a hero. (I went from Due Process Stable to the natural gas fields of Clarksburg)."

Another user said, "Twitter is a rough place. Good for that guy and good for John for offering. Stop picking apart anything. And I don’t care about college basketball. Not everything is politics. Not everything is complicated. Just say that it’s a cool story."

One user said, "What a great father! Truly, I’m sure he wants nothing more than to go home shower and relax, but his dedication to his most precious asset and most important job is worthy of my salute (and everyone else’s)!"

Another user praised Calipari and said, "While I'm not a fan of your team, I do respect you. And publicly promoting this man's actions is why you are a great Coach."

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.