NEWNow you can listen to Pak Gazette articles!
Former NFL star Cam Newton had a message for the Grambling State and Bethune-Cookman college football programs on the latest episode of his podcast after a fight broke out between players from each team over the weekend.
The halftime melee resulted in the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) imposing suspensions on 27 players, including three who were suspended for two games. Each program also received thousands of dollars in fines.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON PakGazette.Com
Then-Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton (1) walks on the field during the second half against the Miami Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium on Nov. 28, 2021. (Jasen Vinlove/USA TODAY Sports)
Newton said on “4th & 1” that historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) were “delayed” because of the fighting that occurred in the countryside.
“I despise the actions…I’m extremely disgusted with what happened. Why? It’s because make no mistake, I’ve spoken at length about equal opportunity,” Newton said. “We’re sitting here trying to get more access, more visibility, to amplify the platform of HBCUs. It doesn’t matter if you’re in the MEAC, the SWAC, the SIAC, the OVC, or whatever conference you’re at, if you’re a representation of Blackness and Black culture, you should look at this and say to yourself, ‘This set us back.'”
Newton wondered what would happen if the fight took place on a major network that broadcast college football games and what the conversation would be around HBCU programs.
He added that overall the image has been damaged as schools are trying to grow in terms of name, image and likeness deals and seeking sponsors.
Former NFL quarterback Cam Newton watches a game between the Howard Bison and the Florida A&M Rattlers in the first half at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Dec. 16, 2023. (Brett Davis/USA TODAY Sports)
NCAA PUTS MICHIGAN STATE FOOTBALL ON 3 YEARS OF PAROLE, LEAVES 14 WINS
The former Carolina Panthers star quarterback also took issue with Grambling State head coach Mickey Joseph’s initial comments following the fight. Joseph initially said that the school was not going to tolerate “disrespect” and that they would “meet disrespect with disrespect.”
Joseph apologized and retracted his comments, but it still didn’t sit well with Newton.
“I can forgive you for what you said, I can never forget what you said,” Newton said. “It’s almost like, why are you apologizing? Are you apologizing because someone above you said, ‘That’s not a good look and you should apologize for that’? Or are you apologizing because that’s how you really feel?”
“Anybody in SWAC, MEAC, SIAC, CIAA, OVC, I’m mad because they set us back, man. They set us back.”
The SWAC reprimanded the schools and players who participated in the fight.
“We are extremely disappointed by the events that occurred during halftime of the Bethune-Cookman football game at Grambling State,” SWAC Commissioner Dr. Charles McClelland said in a statement. “Acts of that nature have no place in the Southwestern Athletic Conference and intercollegiate athletics.
Detailed view of a penalty flag during a football game on November 7, 2024 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Cooper Neill/Getty Images)
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE Pak Gazette APP
“The Conference Office has and will continue to enforce a zero-tolerance policy for all acts deemed unsportsmanlike and contrary to the high level of good sportsmanship we expect from all individuals associated with the athletics programs within our league.”
