“I tend to look at that huge majority that I think is supportive and appreciative of the 15 years. I’ve said it, and I believe it — I never cheated that place one second of one day. . . . I love that place so much. If somebody says ‘Rock Chalk Jayhawk’ when I’m walking through an airport, I still say, ‘Go KU.’ I have no problem doing that because I truly loved my 15 years. In fact it’s probably the happiest 15 years of my life.”

Caught in the middle of all this, of course, is the coach on the Kansas sideline Saturday. Bill Self, who replaced Williams in 2003 and has posted a 140-32 record at Kansas, had just shaken the label of Best Coach Who Has Never Reached The Final Four and suddenly he was being asked about coaching against Williams. For five years, Self has been in the odd position of following a man who is both loved and hated by passionate Kansas fans.

This week it promises to take Self down an even stranger path.

“Well, they probably will be asking him all the questions about it as opposed to me,” Self said Sunday. “I can't speak for Roy. But it's North Carolina's players against Kansas' players. It's been five years since Roy went to Carolina. I'm sure I'll say this again, but I'll say it now: As Kansas fans, representing Kansas, we should be proud of the time that Roy gave us, because excellence was definitely the standard while he was there.

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“There may be some talk about it, all those things. But our focus will not be on that. Our focus will be on their team. When fans get upset, all that is a backhanded compliment because they didn't want you to leave. I'm sure Roy knows that. But this should be about players instead of coaches.”

Since leaving Kansas, Williams has insisted he would never face the Jayhawks in a regular-season game. He says he would never return to Allen Fieldhouse as an opponent. The only way he would go against Kansas, he said, would be in the NCAA Tournament.

As much as Williams probably wished it would never happen, the Tar Heels and Jayhawks have made it reality. Now he’s the one who has to deal with it — and it won’t be easy.

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