Caitlin Clark and boyfriend Connor McCaffrey have gone viral for one specific reason after attending the Big Ten Tournament.
The WNBA superstar and her basketball coach boyfriend were at Gainbridge Fieldhouse – home of Clark’s Indiana Fever – Friday to catch the Big Ten men’s matchup between Illinois and Maryland.
Clark has been a regular feature at the arena throughout the tournament to soak up the action, including her former Iowa Hawkeyes clash against Ohio State, during her offseason.
However, the former No. 1 Draft pick and McCaffrey, who serves as an assistant coach at Butler, caught fans’ attention with their appearance at Friday’s game.
Cameras caught the couple in the stands during the game but neither had their attention on the court. Both were glued to their phones and it didn’t go unnoticed by several critical fans.
‘The generation glued to phones. It’s stupid,’ one social media user moaned on X.
Caitlin Clark and boyfriend Connor McCaffrey have gone viral for one specific reason
The couple were caught by cameras looking at their phones during a Big Ten matchup
‘Waste of good seats. No interest in the game. Stupid phones,’ another echoed.
‘Gen Z looking 100% detached af,’ a third griped as another added: ‘Typical american zombies….that pic says it all.’
‘Went to the tourney to stare at their phones,’ one chimed in, while another questioned, ‘Did they ever watch the game?’
Meanwhile, others appeared to take a dig a modern-day romances with one writing, ‘Probs texting each other,’ with a second adding, ‘Looks like a typical date in 2025 – damn phones.’
However, others were quick to come to Clark and McCaffrey’s defense, pointing out that McCaffrey’s father, Fran, had just been fired as head coach of Iowa’s men’s team Friday afternoon.
Iowa, the alma mater of both Clark and McCaffrey, reportedly dismissed the coach Friday following 15 years in charge.
In his time leading the Hawkeyes, McCaffrey clinched seven NCAA tournament appearances and produced four NBA draftees in the last four drafts. However, Iowa never advanced past the second round of the tournament with him in charge.
Connor McCaffrey played under his father at Iowa from 2017 through 2023 before his current job as an assistant coach at Butler.
Fans blasted the couple for being more focused on their phones than the on-court action
Butler’s campus is in Indianapolis, keeping him a close distance from Clark’s time with the Indiana Fever.
Fran McCaffrey, 65, was the third-longest tenured coach in the Big Ten Conference, tied with Oregon ‘s Dana Altmann, with the Ducks joining the league this season, having taken the helm in 2010.
Only Michigan State’s Tom Izzo and Purdue’s Matt Painter have been at their respective Big Ten schools longer.
This season, Iowa finished 17-16 overall and 7-13 in the Big Ten Conference, tied for the third-worst mark in the league.
In his final game at the Hawkeyes’ helm on Thursday against Illinois, McCaffrey got back-to-back technical fouls and was ejected.
