Chip Gaines Shows Off Edgy Side In Off-Brand Exchange With Twitter Critic (Take The Phone, Jo!)

There may be much we don't know about Chip Gaines, but anyone even remotely familiar with the "Fixer Upper" star knows he's fiercely proud of his alma mater. Baylor University, in his hometown of Waco, Texas, is a private Christian institution that also happens to boast an excellent sports program. The Baylor Bears football team is a member of the Big 12 Conference, and their basketball team won the NCAA championship in 2021 — an achievement Baylor alums would like to see duplicated in the very near future. So when rumors rumbled about Baylor's head coach potentially signing on with the University of Kentucky, Gaines jumped online to give some UK fans some friendly grief. 

On April 10, Baylor's Scott Drew — not to be confused with fellow HGTV renovator Drew Scott! — posted a selfie on X (the new name for the old Twitter) from "a great lunch spot in Waco." Gaines reposted the picture as apparent proof the coach was staying put, which prompted a Kentucky fan to tweet a pic of Gaines and his wife Joanna, saying, "Keep these two away from Scott Drew for the next 48 hours." Gaines responded with a ROFL emoji and a taunt: "yall wish." Another Wildcats supporter warned, "You don't want to go band for band with us Chip," to which Gaines retorted, "Money is boring...everybody's got money. We've got God on our side."

The rivalry continued as Big Blue boosters took pot shots at the Magnolia Network star. He was more than up to the challenge.

Who knew Chip Gaines was such a master of the clapback? When U. of Kentucky fans tried to rib him about Baylor basketball coach Scott Drew, Gaines matched them blow for blow. One snarker dared ask on X, "Who tf is @chipgaines?", to which Gaines replied, "Do you kiss your mom with that mouth...ask her who I am, she'll know." (Turns out, Mom did!) Another UK loyalist suggested distracting the Gaineses by renovating their house "while we go get Drew."

One loyal Wildcat dealt the ultimate "Fixer Upper" threat: "[I]f you mess this up for UK I'm taking all the shiplap out of my house and you can tell Jo I said that too." But after a few minutes, they walked it back: "I'm actually scared that he's really going to tell @joannagaines I said that. My house has way too many Hearth & Hand items in it to have beef with the Gaines'."

As Gaines himself tweeted, the rivalry was "all in good fun," and many followers agreed. Said one, "Playful banter between the #BBN and @chipgaines wasn't on my BINGO card for this coaching search, but I'm here for it."

So far, Joanna Gaines has stayed out of the fray. Busy with her family, the Magnolia Network, and their projects, she hasn't posted anything on X since 2023. But she's a Baylor alum too, so if Coach Drew leaves the Lone Star State, Jo might be the one ripping shiplap off every home in Kentucky.