Pat McAfee Sparks Backlash Over U.S. Military Remark on ESPN's College GameDay

Q: What forced officials to deploy unprecedented security and strict crowd bans at a college football game?

Officials were driven to deploy extraordinary security because Lane Kiffin’s first return to Oxford as LSU’s coach was expected to create an unusually volatile atmosphere at the Ole Miss-LSU game. The concern was not tied to a specific threat, according to Mississippi authorities. It was the combination of Kiffin’s bitter departure from Ole Miss just before the College Football Playoff, the long-running LSU-Ole Miss rivalry, the presence of transferred players who followed him to LSU, and the scale of a top-10 SEC matchup that was expected to draw massive crowds and intense emotions. That is why Mississippi assembled what it called the largest law-enforcement presence ever used for a college football game in the state. The operation included roughly 65 to 70 state troopers and transportation officers, a helicopter, a mobile command center, mounted patrol support, and assistance from Louisiana State Police. Ole Miss also imposed unusually strict crowd-control rules, including banning anyone wearing LSU gear or colors from the student section and warning that violators would be removed. Officials also added barriers near team-arrival areas and expanded crowd-management planning around The Grove and Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. In short, it was Kiffin’s hostile homecoming to his former school — layered onto a major rivalry game with playoff implications — that forced officials to take unprecedented security steps and crowd restrictions.

1 articles · Updated · Fox News · Sep 19

Pat McAfee drew online backlash after saying on ESPN's "College GameDay" that if non-U.S. entities hear the American military, "your ass better run."
Ole Miss hosted the show as the Mississippi National Guard flew over the set and the crowd chanted "USA," prompting the exchange with host Rece Davis during the live broadcast.
X users blasted the remark and the segment as propaganda and jingoism, with some critics saying "College GameDay" was becoming overly political.
The flare-up adds to scrutiny around the program after it recently hosted Sen. Ted Cruz to discuss the Protect College Sports Act and the future of college athletics.